In 2007, Directive EC/2005/36 on the Recognition of Professional Qualifications came into force. It regulates the automatic recognition of the basic qualifications required for the practice of medicine, dentistry, general care nursing, midwifery, veterinary surgery, pharmacy and architecture in the EU’s internal market. In addition to these ‘sectoral’ professions, hundreds of others fall within the scope of the Directive’s General System.
The relevant training is in many instances provided by higher education institutions, yet until now no attempt has been made to align the substance of the Directive with the emerging European Higher Education Area created by the Bologna Process. Therefore, since 2007 EUA has monitored developments in the EU institutions as well as in regulatory, professional, academic and student bodies, in order to explore the policy strands which are common to the Directive and to the EHEA. (Links to various updates appear below.)
In 2011, the European Commission set in motion a wide consultation process in the framework of the Directive’s quinquennial review. EUA’s responses to the two rounds of consultation are also available below.
2012 marks the launch of the legislative process triggered by the Commission’s publication of its proposed amendments. These do indeed contain elements that show how the Directive and the EHEA might be brought into closer alignment in the medium term. They are of great relevance to the higher education sector in Europe, particularly in respect of curriculum development, employability, lifelong learning, mobility instruments, qualifications frameworks and quality assurance. (Links to EUA’s briefing note and position paper are to be found below.)
• Background paper to EUA workshop on sectoral professions, October 2007
• Report of the workshop
• Update no.1, April 2008
• Update no.2, October 2008
• Update no.3, June 2009
• Update no.4, February 2010
• Update no. 5, August 2010
• Meeting on Directive 2005/36/EC in European Parliament, October 2010
• The Bologna Process and DIR 2005/36/EC: the points of divergence, Howard Davies, EUA Senior Adviser
• Evaluation of the Professional Qualifications Directive, Jürgen Tiedje, European Commission DG Internal Market and Services
• Report of the meeting held in the European Parliament on 14 October 2010, Howard Davies, EUA Senior Adviser
• Update no. 6, February 2011
• Update no. 7, 23 May 2011
• Update no.8, September 2011
• January 2012: EUA briefing note on the Commission’s proposed amendments to Directive 2005/36/EC on the Recognition of Professional Qualifications.
• January 2012: “EUA Position Paper on the Commission’s proposed amendments to Directive 2005/36/EC on the Recognition of Professional Qualifications”
EUA responses to EC Consultations
March 2011: Professional Qualifications Directive 2005/36/EC.
September 2011: Modernising the Professional Qualifications Directive.
Future updates will appear regularly on this website. Inquiries should be directed to Howard Davies at howard.davies@eua.be