Bologna: Far from a Model, Just a Process for a While…

One of the drivers of university reforms in Europe over the last decade has been the need for a better harmonization of degrees and pedagogical systems. Launched by governments with a clear political objective – improve the competitiveness of Europe on a world scale – the European harmonization process structured by European Education Ministers summits and formal declarations (Paris, Bologna, Prague, Berlin, Bergen) every other year has fostered many changes in most countries. In business education, sector regulation mechanisms- like accreditations and rankings – also gained momentum over the same period of time. When analyzed carefully in practice, it is obvious that these three movements – Bologna process, accreditation and ranking – leave management education institutions much room to maneuver. The thesis of this paper is that underlying factors, like the internationalization of students and faculty recruitments or the pressure on public spending, play an equally significant role to explain the structural evolution of academic institutions. Accreditations, rankings and the Bologna process are each capturing only a fraction of these phenomena. Taken altogether they do contribute to an upgrade in the management of European higher education institutions. But due to the cross-country differences in the adaptation to these changes and the various academic traditions, a harmonized European academic landscape is not for tomorrow…