Transatlantic recognition issues: seeking new directions in the twenty‐first century

Abstract

Both the US and European higher education systems have long histories of transatlantic cooperation1, a tradition that it is important to preserve and enhance even in the context of increased competition and important systemic reforms in both North America and Europe. The Bologna Process has led to several systemic reforms in European higher education, including new degree structures, credit systems, intra‐European mobility opportunities and transparency that are important in creating a more dynamic, flexible and socio‐economically orientated brand of higher education. Institutional autonomy and a broader and more flexible content for degrees are also being discussed, both driven by economic realities and the need to improve both social access and outcomes. In the United States, the issues of accountability to societal stakeholders (citizens, employers and government) and outcomes‐orientated quality assurance are realigning the historic relationship of the self‐governing university corporations to society and the state. Accreditation, which is a century‐old process, is now actively addressing outcomes as an integral concept in quality assurance. And both state and federal governments, as well as non‐governmental organisations, are more active in combating degree mills and fraud than in the recent past. Both Europe and the United States are doing what is necessary to improve their higher education ‘brands’. More academic flexibility and institutional independence are important if Europe is to overcome the rigidities that hamper its competitiveness, just as more accountability and improved quality control are important to the continued attractiveness of US higher education in an increasingly regulated and interdependent world. These steps do not mean that European and US higher education are becoming alike, but they should lead to greater possibilities for cooperation and better mutual understanding of our respective systems.