Berlin Ministerial Conference

Realising the European Higher Education Area: Communiqué of the Conference of Ministers responsible for Higher Education in Berlin on 19 September 2003
On 19 September 2003, Ministers responsible for higher education from 33 European countries met in Berlin in order to review the progress achieved and to set priorities and new objectives for the coming years, with a view to speeding up the realisation of the European Higher Education Area.

Programme

Plenary session

• Opening addresses (Minister Bulmahn, State Minister Wolff, Minister Moratti)

• Decision on the accession of new countries

• Presentation of the report of the General Rapporteur, presentation of the Trends III report, messages of EUA, EURASHE, Council of Europe and ESIB

Ministers’ Meeting

• Discussion of the reports and messages starting with the message of the European Commission

• Discussion of Draft Communiqué “Realising the European Higher Education Area”

Discussion groups parallel to the Ministers’ meeting

• Quality Assurance and Accreditation (Chair: Prof. Erichsen, Council for Accreditation, Germany)

• Doctoral Studies and Mobility (Chair: Prof. Jacques Pertek, University of Lyon, France)

• Bachelors and the European Labour Market (Chair: Heikki Soumalainen, UNICE)

• Joint Degrees: A Hallmark of the European Higher Education Area (Chair: Prof. Roderick Floud, London Metropolitan University, EUA)

Discussion groups parallel to the Ministers’ meeting

• Welcome by the Minister of State Kerstin Müller, reports from the discussion groups

• Finalisation and Adoption of the Berlin Communiqué

• Closing statements (Minister Bulmahn, State Minister Wolff, Minister Moratti)

• Declaration by the next host country

Press Conference

Minister Bulmahn, State Minister Wolff, Minister Moratti, next host country, European Commission, Council of Europe, EUA, ESIB

New memberships

Ministers decide to accept the requests for membership of:

• Albania

• Andorra

• Bosnia and Herzegovina

• Holy See

• Russia

• Serbia and Montenegro

• “the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”

and to welcome these states as new members thus expanding the process to 40 European Countries.

Translations of the 2009 Berlin Communiqué

Bosnian

2003 Berlin Communique - Bosnian

Czech

2003 Berlin Communique - Czech

French

2003 Berlin Communique - French

Georgian

2003 Berlin Communique - Georgian

German

2003 Berlin Communique - German

Lithuanian

2003 Berlin Communique - Lithuanian

Norvegian

2003 Berlin Communique - Norvegian

Polish

2003 Berlin Communique - Polish

Portuguese

2003 Berlin Communique - Portuguese

Slovenian

2003 Berlin Communique - Slovenian

Spanish

2003 Berlin Communique - Spanish