In many respects, the Bologna Process has been revolutionary for cooperation in European higher education. Four education ministers participating in the celebration of the 800th anniversary of the University of Paris (Sorbonne Joint Declaration, 1998) shared the view that the segmentation of the European higher education sector in Europe was outdated and harmful.
The decision to engage in a voluntary process to create the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) was formalized one year later in Bologna, by 30 countries (The Bologna Declaration, 1999). It is now apparent that this was a unique undertaking as the process today includes no fewer than 47 participating countries, out of the 49 countries that have ratified the European Cultural Convention of the Council of Europe (1954).
At its inception, the Bologna Process was meant to stregthen the competitiveness and attractiveness of the European higher education and to foster student mobility and employability through the introduction of a system based on undergraduate and postgraduate studies with easily readable programmes and degrees. Quality assurance has played an important role from the outset, too. However, the various ministerial meetings since 1999 have broadened this agenda and have given greater precision to the tools that have been developed. The undergraduate/postgraduate degree structure has been modified into a three-cycle system, which now includes the concept of qualifications frameworks, with an emphasis on learning outcomes. The concept of social dimension of higher education has been introduced and recognition of qualifications is now clearly perceived as central to the European higher education policies. In brief, the evolution of the main objectives of the Bologna Process can be seen hereby.
The Sorbonne Declaration was was signed in 1998, by the ministers of four countries, namely France, Germany, Uk and Italy. The aim of the Declaration was to create a common frame of reference within the intended European Higher Education Area, where mobility should be promoted both for students and graduates, as well as for the teaching staff. Also, it was meant to ensure the promotion of qualifications, with regard to the job market.
The aims of the Sorbonne Declaration were confirmed in 1999, through the Bologna Declaration, where 29-30 countries expressed their willingness to commit to enhance the competitiveness of the European Higher Education Area, emphasising the need to further the independence and autonomy of all Higher Education Institutions. All the provisions of the Bologna Declaration were set as measures of a voluntary harmonisation process, not as clauses of a binding contract. As follow-up to the Bologna Declaration, there have taken place Ministerial Conferences every two years, the ministers expressing their will through the respective Communiqués.
With the Prague Communiqué, in 2001, the number of member countries was enlarged to 33, and there has also taken place an expansion of the objectives, in terms of lifelong learning, involving students as active partners and enhancing the attractiveness and competitiveness of the European Higher Education Area. Also, the participating ministers committed themselves to ensure the further development of quality assurance and development of national qualification frameworks. This objective was correlated with the lifelong learning one, as it is considered an important element of higher education that must be taken into consideration when building up new systems. Also, it is important to mention that the topic of social dimension was first introduced in the Prague Communiqué.
The following Ministerial Conference took place in Berlin, in 2003, thus the Berlin Communiqué enlarging the number of countries to 40 members. The main provisions of this Communiqué dealt with an expansion of the objectives, in terms of promotion of linking European Higher Education Area to European Research Area, as well as the promotion of quality assurance. Another important aspect that the Berlin Communiqué stated referred to establishing the follow-up structures supporting the process in-between two Ministerial meetings. This arrangement established the Bologna Follow-up Group, the Board and the Bologna Secretariat. With this Communiqué the Ministers also agreed that there should be created a national follow-up structure in each of the participating countries.
The Bergen Communiqué, of 2005, underlined the importance of partnerships, including  stakeholders – students, HEIs, academic staff and employers, together with the further enhancing of research, especially with regard to the third cycle – doctoral programmes. Also, this Communiqué stressed the ministers’ will to provide a more accessible higher education, together with an increased attractiveness of the EHEA to other parts of the world.
With the London Communiqué, of 2007, the number of participating countries was enlarged to 46. This Communiqué focused on evaluating the progress achieved by that time, concerning mobility, degree structure, recognition, qualifications frameworks (both overarching and national), lifelong learning, quality assurance, social dimension, and also set the priorities for 2009, these being, mainly, mobility, social dimension, which was defined here for the first time, data collection, employability, EHEA in a global context and stock taking. For 2010 and beyond, it was stressed that there is the need for further collaboration, seeing it as an opportunity to reformulate the visions and values.
