Institutional Statement

The University of Barcelona has always considered itself a European university. For this reason, following Spain’s entry to the European Union, the University quickly established itself as one of the country’s leading universities in a number of areas. On the one hand, the University became active in promoting student mobility within the then recently inaugurated Erasmus program; while, on the other, the University’s researchers quickly set about establishing contacts with European universities and research centres in order to participate jointly in the new long-term research funding programs launched by the European Commission, becoming one of the leading universities in terms of number of projects in later programs.

In recent years, the universities of Europe and the European Union have set in motion a process that calls for a high degree of commitment on the part of all institutions and which has two prime objectives: the establishment of a European Higher Education Area (EHEA) and a European Research Area (ERA). Although aware of the difficulties inherent in striking out on this path and, in particular, of the obstacles that must be overcome in order to achieve the integration of both areas within the framework of European universities, the University of Barcelona’s commitment is firm, and as a sign of this it has established itself as a leader in the process of European convergence.

The forthcoming publication in Spain of the royal decrees aimed at regulating university qualifications at undergraduate and postgraduate levels (masters and doctorates) will usher in the new degrees of the Ministry of Education. This means that all Spanish universities will have to change their existing curricula over the next few years, on the understanding that the new courses should be designed with the purpose of training the professionals and citizens that our society will need in the future.

It is important that at this time of European concord the universities take the opportunity to undertake a thorough reappraisal of their work and introduce the reforms that the Spanish university has needed for some time now, but which for various reasons have not been implemented. The creation of the EHEA is a target in itself, but in addition it provides us with the perfect excuse to face these changes with optimism and hope, and thereby fulfil our obligation as universities.

In conducting this reappraisal of university studies, our task involves making decisions that go beyond a simple restructuring of the organization, duration and content of the degree courses that we offer. What is required is a major revision of the way these courses are taught and of the teaching/learning process in which the student must be given a more central role. At the same time, teachers need to reconsider their methodology in line with these new learning objectives, in which knowledge is no longer the sole concern, but rather where skills, competencies and procedures take on a much greater relevance.

This does not necessarily mean, however, a change in the way of teaching, but rather a reflection on what we teach, how we teach and the reasons for adopting these approaches. Just as the traditional university lecture is not completely obsolete in all cases, neither are information and communication technologies the universal panacea. The teaching resources that are available should be used rationally to ensure the satisfactory attainment of the learning goals set by each university course.

University teaching and research have been set a great challenge in which our reputation is at stake. We have to fight to obtain the tools and resources we need from the national and regional governments so as to introduce the changes and reforms that will allow us to converge with Europe. But, at the same time, the University and each and every one of its members must show a commitment to ensuring that the UB achieves its targets and becomes a point of reference in Europe and the world.

The pages on our website dedicated to the European University Area provide the latest information from within the University as well as beyond its walls about the process for establishing a European area for its universities, both for their teaching and their research. In addition, it seeks to involve the whole university community in these processes that the universities of Europe are initiating at the start of this century.