Higher education: co-operation with third countries, Erasmus Mundus programme 2004-2008

Of the 65 amendments made by the European Parliament, the commission accepted 20 in full and 18 in principle. 27 amendments were rejected. The following amendments are amongst those accepted: - the name of the programme will be "Erasmus Mundus"; - the recitals will be amended to bring in the reference to linguistic diversity and a reference to the ideals of democracy and equality between men and women; - Member States are asked to ensure complentarity and coherence between this programme and similar national initiatives; - the provision for cooperation between the Commission and Member States for the purpose of the programme; - the 'European Union Masters Courses' will be called 'Erasmus Mundus Masters Courses'. The following amendments were amongst those accepted in principle: - a clause stating that, in promoting international mobility, the Community should be mindful of the phenomenon known as 'brain drain'; - the introduction of a provision encouraging the use of two languages in the context of Masters Courses but should be covered in the Annex; - Community action will be managed in a manner that is transparent, user-friendly, open and comprehensible to all; - the reference to selection procedures and a panel cannot be accepted in its present form. The Commission proposes a different form of wording referring to an Assessment Board presided by a person which it elects, composed of high level personalities from the academic world and representative of the diversity of higher education in the EU; - the wording on the use of two languages is adapted so that it is clear that this provision does not impose any requirement on the language of instruction of the Masters Courses and that it leaves in the hands of higher education institutions the decision as to how to implement this provision; Amongst those amendments not accepted are the following: - the Commission is not in a position to play a role of follow-up and recognition in promoting cooperation between higher education institutions. In particular, Member States have exclusive competence in matters of recognition; - the assumption that degrees awarded under Erasmus Mundus need to be recognised or validated once they have been awarded is false. Only Masters awarding recognised degrees will be eligible under Erasmus Mundus; - at this stage the Commission is not in a position to accept amendment 44 raising the budget of the programme to EUR 300 million; - the reference to high quality hosting arrangements imposes a specific condition on Masters Courses, which would not necessarily have a positive effect on their quality, and many would not be able to fulfil; - the indication of a 3% limit on the budget of Action 4 is not acceptable as it entails an unnecessary budget restriction on this Action. Budget allocation will be determined as provided in Article 7; - particular consideration for organisations working on behalf of the disadvantaged and equal treatment for men and women wouldplace excessive operational emphasis on a particular category of organisation and mainstreaming.