Greece’s universities will be able to introduce foreign-language programs to their curriculums without the need to seek ministerial approval, according to legislation being prepared by the Ministry of Education that has been seen by Kathimerini. All that will be required will be a green light from the National Accreditation Council,  

Apart from attracting non-European Union students, who will help generate funds for Greece’s cash-strapped universities in the form of tuition fees, the foreign-language programs will also be open to Greek students, though the legal and technical details of how this will be possible are still being ironed out.

For the time being, the scheme pertains only to the fields of medicine and engineering, while foreign-language programs will also be able to be organized in cooperation with more than one department at the same or another university.

To introduce such a program, university senates will have to approve a proposal on the program and its curriculum from the relevant department or faculty before seeking the agreement of the accreditation council.

Apart from a set amount of subsidies from the Education Ministry budget, the programs will be bankrolled by tuition fees, as well as donations, trusts and research funding.