The Bologna‐student is female, she enters her humanities course directly after leaving school at 19 years of age, comes from a well‐educated family and will find adequate employment after graduation with an above‐average salary. This is the average student, but the new study delves deeper to understand similarities and differences in student profiles and how they are supported by different higher education systems.
On the 28 April the ministers responsible for higher education in the 46 signatory countries of the Bologna Process will be presented with new comparative data to help them develop evidence‐based policies for reform and improvement in their respective higher education systems. This report was produced as a joint venture between representatives of Eurostat and EUROSTUDENT in a unique cooperation to highlight key data on the social dimension of European higher education.
Both data and analyses strive to look beyond formal data on infrastructure and the average student to better understand how various student groups are being integrated into higher education. This perspective may become the litmus test for sustainability in higher education in view of the concurrent middle and long term trends towards higher skilled jobs, an aging population and declining numbers of young people. Furthermore, the Bologna ministers see improvements here as a way of maintaining and increasing the attractiveness of European higher education.
The report covers many aspects of a student's biography with chapters on widening access, study framework conditions, international mobility of students and higher education outcomes and employability. The results provide many opportunities for comparison between countries and for policy learning.
In terms of access to higher education, we see that less change has occurred than might be expected. Whilst, one third of the population is expected to enter higher education between 18 and 20 years old, less than 6% of students over 25 years old embark on higher education. We see that most entrants into higher education enter via their secondary school certificate and that social reproduction is still very evident in higher education. 17% of people with parents who have only basic education manage to access and complete higher education, while 63% of those with parents who have graduated from higher education manage to do so. Gender equality has, in general, been achieved, but not in all subject areas. Women represent only one third of entrants in science. At the same time, these are averages for the whole of Europe and individual countries show that the status quo need not be maintained and that more open higher education systems, with lower barriers for non‐traditional students do exist.
Study conditions provide the framework for student success. Half of Bologna countries invest more than 1.1% of GDP on higher education, and 2.8% of total public expenditure and we see that, despite growth in student numbers, public expenditure on tertiary education has kept pace with growth in national economies (GDP) between 2001 and 2005. Nearly one third of investment per student was devoted to research and development and ancillary services, leaving two‐thirds for core education expenditure. However, spending on core educational goods and services per student was twice as high in the US as in most Bologna countries.
Besides direct investment in higher education, states also provide student support in the form of grants and loans. The proportion of public expenditure on tertiary education dedicated to grants and loans ranged from less than 5% to more than 20% within the Bologna Area. In some countries, this leads to state support being a major source of students' monthly income. However, the dominant income source in most countries was family support or paid work alongside studies.
What is a higher education certificate worth for a graduate? In Europe one third of the population between 25 and 34 has completed higher education. However, the comparison shows that there are very different completion rates, ranging from 45% to 87%, which means that a large share of prospective graduates leave before final graduation, which is a waste in terms of both public and private (individual) investment. Once graduated, certificate holders tend to earn double that of non‐graduates. There is, however, a share of the graduate population, who does not manage to attain these high wages. On average, the lower wage‐earning quarter of higher education graduates earns about the same as the average wage‐earner with an upper secondary school certificate. Therefore, overlaps between attainment levels mean that a higher education certificate is not always a guarantee for higher wages. One argument against higher education expansion is that there would be a surplus of graduates who would not be able to find appropriate work in the labour market. The study shows evidence of a mismatch between higher education qualification and the theoretical skill level of their job for around one fifth of graduates. However, the share lies at around 20% in many countries irrespective of the proportion of graduates. This points to a possible conclusion that higher education graduates drive a labour market towards higher skilled jobs.
It is hoped that this data will encourage higher education ministers to intensify their efforts to provide inclusive, fair and effective higher education systems in Europe and elsewhere. EUROSTUDENT is committed to assisting this task both through working in cooperation with other data experts, such as Eurostat, and by continuing work within its own network. The fourth round of EUROSTUDENT is now in full swing and the next report is planned for 2011. This will ensure that we continue to provide relevant data for the further development of the Bologna Process beyond 2010.
The report can be downloaded free from the Eurostat and EUROSTUDENT websites.
Further information
Dominic Orr,
Project leader EUROSTUDENT
Nicole Rohde,
Project staff EUROSTUDENT
Press
Tanja Barthelmes