New dimensions to the issue of non-recognition of degrees awarded by private colleges in our country in collaboration with British universities, as stated in the letter sent to Data Journalists by the President of the Board of Directors of Metropolitan College, Konstantinos Rodopoulos.
The letter was sent in relation to what Data Journalists revealed about the non-recognition of nursing degrees offered by Metropolitan College in collaboration with Queen Margaret University in the UK.
In his letter, Rodopoulos admits that there is an issue with the recognition of qualifications, which he attributes to “the withdrawal of the UK from the EU (Brexit)”. Therefore, as underlined in the letter, the issue is not just about the nursing qualifications awarded to graduates of the Metropolitan College of Athens, but to “all Colleges that have this specialty”.
Must Read: An explosive revelation at Metropolitan College of Athens: Graduates claim degrees are “invalid”
According to the letter, in order to address this problem, the Ministry of Education “proceeded to regulate the recognition of professional rights”. Specifically, “a draft Decree was signed by 19 relevant ministers and submitted to the Council of State on 12/4/2023 for the relevant legal processing”. However, due to the national elections, “the processing of the aforementioned Presidential Decree was not possible, and for this reason, it was resubmitted by the new government to the authorities in September 2023 for further processing”.
Here it should be noted that the complaints that came to the attention of Data Journalists did not only concern Metropolitan College but also graduates of the Midwifery Department of Aegean College from a course of study previously offered by the college. According to official documents from the Ministry of Education’s Independent Unit for Compatibility with EU law, in this case, the graduates were informed that the “degrees they had obtained are neither equivalent to a Greek degree nor equivalent to a European degree”.
It should be noted that the complainants, in a letter sent a few months ago to Metropolitan College, claim that “there had been no information” or “warning” that the degree was not recognized”, as in that case they would not have chosen to study at that college. It is significant that even today, nowhere is the issue raised highlighted on the website of the Metropolitan College so that those concerned can be fully informed.
All these, raise questions at a time when the government is moving towards reforming Article 16 of the Constitution to establish private universities.
Read the letter of the Metropolitan College of Athens
To Mr. Vangelis Triantis
Journalist, Data Journalists
Thursday, 30/11/2023
Dear Mr. Triantis,
The issue of the professional rights of Nursing emerged with the withdrawal of G. Britain from the E.U. (Brexit). As you are well aware, degrees for graduates are awarded by affiliated foreign universities (Colleges do not award degrees – only the affiliated universities do).
The Department of Education after pressure from the College Association, alumni, and from coordinated action by relevant British bodies, has moved to regulate the recognition of professional rights. For this purpose, a draft Presidential Decree was signed by 19 competent Ministers and submitted to the Council of State on 12/4/2023 for processing in accordance with the law. Due to national elections and interim governance, the processing of the aforementioned Presidential Decree was not possible. Therefore, it was resubmitted by the new government in September 2023 for further processing.
So, the issue of the professional rights of Nursing graduates has already been initiated, according to the above.
It should be noted that the issue of recognizing the professional qualifications of nursing, under the pending Presidential Decree, concerns all colleges offering this specialty and not specifically Metropolitan College, which you selectively refer to. In all that time, our organization has remained steadfast in its support of our students with ongoing updates.
To restore the truth, please publish our letter on your website Data Journalists.
Sincerely,
Konstantinos Rodopoulos
Chairman of the Board of Directors of Metropolitan College.”
Source article:
An explosive revelation at Metropolitan College of Athens: Graduates claim degrees are “invalid”
