Albania
Islamic University Next for Albanians
After the establishment of a Catholic university in the capital city of Tirana, Premier Fatos Nano offered political and financial support to help establish an Islamic university in Albania.
The primary purpose of the new Islamic university would be to produce home-grown leaders for Albania’s Muslim community. Since the fall of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, Muslims have sought education in Islamic studies in such countries as Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, which tend to have a more fundamentalist approach to Islam than what traditionally existed in Albania.
The new Catholic university, Our Lady of Good Counsel, opened in November with nearly 300 students and degree programs in economics, medicine and dentistry, nursing and political science. A quarter of Albanians are Orthodox Christians, 10 percent to 15 percent are Catholic and the remaining are Muslim.
— The Times Higher Education Supplement [1]
Feb. 11, 2005
Austria
‘University of Excellence’ to Boost Nation’s Research Capabilities
Austria is finalizing plans for a new “University of Excellence,” which will offer graduate training that its architects hope will have an international impact, according to Minister for Education, Science and Culture Elisabeth Gehrer.
The institution will be created in collaboration with existing universities and will have its own budget consisting of “new” government money. Final details, including legal structure, name, location and finances, will be confirmed by the end of June, according to the government.
— CORDIS
Jan. 20, 2005
France
Students Protest Education Reforms
French high school students protested in March an education bill that they believe would lead to elitism in the university admissions process. The demonstration was the latest in a string of protests by students opposed to reformist education proposals now pending in the Upper House of Parliament.
As a result of protests in February, which drew an estimated 100,000 students across France, Education Minister Francois Fillon withdrew the most contentious issue, which would have cut the number of baccalaureat examinations from 12 to six and increased the level of continuous assessment. Students claim a reduction in the end-of-year exams would lead to preferential treatment in college admissions for those who attend elite schools.
— Education Week [2]
March 16, 2005
Germany
Academic, Mobility Pact Signed with Taiwan
Taiwanese and German officials signed an agreement in March to promote academic and educational exchanges at the tertiary level.
The agreement promotes greater academic and student mobility between the two countries, with a view to creating greater exchanges on many other levels, such as culture and trade. The agreement places an emphasis on the mutual recognition of academic credits and between institutions from the two countries, especially in the fields of music, the arts and legal studies.
— The Taipei Times
March 18, 2005
Max Planck Institute Develops Institute in China
The Max Planck Society [3] is developing scientific and institutional links in China by establishing a partner institute with the Chinese Academy of Sciences [4] (CAS) in computational biology. The agreement was signed in November at celebrations marking 30 years of cooperation between the two research institutions. The partner institute will be established on the campus of the Shanghai Institutes of Biological Sciences [5] of the CAS in Shanghai, a multi- and interdisciplinary research center in the life sciences.
The partner institute will most likely consist of three departments and several junior research groups, and will be integrated legally and administratively into the Shanghai Institutes of Biological Sciences. It is hoped that this initiative will offer German and Chinese universities additional starting points for cooperation and exchanges in the sciences.
— Deutsche Welle [6]
March 23, 2005
Italy
Sluggish Overseas Recruitment
During a recent state visit to China, President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi called for more foreign students to be recruited by Italian universities after being notified that there are only 150 Chinese students in Italy.
The percentage of foreign students enrolled at Italian universities has dropped from more than 3 percent in the 1960s to 1.8 percent today. This compares with 21.4 percent in Switzerland (see below), 12 percent in Austria, 10.9 percent in Britain, 9.6 percent in Germany and 7.3 percent in France. Statistics on foreign student enrollment across Europe suggest a north-south divide; however, both Portugal and Spain out-recruit Italy with 3 percent and 2.2 percent, respectively. Greece also has overtaken Italy.
University officials blame the marginality of the Italian language and lack of the English-taught programs that are so prevalent in such countries as Germany.
— The Times Higher Education Supplement
Jan. 14, 2005
Norway
New University Gains Recognition
Norway’s first new university in 30 years has been launched through the upgrade of Stavanger University College, originally established through the merger of seven local colleges in 1994, to the University of Stavanger [7].
