REPORT

by

The Counsellors on the implementation

of The European Credit Transfer System (ECTS)

and Diploma Supplement (DS)

from their Site Visit in the University of Ruse
in the frames of the Socrates/Erasmus programme,
coordinated by the European University Association

Ruse, 2004

University of Ruse, Ruse, Bulgaria

ECTS/DS site visit

May 20, 2004

Counsellors:

Mr. Cristian Tauch, Germany
Mrs. Raimonda Markeviciene, Lithuania
Dr. E. Burak Arikan, Turkey

Staff met:

Assoc. Prof. PhD Marko Todorov, Rector

Assoc. Prof. PhD Borislav Angelov, Vice-Rector for academic Affairs and Institutional ECTS coordinator

University of Ruse
8 Studentska Str.
7017 Ruse, Bulgaria
tel.: (+359 82) 846145, 888457
e-mail: bangelov@uni-ruse.bg

Assoc. Prof. PhD Kiril Barzev, Director of International Relations and Institutional Socrates/Erasmus coordinator

Principal Assis. Volodia Tzonev – Director of the Administrative Staff of Academic Affairs and Coordinator of the Socrates/Erasmus Information Environment

Assoc. Prof. PhD Jordan Nikolov, Secretary General

Principal Assis. Stoyanka Smrikarova, ECTS coordinator of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Electronics and Automation

Principal Assis. Lyudmila Dicheva, ECTS coordinator of the Business and Management Faculty

Assoc. Prof. PhD Plamen Kangalov, Vice Dean of Academic Affairs and ECTS Coordinator of the Faculty of Mechanization and Agriculture

Assoc. Prof. PhD Zlatojivka Zdravkova, Vise Dean of Academic Affairs and ECTS Coordinator of the Pedagogical Faculty

Assoc. Prof. PhD Atanas Kolev, Vice Dean of Academic Affairs and ECTS coordinator of the Transport Faculty

Assoc. Prof. Patar Angelov, Vice Dean of Academic Affairs and ECTS coordinator of the Faculty of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering

Principal Assis. Ivaylo Ivanov, ECTS Coordinator of the Law Faculty

Assoc. Prof. PhD Yulian Mladenov, Director and ECTS coordinator of the Faculty of Postgraduate Studies and Further Education

Todorka Todorova, Chief Consultant at the Department of International Relations

Milena Bogdanova, Socrates/Erasmus officer

Polina Valkova, International relations Officer

Assoc. Prof. PhD Nikolay Michailov, Dean, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Electonics and Automation

Principal Assis. Irena Vulova, ECTS Departmental Coordinator, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Electonics and Automation

Principal Assis. Tzvetozar Georgiev, ECTS Departmental Coordinato, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Electonics and Automation

Principal Assis. Svetlana Stefanova, ECTS Departmental Coordinator, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Electonics and Automation

Senior Assis. Lilia Hristova, ECTS Departmental Coordinator, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Electonics and Automation

Principal Assis. Milko Marinov, ECTS Departmental Coordinator, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Electonics and Automation

Principal Assis. Georgi Georgiev, ECTS Departmental Coordinator, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Electonics and Automation

Principal Assis. Silvia Stefanova, ECTS Departmental Coordinator, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Electonics and Automation

Assoc. Prof. Ioana Ruseva, ECTS Departmnetal Coordinator, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Electonics and Automation

Principal Assis. Krasimira Shtereva, ECTS Departmental Coordinator, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Electonics and Automation

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vassil Penchev, Dean, Faculty of Business and Management

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Stoyan Madjarov, Vice Dean, Faculty of Business and Management

Dr. Yuliana Popova, Head of Department, Faculty of Business and Management

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ivan Mitev, Head of Department, Faculty of Business and Management

Senior lecturer Sevda Tsvetanova, Faculty of Business and Management

Senior lecturer Sergei Bartenev, Faculty of Business and Management

Senior lecturer Daniel Pavlov, Faculty of Business and Management

Assoc. Prof. Hristo Beloev, Dean, Faculty of Agricultural Mechanization

Prof. Dr. Nikola Orloev, Coordinator of Erasmus Project, Faculty of Agricultural Mechanization

Assoc. Prof. Miroslav Michailov, former Facul;ty ECTS coordinator, Faculty of Agricultural Mechanization

Students met:

