Recognising that a joint degree programme is a highly complex, coordinated activity of partners, cooperation and coordination is hence crucial for the realisation of any joint degree programme. The Degree Programme is embedded in a ‘culture of jointness’ that highlights the fact that the whole is more than the sum of its parts and that the quality of the whole, rather than simply the individual parts, must be considered. The notion of quality culture is thus not restricted to one institution, but functions across institutional and national borders (‘European guidelines for quality enhancement in EU joint master’s programmes’, the European University Association, 2006).

Originating from the border guard community and developed in collaboration, the European Joint Master’s was designed as a programme where learning has practical application for the Member State (MS)/Schengen Associated Countries (SAC) border guard organisations which are the ultimate beneficiary. The Master’s Programme is completely student centred, focusing on the relevance of the learning requirements for operational competence. The Joint Master’s has the opportunity to draw from the best expertise across the EU, valuing academic cooperation and student / teacher exchanges, but also development of expertise in the border guard field through Degree Programme delivery and development of teachers.

The ethos of the programme has at its core the enhancement of interoperability at EU borders and harmonisation of learning and professional standards while respecting diversity, in line with the Bologna principles. The Master’s is inclusive of international expertise for delivery of the programme and accessible to all of the EU organisations with a border guard function.

The structure of a Joint Degree is well suited to achieving important outcomes for the students, the teaching institutions and the agencies involved in this programme. It will bring academic credibility to the expertise that exists in border guard (BG) organisations, foster and enhance collaboration and cooperation across the EU and address challenges faced by BG organisations with a European solution, a flexible learning paradigm that aligns with the training system of each MS and creates a standard for collaborative learning.

Students are exposed to management practices in Border Security across Europe as each class has students from every MS / SAC and the programme content is designed and delivered by international experts. The academic institutions that form the Consortium for programme delivery will benefit from mutual exchange processes that will enhance theory and practice in the field of border management. The organisations and agencies responsible for border security / border guarding in each MS / SAC will benefit through enhanced capacity for operational cooperation / interoperability at EU borders, which is also one of the key goals for Frontex. The students are offered an opportunity to learn in a context that reflects operational reality, to advance best practice in border guarding by studying together and to reinforce the European dimension of the border-guard job while contributing to the creation of a European border-guard culture at higher levels.

The Consortium values the distributed nature of the Degree Programme and recognises that defined procedures must be in place to ensure a coherent approach to the quality assurance of the programme, and the interoperability of the different quality assurance structures of each Partner. It is acknowledged that no single institution has the expertise to deliver this entire programme and it is intended that the Partners will share the programme delivery. The Degree Programme is intended to demonstrate ‘unity’, not ‘multiplicity’, so the Consortium in essence creates a ‘mini university’ structure for the programme that draws on each Partner, with shared responsibility between all partners as defined in the Consortium Agreement..