Official recognition of the new institution began Jan. 1. The Ministry of Education and Research [8] stated earlier this year that the University of Stavanger has established itself as a leading institution in petroleum engineering, special-needs education, risk management and offshore technology.
— University of Stavanger news release [9]
Jan. 17, 2005
Slovakia
Tuition Fees One Step Away From Reality
The Slovak Cabinet in February approved a controversial law introducing tuition fees, which Parliament passed in its first reading by just one vote in March. If the bill is finalized and passed in the next session of Parliament, it will take effect in September. The bill would see students paying up to 30 percent of the total annual cost of their education, which currently is covered by the state.
Students and lecturers have been out in force to protest the bill, which undermines the long-held belief that education, more than any other public good, should be free. They also argue that the introduction of fees will do nothing to improve quality. Earlier versions of the bill had been defeated three times previously.
— Slovak Spectator [10]
March 28, 2005
Spain
Decree Lays Foundation for Bologna Reforms
The Spanish government has laid the framework for a new degree structure and has promised financing of $US2.5 million this year for Bologna pilot projects and strategic planning. The decree provides an open framework for the reform but does not settle the question of whether first degrees should be three or four years in duration. It does, however, call for an end to the current two-cycle structure of first degrees.
With the Bologna Declaration, European nations have pledged to bring about harmonization of higher education by 2010. It is based on internationally recognized credits and a three- plus two-year degree system (bachelor’s and master’s), leading to mutual recognition of standards and titles and increasing mobility of students and teachers.
Spanish university officials hope some second-cycle courses will be incorporated into first degrees, while others will become postgraduate courses. They also see the framework as providing an opportunity to weed out low-demand first degrees. The reforms also mean master’s degrees will be fully incorporated into the regulated public system. Until now, universities have charged tuition for master’s programs, and there have been no common guidelines on program length or content.
— The Times Higher Education Supplement [1]
March 11, 2005
Switzerland
Proportion of International Students Highest in Europe
Seventeen percent of the student body in Switzerland is composed of foreign students, a higher proportion than any other European nation and second worldwide only to Australia.
At Swiss universities, international enrollments rose to 21.4 percent of the student body in 2003-04, compared with 20 percent in 2001. The proportion of postgraduate students from outside Switzerland has increased from 40 percent to 45.3 percent in the same time period. Half of the international student body comes from neighboring states. A quarter comes from outside Europe.
Some administrators cite as a factor in Switzerland’s favor the tougher visa requirements faced by students who wish to study in the United States. Other administrators highlight the positive effect the European educational harmonization project – known commonly as the Bologna Process – is playing, stressing that increased efficiency and modernization of services, coupled with growing internationalization, are playing key roles in attracting students.
— The Times Higher Education Supplement [1]
Feb. 28, 2005
Turkey
Bill Grants Amnesty to 677,000 Students Barred from University
Parliament approved a bill in February granting amnesty to all students dismissed from university since June 29, 2000, for academic or disciplinary reasons. The law, if it goes into effect, would have implications for the many female students who were expelled from universities or barred from enrolling for wearing an Islamic-style headscarf, which is banned from educational establishments and public-sector jobs in Turkey.
Students taking advantage of the amnesty would be readmitted to classes for one year and would have three opportunities to pass any failed or missed examinations. Officials say 677,000 former students would be eligible. President Ahmet Necdet Sezer must sign the legislation before it can go into effect, but he has not indicated opposition to the bill.
While the legislation would benefit women who may have had a change of heart and given up the headscarf, government and academic officials have made clear that the ban on head coverings at universities remains in effect. The academic community largely has opposed the bill, saying the government should not interfere in university admissions decisions.
— The Chronicle of Higher Education [11]
March 11, 2005
United Kingdom
Private Medical School to Open in 2006
The Hunter School of Medicine, Britain’s first independent medical school since the National Health Service was founded, is scheduled to open in 2006 on the Uxbridge campus of Brunel University [12].