Nina Petrova, outgoing student to Germany, Faculty of Business and Management

Monchil Markov, outgoing student to UK, Faculty of Business and Management

Veneta Borisova, outgoing student to UK, Faculty of Business and Management

Ivailo Nikiforov, outgoing student to Greece, Faculty of Business and Management

Kamelia Timova, outgoing student to Greece, Faculty of Business and Management

Boris Mitrofanov, outgoing student to Italy, Faculty of Agricultural Mechanization

Aleksandar Georgiev, outgoing student to UK, Faculty of Electronic and Electronic Engineering

Boris Evstatiev, outgoing student to UK, Faculty of Electronic and Electronic Engineering

Rosen Rosenov, outgoing student to Germany, Faculty of Electronic and Electronic Engineering

Aneliya Vasileva, outgoing student to Germany, Faculty of Electronic and Electronic Engineering

Jordan Nikolov, outgoing student to UK, Faculty of Electronic and Electronic Engineering

Yanko Yankov, outgoing student to UK, Faculty of Electronic and Electronic Engineering

Meetings held:

1. Meeting University leading staff members involved in the implementation of ECTS and DS (16 people);
2. Meeting the staff of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Electronics and Automation involved in ECTS implementation (12 people);
3. Meeting the staff of the Faculty of Business and Management involved in ECTS implementation (8 people);
4. Meeting the staff of the Faculty of Agricultural Mechanization involved in ECTS implementation (4 people);
5. Meeting with students (12 people);
6. Feedback meeting with the same leading staff members who participated in the first meeting;
7. Press conference with local mass-media.

Available evaluation material before the visit:

1. ECTS Self-evaluation Questionnaire – Institutional Perspective.
2. ECTS Self-evaluation Questionnaires – Departmental perspective for the faculties of: Electrical Engineering, Electronics and Automation; Business and Management; and Agricultural Mechanization.
3. Internal Rules for Academic Exchange of Students in Bulgarian and English.
4. Information package for the faculty of Electrical Engineering, Electronics and Automation.
5. Information package for the Faculty of Business and Management.
6. Information package for the Faculty of Agricultural Mechanization.
7. Visiting Students Guide – University of Ruse.
8. Visit agenda.
9. Website: http://www.uni-ruse.bg

Material handed out or seen during the visit:

1. Samples of ECTS learning agreements.
2. Study programme diagram with credits in Bulgarian.
3. A book of Professional Standards, Curricula, Syllabi for Bachelor of Science developed under Erasmus Thematic network (ECET).
4. A book of Professional Standards, Curricula, Syllabi for Master of Science developed under Erasmus Thematic network (ECET).
5. A final report for the second year of the Thematic Network (ECET).

Introduction

The University of Ruse was founded in 1954 and is one of the ten biggest institutions in Bulgaria with 9 faculties, 2 colleges and with a student body of about 8 000. It offers 41 degree programmes in 6 of the 10 major fields of study (Education, Humanities, Economics and Management, Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Health care, Engineering and Technology). The university places great emphasis on international cooperation and the challenges it brings and seems to use all opportunities to enhance it. The university is a coordinator of Erasmus Thematic network European Computing Education and Training (ECET), has successfully joined Tuning II and has experience in practically every programme open to Bulgarian Universities. The SOCRATES/ERASMUS programme is seen as a means to help the implementation of the Strategic Development plan as well as to support and develop the European Policy of the university. At present the university is sending out 69 students under the Erasmus programme.

The credit system is not compulsory by the Bulgarian Law of Higher Education, nevertheless it was first mentioned in the Strategic Plan of the Ministry of Education and Science in 1999. At the moment it is being discussed in Parliament. It is hoped that the credit system (ECTS) will be adopted by the law on Higher Education in 2005. Therefore, the decision to use ECTS or any other credit system, for that matter, has, so far, been left to the universities.

In the case of University of Ruse the implementation of ECTS has been given great priority. The university has set up an elaborate structure of ECTS coordinators ranging from the Vice Rector for Academic Affairs to the ECTS Faculty and Departmental coordinators. This structure should work efficiently when the university makes a real go for the accumulation system, and starts using ECTS for LLL in all its forms and appearances and/or serious curricula reform.

