The work of the European Commission in the field of higher education is primarily conducted by the Directorate General for Education and Culture.

While each EU member state remains responsible for the content and organisation of its education and training systems, the EU provides:

- Multinational education, training and youth partnerships.
- Exchange schemes and opportunities to learn abroad.
- Innovative teaching and learning projects.
- Networks of academic and professional expertise.
- A framework to address across-the-board issues, such as new technologies in education and the international recognition of qualifications.
- A platform for consensus, comparisons, benchmarking and policy-making.

For further information please consult the European Commission site on European Cooperation in Education and Training.

We also provide relevant documents for the work of the European Union in general and the European Commission in the field of higher education and research. These are sorted according to main topics connected with the European Higher Education Area.

General documents
	Detailed work programme on the follow-up of the objectives of education and training systems in Europe, adopted in 2002
	Communication from the European Commission on strengthening cooperation with third countries in the field of higher education, adopted in 2001
Qualifications framework and two cycles system
	Communication from the European Commission on European benchmarks in education and training, adopted in 2002
	Report of the phase 1 of the Tuning project, supported by the European Commission and coordinated by the University of Deusto and the University of Groningen
Recognition issues and “easily readable and comparable degrees”
	Communication from the European Commission on Special measures for promotion of the ECTS and the Diploma Supplement, adopted in 2002
	Explanation of the Diploma Supplement and exemplary format
Academic mobility
	European Union Action plan for mobility, adopted in 2000
	Socrates programme
	TEMPUS programme
	Erasmus programme
	Erasmus Mundus programme
Lifelong learning
	Communication from the European Commission on Lifelong learning “Making the European Area of Lifelong learning a reality”, adopted in 2001
	Resolution of the Council of the European Union on Lifelong learning, adopted in 2002
	European Union report on quality indicators in lifelong learning, published in 2002
The Attractiveness of the European Higher Education Area
	Communication from the European Commission on the Role of Universities in the Europe of Knowledge, published in 2003
The European Research Area
	Communication from the European Commission on the European Research Area, published in 2002
	Communication from the European Commission on investing more into research “More Research for Europe – towards 3% of GDP”, published in 2002
The Bruges-Copenhagen process
	Decision of the Council of the European Union on Promotion of enhanced European cooperation in the field of vocational education and training, adopted in 2002
	Publication of the European Training Foundation on Core and entrepreneurial skills in vocational education and training, published in 2003