Developing the European researcher: ‘extended’ professionality within the Bologna Process

Abstract

Since 2003, doctoral education has become a key feature within the remit of the Bologna Process. Perceived as a crucial link between the European Higher Education Area and the European Research Area, it is perceived as the cornerstone upon which will be built Europe’s future world‐class research excellence. Yet consideration of how European doctoral education may be developed – including the 10 principles to emerge out of the 2005 Salzburg seminar – largely ignores issues related to the quality of doctoral students and, by extension, the quality of their research. Proposed as a mechanism for enhancing research quality, this article presents a framework for a professional development model for European early career researchers. Developed from Hoyle’s heuristic professionality models for schoolteachers, the framework identifies specific indicative characteristics of ‘restricted’ and ‘extended’ European researchers, which, it is argued, provide potential qualitative and motivational yardsticks for developing and fostering a world‐class European research culture of ‘extended’ professionality.

Keywords:

• researcher development
• European Research Area (ERA)
• European Higher Education Area (EHEA)
• research quality
• doctoral education
• European doctorate

Notes

1. Whether or not research(ing) ought to be considered a profession is an issue that I examine elsewhere (Evans 2008). Since space restrictions preclude its re‐examination here, for simplicity – and without implying unqualified support for classification of research(ing) as a profession – I incorporate into my argument terminology that is derivative of or related to ‘profession’.