The Bologna Process as a Reform Initiative in Higher Education in Croatia

In the past decade, the Croatian higher education system has been under intensive transformation, one mostly driven by an increased demand for postsecondary education and by the process of Croatia's accession to the European Union. Although there had already been a constant need and pressure for the transformation of tertiary education institutions (TEIs), the Bologna process has been a major reform initiative in the last decade. We review the implementation of the Bologna process action lines in Croatian higher education and present their impact on overall policy in the higher education sector. During the three phases of the implementation process, the major themes of reform have been degree recognition, qualification framework, quality assurance, and the accreditation system. There have been significant changes in the Croatian higher education system, mostly inspired by these main concerns of the Bologna process. However, it must be noted that in the Croatian higher education system, there are a variety of coexisting Bolognas, conflicting interpretations regarding the duration and content of programs, learning outcomes, flexible learning paths, the significance of lifelong learning for employability goals, and a number of other important issues. The idea of improving employability skills through a three-cycle degree structure is still unrecognized by the overall system. There are also motivational and institutional barriers and a number of negative attitudes toward mobility. Generally speaking, in spite of significant changes and crucial reforms, we suggest that there is still a certain resistance to comprehensive and systematic Bologna reforms; its causes are varied, ranging from subjective to institutional and overall sociocultural reasons. Moreover, due to the current economic recession in Croatia, one can expect even more resistance to the implementation as there is a tendency to equate the Bologna process with financial cuts.