ACA papers

Wächter, Bernd & Maiworm, Friedhelm, English-Taught Programmes in European Higher Education. The Picture in 2007. Bonn: Lemmens, 2008. ISBN 978-3-932306-89-1.

International students have long favoured Anglophone countries as study destinations. And it goes without saying that the role of English as the lingua franca has been instrumental in attracting foreign students. In the last years of the past century, continental European higher education institutions started to teach in English, too, seeking to overcome their linguistic drawback. In 2002, the Academic Cooperation Association (ACA) produced the first ever overview and analysis of the phenomenon. The study, published in the ACA Papers on International Cooperation in Education (ISBN 3-932306-47-3), found that English-medium tuition in continental Europe was still a ‘marginal phenomenon’ then - even though the offer was expanding by the day.

How has the situation developed since? English-Taught Programmes in European Higher Education. The Picture in 2007 provides the answer to this question. Drawing a detailed European map of English-medium tuition in 27 European countries, it is essential reading for anyone interested in curricular internationalisation – and not least for those from English-speaking countries challenged by Europe’s English-taught provision.

The book can be obtained through any bookshop. It can also be ordered from the publisher, Lemmens Medien GmbH, Matthias-Grünewald-Str. 1-3, D-53175 Bonn, 
tel.: +49(0)2 28/42 13 70, fax: +49(0)2 28/42 13 7-29, E-mail: info@lemmens.de, or online via the publishers' website at  http://www.lemmens.de/verlag/buecher.html.

Price: 24.80 Euro (paperback version)

Today, Europe is a wealthy continent. But tomorrow, it could be much poorer. An unfavourable demographic development, the high price of labour, and relentless competition from old and new competitors threaten Europe’s comfortable position. To counterbalance these dangers, Europe has adopted the Lisbon Strategy. It sets Europe the aim of becoming a world leader in innovation and knowledge creation. Alongside with other knowledge producers, universities and other higher education institutions thus have a key role in making the Lisbon Strategy work. However, in their present state, Europe’s universities are ill-equipped to become innovation engines. In order to play this role, they themselves need to change. They need more funds than they have today, they need better governance structures, and they must enhance their global appeal. These issues – governance, funding and international attractiveness of Europe’s universities – are key concerns of this book.  The volume also depicts the main outlines of the Lisbon Strategy.  Most of the contributions in this volume are based on presentations delivered at the ACA conference The future of the university, held in Vienna in December 2005.

The book can be obtained through any bookshop. It can also be ordered from the publisher, Lemmens Medien GmbH, Matthias-Grünewald-Str. 1-3, D-53175 Bonn, 
tel.: +49(0)2 28/42 13 70, fax: +49(0)2 28/42 13 7-29, E-mail: info@lemmens.de, or online via the publishers' website at  http://www.lemmens.de/verlag/buecher.html.

Price: 19.80 Euro (paperback version) - 12.00 (PDF version)

The international mobility of students has considerably gained ground as a major policy in Europe over the last decades. As a result of the heightened political importance attached to international mobility, there is an enhanced need for comprehensive, up-to-date, and reliable information on the phenomenon. However, data measuring real mobility is not always available and is rarely sufficiently differentiated.This publication, and the related ACA study, has therefore a double objective. First, it investigates which data on international mobility are being compiled and made available both at the international, national and programme level. Second, it presents in one volume the student mobility data identified, and - based on an analysis of these data - it tries to depict a picture of the main trends in international student mobility into and out of 32 European countries. Next to analysing and presenting the data on international student mobility, this report also makes recommendations for the improvement of student mobility statistics both at national and international level.

The book is out of print and only available in PDF for 19.80 Euro.

Like the first volume of On Cooperation and Competion, this book describes and analyses the policies for the internationalisation of higher education in seven European countries (Austria, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, and the UK). While the first volume (2004) dealt with national policies, this part of the study is devoted to internationalisation policies at institutional level. The study was coordinated by Marijk van der Wende of the well-known Dutch think tank CHEPS (Centre for Higher Education Policy Studies). The publications are the first to take an in-depth look into this theme again, after ACA’s National Policies for Internationalisation in Europe (1997).

