The European Union's ERASMUS mobility policy: A case study of three French higher education institutions

Following the creation of the European Economic Community, founded by the Treaty of Rome in 1957, the fifteen nations forming the European Union joined together to eliminate economic barriers among member countries. To create a more effective work force, the European Union set up a number of community-wide partnerships between education and industry. This study focuses on the ERASMUS (The European Community Action Scheme for the Mobility of University Students) policy. In 1988, the EU Ministers of Education convened to create a resolution to "strengthen the European dimension in education." According to the terms of the 1988 Resolution, each member state was expected to implement measures to achieve the objective of incorporating the European dimension into national education systems. This thesis seeks to determine how the French higher education system has responded to the European Union's call for a "European dimension" through the use of the ERASMUS mobility program. The study focuses on three diverse French higher education institutions and seeks to ascertain how each institution is implementing the ERASMUS policy. The institutions are: Paris 8, La Nouvelle Sorbonne (Paris III) and L'Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris. Chapter 1 provides a brief history of the European integration process. Chapter 2 considers the unique characteristics of the French policymaking process. Chapter 3 analyzes policies to forge a European identity. Chapter 4 provides an overview of the role internationalism played in the formation of the University of Paris. Chapter 5 discusses the modern organization of the French university system. Chapter 6 considers the insertion of market forces and the impact of European integration on French higher education. Chapters 7, 8 and 9, discuss the implementation of the ERASMUS policy in Paris 8, Paris III, and L'Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris based upon Institutional Contracts; the European Policy Statement; interviews with professors and administrators; and responses to student questionnaires. Chapter 10 concludes the thesis and draws comparisons among the three institutions.