Higher education in Europe. The Bologna Process

  Higher Education in Europe - Sorbonne Declaration

In the year of the 700th anniversary of the Sorbonne, in May 1998, the Ministers of Education of France, Italy, Germany and the United Kingdom signed a declaration on the harmonization of the higher education system in Europe, which was called the Sorbonne Declaration. Four European states, whose higher education systems differed significantly from each other, agreed not only on common principles and goals, but also initiated a process that took the next 10 years and was accompanied by numerous reforms, the most significant since the 70s of the last century.

Higher Education in Europe - Bologna Process

In June 1999, ministers from 29 European countries signed the Bologna Declaration, which marked the beginning of the so-called Bologna Process. Not only ministers, but also universities and students of Europe took part in creating a single space for higher education in Europe, which was supposed to continue the previous cooperation of European countries in the field of higher education. Its goal was to facilitate the movement of students and academics across Europe. Already at the Sorbonne, ministers thought about one of the goals of the Bologna Process: to make it possible for every European student to spend at least one semester at a university in another European country so that his “home” university would recognize this semester as part of its curriculum.

Another goal was to create by 2010 an attractive and competitive European Higher Education Area (EHEA), created from national higher education systems so that students can enjoy the benefits of free movement, and the education and qualifications obtained are recognized in the entire Higher Education Area in Europe. Now the European area of ​​higher education attracts students not only from European countries.

The founding of the Common Space for Higher Education in Europe was inaugurated on 11-12 March 2010 at the Ministerial Conference in Budapest and Vienna. The declaration was adopted by 47 states. The independent experts concluded that tremendous progress has been made and significant changes have taken place in the European higher education system. Instead of numerous national systems of higher education, which differed in the structure of education and the comparison of curricula of which was very difficult, a platform of states was formed that cooperate, negotiate and jointly coordinate the development of their higher education system and related reforms.

The states of the Bologna Process were able to create a higher education system in Europe with a fairly harmonized learning architecture, represented by three levels: bachelor's, master's and doctoral studies, as well as common standards and methodologies that ensure the quality of higher education in Europe.

Bologna Process in the Czech Republic

The Czech Republic was one of the states that signed the Bologna Declaration in 1999, so the system of Czech higher education was brought into full compliance with the system of a single higher education space in Europe. Diplomas issued in the Czech Republic fully comply with the requirements for diplomas in the states participating in the Bologna Process, a credit system has been introduced, the level of higher education in the Czech Republic corresponds to the level of a single higher education space in Europe.

Free higher education in Europe - opportunities in the Czech Republic

At the same time, higher education in public universities in the Czech Republic is currently free, including for foreign citizens. Therefore, if you are interested in obtaining free higher education in Europe, you should definitely consider the possibility of entering universities in the Czech Republic. Moreover, the Czech language belongs to the Slavic group of languages, therefore, one or two semesters of study in Czech language courses for Russian-speaking students will be enough to successfully cope with both entrance exams to Czech universities, as well as studying in Czech and successfully passing first session. And, of course, one should not forget that the Bologna Process and the creation of a single space for higher education in Europe gave all Czech students (including those abroad) an excellent opportunity to spend a semester (and maybe more than one!