Modernisation of Higher Education in Europe: Access, Retention and Employability

The modernisation agenda (European Commission 2011) supports higher education systems in Europe in responding to the needs of our increasingly knowledge-based economy and societies. To expand the knowledge base and foster progress, an increasing number of European citizens require high level knowledge and competences. Supporting the development of quality mass higher education systems is therefore high on policy agendas at both national and European levels. 

Equal opportunities to higher education are a societal imperative In a social and economic environment where skills and competences acquired and refined through higher education are becoming increasingly important (European  Commission, 2010), it is a societal imperative to expand opportunities to higher education as broadly as possible.

Information for the report was gathered from 36 education systems (all EU Member States, with the exception of Luxembourg and the Netherlands, plus Iceland, Liechtenstein, Montenegro, Norway and Turkey).