A Bologna master 'template' for masters degrees is developing across Europe, albeit in three distinctive forms of course provision: taught masters with a strong professional development application, a research-intensive masters which functions as a pre-doctoral degree, and courses delivered to learners returning to education from the workplace.

A new study by the European University Association has revealed the development of the masters degree. Based on a wide-ranging survey of European students, universities and employers, the study looked at how the degree had developed a decade after the Bologna process was launched.

A report of the says that as a result of Bologna, the degree structure of many European countries has been fundamentally changed with the implementation of three degree cycles (bachelor, masters and doctorate) that are defined in terms of learning outcomes and credit ranges.

While nearly all 46 of the Bologna signatory countries have implemented a masters cycle into their national higher educations systems, the report says there is still work to be done to make the masters cycle more transparent and readable across national borders - to help facilitate recognition of degrees, mobility and exchanges between institutions.

"After a decade of Bologna, the European master and its variants are well established in higher education - and it is recognisable at least to professionals, agencies, institutions and governments," author of the study Howard Davies said.

"But it has yet to be fully implemented and still to achieve a stable European profile in terms of pedagogy, labour market profile, its role in research, and in terms of funding and finance."

The EUA report provides a detailed mapping of the masters degrees - including a country by country overview of how countries have adopted the cycle into their national higher education systems and how students enter the second cycle. It also shows how the Bologna process has been enshrined in national legislations and concludes that no one system has been aligned with Bologna long enough for it to be embedded but instead systems are in varying degrees of transition.

In terms of student mobility, the report says the masters degree will play a crucial role in the future, particularly as vertical mobility (students completing the bachelor in one country and the master in another) will certainly grow as has been the case notably in the UK.

But it notes there are still too many barriers to all types of mobility (within programmes and between degree cycles) because of difficulties in recognition of prior learning and qualifications. "Mobility instruments", including the diploma supplement, have yet to reach a point where they are routinely used by employers and institutions.

The report says the masters degree is the most 'marketised' of the three degree cycles despite a wide diversity in terms of how students have access to programmes, and in terms of tuition fees. It predicts that the number of programmes will continue to grow, particularly in English-taught courses and joint degrees.

The provision of degrees needs to be more flexible if it is to satisfy labour market needs, the report says. Employers in particular need to be more involved in curriculum development.

"As the master provision becomes more flexible and integrated into national systems, it will help develop the high level of skills required by Europe to respond to the current economic crisis," Davies said.

The results of the study will be presented to the 46 ministers of education attending the Bologna Process Ministerial Summit in Belgium this week.

Printable version
Email to a friend
Comment on this article