The book can now be purchased via the ACA Secretariat for the price of 9.50 Euro

The Bologna Process stands for the European integration process in the field of higher education. The progress achieved so far within the Bologna member states is admirable; however, a concentration on internal processes can only be a first step towards becoming a global actor. The Bologna declaration formulates the objective of enhancing the attractiveness of European higher education on a global scale, and this statement has been repeated and refined since 1999. But is the implementation of Bologna really making Europe more attractive and transparent, and if so, how? The latest book in the series ACA Papers on International Cooperation in Education addresses these issues. The papers in this publication are based on the presentations delivered at an ACA conference held in Hamburg, Germany, in 2004.

The book can be obtained through any bookshop. It can also be ordered from the publisher, Lemmens Medien GmbH, Matthias-Grünewald-Str. 1-3, D-53175 Bonn, 
tel.: +49(0)2 28/42 13 70, fax: +49(0)2 28/42 13 7-29, E-mail: info@lemmens.de

This publication can also be ordered online via the publishers' website at  http://www.lemmens.de/verlag/buecher.html.

Price: 24,80 Euro (Print version) - 12,00 Euro (PDF version).

Universities and other higher education institutions operate in an increasingly international environment. Many of them run international marketing campaigns and recruit students on a global scale. Even those which do not engage in such activities are sometimes flooded with student applications from all over the world. Therefore, policies and instruments for the admission of international students are rapidly gaining in importance. In this situation, institutions are looking for admission models which will both help them get the “right” students and rationalise their administrative procedures. But there is hardly any literature to guide them in this endeavour. The study carried out by ACA tries to change this. It examines admissions policies and tools in different countries, in order to identify a range of models and procedures for the effective and efficient handling of international student admissions and selection.

The book can now be purchased via the ACA Secretariat for the price of 9.50 Euro

An astonishing development has taken place over the last ten years. Internationalisation of higher education, once a marginal concern, has moved centre-stage. It has become “mainstreamed” and is now regarded as part and parcel of “higher education policy”. In a parallel move, what was earlier called education policy has become subject to international debate and decision-making and thus of “internationalisation”. As a result, the activities referred to under the term “internationalisation” have become widened. There are two types of internationalisation. “Old internationalisation” concerns the mobility of students and scholars. “New internationalisation” deals with joint international efforts related to structural and regulatory issues of higher education systems. The present volume traces this development. It revisits the classical themes of “old internationalisation”, such as exchanges and development cooperation, and it explores the main issues of “new internationalisation” (international education policy), for example quality assurance, lifelong learning and online education. The papers in this book were first presented at the 10-year anniversary conference of the Academic Cooperation Association (ACA) in Ghent/Belgium in 2003. All authors are internationally-renowned specialists in their field.

The book can be obtained through any bookshop. It can also be ordered from the publisher, Lemmens Medien GmbH, Matthias-Grünewald-Str. 1-3, D-53175 Bonn, 
tel.: +49(0)2 28/42 13 70, fax: +49(0)2 28/42 13 7-29, E-mail: info@lemmens.de
Price: 19,80 Euro (Print version) - 12,00 Euro (PDF version).

This publication describes and analyses the national policies for the internationalisation of higher education in seven European countries (Austria, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, and the UK), as well as the European Union’s higher education policies. The study, which was funded by the European Commission’s Research Directorate and coordinated by Marijk van der Wende of the well-known Dutch think tank CHEPS (Centre for Higher Education Policy Studies), is the first publication to take an in-depth look into this theme again, after ACA’s National Policies for Internationalisation in Europe (1997). The book depicts in detail what its subtitle announces, the shift from the logic of international cooperation to that of competition. This state-of-the-art report, based on the thorough work of many a renowned scholar, is a must for every library on internationalisation.

The book can now be purchased via the ACA Secretariat for the price of 9.50 Euro

The present book explores the quality and quantity of English-Language-Taught Degree Programmes (abbreviated ELTDPs) in 19 European countries where English is not the native language. The study maps the provision of ELTDPs identifying the general level of provision, the picture in different countries, the type, the size and age of the institutions offering ELTDPs, and the main subject areas in which they are being offered. The study also addresses qualitative issues of ELTDPs. It identifies key factors of importance for any institution intending to start or widen the provision of ELTDPs, such as motivation, institutional approaches and the role of single actors inside an institution, marketing, language proficiency, organization, funding, accreditation and quality assurance, and intended or unexpected spin-off effects. The book concludes with a set of recommendations for good practice in the conception, planning, introduction and operation of ELTDPs.

