Armenia to introduce three-tier higher education system

ArmInfo. Armenia is set to introduce a three-tier higher education system. In addition to  bachelor's and master's degrees, a third level—doctorate studies—will  be established, bringing the country's higher education system into  compliance with the requirements of the Bologna Process and the  Salzburg Principles. The decision was approved during a cabinet  meeting on August 20.

According to the explanatory note of the draft decision, the third  tier will apply to individuals who successfully complete the program  and earn a doctoral degree. This system aligns existing postgraduate  education with the third cycle of higher education under the Bologna  Process and Salzburg Principles.

To foster an educational environment that meets international  standards, the country's legislation will also mandate licensing  processes for third-tier higher education programs. Currently,  postgraduate programs are not licensed, which falls short of  competitive education standards and comprehensive quality benchmarks  for implementing programs at this level.

Since the adoption of the Law "On Higher and Postgraduate  Professional Education" in 2004, no actual transition to third-level  higher education has occurred, while in the European Higher Education  Area, postgraduate education leading to a doctoral degree is  considered a third-level qualification in the higher education  system. Moreover, the legal acts currently in effect in the Republic  of Armenia regulating admission and postgraduate studies, as well as  the awarding of academic degrees, do not yet fully ensure  international competitiveness and clear quality assessment mechanisms  in accordance with the requirements of the European Higher Education  Area. This, in turn, hinders the conduct of high-quality scientific  research in accordance with international standards, the  internationalization of doctoral programs, and mobility in higher  education and science. 

The Salzburg Principles, developed by the European University  Association (EUA) (known as the "Salzburg Guidelines") and  specifically related to the organization of doctoral education, are  part of the Bologna Process and aim to improve doctoral education  with the aim of promoting international cooperation and mobility.  Specifically, they consider doctoral education as an independent  scientific endeavor, with an appropriate structure for doctoral  programs and mechanisms for assessing and improving quality at all  stages of doctoral education, as well as academic and research  standards according to which doctoral students must be trained.  Whether a person will receive a doctoral degree must be clearly  defined.  In this context, to ensure the comparability of third-level  education and compliance with the Salzburg Principles, the conditions  and requirements for the organization of admission and study at the  third level of qualification in the higher education system, as well  as the criteria and quality standards for the award of a doctoral  degree (PhD), are being reviewed and defined. Taking into account the  above, and also taking into account the permissive provisions of the  law, there was a need to create a single unified procedure with a  common structure to replace a number of previously existing separate  regulations governing issues related to general provisions on  admission, training and awarding qualifications at the third level of  higher education.