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| January/February 2004 | Volume
17, Issue 1 |
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PRACTICAL
INFORMATION REGIONAL
NEWS FEATURE
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Feature
The Bologna Bachelor’s Degree: An OverviewBy Mariam
Assefa, Executive Director, WES I. Introduction
The reasons for this transition are fairly straightforward. First and foremost, the new degrees are more flexible, both in terms of their curricular content and exit points. The long first degrees, which were primarily designed to prepare students for scholarly work, can last up to seven years in some countries forcing many students to abandon their studies before graduation. It is anticipated that the new (shorter) bachelor-level degrees will make university education more relevant to the demands of the labor market and enhance comparability between the disparate systems of higher education that exist in Europe. By adopting the new bachelor/master's degree structure, European countries also hope to boost the global competitiveness of their institutions of higher education. Many countries began introducing the new bachelor's programs in 2001/2002, and the first of the new degrees will be awarded in 2005. This article will examine the new Bologna bachelor's degree using Austria and Italy as case studies. In 1999, both countries adopted legislation that restructured their higher education programs and implemented the Bologna bachelor/master's model. We will be focusing on the bachelor-level degree here and will deal with the Bologna master's degree in a forthcoming issue of WENR. One of the main benefits of the new bachelor's degree is that it allows students to pursue graduate studies or employment anywhere within Europe depending on the type of program they completed. However, gaining recognition for the new degrees beyond Europe is also among the stated objectives of the Bologna Declaration. The first cohort of students enrolled in the new Bologna programs are scheduled to graduate next year, and the new degrees will begin turning up in North America for assessment. How will the Bologna bachelor's degree be viewed on this side of the Atlantic? This article will take an in-depth look at the Bologna bachelor's degree. To better help us understand and assess this new degree, we will examine two sample programs taken from universities in Austria and Italy. II. The Traditional (Long) First Degree University first degrees in Europe differ significantly from country to country. The typical long degree can require anywhere between four-and-six years of study but students usually take longer to graduate. The curriculum for long first degrees is largely defined by individual faculties but specialization in a particular field of study is perhaps its most salient characteristic. In almost all instances students are required to write and defend a thesis in order to graduate. AUSTRIA The traditional Diplomstudium programs last four-to-five years, but in fact most students usually take longer to finish. The programs are divided into two cycles: The first cycle introduces the student to an area of specialization and concludes with an examination known as the Erste Diplomprüfung. The second cycle entails in-depth study and concludes with an examination, the Zweite Diplomprüfung, and a written thesis. Students who successfully complete this stage of higher education are awarded either a Magister or a Diplom degree, depending on the field of study. ITALY The traditional Laurea requires four-to-six years of study depending on the discipline and is awarded upon the defense of a thesis. In the sciences, the curriculum is divided into two phases: a first two-year period which is considered a preliminary stage with basic theoretical disciplines and a second three-year stage which consists of courses in the specialization and its application. The laurea gives admission to doctoral studies programs via competitive exams, and is also the minimum legal requirement for entry into most professions. Holding the laurea gives the right to use the title dottore/dottoressa. III. The Bologna Bachelor’s Degree Under the new system currently being implemented, bachelor's and master's degrees can be awarded by universities and non-university institutions of higher education. The degrees will be defined by their content and outcome rather than by the type of institution that awarded them. Hence, the new degree structure under Bologna represents a departure from the traditional binary system of universities and polytechnics because the value of degrees is now based on the content and objectives of the curriculum rather than school type. Some degrees will be designed to allow immediate access to the labor market while others can be used for admission to graduate study at the master's and doctoral levels. In sum, the new degrees will require a significant restructuring of traditional systems of higher education. A principal objective of the Bologna Process is to make university degrees transparent so that employers and institutions of higher education will be able to understand a student's credentials. To further facilitate transparency, the new degrees will be quantified in terms of ECTS credits and accompanied by the diploma supplement, which provides a detailed description of the studies completed by the individual. In order to promote the desired comparability and transparency among European credentials, some common criteria have been formulated to define the new Bologna bachelor's degree: 1) A bachelor-level degree is earned at an institution of higher education and requires between three-and-four years of full-time study, or 180 to 240 ECTS credits. 