Project title: Sport Professions – Education, Employment, Development in the Balkan Region (SPEED)

Duration: 3 years (December 2013 – November 2016)

Scope: Regional

Sport is a powerful tool for socioeconomic development and personal & collective wellbeing. In research & higher education this involves the expansion of Physical Education (PE) into Sport Science (SpS), accounting for much wider scope & new science, implications & job market needs: in teaching, training, management, health, social work, etc.
Many West Balkan (WB) countries, with their growing economies & developmental prospects (tourism, etc.), are becoming aware of these new potentialities, particularly as they look at EU accession policies, but need to fill a gap.

Based on two previous Tempus projects conducted by the EU Partners (EUP) in Albania, Kosovo & FYRoM to implement the Bologna Process and an initial curricular reform, this new project aims at:

1. extending the reform to other WB Universities & to Serbia, fostering harmonisation in the region & with EU;
2. developing a common approach to SpS accounting for modern standards & the manifold potentialities of sectorial qualification in sport as related to health, education, employment, development;
3. addressing the shared national priority personal services/sports & the regional priority vocational training with a joint, vocationally oriented Master & LLP targeting SpS professions, with a common core in line with EU standards, and specialisations with diverse learning outcomes & competencies to meet local needs & personal preferences.

Intensive Modules will be offered in various WB locations and combined flexibly with existing curricula according to specialisation, supported by vocational training & online work. The Master, involving a 1 yr (60 ECTS) initial qualification (training), and a 2nd yr with field & thesis work (60 ECTS) allowing different specialisations (health, management, etc.), will be accredited & sustained in the various countries, disseminated & recognised throughout the region & at European level, serving as basis for the establishment of LLP to acquire new competencies in sport.