In the Leuven/Louvain-la-Neuve Communiqué, of 2009, the main working areas for the next decade were set, with emphasis on: social dimension, lifelong learning, employability, student centred learning and the teaching mission of education, international openness, mobility, education, research & innovation, as well as data collection, funding of the HE and multidimensional transparency tools. These main working areas show a new orientation of the Bologna Process, towards a more in-depth approach of the reforms, thus ensuring the completion of the Bologna Process implementation. Another change, in terms of internal arrangements, referred to the Bologna Process Chairing procedure: from a previous situation where the Bologna Process had been chaired by the country holding the EU Presidency, to a situation according to which the Process is being chaired by two countries: both the country holding the EU Presidency and a non-EU country, named in alphabetical order, starting from July 1st, 2010. The folowing Ministerial Conference took place only one year after the aforementioned, more precisely in March 2010. It took place in Budapest-Vienna and it was an Anniversary Conference, celebrating a decade of the Bologna Process. With this occasion, there took place the official launching of the European Higher Education Area, which meant that, in terms of a common European framework for HE, the objective set in the Bologna Declaration was accomplished. However, the existence of the European Higher Education Area in itself did not mean an achievement of all the objectives agreed upon by the ministers involved in the Bologna Process. Therefore, we can now say that the Bologna Process and the European Higher Education Area have entered a new phase, namely the consolidation and operationalisation one, especially in light of the very different reactions to the Bologna Process implementation across Europe.
Also, starting with the Budapest-Vienna Ministerial Conference, the EHEA has been expanded to 47 countries, the most recently admitted being Kazakhstan.
The main message of the Bucharest Ministerial Conference, which took place on 26 - 27 April 2012 and was attended by 47 European ministers responsible for higher education, states that Higher education reform can help to get Europe back on track and generate sustainable growth and jobs.
The Ministers agreed to focus on three main goals in the face of the economic crisis: to provide quality higher education to more students, to better equip students with employable skills, and to increase student mobility.
The 47 countries adopted a new European strategy to increase mobility with a specific target that at least 20 percent of those graduating in Europe in 2020 should have been on a study or training period abroad.
Besides the Ministerial Conferences, there are also Bologna Policy Fora organized, which were so far coupled with the EHEA Ministerial Conferences.
The first Bologna Policy Forum was organized in Leuven/Louvain-la-Neuve in 2009 and it was attended by the 46 members of the Bologna Process, at the time, as well as a wide range of third countries and NGOs. The main issues agreed upon by the participants were the following: the key role that HE plays in the development of the society, based on lifelong learning and equitable access at all levels of society to learning opportunities, the importance of public investment in higher education, in spite of the economic crisis, transnational exchanges in higher education should be governed on the basis of academic values, advocating a balanced exchange of teachers, researchers and students between countries, in order to promote fair and fruitful “brain circulation”, as an alternative to brain drain.
The Second Bologna Policy Forumtook place in Vienna, in March 2010, and it was attended by the 47 members and the eight consultative members, as well as third countries and other relevant NGOs. The main topics of discussion included in the Second Bologna Policy Forum Statement refer to the manner in which higher education systems and institutions respond to the growing demands and multiple expectations and the balance between cooperation and competition in international higher education. This Forum’s Statement also included some possible concrete feedback to be taken up by the participants, such as nominating contact persons for each participating country which will also function as liaison points for a better flow of information and joint activities, including the preparation of the next Bologna Policy Forum at ministerial level. Also the need for supporting global student dialogue was acknowledged. As far as implementation is concerned, progress over the years has been uneven, as can be seen from the various stocktaking exercises. This shows that the reforms of the Bologna Process must still be furthered, in order to ensure more comparable, compatible and coherent systems of higher education in Europe.
If by 2010, the main aim of the Bologna Process was to put in place a European Higher Education Area, as stated in the Leuven/Louvain-la-Neuve Communiqué,  the main priorities for the next decade are:
• Social dimension
• Lifelong learning
• Employability
• Student-centred learning
• Education, research and innovation
• Mobility
• Data collection
• Multidimensional transparency tools
• Funding.
