Transcript Joint programmes in Croatia: First Experiences of the

Joint programmes in Croatia:
First Experiences of the
University of Zagreb
Aleksa Bjeliš
Second Meeting of UNICA Bologna Lab Coordinators - University of Vienna
(10 December 2004 )
Croatian Higher Education
– actual facts
• HE System:
- 6 universities, 5 polytechnics, high schools
~130.000 students, about 12% of population
(from 25 to 65) with higher education
• Bologna study scheme obligatory by the
academic year 2005/2006;
University of Zagreb
(in 2002/2003)
Within the present (“Central European”) system:
Undergraduate cycle [first four (or more) years of study]:
● 51.700 (43.500 full time) students
● 7.644 awarded degree
Postgraduate cycle (two or three years):
● 5.100 students in 132 study programmes
● 705 masters (“magistar” – scientific or professional)
● 254 doctors of science
International cooperation
• Considerable participation of foreign lecturers and
students (particularly through TEMPUS and similar
programmes);
• Usually master programmes;
•
-
Examples in 2002 – 2004:
Environmental Management
Management in Civil Engineering
Sustainable Energy Engineering
European Studies
Cognitive Neuroscience
Main motivations for joint studies:
1. Fields and disciplines linked to European integrations,
with relatively large needs regarding number of students
(Public administration, Urban studies, Journalism,
European studies)
2. New and/or young (usually developing interdisciplinary)
programmes (Neurocognitive Science, Medical
Neuroscience, Crisis Management, ...)
3. (Relatively) strongly developed disciplines, endangered
by small numbers of students at the master and higher
levels [fundamental disciplines in natural sciences (e. g.
Physics, Mathematics, etc); Arts (e. g. Musics, etc), ... ]
4. “Small endangered” disciplines (like everywhere ...)
Public administration
Specialization one year programme;
- Employees in national, regional, etc, institutions
- 5 basic, 8 optional courses
- Two courses – lecturer from Sorbonne 2
Plans:
- To extend to two years master programme (and to add a higher (doctoral)
programme later
- Looking for interested partners (towards a joint programme) …
Financing:
~ 2/3 : contract with Government (covering tuition fees for 25 students per
year in next three years)
~ 1/3 from other sources
Urban studies
Two years programme:
-
All profiles connected with urban planning, administration,
environmental protection, traffic, socio-psychological aspects, etc
Three modules, 6 basic courses, 15 optional courses
Plans:
-
Applied for participation in UNICA-COBRAW group
Financing:
-
Initial preparatory work subsidized by the City of Zagreb;
Realization of the programme: negotiations towards contracted
extension of the support in 2005
Journalism
-
Master study programme;
Obvious need for an improvement of quality of studies and an
increase of educational level in the whole SEE area:
Demands for freedom of media
40% of journalists in Croatia without completed higher education
Financing and plans:
- TEMPUS grant to University of Zagreb (Faculty of Political Sciences)
for 2004 – 2006 approved; contractor – University of Vienna
- Steps towards extending the network of universities and other
partners under way
Neurocognitive science
-
Initiative inside UNICA already established (Budapest, Vienna,
Zagreb)
-
University of Zagreb: interdisciplinary programme Language
Communication and Cognitive Neuroscience started in 2003 as a
TEMPUS project
-
Fall 2004: grant from Croatian Foundation for Science and Higher
Education approved
Neurosciences
-
Interdisciplinary doctoral programme launched by School of
Medicine
University of Zagreb in 2004, with participation of few other faculties.
Participation from abroad:
- Universities of Budapest (Semmelweis, Eötvös Loránd)
- University of Vienna
- University of Amsterdam
Physics
Strengthening and developing PhD programmes at Central European
universities by joining their programmes
Activities:
- Joint schools (one to two weeks),
- mobility of students,
- co-supervision in the research leading to PhD these
Involved:
- International School for Advanced Studies (SISSA), Trieste
- University of Trieste
- University of Padova
- University of Vienna
- Comenius University of Bratislava
- University of Zagreb
- University of Ljubljana
- Eötvös Loránd University of Budapest
- Charles University of Prague
Support for joint programmes
TEMPUS projects:
• few joint programmes per year from 2001,
• three years projects,
• 200.000 – 300.000 Euros per project
Croatian Foundation for Science and HE started in 2004:
☺ support of initiatives and initial realization of joint
programmes;
♥ 300.000 Euros in 2005, covering up to 10 proposals
But – still uncertain:
- Financing of higher cycles (particularly master
programmes) by the state;
- Tuition fees – crucial reforms urgently needed;
- Position and organization of “post-master”
(doctoral and other) study programmes