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Over 40 UK institutions hold corporate membership of SCHES, the Standing Conference of Heads of European Studies. It aims to lobby for and promote the interests of European Studies as a subject area.
BACKGROUND | AIMS | CONSTITUTION | RESEARCH ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 2008 | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING | BOLOGNA PROCESS | CONFERENCES | MEMBERSHIP | EMAIL LIST | EUROPEAN STUDIES IN THE UK | SURVEY RESULTS AND REPORT | WHO'S WHO
SCHES was established in the early 1990s, as a sister organisation to UACES (the University Association for Contemporary European Studies). The context for its establishment was a concern with the defence and promotion of the European Studies field in higher education, with a primary focus on the United Kingdom. Since the late 1980s, there has been a constant need in the UK context to respond to new initiatives and opportunities, and also to meet challenges arising from the growth, contraction and evolution of the field.
The aims of the organisation are both professional and in certain respects public, encompassing a concern for the health and the promotion of the academic area. SCHES has had a continuing involvement with key areas of academic development in the UK, particularly the Research Assessment Exercise, the process of teaching quality assessment and the national benchmarking exercise for Area Studies, and has links with other organisations operating in the same areas.
The current action plan for SCHES encompasses three key areas:
First, to review the 'state of the art' in European Studies and to assist with replenishing the knowledge base of the profession.
Second, to maintain links with key national initiatives in the areas of curriculum and quality assurance, and to form appropriate links with other bodies in so doing.
Third, to enable the members and others interested in the area to establish dialogue and exchange ideas about the present state and future development of the area.
The SCHES Constitution sets
out the following as the key aims of the Standing Conference:
The promotion of research and
teaching about the nature and development of Modern Europe, with special reference to the European Community (sic) and
European
integration and to East-West relations in Europe, and the representation of the
academic area within and outside higher education.
Click here to see the Constitution. [The Constitution is a 92kB PDF file which can be opened with Adobe Acrobat]
RESEARCH ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 2008
Click here for a copy of the response to the panel consultation for the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE). This was sent to RAE colleagues in May 2004.
9 December 2005, 15:00, in London
Following the SCHES AGM, a briefing to members of SCHES was given by Michael Smith, Loughborough University - Chair of the European Studies sub-panel.
The 2007 SCHES AGM, 2007, was held at University College London, 29-30 Tavistock Square, London WC1H 9QU, on Friday 14 December 2007.
After the 2007 AGM, a talk on the Bologna Process was given by Howard Davies, UK Bologna Expert and Senior Adviser to the European University Association.
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2005
The 2005 Annual General Meeting was held on Friday 9 December 2005 at the LSE. It was followed by a briefing to SCHES Members on the Research Assessment Exercise 2008, led by Prof Michael Smith, University of Loughborough, Chair of the European Studies sub-panel.
The Minutes of the last AGM in 2005 are available. [The Annual Report is a 30kB PDF file which can be opened with Adobe Acrobat]
An Annual Report is presented by the Chair each year at the UACES AGM. [The Annual Report is a 30kB PDF file which can be opened with Adobe Acrobat]
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2003
The 2003 SCHES AGM was held on Friday 5 December 2003 at the University of Westminster.
After the AGM, there was a talk on the Bologna Process. The speaker was Dr Howard Davies, Head of European Development at London Metropolitan University. Based in London and Brussels, his role is to lobby the European institutions and to advise Vice-Chancellor and senior management on developments and opportunities in European HE. He is also an advisor to the European University Association. He has followed the Bologna Process closely and will be attending the EUA Joint Masters conference in Cluj-Napoca Romania in October.
An Annual Report is presented by the Chair each year at the UACES AGM. To see the 2003 report, click here. [The Annual Report is a 30kB PDF file which can be opened with Adobe Acrobat]
Click here for a summary of the latest presentation by Howard Davies in 2007. [45kb Word document]
SCHES is sponsoring a major conference for UK Higher Education, "Tuning into Europe" on implementing Bologna on 26 October 2006. Please see under "Conferences" below for information.
Howard Davies presented the SCHES AGM with a stimulating and informative overview of the main issues arising from the Bologna process. This included a clear explanation of both the differences between, and the partial convergence of, the transnational European developments and the specific initiatives by the EU. He ended his talk with some interesting speculations about future trends, as indicated in the attached summary. His presentation provoked a wide-ranging discussion and the whole session was extremely worthwhile.
Click here for a summary of his presentation in 2003. [58kb Word document]
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2002
The 2002 SCHES AGM was held at King's College London on Friday 13 December 2002. There was a discussion of the draft copy of the Survey The State of European Studies at this meeting.
An Annual Report is presented by the Chair each year at the UACES AGM. To see the 2002 report, click here. [The Annual Report is a 77kB PDF file which can be opened with Adobe Acrobat]
SCHES holds or sponsors occasional conferences. SCHES was pleased to sponsor a conference in 2006.
