Seminar on recognition of academic qualifications – Belgrade, 14th December 2017
On 14th December, RCC and ERI SEE jointly organized a Seminar on Recognition of Academic Qualifications, to address the Western Balkans Six focus on development of automatic recognition procedures of academic qualifications in the region and commitment to removing of obstacles.
The actions on the recognition of academic qualifications builds on the priorities outlined in the South East 2020 Strategy and the work carried out by ERI SEE as part of the ERI SEE Work Programme, as well as the work within the framework of the Bologna process and the relevant recommendations adopted by the Ministers of Education at the Bologna Ministerial Conference in May 2015 as outlined in the Yerevan Communique, and is stressed as a priority withing the Mobility pillar of the Multiannual Action Plan on the Regional Economic Area (MAP), endorsed by Prime ministers of the region.
The Seminar on Recognition of Academic Qualifications addressed the latest developments regarding recognition of academic qualifications in Europe, as well as current practices of recognition of academic qualifications in the Western Balkans. It emphasized the importance of the Lisbon Recognition Convention and the corresponding tools, such as Diploma Supplement, ECTS, Quality Assurance, Qualifications Framework etc., and enabled the presentations of existing challenges and progress. The Seminar’s participants also heard about European trends and context in recognition of academic qualifications, experiences and practices of existing systems of automatic recognition of academic qualifications in Benelux and Nordic regions, with participants from European Quality Assurance Register for Higher Education (EQAR), Finnish National Agency for Education, Swedish Agency for Higher Education, and independent experts in this field, as well as institutional and student experiences in the Western Balkans.
It provided opportunities to discuss the recognition of academic qualifications from multiple perspectives of key regional stakeholders in the process, namely representatives of the Ministries of Education, ENIC/NARIC offices, higher education institutions and students.
