EGM 30 download.pdf - European Federation of Geologists

Euro-AgesFigure 4. Duration of the first cycle (%) in the countriesinvolved in mapping European Geological QualificationFigure 6: Credits required for first and second cycle degreesFigure 7. Numbers of hours per ECTS creditgenerally reduced as a result of implementationof the Bologna agreement, althoughthis may have been due to other factors. Forinstance, in Denmark, the number of HEIshas reduced from 12 to 8, but there is a viewthat this has contributed to a strengtheningof teaching and research activities.The number of universities offeringgeology degree courses varies widely fromcountry to country (Fig. 8). The number ofplaces available is usually higher than theintake of students each year.Figure 5. Total duration of the first and second cycles (%) in thecountries involved in mapping European Geological QualificationNumber of freshman students and graduatesThe number of freshmen taken onto B.Sc.geology courses varies widely, as mightbe expected. The number of freshmen isgenerally lower than the number of placesavailable nationally to study geology. Thenumber of graduates per year is markedlylower than the number of freshmen. Thenumber of B.Sc. graduates with respect toB.Sc. freshmen per year ranges from 92%in the UK to 35% in Germany.The number of places on M.Sc. coursesis lower and the fall-off rate is also lower(Fig. 9).The UK is the country with the largestnumber of B.Sc. graduates in geology(1300/year), of which just over 11% continuedto the M.Sc. degree. However inother countries, students continuing to thesecond cycle is over 80%.Incomplete information has been providedon employment of graduates, but itappears that the countries with the largernumber of students achieve lower employmentrates in geology than smaller countries.Figure 8. Number of universities teaching geologyProfessionalprerequisitesIt is generally the situationacross Europethat the requisiteknowledge and skillsare set by the coursedevelopers within theuniversities ratherthan by the institutionsthat representthe profession in postgraduate practice.There is howeverlikely to be an implicitlinkage in that thecourse designers andproviders are themselvespractising professionalsand will beaware of the requirementsof professional16 European Geologist 30