2) A bachelor-level degree is earned at both traditional universities and at non-university institutions of higher education. 3) The details (profile) of each degree program and its learning outcomes should be noted in their title and included in the diploma supplement issued to the student. 4) Bachelor’s degrees that prepare students for further study should be freestanding and should not be regarded as part of a longer curriculum. This allows students to change disciplines and/or pursue graduate studies at another institution. Admission to second-cycle (graduate) degree programs requires successful completion of first-cycle (undergraduate) degrees. Austria Austria adopted the Bakkalaureat as a first university degree in September 1999. Programs leading to this qualification were introduced the following year, and the first cohort of new degree holders is scheduled to graduate in 2005. As of 2003/2004, as many as 180 individual bachelor programs have been adopted at Austrian universities. The current plan is to offer bachelor’s and master’s degrees in at least 50 percent of all academic fields by 2006. All newly introduced programs must adhere to the two-tiered structure called for by the Bologna Declaration. Universities can no longer offer the traditional long first degrees. Students who began their studies under the old system have the option of staying in that program or transferring to the new, bakkalaureat program. Admission requires the Reifeprufung or Matura, the Austrian school-leaving certificate awarded upon the completion of 12 years of elementary and secondary education. Sample Program The Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration (Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien) offers a bachelor’s program in information systems designed to train specialists in the field of IT and information systems. The program focuses on the IT knowledge necessary to qualify students for occupations that include designing, developing and introducing applications in the IT sector. The program lasts six semesters and consists of 106 weekly hours (64 in core subjects, 32 in special subjects and 10 in electives.) Core subjects include 16 weekly hours in business administration, 22 weekly hours in information systems, 8 weekly hours in information technology and a variety of additional classes. The 32 hours of specialized subjects include an IT specialization area plus additional IT-oriented specialist subjects or an advanced IT subject. The program includes an internship that can be completed either in a business enterprise or as a research project within the university. Twenty-five percent of the program is taught in English. Students are required to write two research papers in the course of the program. In the first paper, they must discuss a specific topic in an IT-related field (i.e., their IT specialization area or an advanced IT subject.) In order to graduate, students must successfully complete all required courses and submit a second research paper related to their internship. A student’s overall grade is based on the individual grades received in each course. Students graduate with the academic degree of Bakkalaurea/Bakkalaureus in social and economic sciences.
University Education in Austria
Italy In 1999,
the Italian government began restructuring its degrees along the lines
set out in the Bologna Declaration. The first university degree under
the new system is the Laurea (same as the old
degree name). It is three years in length and requires 180 ECTS. Students who were enrolled in the old laurea (long, first degree) or diploma universitaria programs in 2000/2001were given the choice of completing their studies under the old system or transferring to the new laurea programs in a corresponding field. However, the transfer is not automatic and has been left up to each faculty to decide on a case-by-case basis. The new undergraduate programs (corsi di laurea) are designed to give students an adequate command of general scientific methods and contents as well as specific professional skills. Admission to laurea programs requires the Italian school-leaving certificate (Diploma di Superamento dell’Esame di Stato conclusivo dei corsi di Istruzione Secondaria Superiore) after completion of 13 years of primary and secondary schooling. The more selective programs can impose further course and grade requirements. Sample Program The Bocconi University of Milan offers a new laurea program in business administration (economia aziendale). The program's objective is to give students an understanding of the economic, financial, social, legal, cultural and technical foundations of business, and to equip them with the analytical and decision making skills that will allow them to manage different businesses in a changing environment. Graduates will be qualified for professional and managerial positions in marketing, sales, finance or human resources. The program is three years in length and requires the completion of 180 ECTS credits (146 credits in compulsory subjects, 12 elective credits, 12 credits in two European languages, four credits in computer science and six credits for the final project). Students who wish to take English as one of their languages must have achieved a minimum TOEFL score of 550 on the paper test or 213 on the computer-based examination. Other English language tests may be used to show a comparable level of proficiency. During the first year, students study economics, business administration, law, history, quantitative methods and computer science. In the following years, they take marketing, finance, production, logistics, business organization and accounting. Courses in Italian and English are taken throughout the program.
University Education in Italy
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