Reform trends in Europe’s higher education programmes as an exemplification of the bologna process after the Rome 2020 Ministerial Conference

Abstract

Purpose: The subject of the study is issues related to the reform of higher education systems taking into account the Bologna Process. As a theoretical and cognitive goal, the author adopted the presentation of the categories and conditions of the Bologna Process in its roman stage (2020). Design/methodology/approach: The article adopts methodological elements specific to the field of social sciences, including the monographic method. It is implemented in this work as a way of researching specific, individual cases and focuses on the overall recognition of one relevant problem. It is important here to verify each element of the phenomenon in question and focus on the individual components of the issue addressed based on qualitative descriptive elements. The paper draws on the printed publications of authors such as Irina Ferencz, Agnieszka Olechnicka, Tim Birtwistle, Robert Wagenaar, Jurgen Enders, Jeroen Huisman and continuous prints, including: Edukacja Ekonomistów i Menedżerów, Forum Akademickie, Education, Zeszyty Naukowe Politechniki Śląskiej, Studia Prawno Ekonomiczne, Białostockie Studia Prawnicze and Studia Prawnoustrojowe. Findings: The research problem was framed by the question: what changes are possible to implement in European higher education, under the Bologna harmonization formula, after the announcement of the Rome Communiqué in 2020? Practical implications: The practical objective was defined in the form of comments relevant to the needs for changes in the course of the Bologna Process with regard to multidegree education, quality assurance and recognition of periods of education, the social dimension of the Bologna Process and the internationalization of higher education. Originality/value: The study consists of three rudimentary parts, including a characterisation of the development of higher education and the implications for the region, and an analysis of the Bologna Process and its benefits for European higher education, as well as its most recent implications for higher education systems after the Rome 2020 conference. This characterisation fits into the thematic area of education management understood as a potential of the European region. This article addresses the issue of higher education development as a factor in regional development and aims to analyse the most up-to-date desiderata for harmonising higher education systems in Europe, particularly those raised at the Rome 2020 Ministerial Conference. Keywords: Higher (tertiary) education, Bologna Process, harmonisation. Category of the paper: Conceptual paper.