Short Cycle Higher Education (SCHE) as first level in Higher Education (HE) and as level 5 of the European Qualifications Framework (EQF) has become more and more important in the last decade. As ‘missing link between Vocational Education and Training (VET) and HE’ a growing number of countries involved in the Bologna Process are giving the underlying programmes a formal position in their education system, linked to a national qualifications framework.
The European Commission asked EURASHE to survey Short cycle higher education (generally two-year associate degree types of studies in higher education) in Europe. The association turned to Magda Kirsch and Yves Beernaert to write the following report. The authors had done so before, when in 2003 they made the Europe-wide survey of “existing tertiary short cycle (TSC) education in Europe”. This was also produced on behalf of EURASHE, and similarly commissioned by the European Commission. The above-mentioned study was the first to map this type of higher education in the Bologna signatory countries.
The general objective of the present comparative study was to make a detailed analysis of existing Short Cycle Higher Education as an intermediate level of the first level of higher education (or at level 5 of the EQF) in 32 of the Bologna signatory countries: the 27 member states of the European Union, the EFTA countries and Turkey. One of the specific objectives was to find out what changes had taken place in the short cycle higher education landscape since 2003 when the former EURASHE study on SCHE was made.
Another objective was to see to what extent the development and implementation of SCHE is contributing to the implementation of the strategic framework for Education and Training 2020 (ET 2020) of the European Union and the objectives outlined in the Leuven Communiqué of 2010 after the meeting of the ministers of higher education. Overall, the comparative study attempts to highlight the major developments in SCHE over the past 7 years, focusing on similarities and differences across Europe.
Download the summative report by clicking on the first image and the full report by clicking on the second one!
Please note that the Portugal Chapter in the full report has to be integrated with a corrigendum.
Some of the key questions addressed in the study are: have more countries developed SCHE? Is it always seen as an intermediate level within the’ first level of higher education? Is it always situated at level 5 of the EQF? What is the profile of the students and the lecturers in SCHE? What is the contribution of SCHE to lifelong learning? Is SCHE seen as a means of progression towards further degree studies? How are SCHE institutions cooperating with industry and other social partners? What about student and teacher mobility and internationalisation in SCHE? What about QA in SCHE? What about employability, multilingualism, active citizenship and social commitment in SCHE?
SCHE – level 5 studies (associate degree level) are definitely gaining ground in Europe compared to the situation in 2003. At the moment 19 of the European countries (or regions) studied do have SCHE – level 5. A few of those countries have just started up SCHE – level 5 studies and others intend to do so in the near future. 1,694,080 students at least are studying in SCHE-programmes. Especially non-traditional and mature students are increasingly participating in SCHE.
SCHE can be considered to be the missing link between secondary and higher education. The fact that the Bologna process has led to the introduction of the Qualifications Framework for the EHEA (including, within national contexts, the possibility of intermediate qualifications) has definitely enhanced the status of SCHE. SCHE enables students to climb the ladder of higher education step by step.
SCHE level 5 is provided by various public education providers such as universities, university colleges, universities of applied sciences, regional technical institutes, further education or adult education organisations or even upper secondary schools. In all countries surveyed SCHE is subsidised by the State or other authorities.
The main objective of level 5 SCHE studies is professional specialisation focusing on employment. Although the bulk of the study programmes offered in SCHE are in the area of business studies, administration, building, catering and hospitality, engineering and mechanics, it is interesting to point out that new programmes are being developed in areas such as logistics, ecology, forestry, security, entrepreneurship, wine sales, aquaculture, driving instructor, aircraft mechanics etc. This indicates that SCHE is a thriving sector which quickly responds to the needs and demands of industry.
In all countries SCHE level 5 HE has a very strong focus on cooperation with industry and other economic and social partners. In some cases cooperation with companies is compulsory. The key argument to do so is the need to have more highly educated and trained technicians that are required by industry and who respond to the explicit needs of industry. The fact that SCHE focuses on immediate and concrete employment results in industry being closely involved in outlining the contents of level 5 SCHE studies. It also results in the fact that SCHE-courses put considerable emphasis on employability in various ways. This study also reveals that students are employed at their level as highly skilled technicians in various kinds of jobs and that most of them find employment fairly easily not long after graduating.
As has been demonstrated in the study, many of the students in SCHE are non-traditional and mature students who return to education at a later stage in life, thus enabling them to make lifelong learning a reality. An important number of these mature students combine work with education and training. Europe needs more highly educated and trained people and SCHE can make a major contribution to this. It should be highlighted very strongly that SCHE is a unique opportunity to attract more students (and especially students of a socially disadvantaged background) and widen access to higher education.
For all the reasons given above it can be stated that SCHE contributes to reaching most of the objectives of the 2020 ET strategy and of the Leuven Communiqué ‘Learning for the future: higher education priorities for the decade to come’.
Eurashe has committed itself to further follow-up the situation at level 5 of the EQF and SCHE of the QF-EHEA. Since the publication of the study several conferences have been attended and the study has been presented in several countries. The country chapters that have only been published online on the Eurashe website will be adapted whenever changes occur.
