Enhancing the European Dimension of Higher Education: The European Higher Education Area Approach

The building of a European Dimension of higher education, a European approach to higher education built on shared values, is currently one of the priorities of the European Union (EU) to face the current global challenges. The EU contributes to its development through funding schemes and a common policy agenda, positioning itself as the main actor in this process. However, the European dimension is the result of a more complex path, where the Bologna Process and its related European Higher Education Area (EHEA) play a major role. In fact, the Bologna Process was the first initiative to bring together countries and key stakeholders, including the European Commission, and to launch a collectively approved vision and mission for European higher education. Since 1999, through its Ministerial Communiqués the Bologna Process has been contributing to include the European dimension in the daily practices of European higher education. This study investigates how, and in which policy domains, does the EHEA through its Ministerial Communiqués contributes to the European dimension of higher education through an approach distinct from EU action. This policy analysis identifies five main policy domains through which the EHEA advances the European dimension: fundamental values, mobility, recognition, quality culture, and the social dimension. The findings demonstrate that the EHEA constitutes a distinct and influential framework shaping European higher education. Rather than merely complementing EU action, it provides the normative and institutional backbone of the European dimension and plays a co-primary role in its consolidation and evolution.