Frequently asked questions
Below is a list of some of the most frequently asked questions so that you can find out about the European Higher Education Area quickly and simply.
- What is the European Higher Education Area (EHEA)?
- Why is the URV committed to an overall process of adaptation to the EHEA?
- What are the main structural changes proposed by Bologna?
- What does an ECTS credit involve?
- The teaching guides of the subjects
- What is the European Diploma Supplement (EDS)?
- What is academic tutoring?
1. What is the European Higher Education Area (EHEA)?
The European Higher Education Area is the title of a joint European project that aims to establish some general lines in higher education. The aims of the EHEA are
- to promote the mobility of students, graduates and academics throughout Europe.
- to enable new graduates to become part of a unified European labour market.
- to provide students with the knowledge and the strategies they need for lifelong learning.
To achieve these objectives, all European Union countries must:
- have a common higher education system,
- adapt their curricula in terms of the structure, contents and definition of the competencies resulting from learning.
2. Why is the URV committed to an overall process of adaptation to the EHEA?
The URV wishes to strengthen the position of our students and put them on the same level as their European counterparts with whom they will have to compete in the labour market, in postgraduate education and in the field of research.
It is in this respect that the URV believes that it is fundamental to adapt to the European Higher Education Area, and the new system of official degrees in the framework of Royal Decree 1393/2007, which describes the process for establishing these new degrees.
Today, more than ever before, we have to enable our students to access the European Higher Education Area defined in the Bologna Declaration and make it possible for them to continue studying or working in any country in the European Union.
3. What are the main structural changes proposed by Bologna?
The new system of European education will be structured in the following way:
- First degrees (or bachelor degrees), which do away with the current division between diplomas and undergraduate degrees in the Spanish university system, enable students to prepare for the labour market more quickly and more effectively.
- Master’s degrees provide students with appropriate specialization.
- Doctoral degrees provide students with training in research.
4. What does an ECTS credit involve?
“ECTS credits represent the volume of work that students must do to attain the objectives of the programme of studies, which should be stated preferably in terms of learning outcomes and competencies to be acquired.” Royal Decree 1125/2003
Planning with ECTS credits, then, means specifying the workload required for students to carry out all the teaching/learning activities, from attending classes, writing essays, doing practicals and sitting exams, etc.
The basic differences are:
|
Current model |
ECTS model |
|
One credit represents 10 class hours. |
One credit represents 25 hours of work for the student. |
5. The teaching guides of the subjects
In accordance with the directives of the EHEA, the URV publishes its academic programmes in the form of Teaching Guides for each subject. These guides provide the following information:
- Competencies
- Learning objectives
- Contents
- Planning
- Methodology
- Personal attention
- Assessment
- Sources of information
- Recommendations
You can find this and other information about your degree or your department in the Teaching Guides at your faculty or school.
6. What is the European Diploma Supplement (EDS)
The European Diploma Supplement is a standardized model of information, personalized for each university graduate, which provides such information as the course studied, and the competencies and skills acquired.
Its aim is to be a comprehensive and transparent document for the purpose of accrediting and recognizing credits throughout Europe.
It can be provided to all graduates at the same time as the degree or subsequently, once the degree has been applied for. Students must request the document at the secretariat of the faculty or school where they studied.
The EHEA gives particular importance to guidance as a key element in university education.
Academic tutoring is the tool by which this guidance is put into practice. The process, developed by university teachers, is educational, orientative and overarching.
The aim is to provide students with all the tools and the help they require if they are to successfully respond to the academic, personal and professional challenges of university life.
