Joint Doctoral Studies
and Research
at the University of Zagreb
Aleksa Bjeliš
University of Zagreb, Croatia
Croatian Higher Education:
HE System:
- 6 universities, 5 polytechnics, high schools
- about 130.000 students (population: about 4.500.000)
National context:
- about 12% of population (from 25 to 65) with higher education
- generally: working force: not appropriately skilled, and relatively
expensive
- the most efficient part: tendency of economic emigration, particularly
among young graduates
- actual job market: unemployment rate - more than 15%
- actual national concurrence rate: last few years - around 70th on the
world list, without signs of recovering
Role of Higher Education in National
Economy:
• Governmental committee for concurrence:
- Higher Education recognized as a crucial tool for recovering from
recession:
- improvement of competences and qualifications
- highest qualified experts capable to generate new initiatives
(shortage of ideas, not of money)
- Pool: postgraduate studies, together with university research
centers and scientific institutes
-
Can universities respond to the challenge?
Postgraduate studies until now:
Scientific and professional programmes (and doctoral theses “outside”
studies);
Elements of:
•
Quasi – open market;
•
Large drop-out;
But also:
•
elements of life-long learning – specialized courses more useful
and cheaper than seminars organized by other providers
(weekends, out of HE institutions) - particularly in social
disciplines (economy, management, law, …);
Doctoral degrees:
Either: theses (without studies) mostly for personal promotion (and not
within some research programme):
● average age of new doctors – almost 40;
Or: studies tightly connected with research and innovations (natural,
medical and technical disciplines) – only partially (and indirectly,
often symbolically) subsidized by state; burdened by the obligation
of having a master degree before;
● average age of new doctors – usually between 30 and 35,
rarely below 30;
Illustration: University of Zagreb (2002/2003)
Postgraduate cycle within present (“Central European”) system (study
programmes of two or three years):
● 5.100 active students (first two or three years of studying)
● 132 study programmes organized mostly at faculty or more local
(departmental …) levels
● 705 masters (“magistar” – scientific or professional)
● 254 doctors of science (mostly those who obtained “magistar” degree
previously) – more than 80% of Croatian doctoral degrees
Among 132 programmes:
● 12 programmes with eight and more doctors of science (7 in natural
sciences, 3 in medical sciences, 2 in electrical engineering and
computations)
● 30 programmes with three and more doctors of science (4 in
technical disciplines, 14 in humanities, in addition)
Future; new propositions:
• Full legislative support for the implementation of BP
achieved in July 2003 through new Act on Scientific
Research and Higher Education
• Amended Act – July 2004
• Some propositions:
- new study scheme – until 2005/2006
- new system of quality assurance (with the foundation of
Agency) – end of 2004;
- full juridical integration of universities – until the end of
2007.
- full establishment of binary system – until 2010.
Future system of postgraduate studies:
• Doctoral studies; three years, with research and original scientific
contribution; intense (full time) activity of students
- Some programmes expected to be supported by the state, others by
other stakeholders
• “Specialization” studies; one to two years, advanced professional
programme; usually part-time student involvement
Either:
- Oriented towards market;
Or:
- Initiated and realized in collaboration with interested partners;
industry, public and private sector
Open questions:
Scales:
Doctoral studies: usually stable (long-termed) with small (non-sustainable)
numbers of students →
How to survive?
● Cooperation at the national level (other universities, public institutes
● International cooperation, joint programmes, …
Specialization studies: usually short-termed, depending on the demands of
market and/or partner(s) →
How to keep the level of quality and efficiency?
● Complete opening towards market, with proper study costs …
In both cases: usually more promising to organize studies (and corresponding
quality assessment) at university level - wider human resources,
inter-disciplinary programmes, …
International cooperation in postgraduate studies;
Recent experiences
• 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 master or doctoral
programmes:
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 (Physics, Mathematics, etc); Arts
(Music, etc), ... ]
4. “Small endangered” disciplines (like everywhere ...)
Example of a developing project: 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 on,
• duration: three years,
• 200.000 – 300.000 Euros per project
Expectations:
- more extensive (and intensive) European networks;
- University networks (EUA, UNICA,…);
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
Post-doctoral stage; link to research and innovations
•
Until now: main resource of doctoral students – fellows of Ministry of
science (“scientific novices” – few hundreds per year)
• Permanent flow in last decade
However:
• Outcome remained less defined – new post-doctors oriented
- either towards posts at universities and public institutes sometimes with
short (1-2 years post-doctoral stage abroad),
- or towards continuing carriers abroad
• Link to industry and other relevant stakeholders – far from satisfactory
• Incubators, technological parks, applicative projects – initial attempts, but:
- universities still without a system of protection of intellectual property and its
promotion towards entrepreneurial applications and spin-off actions