Commission considers further step towards student mobility
The Commission is discussing the possibility of establishing a European system of credits, which will facilitate mobility for students in higher education, Commissioner for Education and Culture Viviane Reding announced on 29 March. The system would be based on the principles of the ECTS, the European Credit Transfer System, which has been very successful, the Commission says. It would allow every individual to acquire and accumulate credits, which would be recognised across the EU. With this in mind, the 'Tuning of higher education structures' project was launched six weeks ago. More than 200 higher education establishments are participating in this project, which aims to converge European higher education structures. 'Even if we have already made progress in the creation of a 'European Education Area', even if we have, thanks to you, raised the platform of cooperation, there is still a lot to do,' Ms Reding told her audience at the opening of a higher education convention in Salamanca, Spain. 'No-one can ignore that, where the mobility of students and teachers is concerned, political, financial, practical obstacles as well as those of recognition remain. I am counting on you to identify realistic and concrete paths of action [...] which relate not only to physical mobility, but above all to virtual mobility, with all the new challenges that this involves,' said the Commissioner. Universities must rise above the rivalry between the public and private sectors, said Ms Reding. She stressed that lots must be done in order to modernise our universities. Universities should offer flexible courses, reduce differences between professional and university qualifications, respond better to the needs of society in order to increase employability and fulfil individual expectations relating to personal development. 'The Commission will continue to play its role of catalyst in the domain of education and training,' Ms Reding stressed to her audience.