The Bologna Process
The Bologna Process represents a commitment by 46 European countries to undertake a series of reforms in order to achieve greater consistency and portability across their higher education systems. The process is having a profound effect on the development of higher education globally, as observers from other continents are taking a close interest in the reform process and beginning to consider how of their own systems might to respond to ‘Bologna’ thinking. Australia needs to consider how best to respond to these global developments if its own higher education system is to continue to be seen as being of high quality and relevant to international standards and requirements.
The Bologna Process
The Bologna Process involves 46 European countries undertaking a series of reforms intended to create an integrated European higher education area by 2010. Signatories to the agreement have agreed to work towards greater consistency in areas such as degree structures, credit transfer and quality assurance systems.
Ministers responsible for higher education in the Bologna countries meet every second year to measure progress and set priorities for action. After Bologna (1999), they met in Prague (2001), Berlin (2003) and Bergen (2005), London (2007) and Leuven/Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium (April 2009). The next Ministerial meeting in Vienna and Budapest on 11–12 April 2010 will mark the 10th anniversary of the Process. The conference will mainly revolve around the presentation and discussion of an independent assessment report.
The Australian response
2009 Bologna Policy Forum
Australia’s active engagement with the Bologna Process was recognised with an invitation to the first Bologna Policy Forum that took place on 29 April 2009 at the University of Louvain-la-Neuve (Belgium) in conjunction with the 2009 Bologna Ministerial Conference.
The Forum was the first of its kind to be organised between ministers of the 46 Bologna countries and colleagues from different parts of the world, reflecting the growing interest in the Bologna Process from countries outside Europe. It also reflects the increasing interest of European countries in developing closer links with other higher education systems.
The countries represented at the 2009 Forum were Australia, Brazil, Canada, P.R. China, Egypt, Ethiopia, Israel, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mexico, Morocco, New Zealand, Tunisia, and the U.S., as well as the International Association of Universities.
Australia’s statement to the Forum offered comments on Australia’s interest in the Bologna Process and the opportunity to engage in the Process in future dialogues.
Participants noted that the Policy Forum helped foster mutual understanding and learning in the field of higher education and has laid the ground for sustainable cooperation in the future in the statement from the Bologna Policy Forum.
The next Bologna Policy Forum will be held in Vienna on 12 March 2009.
Bologna Ministerial Advisory Group
The Ministerial Advisory Group on Bologna was established in 2007 as a part of Australia's response to the Bologna Process of higher reform in Europe. The Bologna Ministerial Advisory Group (BMAG) has the objective of assisting both the government and the sector in staying abreast of Bologna developments and anticipating issues for Australia. Members of the Group share an interest in Bologna Process developments. Bologna is of interest to Australia for multiple reasons, including that it represents a significant internationalisation process and is designed to improve mobility for students and graduates.
The second meeting of BMAG was held on 19 March 2009 at Macquarie University. The terms of reference for BMAG were to monitor and foster debate on developments with regard to the Bologna Process and related activities in Europe; to provide advice to the Minister for Education, Employment and Workplace Relations on the Bologna Process; and to anticipate and provide leadership on Bologna and related activities for the Australia’s higher education sector.
Items discussed were:
- The European Qualifications Framework
- European Higher Education Area
- The Tuning Project
- Ranking systems
- Mobility
- Key policy directions from the Bradley Review of Higher Education and Cutler Review of the National Innovation System
- Regional cooperation and harmonisation
- Assessment of Higher Education Learning Outcomes (AHELO)
- Australian Higher Education Graduation Statements
Members of the 2009 BMAG were:
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Professor Maxwell King |
Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research and Research Training)
Convenor, Council of Deans and Directors of Graduate Studies in Australia
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Professor Ingrid Moses |
Chancellor, University of Canberra
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Professor David Rich |
Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Provost, University of Tasmania
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Professor Ian Young |
Vice-Chancellor, Swinburne University of Technology
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Professor Jane den Hollander |
Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Curtin University of
Technology
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Mr Colin Walters |
AEI Group Manager, DEEWR
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Ms Fiona Buffinton |
Higher Education Group Manager, DEEWR
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Mr David Barrow |
President, National Union of Students
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Professor Ian McDougall |
The Royal Australian Institute of Architects (RAIA)
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Professor Steven Schwartz |
Vice-Chancellor Macquarie University, Universities Australia
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Ms Rosemary Potter |
The Australian Council of Private Education and Training
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The next BMAG meeting will be held on 1 February 2010.
Diploma Supplement
The Diploma Supplement is a European initiative that aims to describe a higher education qualification in an easily understandable way and relate it to the higher education system within which it was issued.
There is widespread and increasing use of the Diploma Supplement across Europe, much of which is driven by students and other stakeholders, who recognise its value in describing qualifications in a way that is clear to potential employers and other higher education institutions.
Under the Lisbon Recognition Convention (ratified by Australia in 2002), Australia has an international obligation to promote the widespread use of a Diploma Supplement by Australian tertiary institutions. In Australia the Diploma Supplement is known as the Australian Higher Education Graduation Statement (AHEGS).
