Higher education is crucial to Europes competitiveness, so what should the EU be doing to boost educational programmes? What steps are needed to increase the numbers of graduates from 21% of the European Unions population to nearer the level of the 38% of the US? How can technical training be given importance comparable to university studies? Is a major drive to increase private investment in education, both by individuals and companies, the way to narrow the gap in which Europe spends 1,1% of GDP on higher education compared to the 2,3% in the US? The EU and countries like Switzerland work together on the Bologna and Copenhagen Processes to create a Europe-wide internal market for education. The Swiss are reforming their higher education system to make their universities fit for increasingly stiff international competition. Switzerlands multilingualism, the international character of its universities and the fact that 25% if the working population are graduates means that it has valuable experience to share with EU policymakers. What steps should they now envisage?

Welcome by Bernhard Marfurt, Ambassador, Swiss Mission to the EU

Keynote speakers:

  • Charles Kleiber, State Secretary for Education and Research in Switzerland
  • Nikolaus van der Pas, Director General for Education at the European Commission

Event details

Event Date(s)
27/09/2005
Event Type
Event
City
La Bibliothθque Solvay, Brussels
Country
Belgium

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Contacts

Contact
Friends of Europe