A talk given at the workshop "From imbalanced to balanced Mobility in the EHEA – current Challenges and Perspectives for the Future", 28-29 March 2011, Berlin. See http://species-id.net/wiki/User:Daniel_Mietchen/Bologna_workshop_2011_mobility_%28imbalances%29 for further information.

1. Mobility patterns of doctoral researchers-
Comparison between countries and disciplines
At the Bologna Seminar
From Imbalanced to Balanced Mobility in the EHEA –
Current Challenges and Perspectives for the Future
Snežana Krstić & Daniel Mietchen
Berlin, March 28, 2011
www.eurodoc.net

2. EURODOC in Europe
EUROPEAN COUNCIL OF DOCTORAL
CANDIDATES AND JUNIOR RESEARCHERS
• Voice of young researchers in Europe
• Promotes young researchers
• Contributes to EHEA and ERA policies
• Partner of EC, EUA, Euroscience, ESOF
www.eurodoc.net
1/18/11

3. Eurodoc on a Map
www.eurodoc.net
1/18/11

4. EURODOC survey
on doctoral candidates
• Purpose:
o Exploring the real situation concerning current
conditions related to mobility, career development, assessment of
doctoral programme and working conditions
o Supporting Eurodoc policy activities with empirical evidence
o Exploring the differences between countries, cultures and
models of doctoral education
• About 100,000 respondents from over 30 countries
• The first survey of doctoral researchers on this
scale – in cooperation with the International
Centre for Higher Education Research at the
University of Kassel.
• Previous surveys are mainly country reports or focused only on
some topics
• http://www.eurodoc.net/workgroups/surveys/
www.eurodoc.net

5. The professional reasons for going
abroad – Part 1
www.eurodoc.net
1/18/11
Preliminary results; official presentation at Eurodoc 2011

6. The professional reasons for going
abroad – Part 2
www.eurodoc.net
1/18/11

7. Pursuing doctorate abroad
21.3% (22% female
and 19.9% male)
www.eurodoc.net
1/18/11

8. The most important sources
of funding
Scholarships 63.3%
Employment 46.1%
Personal savings 21.4%
www.eurodoc.net
1/18/11

9. The most important
sources of funding
www.eurodoc.net
1/18/11

10. Personal reasons
for mobility – Part 1
Better career prospects 79.7%
Cooperation with prominent scientists 75.9%
Better research facilities abroad 75.2%
…
Professional plans of family members
Better social security
www.eurodoc.net
1/18/11

11. Personal reasons for
mobility – Part 2
www.eurodoc.net
1/18/11

12. Personal reasons for
mobility – Part 3
www.eurodoc.net
1/18/11

13. Other obstacles
recognized by Eurodoc
Recruitment procedures
Not efficient and not transparent
The European Charter for Researchers and
The Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of
Researchers (Charter & Code)
Low awareness on Charter & Code
Less then 9%
www.eurodoc.net
1/18/11

14. Intention to move or stay
abroad (geographical distribution)
Yes 30.9%
No 21.6%
www.eurodoc.net
1/18/11

15. Intention to move or stay
abroad (disciplinary distribution)
www.eurodoc.net
1/18/11

16. Doctoral research at the intersection
Of EHEA and ERA
In the ERA and many member countries, there is a
focus on sharpening the research profile of a region.
Research spending varies widely across reginos and
countries.
This means that researchers in different disciplines will
be differently attracted to a given region.
A certain level of imbalances is inevitable.
What level of balance should we strive for?
www.eurodoc.net
1/18/11

17. Mobility for mobility's sake?
Some personal comments
Reconsider virtual (and blended) mobility.
I could have given this talk remotely
Others could have joined in remotely
Some programs count international experience in terms
of (post-graduate) years abroad.
But much international experience can be gained at
home while cooperating with others over the web or
taking web-based international courses.
International experience does not guarantee a
permanent position in public research.
www.eurodoc.net
1/18/11

18. Conclusions
Geographical and disciplinary differences in mobility
pattern exist
Unsuitable recruitment procedures are an obstacle to
mobility and career prospects
Awareness on Charter & Code should be improved
Start thinking about virtual mobility
www.eurodoc.net
1/18/11

19. For more information, please, visit our
webpage:
www.eurodoc.net
or contact us at:
board@eurodoc.net
The presentation is based on
the one for the 4th EUA-CDE workshop,
Budapest, Jan 2011
www.eurodoc.net