ECTS documents

Information Package/Course catalogue

The counsellors have received the Visiting Student Guide and three information packages for faculties of: Electrical Engineering and Automation, Business and Management, and Agricultural Mechanization. Exactly the same information can be seen on the webpage of the university in Bulgarian language. For some faculties this is already the 4^th edition of the package. It should be noted the high professional standard of presentation, and great coherence with which all the information especially on Faculty and Departmental level has been produced. The information presented touches upon most of the items included in the Checklist for the Course Catalogue attached to the document ECTS Key Features. Each study programme is described in a concise and coherent way, mentioning the skills and competences the student should acquire at the graduation, and including a curriculum diagram. There are some items missing in the course descriptions, such as: prerequisites, language or reading lists. The expected learning outcomes are not sufficiently explicit. Moreover, there seems to be some misunderstanding about modules that are seen by some university members not as elements of a given study programme, lasting one or at most two semesters, but rather as specializations within a study programme. Attention should be drawn to the idea and use of modules, as laid down e.g. in the document “ECTS key features”  (see www.eua.be).

However, the discussions with the staff have revealed that they are very much aware of most of these shortcomings, which will be corrected in the new publications. That this is being done is demonstrated by the work carried out in ECET Network where all course descriptions for computing education answer the present ECTS requirements to the letter.

The information on the institution and general information for students is presented in a separate booklet Visiting Student Guide. It provides one with very well structured information on the city of Ruse, the University of Ruse, its structure and profile. The general information for students could be more exhaustive in respect to accommodation, meals and other practical information.

Though very much impressed with the information produced the counsellors would still like to make the following suggestions:

a)      In the general part of the Information package/course catalogue to insert a chapter of the academic overview of the university, describing modes of assessment and grading, credit and principles of its allocation, teaching methods, language of instruction, etc. for better understanding of the whole system.

b)      In the general part of the Information package/course catalogue to give more detailed General information for students (see Checklist for the Course Catalogue).

c)      To emphasize learning outcomes for each module within module description and to review the understanding of the term “module”.

d)      To put in the missing information items in the descriptions of individual course units according to the Checklist for the Course Catalogue.

Learning Agreement

The standard ECTS learning agreements are used for mobile students. Though in some rare cases less than 20/30/60 credits are foreseen in the Learning agreement for the outgoing students this is due to the lack of information on what will be available at the partner institution in the particular semester. In these cases the changes to the Learning Agreement, with extra courses, are sent to the University of Ruse. Both the staff and the students have confirmed that so far there had not been any cases when less credits were obtained than required for a period (namely 20/30/60).

Transcript of records

The standard ECTS transcript of records is used for incoming students. The ToR is issued at the Dean’s office at the request of the Faculty ECTS coordinator on the basis of the examination sheets sent in by the departments. The conversion of grades is made using the ECTS-Ruse grade conversion table.

Academic recognition

It has to be mentioned that in 1999 University of Ruse has adopted an internal document Internal Rules for Academic Exchange of Students. The document serves as guidance for student selection, and study period recognition rules inside the university. It delineates the responsibilities of ECTS coordinators at all levels and principles of accepting the incoming students.

As a rule all courses attended by the students at partner institutions are recognized. The ToR produced by the partner institution is processed by the Faculty ECTS coordinator who converts the grades and translates courses into Bulgarian. The number of classes and the titles of course units are entered according to the curriculum of Ruse. The name of the ECTS coordinator stands for the name of the lecturer. So far the study period abroad is not officially entered in the Higher Education Diploma and its annexes.

The discussions with the students revealed that some courses included into the Learning agreements and attended at partner institution have not been recognized. However, the students have been informed beforehand that this will be the case because the syllabus of the course differed from the one taught at home. It was the students’ decision to attend the course anyway.

The counsellors have found out that the academic staff of Ruse University are aware that the Internal Rules for Academic Exchange of Students are outdated and need to be changed. Therefore, the following suggestions could help in the updating of the existing document:

a)      As a complete overlapping of course at home and abroad is practically impossible and hardly desirable, a greater flexibility in study period recognition is highly recommended. Though difficult to reach in technical degrees, it would be advisable to strive for the assessment of the whole study period rather than course-by-course replacement.

b)      Even though some of the courses taken abroad do not count towards the final degree, the credits earned should not be lost for the students. They have to be shown and indicated in all student achievements’ records.

c)      It is strongly suggested to clearly indicate what courses have been taken abroad in the national annexes to the Diploma (all the additional ones as well). This practice will make the preparations for introducing the Diploma Supplement much easier and will add transparency to the documents on the qualification obtained.

Credits and grades

Credit allocation

As mentioned above, the use of a credit system is not yet required by the Bulgarian Law on Higher Education. The fact that the University of Ruse has introduced the credits and uses them not only for transfer but also for the curricula transparency for their own students shows the university’s high degree of identification with European issues. The ECTS departmental coordinators are responsible and make suggestions for credit allocation to the programmes. Each academic year equals 60 ECTS credits and there is a consistency of the understanding of credit throughout the faculties.

However, some of the programmes do not allocate credits to optional courses as these are seen to be on top of what a student must do to qualify for the degree.

The university seems to have used the bottom-up approach in credit allocation. The annual workload is defined as “840 classes” (24-28 contact hours per week) and almost as much extra time has been added for the individual work of a student. Though, the strict correlation between contact hours and credits could not be observed, this way of reasoning, nevertheless, suggests a mechanical approach to credit allocation and, to some extent, a credit based on contact hours.

The counsellors have suggested the top-down approach with the agreed definite number of hours per year a student is expected to work in order to reach the learning outcomes, as the surest way of using credit for curriculum reform and the basis for common understanding of credit throughout the Europe. They recommended the empirical verification of the assumed workload/credit distribution by involving the students. The academic staff participating in the discussions and being well aware of the Tuning results were very receptive to the suggestion, all the more so consultations with students on the student workload seem already to be taking place in some of the departments.

Grading Scale

An absolute 6-point grading scale is used at the University of Ruse with 3 and higher being passing grades, and 2 and 1 being failing grades. At the moment the university uses the ECTS-Ruse grading conversion table for all the mobile students and no statistical data is being used for these purposes. The statistical analysis of the grades has been made at the very beginning of the ECTS implementation. The analysis revealed the differences in grading among the faculties (e.g. pedagogic and mechanics), but as from the institutional perspective these differences statistically have leveled out, the decision has been made to rely on the conversion table.

As the staff involved in the implementation of ECTS seem to have all the methodology for establishing statistically based grade conversion at their fingertips, the counsellors have strongly suggested to use the expertise and through the statistical analysis of grades use ECTS grading scale as facilitating one, enabling to show the differences in grading at different faculties and guaranteeing comparability of marks awarded in different academic contexts.

Diploma Supplement

At the moment the university has no definite plans to start issuing the Diploma Supplement. The decision rests with the Ministry of Higher education which has taken the initiative of coordinating its implementation. However, the plans are that Diploma Supplements will be issued in 2005, but the terms and conditions are still under discussion.

Recommendations

Once again, the counsellors would like to stress the fact that they have been greatly impressed by the degree of ECTS implementation at the University of Ruse. The talks with the academic staff have shown that they themselves are very much aware of the issues discussed with the counsellors and the visit is used as a springboard before the changes are introduced.

The whole Bologna process and the latest developments in ECTS show that ECTS itself is changing and gaining more importance and weight in European institutions of higher education. From being a tool for study period recognition for mobile students it is rapidly developing into a tool for curricula transparency and change as well as comparability of degrees. It serves two purposes: credit transfer and credit accumulation.

The university of Ruse has demonstrated that it is able to use all the ECTS tools for the transfer purposes and, by using credits for their students, has stepped on the road to credit accumulation. Therefore, keeping in mind the suggestions the counsellors have made above, the final suggestions should help the university to stay among the forefront institutions using ECTS:

1. Indicate all the courses taken and credits earned abroad in the national annex to Diploma supplement for the mobile students. This practice will set the necessary preconditions of ECTS philosophy for credit accumulation by strengthening the idea that all work done by a student is respected and might be important for him/her in the future in another context.
2. Describe the credit at the University of Ruse in a clear and definite way erasing any doubts that it might be based on contact hours. Indicate the number of credits of the optional courses though they might be considered to be above the official student workload necessary to qualify for the degree (again an accumulation principle).
3. Use statistical analysis of the grades for converting national grades into ECTS and vice versa. Do not use grade conversion tables. Describe the national/university grading system in detail to give greater transparency to the grades used at University of Ruse. The statistical analysis of the grades will prove very useful for the Diploma Supplement as the distribution of grades within the qualification is one of the requirements of the document.

Conclusions

The counsellors would like to express their sincere thanks to the academic staff and students they have met for their open-mindedness, active participation and warm welcome. Our special thanks go to Assoc. Prof. PhD Borislav Angelov, Vice-Rector for academic Affairs and Assoc. Prof. PhD Kiril Barzev, Director of International Relations and Institutional Socrates/Erasmus coordinator for the intensive and very well organised programme as well their personal commitment and time during the counsellors’ stay. The counsellors remain at the disposition of the University of Ruse should any assistance or information be required.

Cristian Tauch, Raimonda Markeviciene, Burak Arikan, May 2004