Recognition of studies abroad in the European Union
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Recognition of titles is an important instrument to facilitate the free movement of students and of graduates in Europe. Also at the occasion of the "Prague Ministerial Conference" on Higher Education (May 2001), "Ministers strongly encouraged universities and other higher education institutions to take full advantage of existing national legislation and European tools aimed at facilitating academic and professional recognition of course units, degrees and other awards, so that citizens can effectively use their qualifications, competencies and skills throughout the European Higher Education Area".
In order better to understand the Community rules on the recognition of diplomas, a distinction must first be made between recognition for academic purposes (i.e. : you would like your title to be recognised because you wish to continue your studies) and recognition for professional purposes (i.e. : you would like your title to be recognised because you wish to work in a certain profession).
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[edit] Academic recognition
As regards academic recognition of a title or a period of study abroad in order to continue studying in the country of origin, each Member State is responsible under the Amsterdam Treaty for its own educational content and organization. Second, there are no Community provisions imposing mutual recognition of diplomas (except for certain regulated occupations that are referred to below under the heading of recognition for professional purposes). That is why there are currently no diplomas that are recognized at European level for academic purposes.
Universities, which are autonomous institutions, are entirely responsible for the content of their curricula and for awarding diplomas and certificates to students. The diplomas and certificates are recognized by the authorities of the Member State concerned.
However, the European Commission has encouraged mutual recognition (for academic purposes) between the various education systems in Europe through such Community programmes as Erasmus. Although participation in Erasmus is entirely voluntary, it has greatly contributed to an understanding and recognition of education systems that are often very different.
A tangible result of the effort to promote understanding of the academic recognition of qualifications, under the Erasmus programme, is the network of national information centres for the recognition of diplomas (NARIC). These Centres can provide you with information on national academic recognition procedures.
[edit] Professional recognition
As regards recognition for professional purposes, it is important to distinguish between professions that are regulated from the standpoint of qualifications and non-regulated professions.
A profession is said to be regulated when it is a statutory requirement to hold a diploma or other occupational qualification in order to pursue the profession in question. In that case, the lack of the necessary national diploma constitutes a legal obstacle to access to the profession.
If you are seeking recognition of your diploma in order to pursue a regulated profession (whether employed or self-employed) in a Member State other than the one in which you obtained your qualifications, you are covered by Community law which you may invoke and with which the national authorities must comply. Right of establishment, freedom to provide services and the free movement of workers are fundamental principles of the EC Treaty. In order to enable these freedoms to be exercised, several legal instruments concerning the recognition of diplomas, applicable solely to the regulated professions, were adopted at European level.
[edit] Regulated professions : the general system
One of two Directives will be applicable, depending on the level of studies recognized by the diploma: either Directive 89/48/EEC on a general system for the recognition of higher-education diplomas awarded on completion of professional education and training of at least three years’ duration (A-levels or equivalent + three years), or Directive 92/51/EEC on a second general system which covers diplomas, certificates and other vocational training titles at a lower level than those covered by Directive 89/48/EEC.
It is important to note that the above-mentioned Directives did not set up a system of automatic equivalence between diplomas. There is no such thing as a list of diplomas that are automatically recognized at European level, since a diploma is not recognized for its intrinsic value but according to the profession to which it gives access in the country which awarded it. It is for the person concerned to submit an individual application specifying clearly which occupation they wish to pursue.
Under the Directives, even if you do not hold the appropriate national diploma, the authorities of the host Member State must authorize you to pursue a profession on its territory, if you have the diploma required in your country of origin in order to pursue that profession. The recognition thus granted therefore constitutes the right to pursue a specific regulated profession under the same conditions as the holders of national diplomas, but does not mean that your diploma is regarded as equivalent to a national diploma for other purposes.
The competent authority to deal with applications for academic recognition, submitted in accordance with the above-mentioned Directives, varies from one profession to another.
In order to know if the profession which interests you is regulated and then find out which department deals with applications for recognition for the profession in question, you should apply to the national "contact point" for professional recognition.
The Community Directives state that a competent authority has four months to take a decision. If your application is rejected, you may have recourse to the legal remedies available in the host country (see Article 8 of Directive 89/48/EEC and Article 12 of Directive 92/51/EEC).
[edit] Regulated professions : « automatic recognition »
There is also a second group of so-called "automatic recognition" directives concerning the following professions: doctor, dentist, nurse, veterinarian, pharmacist, midwife and architect. These directives provide for the automatic recognition of diplomas, certificates and other qualifications related to the aforementioned professions, delivered by Member States in so far as they fulfil the minimum training conditions laid down by Community legislation.
In the sixties, a sectoral and vertical approach was followed for recognition of vocational qualifications. Several directives based on Articles 49 and 57 of the EC Treaty have been adopted regarding profession and sectors concerning trade, industry and craft. These so-called "liberalisation" directives comprising "transitory measures" have been established in order to facilitate access to a specific profession by guaranteeing, under certain conditions, the recognition in the host country of experience acquired in the country of origin. At present a draft directive is under discussion in order to integrate these directives into the provisions of the "general system" of directives.
[edit] Not regulated professions
If the profession you wish to pursue is not regulated, you are subject to the rules of the labour market and the behaviour of that market and not to any legal constraints with regard to your diploma. In that case, the system of recognition provided for by the Directives referred to above is not applicable.
However, even if the said Directives are not applicable, you still have certain rights as regards the recognition of your diploma. The authorities of the host country are in any event obliged, under the Articles on freedom of movement of the EC Treaty, to take account of your professional diplomas and qualifications acquired in another Member State.
[edit] See also
- Academic and professional recognition procedures in the EU and EEA Countries.
