The seminar was hosted by the Centre for Higher Education Studies in Prague. The meeting opened with a reception and was attended by partners and guests from Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Sweden and the UK.

The seminar was concerned with obtaining perspectives on ways in which HE can provide guidance and student support to a diverse population of students. The seminar centred on the themes of "Guidance for enhanced employment prospects" and "Guidance and the development of new competencies for lifelong learning". The outcomes of the seminar were expected to inform a conference paper on "Student diversity, distance learning and guidance" and contribute to a policy paper on "HE Reform, teaching and learning, change and quality: student diversity, distance learning and guidance". During the meeting, the following main issues were identified:

• Discriminatory attitudes of potential employers (further enhanced by achievement-oriented society and rising unemployment rates in EU countries), rooted prejudices of general public concentrating on disabilities rather than abilities, architectural barriers (also concerning office buildings), lack of technological support and assistance, and lack of guidance and counselling services. (Austria)
• Teachers as Learning Facilitators, factors which will drive changes in status and role of teachers, teacher as facilitator and mentor. (Poland)
• Work-related Skills in Labor Market: The defining Role of Gender and Academic Field, research findings on definitions of graduate skill related to the labour market. (Greece)
• Features and Models of University and Lifelong Guidance and Counselling Services, the definition of guidance and counselling, guidance and counselling at higher education and lifelong learning, quality of guidance and counselling, European policy in guidance and counselling. (Czech Republic)
• Key skills for undergraduates in the labour market, personal skills including social, intellectual, self-managing, adaptive, and creative skills, interpersonal skills comprising the ability of teamwork, information technology skills and literacy, positive attitudes to a change including understanding the worlds of work, politics, and society. (Great Britain)
• New Trends of Preparing Students for Labour Market using possibilities of EU structural funds. HE and employability: relations and trends. Developing enterprising students. (Latvia. Lithaunia, Great Britain)
• Guidance and counselling in higher education with special reference to ethnic minorities and refugees in particular. (The Netherlands)

The seminar comprised individual paper presentations followed by discussion workshops ending with a plenary session to draw out the main findings and recommendations.

Individual paper presentations:

• Teachers as learning Facilitators — Marek Frankowicz (Jagiellonain University, Poland)
• Work - related Skills in Greek Market: The Defining role of Gender and Academic Field - Despina Sidiropoulou & Anna Touloumakou and Katerina Argyropoulou (University of Athens, Greece)
• Features and models of university and lifelong guidance and counselling services - Zuzana Freibergova (NVF, Czech Republic)
• Key skills for undergraduates and graduates in the Labour Market — Heather EGGINS (SRHE, UK)
• New trends of preparing Latvian students for labour market (using possibilities of EU structural funds) — Elina Konstantinova & Barbara Rivza (CEDeF, Latvia)
• Employability and HE - Ramunas Kuncaitis (VDU, Lithuania)
• Developing enterprising students: reflections on the Enterprise in Higher Education Programme at a UK university — Ivan Kent & Myszka Guzkowska (Roehampton University of Surrey, UK)
• Overcoming disability - recommendations from the Disability Research Group — Barbara Hengstberger (JKU, Austria)
• Guidance and counselling in higher education with special reference to ethnic minorities and refugees in particular — Folke Glastra & Lonneke van Putten (ESREA, the Netherlands)

The workshop addressed 3 questions:

The debate started from the problem of terminology as such. It was stressed that organisation of lifelong learning is very different in various countries which is valid as well for the number of different types of educational institutions offering various LLL courses. Not properly used terminology or making the same term different meaning as regards their content may lead to very strange misunderstandings (example — the declaration that LLL does not exist in the country came perhaps from the fact that LLL courses are simply identified by another term). Problems coming from translations among various languages were also considered, the explanation of native speakers how using of different preposition can change the meaning of words´ sequence was highly appreciated and to view guidance for LLL rather than in LLL was fully accepted. The debate about exhaustive offer of literature was taken, unfortunately with the understanding that broad practical outcomes like the facts exploration or literature retrieval would be difficult, even if extremely helpful. The group concluded that:

• Even if literature is exhaustive, there should be some reference place to have national concepts in one place
• Guidance might be viewed IN or FOR LLL
• Guidance FOR LLL is characterised by its ability to help person to take possible educational services

It was agreed that practical approaches to guidance focused on LLL has its owns specificities. The debate considered again the different ways of LLL courses offer in various countries. The countries where some kind of Open University was established (like for example the UK of the Netherlands) were mentioned in contrary to those where universities are developing both traditional and distance way of teaching and various private establishments offer learning while number of additional opportunities. The possibility to organise guidance and counselling within the Open University was discussed comparing this situation with the lifelong learning spread among the number of institutions where guidance and counselling follows perhaps rather independent model. The specific needs of adult learners were tackled including difference between central and individual students services as well as the needed relation of career guidance with counselling focused on education orientation and opportunities. Participants of the workshop agreed that guidance centre should be the place where people like to go. The group concluded that guidance for lifelong learning should be flexible, open and comprehensive, (i.e. professionally, educationally and practically oriented) and should enable a person to be self-determined and unique. Therefore, guidance and counselling FOR lifelong learning should be

• Easily accessible,
• User-friendly and
• Reliable (especially with respect to quality)

Accessibility of guidance in lifelong learning may be supported in many ways. The debate was focused on possibility to share the good practices of different higher education establishments, experience of various countries. It was agreed that the guidance processes should take into consideration the needs of adult learners, which are in may aspects different from those of young students. It was suggested to use data gathered by various types of information centres (NAIRCs/ENICs), to exploit knowledge about quality of studies concentrated in quality assurance agencies and to support the bottom-up approach of their networking at the national level Networking of guidance centres and associations of employers/professional bodies was found very useful as well. The suggested networking seemed to be important at the international level as well. It was stressed that networking will enable to involve all partners into the process, will enable to use effectively all available quantitative and qualitative data and materials. The group concluded that, in order to achieve accessible guidance, it was suggested:

• To employ practices gathered by Open University and other similar agencies functioning in tertiary education,
• To change services provided for adult education with respect to real adult needs

The overall conclusions from workshop 1 were that in order to make guidance user-friendly and accessible and lifelong learning oriented both bottom-up and top-down action/initiatives should be encouraged:

• National level (bottom-up approach) through the networking of agencies dedicated for QA, information/statistics, labour market agencies, professional associations and guidance centres
• International level (top-down approach) through "thinking about" the creation of a single overarching agency tasked with networking the national level supported by web based database that both integrates data available in all EU countries and provides reference points for possible benchmarking and sharing practices. It will also help to solve the problems of excessive non-systematic information.

Caveat: such a process and/or agency should not be directive - the cultural and historical contexts of individual countries must be preserved.

The workshop addressed 3 questions:

There was a hesitation when trying to define "student diversity". Actually there are two possibly explanations of the term "diversity". We can mean the "institutional diversity" or "individual diversity". There are various types of universities in different countries, which constitute a diversity of HEIs. The second type of diversity is individual student diversity. The situation is not the same in every EU-country and we lack the data necessary to define some more precise categories of "student diversity". Presently student diversity may vary between countries by including different combinations (and weightings) of the following:

• Gender diversity,
• Ethnic diversity,
• Age diversity,
• Social diversity (social class),
• Cultural diversity,
• Religious diversity,
• Health disabilities.

Without the sufficient data it is difficult or impossible to set correct criteria for "student diversity". The problem of course is which definition of diversity should be used when collecting the data. So it is really necessary to share some definitions of diversity in the EU when collecting the data across Europe. It is also advisable to take in account the different experience of various countries. There is the thread of stigmatisation or labelling when dealing with different types of "diversities" in specific countries. The workshop recommended:

• Initiating of more complex research in the EU countries, on appropriate quantitative data it is possible to define various student groups (no "instinctive", "soft" definitions of diversity);
• Creating of more general picture of student diversity in EU.
• Mapping of advantages delivered to diverse students group receive in universities in specific countries. -> Mapping of various ways of guidance delivery.