The book can be obtained through any bookshop. It can also be ordered from the publisher, Lemmens Medien GmbH, Matthias-Grünewald-Str. 1-3, D-53175 Bonn, 
tel.: +49(0)2 28/42 13 70, fax: +49(0)2 28/42 13 7-29, E-mail: info@lemmens.de
Price: 19,80 Euro.

ERASMUS, the "flagship" among the educational programmes of the European Union, underwent substanial programmatic and structural changes when it became a sub-programme under the umbrella of the SOCRATES programme in the mid-1990s. The role of the center of the university was strengthened at the expenses of the networks of departements, and more emphasis was placed on curricular innovation, teaching staff mobility and on involvement of the non-mobile students. This study, being part of the SOCRATES 2000 Evaluation Study, aims to examine the changes occurred in ERASMUS in the late 1990s. It draws from available documents and statistics, and comprises surveys of students, graduates and academics as well as interviews with those involved in curricular innovation and "thematic networks". The authors call for efforts to keep academics involved, to establish administrative procedures based on trust and to ensure a stronger role of curricular innovation.

The book can be obtained through any bookshop. It can also be ordered from the publisher, Lemmens Medien GmbH, Matthias-Grünewald-Str. 1-3, D-53175 Bonn, tel.: 02 28/42 13 70, fax: 02 28/42 13 7-29, E-mail: info@lemmens.de
Price: 19,80 Euro.

Based on the outcome of an expert seminar held in Fjaerland/Norway in June 2001, the book explores the phenomenon of online learning and its relationship to the present concepts of internationalisation. Will e-learning replace partly or fully classroom-based instruction, and will the new "click universities" perhaps even endanger the existence of (some of the) "brick-and-mortar" institutions? Will online education put an end to international mobility and exchange, and other forms of internationalisation? How can and should funding agencies in the field of international cooperation respond to the new virtual paradigm? The publication tackles these and related questions in the form of 12 articles by authors from four continents, and an introduction by the editor.

The book can be obtained through any bookshop. It can also be ordered from the publisher, Lemmens Medien GmbH, Matthias-Grünewald-Str. 1-3, D-53175 Bonn, 
tel.: 02 28/42 13 70, fax: 02 28/42 13 7-29, E-mail: info@lemmens.de
Price: 19,80 Euro.

In the past 15 years, European cooperation in higher education has increased dramatically. During the same period, a large number of academic associations have come into being. A few insiders know their names; hardly anyone knows what they actually do. What is their history? What are their aims, their main activities, their publications and their most noteworthy projects? How are they governed? This publication answers these and many other related questions. It attempts to shed light on the "inner workings" of the 37 most relevant academic networks in Europe in the form of standardised portraits. The book also contains a number of short profiles of important higher education associations from outside Europe, as well as a "postscript" analysis containing a short typology and history of European networks in the tertiary sector.

The book can be obtained through any bookshop.

Internationalisation and international cooperation have moved centrestage as themes in the current higher education debate. But what does internationalisation actually mean? What are the motives that lead universities and other higher education institutions to systematically cooperate with partners in other countries and continents? What are the typical activities in international collaboration? What are the policies and strategies that drive them? How does one internationalise a whole continent? These are some of the questions explored in the present publication. It consists of an overview paper on the main issue of internationalisation, and of seven essays on particular aspects of this theme.

The publication is only available in pdf-format (price: 12,00 Euro).

Europe´s universities have a long tradition of international cooperation. But what about the “non-university” type of higher education institution, such as the Dutch hogescholen, the German Fachhochschulen, or the Irish Institutes of Technology? It is often assumed that the international cooperation activities of these young institutions are quite limited. However, little research has been devoted to the issue so far. The Academic Cooperation Association (ACA) has therefore decided to explore the state of internationalisation in Europe´s “non-universities”. The present publication contains state-of-the-art reports from 15 European countries, and the papers of a seminar of international expert which explored the topic in a cross-European thematic approach.

The publication can be obtained through any bookshop.

This 100-page booklet gives useful information on the 20 European and the 3 non-European (associate) member organisations and showcases their vast potential.

Please contact Isabelle Deneyer (info@aca-secretariat.be) for a free copy.