Brunel University, in West London, plans to introduce three-year programs – two years shorter than usual for a degree in medicine – in partnership with the University of Buckingham [13]. Undergraduates, mainly trained nurses and paramedics, would be charged annual tuition of approximately £20,000 (US$38,000). The school would open in September 2006 if approved by Brunel’s governing body and the General Medical Council [14], the regulatory body of the medical profession in the United Kingdom.
The new school hopes to recruit medical professionals looking to upgrade their skills. In Britain, students generally begin medical studies directly from secondary school, but Hunter would concentrate on mature students who may or may not already have undergraduate degrees.
— BBC [15]
Jan. 17, 2005
Graduate Enrollments from Asia Plummet
Universities are suffering from dramatic declines in the number of students from Asia enrolling in graduate programs, endangering the financial viability of some science departments, according to a recent survey.
The number of students from China enrolling at some British institutions has fallen about 50 percent, according to a recent survey by Universities UK [16] (UUK), an umbrella organization for British universities. The survey, which attracted responses from 70 universities, provides a snapshot of international student enrollments in September/October 2004. Admissions departments report there has been a greater decline in enrollments to graduate and postgraduate research posts and programs than to undergraduate programs. Recruitment from China, Japan, Malaysia, India, Taiwan, Thailand and Singapore, as well as the United States, Norway and Turkey, has been adversely affected by increased visa extension costs and bad publicity surrounding changes in immigration law, as well as the strength of the pound, according to the UUK.
Because of financial pressures, Oxford University decided earlier this year to expand overseas and postgraduate numbers and reduce British and European undergraduate teaching. Other institutions are following suit (see January/February 2005 issue WENR [17]). Provisional figures from the University College and Admissions Service [18] (UCAS) in late February show a 5.3 percent decline in recruitment of international students to undergraduate programs, with enrollments from China down a sharp 25.8 percent.
The latest figures come in contrast to enrollment data released recently by the Higher Education Statistics Agency [19], which report a 9 percent increase in enrollments in overseas students for academic year 2003/2004. The 2003/04 figures followed a 13.4 percent increase the previous year. The UUK and UCAS figures, if representative of the tertiary sector as a whole, therefore represent a dramatic slowdown in the recruitment of international students to British institutions of higher education.
— Financial Times [20]
March 5, 2005
— Higher Education Statistics Agency [21]
April 5, 2005
Anti-Fraud Technology to Mark Scottish Diplomas
The Scottish Qualifications Authority [22] will use sophisticated printing measures to combat diploma fraud and the proliferation of bogus credentials.
For the first time, certificates issued by the examination awards body will use banknote technology, similar to the watermarks and other markings used on money issued by the Royal Mint. Security was increased after concerns arose about academic awards, including A-levels and university degrees, being traded over the Internet.
Instead of the normal white paper detailing Standard and Higher grade examination subjects and grades, this year’s results will be printed on heavy parchment paper containing secret markings known only to the printer and the awards body, making forgery more difficult. The British university admissions service, UCAS [18], admitted in 2004 that it had stopped 1,000 students – double the number detected in 2003 – from entering programs due to applications with fake qualifications.
— The Scotsman [23]
March 27, 2005
Failed A-Level Reforms Fire up International Baccalaureate
The number of schools in the United Kingdom planning to offer the International Baccalaureate (IB) as an alternative to A-levels will triple over the next two years as a direct result of the government scrapping plans to replace the A-level system with a new diploma.
Officials from the IB Organization [24] told Britain’s Independent newspaper that initial inquiries indicate the number of schools in both the state and private sector offering the IB would jump from the current 65 to approximately 200 in two years. The rush to offer the IB is being interpreted by some as a blow to Secretary of State for Education Ruth Kelly’s plans to run separate specialist vocational diplomas alongside A-levels. Many have called for a broader sixth-form curriculum inclusive of vocational education. Critics say Kelly’s plans will mean that vocational qualifications will still be considered second rate.
— The Independent [25]
March 13, 2005