It is necessary to get the true information about the needs of the labour market. When preparing the career guidance it is unavoidable to study the trends of development of the labour market — to know, what could be the situation in future. Three stakeholders should be involved in the process of career guidance:

• HEIs,
• State,
• Employers.

Career guidance should be considered as a continuous process — it should be very flexible. When speaking about distance learning we know that all technology development could be used for well or bed of clients. ITC can broaden the audience but the motivation, personal contact and social skills could be affected in a negative way. The group recommended that:

• The social interaction and impacts of new technologies should be tested.
• The necessity of interpersonal contact is to be taken into consideration when supporting distance learning (e-learning).
• It is necessary to support the social practice — without it the technology-oriented education could be wasting of money. ("What can be learned by e-learning?")

The first answer was "YES" — when seeing the competition of private HEIs but then the question of "drop-outs" was discussed. It is necessary tom concentrate even on this aspect of guidance and counselling. Pre-study and perhaps also after-study guidance could be useful to help match the needs of labour market and individual capability of students.

The better choice of field of study, testing of students’ skills could help to cover the needs of labour market more efficiently. Professional competencies could be supported by testing and improving skills like:

• emotional intelligence,
• communication,
• prosocial behaviours
• personal attitudes.

Not only young and unemployed people are involved in the education process now. We should think of the needs of not "typical" students, too. In many countries the people involved in higher education become to be more diverse. The guidance and counselling is to prepare sufficient support even for these groups. The group recommended:

• Preparing new ways of guidance and counselling for more diverse groups of students (older and employed students).
• Inventing new methodology of guidance and counselling for these diverse groups. New theoretical input in the field is necessary.
• Supporting the training of "soft skills".

Four questions were asked in this workshop:

The list of features mentioned by the participants reads as follows:

• Role of practical work experience
• Development of language competence
• Development of interactive skills including self-confidence and attitude building, self-presentation, teamwork
• Development of interdisciplinary forms of knowledge
• Clarification of actors responsible for the provision of HE guidance and counselling

As regards the extent to which current QA mechanisms relate to graduates and employers’ needs, the participants argued that:

• There is an urgent need in the HE sector to develop and establish central guidance and counselling provision/centres if missing from the structure of HEIs (including the law enactment if necessary), as, currently, the extend of QA mechanisms remains rather limited
• In order to develop professional standards to be a subject of QA mechanisms, HEIs should build up/broaden appropriate partnerships with potential employers
• In order to strengthen the relationship between QA mechanisms and graduates and employers’ needs, it is important to adopt the perception of quality in HE as a fitness for purpose
• Greater information provision on HE guidance and counselling should be seen as a paramount objective of the existing QA mechanisms/agencies

Regarding the inclusiveness of the graduate labour market, the primary opinion of the workshop participants was that the graduate labor market should not be considered inclusive a great deal, however, further suggestions were made during the discussion:

• Distinction has to be made between large and small enterprises, as the former ones are generally more willing to invest into graduates’ professional development
• Measures should be taken by state authorities to encourage graduate employment in terms of grants and taxation (tax reduction/exemption)
• Links between Heist and employers should be strengthened especially as regards mutual communication, practical placements, traineeships
• Alumni should be used in a more active way to foster links between Heist and employers

The principal issues affecting guidance in HE for employment in enlarged Europe were summarized by the workshop participants as follows:

• Existence/creation of job vacancy databases (preferably in English) with regular updates
• Introduction of 3-level professional guidance at pre-entry, academic, and post-entry level
• Greater utilization of joint degree policy in practice
• Increased allocation of funds and resources devoted to HEI staff development

A short survey concerning the problem of guidance and counselling was completed by participants during the seminar. The results of the undertaken analysis may prove some interesting new information.

We can see different attitudes towards the suitability of HE G & C systems in the new and old EU countries. In the main, ratings of these systems are higher in the old EU countries. We cannot overestimate the generalization of answers received from our respondents but is seems that the fitness of G & C systems to the needs of stakeholders is a much bigger problem in the new EU countries. The situation in Bulgaria may be not very satisfactory in this respect; there was no uniform opinion in Poland when evaluating this theme.

