Mechanisms that underpin the Bologna Process

A number of mechanisms are available to underpin and support the Bologna Process, including:

• The Diploma Supplement enables the description of a qualification in a way that makes it both easy to understand and to compare. As well as a description of this key document and links to a wealth of sources of advice and guidance, we provide some case study examples of the issues involved in mapping Diploma Supplement fields to existing data held in student record systems.

• The European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS) is based on the student workload required to achieve a programme's objectives. Although widely adopted across most signatory countries, there are some issues with adoption in the UK, here we examine why and look at examples of use.

• Whilst not directly a Bologna instrument, Europass, a transparency framework for qualifications and competences, is well placed to support Bologna objectives of mobility, transparency/recognition and lifelong learning. One of its five core documents is the Diploma Supplement itself.