German Responses to the Latest Developments in the Bologna Process

On May 17, 2007 education ministers from 46 states convened in London to advance the ongoing project of a European higher-education area. Among the principle goals of the conferences was for member states to discuss the progress of the Bologna Process. One of the main objectives the EU education ministers agreed upon in Bologna in 1999 (the conference that gave birth to the Bologna Process) was to institute international structure of Bachelor's and Master's degrees throughout the European Union by the year 2010. Institutional autonomy, academic freedom, student-centered education, equal opportunities, international mobility and employability constituted the central themes of the London conference. Matters concerning international graduation requirements also ranked high on the London Conference Agenda.

While a number of the European states have already succeeded in making the widespread changes to the education system, including the conversion to a three-tiered (Bachelor, Master, PhD) degree structure, these changes have posed challenges to other countries. Nonetheless, significant progress has been registered on the Bologna Process overall. For instance, the Trends V study by the European University Association reports that now more than 80% (up from 50% in 2003) of EU universities are implementing the three-tier system. In addition more than 70% of universities are using the European Credit-Transfer System. To read the Trends V: Report by the European University Association, go to www.eua.be/index.php?id=347

Despite numerous challenges and cultural resistance to the Bologna Process, Germany has registered significant progress in adopting the educational reforms. Presently, roughly half of the university study programs correspond to the new system. According to the 2007 Hochschulrektorenkonferenz (The Conference of University Presidents), 48% of study programs of in Germany are under the new system. That number is expected to exceed 60% by the next academic year.

Yet, accompanying these trends is a vigorous ongoing debate in Germany that these reforms are worthy of criticism and may not be quite right for Germany. For instance, the "TU9" (the consortium of Germany's nine largest technical universities) is also critical of the Bologna reforms. At the London Conference, the president of the TU9, Horst Hippler argued that with the European reforms, the university programs in engineering would not be able to maintain their current level of excellence. Hippler opposes the ways in which the reforms seek to regulate graduation time. He maintained that "The completion of a doctoral degree should be seen as the first step toward independent research, not as the third-step in a university education." Critics of the reforms have also argued that the new graduation time-frames imposed by the new regulations make it difficult for bachelor students to study abroad.

Whereas many critics assert that the Bologna Process entails adopting rules that are overly rigid, Federal Education and Research Minister Annette Schavan expressed that the Bologna Process is a great opportunity for bringing about European integration. Schavan also called for flexibility in adopting the changes and that "the goal of the Bologna Process is to foster diversity, not harmonization."

To read the London Communique, visit www.dfes.gov.uk/bologna/

DAAD Congratulates This Year's Undergraduate Scholarship Winners

DAAD is pleased to announce the recipients of the Undergraduate Scholarship for 2007/08. 54 undergraduate students from 45 different Canadian and US universities were selected by a panel of experts in higher education to receive a prestigious scholarship to study in
Germany.

This years scholarship recipients were selected from a group of 168 applicants from the US and Canada. Most will head to Germany this fall. The Undergraduate Scholarship Program is aimed at students who want to spend part of their third or fourth year of college in Germany. The grantees stay anywhere from a semester to a full academic year, either to study, for internships, or senior thesis research.

The universities with the most students selected for scholarships are Northwestern University (four scholarships) and the University of Manitoba (three scholarships). Two scholarships each are going to Louisiana State University, the Pennsylvania State University, the University of Rhode Island and the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee.

The rest of the scholarships were awarded to students from 40 other institutions throughout the US and Canada.The scholarship recipients are mostly majoring in German and German Literature (14) and in Political Science/European Studies (9). The Natural Sciences are also represented by Engineering students (6), Chemistry students (5) and others such as Computer Science (2), the Bio-Medical Field (2), Mathematics and Psychology. The other scholarship holders study the Classics, Economics (2), Education, English, Fine Arts, Forest Ecology, History (2), the Media, the Middle East, Philosophy, Sociology and Theater.

For more information on DAAD programs please visit our website at: /www.daad.org

Come Visit DAAD at the NAFSA Conference

Don't forget: DAAD will be at Booth #1013 at NAFSA's 59th Annual Conference in Minneapolis from May 27th - June 1st, alongside representatives from many German universities. Visit our booth to talk to DAAD Representatives about the various study and research abroad opportunities or to pick up a brand new brochures outlining DAAD's various grant programs for the 2008/9 academic year.

At the Conference, DAAD representatives will also be presenting talks on the latest trends in study abroad trends as well as current issues in higher education in Germany.

We look forward to meeting you there in person!

To view the NAFSA Program Schedule, visit www.nafsa.org/annual_conference