The objective of this project was to make a detailed analysis of existing Short Cycle Higher Education (SCHE) in 32 of the Bologna signatory countries. The summative version of the report can also be ordered upon request. With this new publication, “SCHE in Europe – Level 5: The Missing Link”, EURASHE wanted to re-open the discussion with the different stakeholders in the wider European Higher Education Area, stating the progress achieved since the 2003 publication on this topic.
Download the public report of the project.
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This is the main conclusion of a project by EURASHE, including a study in 32 countries on SCHE after the decision which was made in 2005 within the Bologna Process to accept this degree as the intermediate level in the European Higher Education Area. The project report provide an overview of the recent situation on the SCHE for all 32 countries and can give a very useful input for debates on a national and also an international level about Lifelong learning, creating flexible learning pathways and the European 2020 strategy.
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Workshops, Conferences, Presentations, and Meetings:
Download the outcomes of the seminar.
- TSC in Bologna process: Developments in SCHE in EUROPE - Brussels, 16 April 2010 – Magda Kirsch, Educonsult
- TSC in Bologna process: Developments in SCHE in EUROPE /EURASHE studies: SCHE, Level 5 of the EQF. (EURASHE experience) - Ankara, 2 – 3 March 2010 – Iva Voldánová, EURASHE Project manager
- SCHE in EUROPE – The Missing Link : Level 5 EQF Preliminary results - Amsterdam, 18 June 2010 – Magda Kirsch & Yves Beernaert, Educonsult
- SCHE in EUROPE – The Missing Link : Level 5 EQF, Study TSC 2003-Preliminary results 2010 - ETF: Education Policy Conference – Turin, 25 October 2010 – Magda Kirsch, Educonsult
Newsletters: Bi-monthly Corporate Newsletters of the project partners updating people on the progress.
NEWSLETTER 3 / NEWSLETTER 2 / NEWSLETTER 1
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1. European Association of Institutions in Higher Education (EURASHE), Belgium
2. Lithuanian Colleges’ Directors’ Conference (LKDK), Lithuania
Lithuanian Colleges’ Directors’ Conference is a Lithuanian association of Colleges in Higher Education. The association has 26 members (which represents 96% of all such institutions in the country) and brings together 15 government funded and 11 private institutions in HE, representing over 60000 students. The association was founded in 2002 and has the status of a non-profit association according to Lithuanian law. The LKDK focuses on representing the interests of the professionally oriented HEIs in policy discussions and legislative activities, enhancing the importance and the quality of professional HE in Lithuania, promoting the sector and strengthening the quality issues. LKDK also seeks to promote national and international co-operation within HE and among the institutions of HE, other associations and organisations sharing the same aims.
3. Institutes of Technology Ireland (I.O.T.I.), Ireland
Institutes of Technology, Ireland (IOTI) is the umbrella organisation for 13 of the fourteen Institutes of Technology in Ireland. The IOTs provide higher education that has a specific focus on the needs of students in entering the workplace. The IOTs educate students from craft/apprentice level to PhD level and many award their own degrees – up to and including PhDs. The IOTs constitute roughly half of the higher education provision in Ireland and have considerable independence to operate. The IOTs have recently initiated a significant project in the area of flexible learning and lifelong learning. The project aims at significantly scaling up the capacity of the IOTs to deliver such education and also intends to establish a national entity to market such learning opportunities. To this end the IOTs have established a central office and project team led by Dr. Richard Thorn who has been seconded from his position as President of the Institute of Technology in Sligo.
4. Association of Slovene Higher Vocational Colleges (ASHVC), Slovenia
ASHVC is a partner of the Ministry of HE, defined by the Law of higher professional intermediate education and financed from the budget. It represents institutions that provide intermediate higher professional education (120 credits ECTS) in Slovenia, co-ordinates their development, programmes accreditations, enrollment processes, quality assessment and external evaluations. The main purpose of the ASHVC is to promote SCHE in Slovenia as a crucial element of LLL and support co-operation between the member institutions and with the competent professional councils, accreditation committees, ministries, economy and employers, other HPIs and international associations, such as EURASHE. The member institutions operate either as organisational units within public school centres of different size or as independent private or public institutions – altogether 62 institutions representing 1/3 of all study placements within HE in Slovenia in the study year 2009/10.
5. Association of University Institutes of Technology Directors (ADIUT), France
ADIUT is a national association of the 116 University Institutes of Technology which are autonomous structures inside universities. The IUT network is a tight-knit fabric throughout the country. Initial education and lifelong learning are proposed in secondary and service sectors (24 specialities). Research and technological transfer are carried out by 163 research laboratories. ADIUT is in direct relation with its socio-economic environment (the French Ministry of Higher Education, national companies’ organisations, other university groups). Concerning international activities, ADIUT proposes pedagogical engineering in higher technological and professional education and collaborative working for a European High Technological Education System based on competencies.