Lifelong learning courses are quite a new achievement in most countries so some difficulties connected with the new type of G & C were mentioned. The problem with lifelong learning might be caused by much more diverse profiles and needs of students in lifelong learning courses. New types of G & C systems based on progressive electronic communication technologies seem to be established to cover the needs of these students. A rather untypical answer came from Bulgaria where may be no fundamental difference in approach to the both types of students.

It is hardly possible to find all general trends in development of HE G & C systems when we use only information available from our questionnaires. Perhaps the growing orientation on the labour market (stress on career guidance) could be the main change in the new EU countries. New information technologies are emerging in the field of HE G & C systems and they produce a lot of changes in the procedures of G & C.

Only the UK produced a positive answer to this question (see: http://www.qaa.ac.uk/public/COP/COPcex/contents.htm). In other countries involved in our survey there we can hardly give evidence to such process.

Not many changes were registered in the field of G & C in countries involved in our survey. On the base of the analysis of our collected data we could offer a hypothesis that the geographical position may differentiate the development in various countries. In this respect, more changes could be registered in Central European countries where new mobility chances may be expected (Poland, Austria). In the UK career services rarely think about careers for UK students elsewhere in the EC.

The new EU countries seem to show more social homogeneity and less support for manifesting diversity in comparison with the old EU countries. A lot of research on student diversity is done in the UK, Austria, and Greece. We could suggest two main explanations of this basic difference:

• The new EU countries may be really more ethnical and cultural homogenous what might be caused by the restrained geographical mobility in the past and by the fact that the new EU countries still are not regarded as host countries for immigrants (due to their economic characteristics).
• The different political and cultural tradition of the new EU countries does not offer so much space for demonstrating individual or group diversity (gender, ethnical, religious etc.).

• Create special G&C units, introduce courses "How to learn" (at the 1st year of studies, like in some EU countries)
• Introduce tutors (at higher years of studies)
• Introduce faculty representatives of central university career services
• Direct cooperation between HE guidance & counselling centres from different countries
• Collaboration of centres with the agency responsible for quality of HE
• Increasing of flexibility and international cooperation
• Guide and counsel students which are already in employment and are studying
• Introduce another kind of counselling (changing job or branches, skills, further education,..)
• Women population
• Disabled students
• Ethnic minority groups / Multicultural population
• Lifelong learning
• Areas with big unemployment
• Links with employers
• Collaboration with other bodies
• Reinforcement of strategic role and position Careers Services within HEI´s institutions

A special policy guide was worked out. Here we can mention the main recommendations:

Network of Networks. It could be useful to establish a Network of already existing Networks:

• Guidance network/networks (need of mapping, identifying)
• Quality assurance networks (ENQA - European Network for Quality Assurance in Higher Education), CEE - Central and Eastern European Network of Quality Assurance Agencies in Higher Education, INQAAHE - International Network for Quality Assurance Agencies in Higher Education, JQI - Joint Quality Initiative, ECA - European Consortium for Accreditation, networks of agencies for professional accreditation etc.
• Networks providing information services (NARIC — Network of Academic Recognition and Information Centres, ENIC — European Network of Information Centres)
• Networks of employers, professional chambers, etc., with possibility to involve useful databases (for example PLOTEUS)

Developing Existing Systems Building on the Number of Both National and International Programmes Currently Running and Results of Those Already Covered. This would be considered as the top-down activity co-ordinated from the international level.

• The activity needs first of all serious stocktaking of as many projects and their results and ideas as possible.
• The main aim of the next phase would be the share of good practice and the exchange of good experience.
• The further step would be the development of the useful reference points which may indicate "the state of art" for particular countries.
• The final step would be the recommendation to think/to create an international agency.

• Qualitative aspects of research,
• Quantitative aspects of research,
• Research on students´ diversity and connected consequences,
• Research on students´ situation and relevant needs,
• Research on careers guidance systems, structures and paradigms.