AEC project 'Accreditation in European Professional Music Training'

The AEC is realising a European project entitled ‘Accreditation in European Professional Music Training’. The project is being supported by a special section in the SOCRATES Programme for ‘Bologna’ projects(http://ec.europa.eu/education/programmes/calls/0106/index_en.html). The project studies the European dimension in quality assurance and accreditation procedures related to the field of higher music education with the support from the SOCRATES Programme. This project, which is joined by similar projects in the fields of engineering, chemistry and business management with the aim at establishing a so-called ‘European Quality Label’ in these disciplines, has started in early 2006 and will present its final results during the summer of 2007.

The ‘Accreditation in European Professional Music Training’ project aims to improve the overall quality of professional music training in higher education in Europe and to facilitate the national and transnational recognition of qualifications in the field of music through the development of a European approach to accreditation in this sector with the following objectives:

A.    To formulate, test and disseminate a set of common European standards and procedures for the accreditation in music study, taking into account its specific characteristics and cultural diversity.

B.    To develop these standards and procedures using a wide consultation and evaluation process.

C.    To make these standards and procedures relevant for various possible future contexts depending on political developments in accreditation and external quality assurance at national and European level:
    1.    As a common reference framework adding a European dimension to existing national institutional and programme accreditation procedures, and increasing the usability of these procedures in relation to the field of music, while at the same time offering guidelines for the implementation of such procedures in countries where these do not yet exist;
    2.    As a basis for a feasibility study on the development of a European subject-specific peer review system in the field of music, which can be offered as an evaluation tool to AEC member institutions providing institutions with a ‘European quality label’.

D.    To produce a register of experts for the review panels, including guidelines on how experts will be selected and prepared.

E.    To test the developed standards and procedures through 2 test visits during April/May 2007.

F.    To present the project outcomes through a final conference and other methods of dissemination.

The project, which runs from January 2006 to June 2007, is coordinated by the European Association of Conservatoires (AEC) and has project partners in Malmö, Oslo, The Hague, Hannover, Lisbon, Brno and Stockholm. The National Association of Schools of Music – NASM (US) serves as a consultative partner. A working group has been established with representatives from each partner institution with knowledge of evaluation processes in music. This group has the task to analyse relevant information and develop the various project documents.

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