26 October 2006
Tuning into
Europe: UK Higher Education implementing Bologna
Venue:
London
Contact: Nathan Fretwell
(n.fretwell@londonmet.ac.uk)
Click here
for a copy of the conference report [53kB].
In March 2002 SCHES organised a conference called 'European Studies in the 21st Century: The State of the Art'. Click here for further information on this conference.
Membership of the organisation is on an institutional basis, rather than an individual one, given the key aims of the Standing Conference. At present, the organisation has more than 40 members, encompassing a high proportion of the departments and other bodies offering European Studies programmes in the UK.
The current SCHES Annual Subscription is £55 per UK department or other unit in the UK. Further details of membership are available from the SCHES Administrator, Sue Davis, or from the Officers of the organisation.
Mrs Sue Davis
SCHES c/o UACES
School of Public Policy
University College London
29/30 Tavistock Square
London,
WC1H 9QU
Email: sches@uaces.org
Tel: 020 7679
4975
Fax: 020 7679
4973
Click here to download membership form [102kB PDF file] for New members.
SCHES has its own email distribution list for SCHES members. Details on how to join this list will be made available to all new members.
Click here for a brief introduction and guide to the origins, structure and content of European Studies programmes in the UK. This document was originally produced for the QAA Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies group and is also to be found on the Learning and Teaching Support Network website.
"European Studies" may be defined as: "The study of European culture, institutions and society, which can take a broadly comparative approach or can be focused on either individual countries or the European Union. Usually involves the study of at least one modern European language, and one or more of history, politics, international relations, economics, geography, sociology and law. In some universities, courses in cultural studies are also included".
Please also see the UACES on-line Listing of Universities offering Courses in European Studies (in UACES members' institutions both in the UK and abroad).
[The guide is a 102kB PDF file]
SURVEY RESULTS AND REPORT
"The State of European Studies
in the UK"
SCHES, 2003, ISBN 085-389-8367
The Report, “The State of European Studies" was published by SCHES in 2003. It was undertaken by Prof Michael Smith (Glasgow Caledonian University, formerly Queen’s University Belfast) who is the Chair of SCHES.
To SCHES’ knowledge, this is the first analysis by any subject area of the trends in its recruitment, content and delivery over the past ten years. As such it provides solid evidence of the pressures faced by universities in sustaining areas, exemplified by European Studies, in which the UK is acknowledged as a pioneer and international leader. In particular the Report raises considerable concerns about a decline in the capacity to continue to provide academically challenging programmes which will meet the national need for culturally adaptive and intellectually open graduates.
SCHES Members are sent one free copy.
TO ORDER A COPY OF THIS REPORT
Copies of
this report can be purchased for £20 (which includes postage and packing). A
discounted price of £10 is available for UACES members.
Please
send payment, by cheque in pounds sterling, to:
SCHES
c/o UACES Secretariat
School of Public Policy
University College London
29/30 Tavistock Square
London,
WC1H 9QU
Please
include with your order:
1/ Your name
2/ Delivery address
3/ Contact email address
Cheques should be made payable to SCHES (not UACES and not University College London). Unfortunately, SCHES is unable to process credit card payments.
SCHES is administered by an Executive Committee consisting of a Chair, Treasurer, Secretary and five other members.
| Chair | Dr Susan Milner | European
Research Institute University of Bath s.e.milner@bath.ac.uk |
| Secretary | Prof Michael Newman | London European Research Centre London Metropolitan University m.newman@londonmet.ac.uk |
| Treasurer | Dr Alison Harcourt | Department of Politics University of Exeter a.harcourt@exeter.ac.uk |
| Committee | Prof Martin Bull | Dept of Politics &
Contemporary History (ESRI) University of Salford m.j.bull@salford.ac.uk |
| Committee | Prof Damian Chalmers | European
Institute London School of Economics & Political Science d.chalmers@lse.ac.uk |
| Committee | Dr Tom Dyson | Dept of Political,
International & Policy Studies University of Surrey t.dyson@surrey.ac.uk |
| Committee | Dr Roberto Espindola | Centre
for European Studies University of Bradford r.espindola@bradford.ac.uk |
| Committee | Dr Carol Tully | Dept of
Modern Languages Bangor University c.tully@bangor.ac.uk |
| Committee (Ex-officio 12/07) |
Prof Paul Furlong | School of European Studies Cardiff University furlongp@cardiff.ac.uk |
| Committee (Ex-officio 11/07) |
Prof Michael Smith | School of Law & Social
Sciences Glasgow Caledonian University m.smith@gcal.ac.uk |
| Administrator | Mrs Sue Davis | SCHES c/o UACES Secretariat sches@uaces.org |
Last modified:
Monday, 07 January 2008
idSCHES +10Jun2002
©UACES
2002