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SOS for the colleges and universities in Greece

07 August 2010 / 15:08:29  GRReporter
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Urgent measures and drastic reforms are needed to "save" the higher education in Greece. From a study carried out by the Office of Quality Assurance in higher education come fatal for the country results and a vision for tomorrow almost bordering to a catastrophe. The number of students and universities is disproportionately large compared to the population of the country, alerts the office. Far too big is the number of both undergraduate and master programs. The selection of students is almost random, and the opportunities for finding work and professional development are not taken into account. The undergraduate programs often have a random minor and instead of offering the necessary level of scientific training are limited to specific specialty training. In other cases, contrary to international trends, they offer almost masters education. Masters programs are also developed randomly without complying with the demands of the labor market.

Problems in the education system of the country are further strengthened by the too old training methods and lack of practical work in colleges and universities. The main reason for the chaos created, however, lies in the lack of development of a comprehensive strategy for education and carelessly making wrong decisions in the last 30 years, announced the research of the office.

Particularly impressive recently is the low level of the students. The blame for this lies in the system according to which they are evaluated and accepted in colleges and universities. Education in Greece should be enriched, by focusing more heavily on the practical exercises, urges the office. In many universities are conducted three double sessions, and the result of this is that they have become "test centers" at the expense of lectures, says the study.

However the problems do not end here. From the investigation in 238 out of 507 total majors was established the shocking fact that among them there are some majors that exist only on paper only. The acceptance of students in these majors is done even before the needed staff or facilities are provided.

 
The geographic location of colleges and universities in the country is also estimated as illogical as their dispersion in different cities of the same area is not done on the basis of merit. So they have unreasonably high costs, difficult to operate, and it is difficult for them to find proper lecturers and facilities. Later it comes to the unequal division of material resources, and the final result is inadequate and not systematic subsidizing of the schools.

A problem which is not the least one continue to be the delays in the study and "eternal students", children of the old Greek educational system.

Tags: universities higher education centers reforms students Office of Quality Assurance in higher education Greece
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