The Australian Higher Education Graduation Statement
Australian Higher Education Graduation Statement Implementation
In September 2009 the Hon Julia Gillard MP, Minister for Education, made an announcement, committing funding of $3.7 million for the implementation of the Australian Higher Education Graduation Statement (AHEGS) in Australia in the form of $100 000 grants to publicly funded Australian universities. There have been two funding rounds for the implementation of the AHEGS. Twenty-seven universities received grants as a part of the 2008 funding round, and the remaining ten universities will also be implementing the AHEGS over the next few years.
The implementation of the AHEGS in Australia will mean Australian awards are more likely to be well understood internationally, increasing Australian graduates' international mobility for further study or employment purposes and sharpening further Australia's competitiveness in the international education export market.
Adoption of the AHEGS in Australia will also support the achievement of the common goal agreed to by Ministers attending the Asia-Pacific Education Ministers’ Meeting in April 2006, of increasing greater student and academic mobility and transferability of qualifications.
Guidelines for the Presentation of the AHEGS
Guidelines for the Presentation of an Australian Higher Education Graduation Statement have been developed to provide information for institutions intending to prepare AHEGS, including the content of the core and optional elements and some worked examples. This document defines the principles of an AHEGS in terms of its purpose, relationship to other documentation, content and style, issuing and authentication.
The first AHEGS will be presented to graduates at selected universities from 2009 onwards and is expected to be provided to graduates at all universities by the end of 2011.
Bologna National Seminar (2006)
The Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, together with key Australian stakeholders, engaged in consultations regarding the Bologna process in 2006.
The Bologna National Seminar was held on 7 September 2006 at the Australian National University. The opening address was given by the Hon Julie Bishop MP, Minister of the former Department of Education, Science and Training, and was attended by 130 participants. The keynote speaker was Professor Stephen Adam, who, among his many credentials, is a member of the European expert group advising on the creation of a European Qualification Framework and the UN National Dfes European Commission Bologna Promoter. Presentations made at the seminar can be found at the AEI website.
This event was supported by two previous phases of consultation:
- The release of a discussion paper – The Bologna Process and Australia: Next Steps pdf (625kb) rtf (1330kb) and an invitation to make submissions in response.
The paper was released by the Hon Julie Bishop MP, Minister of the former Department of Education, Science and Training, on 4 April 2006, to stimulate discussion about the Bologna Process.
DEEWR received 34 Submissions from interested parties in response to the "Next Steps" paper.
Consultations occurred in:
- Melbourne – 21 July 2006
- Sydney – 24 July 2006
- Brisbane – 25 July 2006
- Canberra – 28 July 2006
- Perth – 2 August 2006
- Adelaide – 3 August 2006
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Below are a number of useful resources for understanding the Bologna Process and its global, regional and national implications.
Useful links and information
The Official Bologna Process website provides information and news about developments in the Bologna Process and about the work program. News and events updates are added to the website on an ongoing basis.
The UK HE Europe Unit provides an overview of the Bologna Process, which outlines the functions, historical development, actions lines and present developments of the Bologna Process. It also includes a number of useful links to other websites and research resources.
The Euractiv website provides basic information on the Bologna Process, as well as information on related issues, such as eLearning and lifelong learning.
The European Commission website on Education and Training provides a European Union perspective on the Bologna Process, as well as general information on the Process.
The National Union of Students in Europe (ESU) website releases documents on the effect of the Bologna reforms on students at the European level.
The Academic Co-operation Association (ACA) website focuses on European co-operation in education and training by monitoring developments through publications, news and events.
The European Universities Association (EUA) website provides an overview of its work in helping establish a European Higher Education Area (EHEA) through the Bologna Process, as well as a “Bologna Basics” and a “Bologna Handbook”.
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Declarations, Communiqués and Conventions
Declarations
Bologna Declaration (1999) (pdf 23kb)
The Bologna Process was formally initiated in 1999 with the signing of the Bologna Declaration by 29 European countries. Since then, a series of meetings has been held to set objectives and review the Process. The following declarations and communiqués document the progress of the Bologna Process.
Sorbonne Joint Declaration (1998) (pdf 16kb)
The Sorbonne Declaration, which focussed on facilitating academic mobility and harmonising educational structures within Europe, was a precursor to the Bologna Process.
Communiqués
Leuven/Louvain-la-Neuve Communiqué (2009)
London Communiqué (2007)
Bergen Communiqué (2005) (pdf 44kb)
Berlin Communiqué (2003) (pdf 34kb)
Prague Communiqué (2001) (pdf 76kb)
Conventions
Salamanca Convention (2001) (pdf 20kb)
Graz Declaration (2003) (pdf 99kb)
The Salamanca Convention and the Graz Declaration, which were written by the European Universities Association (EUA), have also contributed to the Bologna Process. These documents were prepared for the Prague (2001) and Berlin (2003) meetings on the Bologna Process and detail the goals, principles and priorities of over 300 European higher education institutions and peak bodies.
Lisbon Recognition Convention (1997) (pdf 142kb)
The Lisbon Recognition Convention, or the Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher Education in the European Region, is the one legal instrument specifically acknowledged in the Bologna Process. Its ratification by all member countries is regarded as one of the necessary conditions for the success of the Process.
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Last Modified: Thursday, 17 July 2008