The Idea of the University: Reshaped by the Bologna Process
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For more than two centuries one can talk about the ‘idea of a university’. This concept has been continuously re-shaped and adapted to fit the needs of various ruling classes or individuals. Starting from traditional ideas of the university, expressed in the 19th and 20th century, the present chapter explores the changes incurred by the idea of the university in the 21st century as a result of the decadeold Bologna process. It argues that the new fundamental concept that characterizes the institutions of higher education is the ‘university in relationship’ in its various embodiments. Furthermore, the Bologna process triggered yet another reassessment of the contemporary ideal of the university at least at European level. Though this new context lacks, at the present time, a well-defined ideal, we argue that one such ideal could be constructed on the basis of the common changes brought about by the Bologna process, regardless of all the criticism it has generated.