Demand for higher education programs: the impact of the Bologna process

Abstract

While several aspects of the Bologna process deserve wide public support, the reduction of the length of the first cycle of studies to three years in several continental European countries, where it used to last for four or five years, is less consensual. This paper checks the extent of public confidence in the restructuring of higher education currently underway by looking at its impact on the demand for academic programs in Portugal. We concentrate on students revealed first preference when applying to higher education. Results indicate that the programs that restructured to follow the Bologna principles were subject to higher demand than comparable programs that did not restructure; that effect, however, varies across fields of study and with program size.