EU: No common standard for degrees and PhD theses

BRUSSELS - There are no common mechanisms to control the quality of academic titles in the EU, as the matter is left to individual universities and member states, the European Commission (EC) says.

There is no central commission, but only EC recommendations within the Bologna process, EC Directorate General for Education and Culture spokesperson Dennis Abbott told Tanjug.

The EC is aware of the public controversy sparked by the quality of PhD theses and degrees issued by certain private universities in Serbia, he noted.

Each EU member is expected to establish a supervisory body, but quality assurance is left to individual universities, says Abbott, adding that in case of suspected plagiarism, investigating bodies are called to action.

In addition to national bodies in charge of degree issuance and quality assurance the EU also has ENQA, European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education, with very strict membership criteria.

Serbia is a member of this organization and ENQA representative in Serbia is Professor at the Faculty of Agriculture in Belgrade Sofija Pekic.

Photo freeimages.com/marygober (illustration)