Education & Culture

European Commissioner for Energy Andris Piebalgs opens the first exhibit of U.S. art in the Commission's Berlaymont headquarters in Brussels. To his right are U.S. Mission to the EU Charge d'Affaires Larry Wohlers, U.S. Cultural Affairs Officer and exhibit organizer Ryan Ballow, and American sculptor John Antone, who is currently working and teaching in Croatia and Slovenia. Photo: Jeannine Johnson MaiaEuropean Commissioner for Energy Andris Piebalgs opens the first exhibit of U.S. art in the Commission's Berlaymont headquarters in Brussels. To his right are U.S. Mission to the EU Charge d'Affaires Larry Wohlers, U.S. Cultural Affairs Officer and exhibit organizer Ryan Ballow, and American sculptor John Antone, who is currently working and teaching in Croatia and Slovenia. The exhibit was sponsored by the U.S. Mission the European Union.

2008: American Sculptor Holds First U.S. Art Show in European Commission Headquarters (Jul 10, 2008)

2007: U.S.-Polish-Israeli Exchange Program Offers Cultural Enrichment (Jan 4, 2007)

Evaluating applications to U.S. graduate schools from international students with bachelor’s degrees earned in three years has become a less controversial issue on U.S. campuses, the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) reports in a new study. Attitudes on U.S. campuses toward three-year degrees are important because Europe has embarked on the process of harmonizing European degree structures -- the so-called Bologna Process, which takes its name from the 1999 Bologna Declaration when 29 countries resolved to create a European Higher Education Area by the year 2010. The Bologna Process since has grown to include 45 countries. The European countries participating in the Bologna Process are adopting an educational structure in which students typically earn bachelor’s degree in three years, rather than the four years than is the norm at U.S. colleges and universities. In recent years, there has been some question as to whether these three-year degrees would be accepted by U.S. graduate schools. Graduate admissions policies and practices in the United States vary widely, and there is no central policymaking body.

2006: Fulbright Educational Exchange Program Marks 60th Anniversary (Nov 9, 2006) | U.S. Graduate Schools' Stance on (European) Three-Year Degrees Changing (Nov 6, 2006) | European Students Visit America on New Exchange Program (Jul 13, 2006) | U.S.-EU Summit Declaration (Jun 21, 2006) | European Commission Launches Call for Proposals as Part of U.S.-EU Education and Training Agreement (May 2006) | U.S. Awards International Research and Education Grants (Jan 31, 2006) | Laura Bush, State's Hughes Announce Student Exchange Initiatives (Jan 8, 2006) | State's Harty Says "Welcome Mat is Out" for Foreign Students (Jan 6, 2006) | Bush To Open International Education Summit at State Department (Jan 4, 2006)

The United States and Europe have a long and extensive history of educational and cultural exchanges, says a February 2005 State Department fact sheet. These occur on both a formal and informal basis and can be seen in interactions such as tourist visits, international business training, study abroad programs, and musical and religious exchanges as well as more formal interactions between governments and academic institutions. The Fulbright program is the flagship of the international educational programs sponsored by the U.S. Government and was designed to "increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries." The Fulbright Program has provided more than 250,000 participants with the opportunity to study and teach in each other's countries, exchange ideas, and develop joint solutions to address shared concerns. Exchanges between the U.S. and Europe have comprised approximately 70 percent of these exchanges.

2005: Foreign Student Enrollments in U.S. Top 565,000 in 2004-2005 (Nov 14, 2005) | Report: EU-U.S. Cooperation Program in Higher and Vocational Education and Training (Oct 20, 2005) | U.S., EU List Steps To Enhance Economic Integration, Growth (Jun 20, 2005)

2004: Fulbright Teachers Prepare for International Exchange (Aug 5, 2004)

2000: Albright, Riley, Vedrine, and Patten at Signing Ceremony of U.S.-EU Higher Education Agreement (Dec 18, 2000) | Renewal of U.S.-EC Higher Education, Vocational Education, and Training Agreement (Dec 18, 2000)

1995: U.S. and European Community Agreement on Higher Education, Vocational Education, and Training (Dec 21, 1995)