11-12 November 2005
Imperial College, London
In collaboration with the Heads of University Management and Administration Network in Europe (HUMANE).
Europe’s universities are making major efforts to develop and strengthen their research profiles and potentials. The substantial reforms prompted by the Bologna Process (and the inclusion of the third cycle), a stronger emphasis on the need for strategic focus in universities and considerable changes in funding systems and sources are causing a fundamental review of the way universities achieve one of the key elements of their mission: knowledge creation and innovation.
As a result of these trends, universities in countries that did not have graduate or doctoral schools are establishing them; universities in countries that have them are reforming them (UK, France). In either case the aims are to identify and systematically support and develop research talent.
The workshop series "Managing the University Community" is entirely case based. The London workshop examined different examples of Graduate Schools from various European countries, at different stages of development. Cases focused on:
- How can graduate schools be most effectively integrated into a university? What are the challenges and success factors?
- How can graduate schools serve as a useful link between the second and third cycles, i.e., should Master programmes leading into PhD programmes be offered?
- What are the good practices in structured skill development programmes for graduate/PhD students and how can graduate schools meet this challenge?
- What lessons can be learned from experiences with regional, national and international inter-institutional graduate schools?
Keynotes speeches addressed national graduate school promotion policies, the experiences of funding agencies and the current issues and challenges in the US. Examples from DAAD - Germany, UK GRAD Programme and the Council of Graduate Schools - USA were presented.
Cases were presented on behalf of the host Imperial College London (United Kingdom), as well as the Universities of Helsinki (Finland), Tilburg (Netherlands), Bochum (Germany) and Paris VI (France) and the European University Institute in Florence (Italy).
For more details on the Workshop and its results, please consult the following additional information: