The Jean Monnet quality label aims to generate interest in EU affairs courses and is a yardstick in higher education circles. It is a sign of excellence that undoubtedly makes the students’ choices easier.

GENERATING INTEREST

When it was set up in 1989, “the main aim of the [Jean Monnet] Programme was to introduce classes on European integration into universities,” explains an official from the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA), which has been in charge of the programme for around fifteen years. The official added that this initiative met “a specific demand from universities themselves” because “there were not enough specialists, in particular in the areas of Community law, economics and political sciences”.

One of the key actions developed by this programme is the funding of chairs, ad personam chairs, centres of excellence, modules (see box) within the European Union and beyond (see separate article) for a period of three years. To benefit from that, courses must meet quality requirements. “Selecting them is very difficult,“ said the person responsible for the programme. The evaluation is carried out by the agency itself and is based on four main criteria: the quality of professors, the quality of content, the impact of the courses that are run and, since 2009, innovation. This latter criterion makes it possible to reward the creation of new courses about EU affairs. It is to be noted that the agency states that it is very careful not to interfere with academic independence and scrupulously respects different critical analyses of the European integration process.

But, beyond its financial aspects, the programme has a very symbolic aspect: the awarding of the Jean Monnet seal of quality. This is a sign of excellence which is undoubtedly recognised in academic circles.

“The financial support is not very high,” states the person responsible at the agency. “We receive a large number of applications. Last year, we had recorded 555 of them. That shows that the interest in the Jean Monnet Programme is not just financial but is also about the label, about being part of the network.”

Obtaining the Jean Monnet label is a solid reference, which can direct the choices of people wanting to train themselves in EU affairs as they then have an assurance of the quality of the courses, teachers and the value of the certificate that will be issued. In addition, adds the person responsible for the programme, “we give a lot of information to students who want to apply to do a master’s in another country. They then know that there is this centre of excellence in such and such a university.”

Financing conferences about European issues as well as promoting associations of professors, researchers and specialised students are among the other activities carried out by the programme.

It is in this context that subsidies are granted to six key institutions: the College of Europe (Belgium), the Academy of European Law (ERA, Germany), the European University Institute in Florence (Italy), the European Public Administration Institute in Maastricht (EIPA, Netherlands),  the International Centre for European Training (CIFE, France) and the European Agency for Development in Special Needs Education. These six establishments were not subject to a selection procedure but were designated by the European Commission and the European Parliament. Their funding is therefore not “managed by the executive European agency but directly by the Commission,” adds the official in charge of the programme.

The Jean Monnet label is a solid reference, which can direct the choices of people wanting to train themselves in EU affairs

Background

Since 1990, 150 Jean Monnet centres of excellence, 825 Jean Monnet chairs (including ad personam chairs) and about 1,000 Jean Monnet modules have been granted, according to an official from the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) in charge of the programme.

Modules

Jean Monnet modules are study programmes in the area of European integration. These are general courses or, by contrast, very specialised courses. These programmes are targeted at students as well as people from the professional world. While a module is short in length, it must still have a minimum of 40 hours of teaching.

Chairs

Jean Monnet chairs are specialised higher education posts in European integration studies. To be a holder of a Jean Monnet chair, a professor must teach at least 90 hours per academic year in the area of studies on European integration.

If the holder of a chair decides to leave the said establishment, the latter must replace him according to certain conditions. In other words, the chair is not attached to the person, as distinct from the Jean Monnet ad personam chair. Awarded to distinguished professors specialised in studies on European integration, the latter chair is not linked to the establishment where they teach. If the professor decides to leave, he/she keeps their title as long as they maintain their professorship and reflection activities (main selection criteria for obtaining the said title).

Centres of excellence

The ‘Jean Monnet centre of excellence’ label is granted to institutes, centres or higher education structures specialising in European integration studies. Among the conditions for obtaining the title are the obligation for the establishment to have a professor who is a holder of a Jean Monnet chair and to develop activities about European integration alongside teaching and research activities. Finally, its approach must be interdisciplinary.