The impact of the Bologna process on higher education institutions in Malta : an overview of the targets achieved and future challenges

Abstract

The aim of this working document is to assess the impact of the Bologna Process on Higher Education institutions in Malta by providing an overview of the targets and initiatives within the Higher Education sector. A number of indicators have been taken as points of reference of this research namely: the European Credit Transfer System, the Diploma Supplement, Quality Assurance, mobility of students and staff, research and innovation and industry's opinion on the quality of our graduates. The results evidenced in this document are encouraging and challenging at the same time. This is one sector in which Malta is on track with other countries within the European Union. Of course this does not imply that we have achieved all targets set within the Bologna Process but the initiatives taken and the quality and standards of our learning institutions show that Malta has a solid Higher Education system in which learners are well prepared to meet the challenges of the labour market. If results achieved, particularly within the University of Malta, are encouraging, the same can be said of the Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology, the Institute of Tourism Studies and other public and private Higher Education Institutions that are aware of such challenges and are seriously working towards achieving higher standards of quality in their teaching and research sectors. Malta was one of the founding signatories of the Bologna Process. Malta has followed every Bologna Follow Up Group (BFUG) and Bologna Ministerial Meeting with keen interest. Timely and adequate actions have been taken to ensure that innovation and change match tradition and acquire standards through the experience gathered in this sector since the founding of our Alma Mater in 1592. The response from our Higher Education institutions has been encouraging even though a Bologna Culture is still in the making in some of our Higher Education Institutions. Seven Bologna Meetings have been organised during the past few months as part of the 2009-2011 Bologna cycle. The objective of these seminars is to raise more structured awareness on our campuses of the strengths and benefits of the Bologna Process for both students and Faculty members. A significant contribution has been given to the Bologna Process in Malta by the setting up, in June 2007, of the Malta Qualifications Framework for Lifelong Learning based on the level descriptors as defined by the Dublin descriptors for Higher Education and those of the European Qualifications Framework as adopted by the European Parliament in April 2008. The framework has also been complemented with the publication of the Referencing Report by the Malta Qualifications Council, which further delineates the qualifications' structure and the Higher Education System in Malta. This Framework has helped Malta become more attractive as a destination for Higher Education; it provides the foundation for making Malta a centre of excellence in Higher Education. I would like to thank the European Union Programmes Agency for the sterling support it provided to all the colleagues on the National Team of Bologna Experts (NTBE) for their professional contributions made throughout these past years. I wish to take this opportunity to thank Dr. Suzanne Gatt for preparing of this research paper and Ms. Mary Jane Mifsud and Mr. Karl Mintoff, of the European Union Programmes Agency, for providing the administrative and technical support to the NTBE. A final word of thanks goes to all my colleagues at the Malta Qualifications Council and the National Commission for Higher Education particularly Ms Debbie Lora Dimech who coordinated all events and publications. ; peer-reviewed