Therefore, the Bologna Follow-up Group set up the following working groups for the 2009-2012 period:
• Social dimension
• Qualifications frameworks
• International openness
• Mobility
• Recognition
• Reporting on the implementation of the Bologna Process
• Transparency mechanisms,
And the following networks:
• EHEA Information and Promotion Network;
• Network for Experts in Student Support in Europe – NESSIE;
• Network for National Qualifications Frameworks Correspondents.
Now, after the launching of the European Higher Education Area, the Bologna Process moves towards a new phase, a more in-depth one, focusing on a reduction of the implementation discrepancies in the countries forming the EHEA. The next milestone of the European Higher Education Area have been marked at the EHEA Ministerial Conference, which took place in Bucharest, Romania, on 26-27 April 2012.
The Third Bologna Policy Forum, which was organised in conjunction to this Ministerial meeting contributed to further the debate on the progress of the European Higher Education Area on the global scale. It was attended by members and heads of delegations from 47 EHEA countries and 19 non-EHEA countries along with representatives of international organisations from the field of higher education. The overarching theme of the third Bologna Policy Forum was "Beyond the Bologna Process: Creating and connecting national, regional and global higher education spaces”. The third edition of the Bologna Policy Forum focused on creating and connecting national, regional and global higher education spaces, while deepening the discussions on the following four topics reflecting on future approaches for dialogue in this context:
            • Public responsibility for and of higher education within national and regional context;
            • Global academic mobility: Incentives and barriers, balances and imbalances;
            • Global and regional approaches to quality enhancement of higher education;
            • The contribution of HE reforms to enhancing graduate employability;
The participants stated that the BPF concept should be further enriched and taken forward in order to maximise its potential for policy dialogue. In this sense, an evaluation of the Bologna Policy Forum was organised immediately after the event with all participant delegations.
Disclamer:
This text is part of the “Bologna beyond 2010 – Report on the development of the European Higher Education Area, Backgroung Paper for the Bologna Follow-up Group prepared by the Benelux Bologna Secretariat -, Leuven/Louvain-la-Neuve Ministerial Conference, 28-29 April 2009”

By Anne Corbett. I find it intriguing that the Bologna process is not in political trouble.
Some of the participants in the Bologna ministerial meeting in Bucharest last April were muttering that the process of building a European Higher Education Area was imploding after a decade. And as for those active in European politics and policy-making: they see Bologna and higher education in general as a poor relation in the European policy sphere.
But as the debt crisis has hit Europe, and Greeks and Spaniards and Italians are made politically fragile by austerity under European Union (EU) rules, it may be that the European tide is on the turn, and that the qualities of Bologna-style governance in creating a common area by national consensus are more widely recognised.
Certainly the main line of debate on the EU’s future suggests that the economic crisis is forcibly pushing EU integration towards a federal state. Monetary union is now judged to be unsustainable without fiscal union, while fiscal union requires banking union and economic union. More...

The conference titled “Bologna and Beyond. Experts, entrepreneurs, users and the internationalisation of Higher Education institutions” will be held 20-21 June 2013, in Strasbourg, Maison Interuniversitaire des Sciences de l’Homme – Alsace (MISHA).
The conference is linked to the project “Rebuilding Academia. The Transformations of Central-East European Universities since 1989″, and the main themes of the conference are linked to the impact of various international and European processes on higher education in Central and Eastern Europe (including Germany), with a special focus on the Bologna Process. Papers will be expected on these four core themes:

• Sociology of Bologna Process actors (experts, academics, etc.)
• Analysis of international transfers of knowledge, tools, technical indicators, etc.
• Direct and/or indirect impact of the Bologna Process on its academic “users” (students, academics, HEI technical staff)
• Global effects of the Bologna Process on the CEE academic space (uniformisation vs. heterogeneity; consolidation of symbolic hierarchies, new power relations etc.).

Deadline for sending in abstracts: 15 December 2012
For abstract/paper guidelines and more information about the conference theme, you can download the call for papers here.

