The Ministry of Education fears that universities will remain closed in September due to the reactions of professors and students, concerning the changes in higher education in Greece.
Some of the changes are the following: From the academic year 2013-14, books will no longer be given free of charge. The syllabus and notes of the courses will be available on the Internet. The prerequisite for graduating will be the knowledge of at least one foreign language. Students who are not enrolled for two semesters in a row will not be allowed to attend universities.
Some of the departments and even different universities will merge or close. According to professors, this is not an easy procedure; it will need time and uniting departments are all around Greece, which is not feasible. Long distance and intensive courses will be established. Furthermore, the classrooms and the locations, where research takes place, will be protected but the word “asylum” will not be mentioned in the law.
Many professors demand that the Rector is at least voted in by the university staff as a basis for starting talks with the ministry. Another problem is that the professors will have too many authorities. Seven professors will be the ones that will choose the other seven members of the Committee which will run the University. These, however will not be members of the University, and there will be only one representative of the students.
Apart from believing that the nature of the law is unconstitutional, the professors are afraid that a committee, which is only partly elected by the members of the University, will not reach agreements easily or general consensus and the members of the University Community, like the students and the staff, will not be sufficiently represented.
Independent authorities in the universities will be searching for funds. The professors are concerned that the ministry will reduce even more funds for the universities due to the economic crisis and the institutions will struggle to find the necessary money. Finally, the professors believe there will be decline of the quality of the university degrees and the education, in general, if the studies last three years instead of four, as announced.
After the general disapproval of the law, the ministry has decided to provide time for discussions and the vote concerning the bill that has been postponed for the end of August. It is probable that there will be a review of some clauses, as well.
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