Ukraine Joins Bologna Convention

As of May 19 Ukraine is a full-fledged partner of the European countries determined to establish a single European space for higher education. The current conference of education and science ministers representing the European members of the Bologna process is underway in Bergen, Norway. A treaty will be signed on the accession to the Bologna process by Ukraine, Moldova, Monaco, Georgia, Armenia, and possibly Azerbaijan. After these procedures the only countries left outside the process will be Belarus, San Marino, and the former Yugoslavia.

The Bologna process began in May 1998, when four European countries (Great Britain, Germany, Italy, and France) came up with the idea of increasing the competitiveness of European education. At this time significant numbers of European and Asian youth were increasingly being drawn to the US system of education. The American system was better equipped to provide quick and effective practical knowledge, allowing graduates to start working in a variety of fields considerably earlier. Classical education as practiced in noted European universities is designed to provide fundamental training in basic sciences, and young pragmatists consider it inferior to education in North America.

Most European countries (approximately 30) joined the Bologna process in 1998. They agreed not to create a uniform educational system for all countries, but try to preserve the national characteristics of higher education, so that students and teacher can switch institutions of higher learning and countries, study and work at any educational establishments in Europe, and have their diplomas eventually recognized in every country. Agreement has been reached to implement a two-tiered BA-MA compulsory system of higher education. The issue of mutual recognition of diplomas from the Bologna member countries is expected to be settled before 2010, the deadline for establishing a single European educational space. This, in turn, will pave the way for discussions of a single European labor market. This conference is a transitional phase in monitoring what has been achieved.

Special information packages have been prepared to help entrants and graduates figure out the new Bologna system. Included in each package is all the necessary information concerning educational institutions, faculties, teaching staff, curricula, grading systems, and even updated glossaries. For the time being, the teachers and students involved in the experiment will keep track of their progress by simultaneously using the new and old systems. The ratio of independent student and teacher-aided study will also change in favor of the former. Teacher-assisted training will also change: lectures will be devoted to problems, and purely informational lectures will be phased out. Teachers will be under the obligation to develop a self-study program and an information channel.

Today, especially after the scandal involving justice minister Roman Zvarych, many people in Ukraine do not understand the meaning of the term “baccalaureate” [Bachelor of Arts]. Does this degree mean a post- secondary education? The ministry of education has defined it as “incomplete higher education,” one of the stages of obtaining a higher education. A complete higher education is achieved after receiving a “specialist” degree, or MA. Although the former isn’t extensively practiced in Europe, in Ukraine students continue being trained under this program. The term “bachelor” is interpreted differently in various parts of the world. In France it means a college graduate who is prepared for enrolment in a university. In Ukraine it indicates a level in the course of academic and vocational training, allowing the bearer to work in a professional operational capacity. Occupations and posts requiring technological and research skills are not for BA holders but for those with MAs. In the US system of education, a BA offers more employment opportunities compared to Ukrainian bachelors. An official from the ministry of education told The Day that Mr. Zvarych must have had this in mind when he was defending his academic level. Yet there are Master’s courses at such well-known American universities as Stanford or Harvard. Bachelor’s degrees are granted at 7,000 US colleges. People with this degree can get good jobs but at a less qualified level than those with a Master’s degree (e.g., university graduates). The Bologna participants expect to make the Bachelor’s degree a full-fledged level of higher education, but this will require revising the curricula of European higher schools. How they will go about this is anyone’s guess.

After joining the Bologna process, Ukrainians with the degree “Candidate of Science” will automatically receive Ph.D. degrees, but those with the degree “Doctor of Sciences” will be denied such a promotion because their degree has no analogs outside Ukraine. In fact, a number of scientists and teachers have criticized the previous government for its intention to join the Bologna process. Today this debate will very likely receive a fresh impetus.