Ruben Karschnick, Redakteur im Ressort Studium bei ZEIT ONLINE. Seine Profilseite finden Sie hier. Das neue Semester beginnt. Und damit der Run auf Credit-Points, der angeblichen Währung für Erfolg. Studenten sollten sich davon freimachen, findet Ruben Karschnick.
Liebe Studenten,
die Jagd auf Credit-Points ist wieder eröffnet. Macht so schnell ihr könnt, lernt, arbeitet! Oder wollt ihr etwa nicht in Regelstudienzeit studieren? Denkt immer daran: Es geht um eure Zukunft!
Kennt ihr diesen fiesen, kleinen Bologna-Teufel im Kopf? Das permanente schlechte Gewissen, nicht genug für später zu tun. Diese Stimme, die dauernd rezitiert, was die europäischen Bildungsminister 1999 beschlossen haben: Das Studium soll die "arbeitsmarktrelevanten Qualifikationen" der europäischen Bürger fördern.
Dann seid ihr in guter Gesellschaft. Studien zufolge ist den meisten Studenten ihre employability wichtiger als alles andere. Hauptsache fit für den Arbeitsmarkt.
Doch ein Studium muss mehr bleiben als eine reine Arbeitsbeschaffungsmaßnahme. Selbst dann, wenn die Ängste vor Arbeitslosigkeit, dem Verlust des Bafögs oder der Last des Unikredits allgegenwärtig sind.
Wilhelm von Humboldt sagte, ein Studium solle autonome Individuen und Weltbürger hervorbringen. So nannte der Gründer der Universität Berlin Menschen, die sich mit dem Geschehen auf der Welt auseinandersetzen. Mit Krieg und Frieden, Kulturen und der Natur. Dadurch seien sie in der Lage, selbstbestimmt, mündig und vernünftig zu handeln.
Die Realität an den Unis lässt einen das schnell vergessen. Im Mittelpunkt des heutigen Studiums steht der Credit-Point, eine Einheit, in der sich Bildung angeblich messen lasse. In Studienordnungen findet sich der Hinweis, dass man pro Credit-Point durchschnittlich 25 bis 30 Stunden arbeiten müsse. Die traurige Devise lautet: Arbeit pro Stunde statt Erkenntnisse pro Vorlesung. Einem wird erklärt, wie man im Super-Mario-Stil durch verschiedene Level namens Module zu hüpfen hat und pling-pling einen Punkt nach dem anderen einsammeln soll.
Da ist es nicht leicht, sich zu besinnen, was ein Studium eigentlich heißt: Die Freiheit, sich mit einem bestimmten Gegenstand so intensiv zu beschäftigen, wie man möchte. Und dadurch die Welt ein bisschen besser zu verstehen. Frei von Zwängen wie dem Lebenslauf oder Unternehmenserfolg. Das hat auch heute noch seine Berechtigung. Daran darf auch das Bologna-Teufelchen im Kopf nichts ändern.
Studieren heißt auch, seine Leidenschaften zu entdecken. Doch im Wettrennen um Credit-Points wird es immer schwerer, nach links und rechts zu schauen. Kaum jemand kommt mehr dazu, herauszufinden, was er wirklich will und womit er später einen Großteil seines Lebens verbringen möchte. Im Bologna-Zeitalter sind Studienabbrecher, Langzeitstudenten und Fachwechsler unerwünscht; schnell verschrien als Leute, die nicht wissen, was sie wollen, oder schlicht faul sind. Aber macht schneller Erfolg langfristig glücklich?
Weltbürger werden immer gebraucht
Wer sich diesen Lebensentwurf nicht aufdrücken lassen will, hat es nicht leicht. Die Bedingungen an der Uni werden eher auf Seiten angehender Facharbeiter als angehender Weltbürger sein. Da hilft nur eine Jetzt-erst-recht-Haltung. Oder wie ein Sprichwort sagt: Wenn dir das Leben Steine in den Weg legt, bau' was Schönes daraus.
Natürlich gibt es Situationen, da sind die Steine zu schwer, um sie auch nur anzuheben. Wer in so einem Fall den Mut hat, einen neuen Weg einzuschlagen, verdient Respekt. Keiner sollte deshalb Angst haben, als der vielzitierte Taxifahrer zu enden – außer, es ist das, was einen glücklich macht. Weltbürger werden nämlich immer gebraucht.

