The Recognition of Diplomas in the European Community

By the resolution of February 9, 1976, the Council of Ministers of the European Community requested that a report be prepared with a view toward increasing the possibilities of academic recognition of diplomas and periods of study by the member states. Under the responsibility of M. G. Brunner, in charge of the educational system in the commission of the Communities, this report was edited by a British expert and published at the end of last year. While right of domicile and free circulation of workers among the countries of the Common Market constitutes one of the fundamental principles of the Treaty of Rome, the parliament itself does not deal specifically with the question of free circulation of students. The present mobility of students within the community is very weak. It involves only 0.5% of the total student population. Hence the concern of the commission to promote everything that might be conducive to improving this mobility. The recognition of academic qualifications is one of the essential conditions for the circulation of students from one university to another. It has been made possible by agreements among the member states, and the efforts of the commission will in the years to come be directed toward finding an overall solution for the Community at large on the basis of these agreements, the scope of which has remained limited.