New Eurydice report: Towards equity and inclusion in higher education in Europe

This Eurydice report focuses on the topic of equity and inclusion in higher education in Europe.

Where do European countries stand when it comes to equity and inclusion of their higher education systems? Do they have the necessary conditions in place? The topic is at the heart of EU policy development; in November 2020 the Principles and Guidelines to Strengthen the Social Dimension of Higher Education in the EHEA were adopted to set up a broad agenda for national action. This report aims to help the competent authorities to improve equity in higher education, by developing a tool for comparative mapping of where countries stand in relation to the Principles and Guidelines in addressing the social dimension. Assessing the situation is the necessary first step to build upon and to boost equity and inclusion.

The policy mapping resulting from the report gives an overview on the progress already made and the areas that still pose a particular challenge.

The countries that achieved the highest scores are Italy with 28 points, and Finland with 27 points. These are followed by Estonia, Spain, France, Malta and Sweden, all with 25 points, and Romania and Norway with 24 points. This suggests that these are the countries that currently have the most developed social dimension policies in higher education, according to the information provided for this project.

The report’s prime source is data drawn from top-level regulations and policies collected from Eurydice National Units, representing 38 education systems across 36 European countries, with the academic year 2020/2021 as a reference.

For more information, please visit the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency website of the European Commission.