EUA monitors European-level developments at the interface of the Bologna Process and the EC Directive (2005/36/EC) on the recognition of professional qualifications, which is currently under review.
The most recent update has just been posted on the EUA website. In addition to coverage of the EU institutions, the updates report on the recent activities of academic, professional, regulatory and student bodies, with particular reference to the sectoral professions (medical doctor, dentist, general care nurse, midwife, veterinary doctor, pharmacist and architect).
Please click here to read more.

Consultative Workshop for the organization of EUROSTUDENT survey in NIS countries took place in Yerevan, Armenia on 6-7 September 2012
 The event was aimed to inform wider audience about the EUROSTUDENT survey and its network (www.eurostudent.eu).  Giving the importance of the meeting, the Minister of Education and Science of the Republic of Armenia Dr. Armen Ashotyan gave an opening speech.
The Initiative Group for the implementation of the fifth wave of EUROSTUDENT survey in NIS countries includes 26 experts from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia, Ukraine, Austria and Germany, most of these experts have been able to take active part in the workshop in Yerevan.
During the several working sessions of the workshops, they have discussed the technical and methodological aspects of EUROSTUDENT surveys in EU and eventually NIS countries.
The Initiative Group agreed on the following:
- Yerevan Communiqué (see attached), addressed to all actual and potential supporters of EUROSTUDENT survey in NIS countries was adopted. 
- Second meeting of the Initiative Group will be held on 20 October 2012 in Moscow.

The BFUG meeting took place in Nicosia, on 28-29 August 2012. The main focus of the meeting was the adoption of 2012-2015 work plan with its new streamlined structure, towards increasing transparency, visibility and effectiveness of the process, as well as ensuring coherence between the priority areas outlined in the Bucharest Communique. The meeting took place under the Co-chairmanship of Cyprus and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The meeting started with the welcome speech of the Minister of Education and Culture of the Republic of Cyprus, Dr. George Demosthenous, who stressed the high importance of the Bologna Process for higher education and, particularly, in achieving quality education for all.
The new Head of the Bologna Follow-Up Group Secretariat Gayane Harutyunyan thanked the Chairs and the former Romanian Secretariat for the smooth and efficient handover that took place on June 28, 2012 in Yerevan.  On this occasion the new Secretariat team was presented to the BFUG.
Taking into account the focus given by the EHEA ministers through the Bucharest Communique, the 2012-2015 work plan was adopted with its four main working groups and their sub-structures to respond to both a need for continuity and to clear mandate for deepening and renewing the efforts for the proper and full implementation of the Bologna Process.

Überfüllte Hörsäle, Betreuungsnotstand, mangelnde Reflexionskultur: Bologna hat keine Probleme geschaffen, sondern lediglich alte sichtbar gemacht, kommentiert A. Frank.
Vor wenigen Tagen feierte die Bologna-Reform ihr zehnjähriges Jubiläum. Bildungsministerin Annette Schavan zog in einem Interview Bilanz und nannte den Bologna-Prozess "eine europäische Erfolgsgeschichte". Medien, Hochschulverbände und Politiker diskutieren seitdem erneut das Für und Wider der Studienreform.
Die Diskussion wird allerdings von einem Missverständnis überschattet. Besonders Lehrende reproduzieren gerne, dass schlechte Studienarbeiten sowie oberflächliches Studierverhalten Effekte des Bachelor und typisch für den Bachelorstudierenden seien. Früher, in Zeiten von Magister und Diplom, seien die Studierenden doch besser gewesen, klagen sie.
Dabei haben sich die Studierenden gar nicht so sehr verändert, wie viele meinen. Im Gegenteil: Die Einführung der Bachelor- und Masterstudiengänge hat in erster Linie alte Probleme sichtbar gemacht, als dass sie neue geschaffen hätte. Dies gilt vor allem, aber nicht nur, für die bis dahin wenig strukturierten Studiengänge der Geistes- und Sozialwissenschaften.
