Slovenia has been promoting mobility and internationalisation at all levels of education, from preschool to higher education and adult education.
The White Paper on Education in the Republic of Slovenia (2011) lays down the guidelines for international cooperation of the Republic of Slovenian in education. Furthermore, the individual sectoral laws define basic aspects of the international dimension. Creating opportunities for cooperation within the European integration is one of the basic goals of the Slovenian education system, thus it is included under development priorities by the basic law on organisation and financing of education.
In school education, the subject-curricula and related educational activities include content about European about European integration, history, geography and culture, appreciation of cultural diversity, intercultural competence, as well as global learning.
The national policy's focus of attention has been on internationalisation in short-cycle higher cycle higher education and higher education. It is one of the actions towards achieving the goals of the Strategy of the Republic of Slovenia for short-cycle higher vocational education 2020–2030. It is also included under key priorities specified by the Resolution on the National Programme of Higher Education 2030. Four strategic goals relate to internationalisation:
- Increase the inclusion rate of universities and independent higher education institutions in the Common European Higher Education Area, and the internationalisation of curricula,.
- Increase the inclusion rate of Slovenians living abroad in the Slovenian higher education system.
- Improve the rate and quality of inward mobility at universities and independent higher education institutions.
- Improve the rate and quality of outward mobility of students and staff in higher education.
The Government of the Republic of Slovenia adopted in March 2023 the Strategy for the internationalisation of Slovenian higher education until 2030. It specified priority goals and three five key areas:
- Active inclusion of Slovenian higher education in the EU and the European area.
- Internationalisation at home.
- International mobilisation of students.
Fostering links between Slovenian and higher education and other institutions within the EU and with countries included in the Bologna process is a major goal in terms of providing internationally comparable quality of Slovenian higher education. To promote the active involvement of higher education institutions in European initiatives and alliances, such as the European Universities Initiative, the new Knowledge Platform national initiative was started. The higher education institutions will undertake an active part within the associations (e.g., EUA), join alliances and networks of higher education institutions (e.g., European universities, The Guild, Centres for Vocational Excellence, …), as well as run projects of mobility and short-term cooperations, build up activities with long-term strategic links.
The resolution promotes the internationalisation at home in terms of planned inclusion of international and intercultural dimensions in the formal and non-formal curricula ,for all students within home or “national” studying environments with the action of implementing an ambitious and strategic internationalisation of the curriculum.”
Under the international mobility of students, the focus is on achieving a high quality in all aspects of mobility.
Besides the semester student exchange, one also promotes the short-term exchanges (development of seminars or drawing up the final thesis, excursions, short practical training, summer/winter schools, foreign language courses …) that are in their nature accessible to a wider circle and thereby more inclusive.
The special focus is on:
- Notifications of studying in Slovenia and enticement of Slovenians abroad and around the world (scholarships, separate open admissions).
- Greater flexibility in the selection of possible subjects on exchanges.
- Continuous monitoring aimed at eliminating barriers for a whole recognition of the study period and ECTS credits obtained during mobility.
- Improve the outward mobility where the mobility window is available while providing the possibilities and suitable circumstances for less represented/non-privileged groups of students (second and third study cycles).
- Apply different approaches (extracurricular activities, and similar) in inward mobility of international students to make their experience equal to that of the domestic students.
- Create proper circumstances for improved inward mobility of excellent international students and thereby create possibilities for their integration into the labour market during long-term mobility (second and third study cycles).
The national priorities and guidelines for mobility and internationalisation have been harmonised with the European strategic framework of cooperation in Education and training 2022 and 2023, goals of the Copenhagen process, and so forth. The topics are supported by relevant and professional projects of other bilingual, regional and multilateral associations, as well as cooperation with important multilateral organisations, such as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Council of Europe, and United Nations Organization for Education, Science and Culture (UNESCO).
The activities in the scope of the Erasmus+, bilateral programmes of cooperation, and multilateral association with development project activities that are partly funded by the European social funds have been supporting the educational reform in Slovenia. They include all stakeholders, from individuals to institutions, local authorities, and at the national level or the system. Each year, over 1,000 teachers and other education staff, 3,000 higher education students, and 2,000 upper secondary participate in the mobility programmes. Together, they are the force initiating and facilitating international cooperation in the EU programmes, as well as promotors of bottom-up reforms.
To pursue goals of international cooperation, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia appointed the Centre of the Republic of Slovenia for Mobility and European Educational and Training Programmes (CMEPIUS) as the national agency for the implementation of European programmes in education and training. For the term 2021 to 2027, the Erasmus+. CMEPIUS has been responsible for mobile research via the European network EURAXESS, bilateral scholarship schemes, the Central European Exchange Program for University Studies (CEEPUS), as well as managing the e-Twinning European action. It has been involved with the incentive for the European language certificate that has become part of the Erasmus+ programmes; it has been the national contact point of the European platform for adult education. Since 2105, CMEPIUS has been responsible for the incentive and online platform Study in Slovenia.
Furthermore, Slovenia has been promoting international mobility with the Ad futura programmes, in which the Public Scholarship, Development, Disability and Maintenance Fund of the Republic of Slovenia has been awarding different scholarships and cofounding upper secondary and higher education students, as well as professionals.