SLOVAK universities are still waiting to be categorized. A so-called complex accreditation process that was supposed to start in 2004 has not yet begun.
Complex accreditation would divide universities in Slovakia into three categories: research universities, universities and junior college-like universities.
Depending on university type, potential students could easily determine the level of education offered and the degrees conferred: doctorate, masters or bachelors. Additionally, categorizations would give the state a better idea to the amount and kind of financial support it should offer any given institution.
The Accreditation Committee, an advisory body responsible for administering the complex accreditation process, says the process was postponed by the Slovak Rector Conference.
The Slovak Rector Conference is a group representing rectors from universities throughout Slovakia. According to the Accreditation Committee, the rectors wanted more time to get ready for the accreditation process.
Even if the rectors were prepared for the process, however, the Education Ministry has not yet determined how universities will be evaluated. "We are still working on the criteria," Monika Múrová, a spokesperson for the Education Ministry, told The Slovak Spectator.
Top Slovak universities that expect to get the highest ranking are unhappy with the delays.
František Gahér, the rector of Comenius University in Bratislava, said the aim of differentiating universities by category is to help the state finance them more appropriately. He told the Spectator: "The fact that the complex accreditation process is not going on contradicts the Act on Universities. The delays are detrimental to high quality universities where a majority of Slovakia's science and research takes place. For example, Comenius University and the Slovak University of Technics in Bratislava share about 50 percent of all Slovak scientific research."
Although the complex accreditation process is not yet in place, there have been government efforts to assess Slovak universities. Recently, the Slovak Education Ministry ranked universities into two categories:
Universities with the best educators
1. University of Performing Arts in Bratislava
2. University of Veterinary Medicine in Košice
3. Slovak Technical University in Bratislava
Universities with the best performance*
1. Comenius University in Bratislava
2. Slovak Technical University in Bratislava
3. Technical University in Košice
*(according to numbers of doctorate
students and volume of acquired grants)
The Slovak Governance Institute, an NGO, looked at popularity to determine its rankings. It ranked various school departments according to numbers of applicants, numbers of accepted students and actual numbers enrolled.
The most demanded university departments in 2004/2005
1. Police Academy in Bratislava
2. Law Department, Comenius University in Bratislava
3. Law Department, Matej Bell University in Banská Bystrica
4. University of Applied Arts in Bratislava
5. Department of Applied Arts, Academy of Artsin Banská Bystrica
6. Department of Economics and Management, Slovak Agriculture University in Nitra
7. Department of Commerce, University of Economics (UE) in Bratislava
8. Department of International Relations, UE in Bratislava
9. Department of National Economics, UE in Bratislava
10. Department of Applied of Arts, Technical University in Košice
Author: Marta Durianová