Durch die Bologna-Reform ist die Qualität von Studienstruktur, Studienorganisation und Studien- und Lehrkultur mehr denn je in den Fokus der Aufmerksamkeit geraten. Dadurch kommen nun Probleme ans Tageslicht, die seit Jahrzehnten existieren, von der Öffentlichkeit aber bislang nicht wahrgenommen wurden.
Überfüllte Hörsäle, schlechte Betreuung
Als erstes wurde die schlechte Betreuungsrelation sichtbar. Die Zahl der Studienanfänger hatte sich mit der Einführung der neuen Studiengänge nicht erhöht, aber plötzlich kamen alle in die Einführungsveranstaltungen. In vielen Studiengängen hatten sich Studierende und Lehrende so sehr daran gewöhnt, dass allenfalls die Hälfte der eingeschriebenen Studierenden auch tatsächlich erschien, dass die andere Hälfte nicht einmal als fehlend wahrgenommen wurde. Überfüllte Lehrveranstaltungen zeigten, dass die personelle und räumliche Ausstattung der Hochschulen nicht ausreicht.
Weil nun plötzlich ein größerer Teil der Studierenden anwesend war, wurde auch sichtbar, wie unterschiedlich sie sind. Die Heterogenität der Studierenden wäre vielleicht nicht weiter thematisiert worden, wären mit der neuen Abschlussstruktur nicht zugleich studienbegleitende Prüfungen eingeführt worden, die vom ersten Semester an Leistungsunterschiede im Studienverlauf sichtbar machen. Ein Professor der Geschichtswissenschaft bemerkte in einer Gesprächsrunde an der Uni Bielefeld zu ersten Erfahrungen mit Bachelorarbeiten: "Früher haben nur diejenigen eine Arbeit abgegeben, die der Aufgabe einigermaßen gewachsen waren. Von den anderen haben wir gar nichts gesehen und lesen müssen."
Sichtbar wurde außerdem, dass es in vielen Fächern keine Erfahrung mit der gemeinsamen Verständigung über Ziele (seien es Ausbildungs- oder Bildungsziele) gibt. Das führte dazu, dass viele Studiengänge vollgestopft wurden, alle wollten ihre Bereiche vertreten wissen, möglichst verpflichtend für alle. Und wenn es zu viel wurde, wurden einfach neue Studiengänge erfunden.
Zu guter Letzt ist sichtbar geworden, dass es an einer Reflexionskultur mangelt. Die Frage, wie Wissenschaftler ihre Fähigkeiten so weitergeben können, dass die Studierenden eine Chance haben, das Gelernte für ihr berufliches und gesellschaftliches Tun zu nutzen, war überdeckt von der Abbildung von Wissensgebieten, und von der Annahme, Vermittlung erfolge vor allem durch Vortragen. Auch dieses Problem konnte so lange nicht in den Blick geraten, wie Hochschullehre nicht gefordert war, sich auf die Studierenden und deren heterogene Ziele und Voraussetzungen einzustellen.
Kein Zurück zur Beliebigkeit
Die studienbegleitenden Prüfungen bringen es an den Tag. Während viele Studierende früher nach einem mehr oder weniger kurzen, unauffälligen Aufenthalt an der Universität still verschwunden sind, werden nun auch diejenigen sichtbar, die stärker auf Einführung und Erklärung angewiesen sind.
Defizite von Studierenden sollten deshalb als Orientierungs- und Anleitungsbedürfnisse wahrgenommen werden. Damit wird deutlich, dass es Aufgabe der Universität ist, Studiengänge so zu gestalten, dass Studierende – Motivation vorausgesetzt – erfolgreich studieren können.
Glorifizierende Erinnerungen an Freiheit und Muße früherer Generationen helfen den heutigen Studierenden dagegen nicht weiter. Und auch ein Zurück in die Zeiten der Beliebigkeit würde die aktuell debattierten Probleme nicht lösen, bloß verschleiern.
Die Autorin wird sich Dienstag zwischen 11 und 12 Uhr an der Diskussion im Kommentarthread beteiligen.
Dr. Andrea Frank, 53, leitet den Bereich Beratung für Studium, Lehre und Karriere an der Universität Bielefeld.