Brussels, 05/09/2007 (Agence Europe) - The European University Association (EUA) has published a report on doctoral education in Europe. It highlights the introduction of new organisational structures that have been put in place today in various European countries, the increasing focus on learning “transferable skills”, to make candidates more flexible and better prepared for the labour market, and the growth in new types of doctoral programmes, such as “professional doctorates”. It also underlines the challenges Europe faces if it is serious about attracting and retaining young research talent. The EUA believes that stakeholders (the universities and public authorities) must do more to improve supervision and assessment practices in doctoral education, and to encourage international mobility of candidates. They must also take steps to ensure that professional skills development is an integral part of all doctoral training. The EUA also believes that national policies for doctoral education are too often fragmented and lack coordination. This is a situation that does not create favourable conditions for Europe to attract and retain the best doctoral candidates, the report concludes. (Information: http://www.eua.be ) (il)