Tertiary education in the Spanish education system comprises the following types of provision:
university education,
advanced Artistic studies,
advanced vocational training,
advanced vocational Plastic Arts and Design studies, and
advanced Sports studies.
Advanced Artistic studies, advanced vocational Plastic Arts and Design studies and advanced Sports studies are part of the
enseñanzas de régimen especial.
University
education, with the highest number of students, is structured into
cycles with specific training objectives and autonomous academic value.
According to this organisational model, there are currently four types
of provision: first cycle studies (short cycle) of 3 years’ duration,
first and second cycle studies (long cycle) of 5-6 years’ duration,
second cycle studies (2 years’ duration), and third cycle studies (1 or
2 years’ duration). However, in accordance with the new regulations
following the Bologna Declaration, by 2010, the new syllabuses will
have to adapt to the new structure of university education. When that
occurs, this type of provision will be structured into three cycles:
Bachelor, Master and Doctorate.
Advanced Artistic studies
include advanced Music and Dance studies, Dramatic Arts studies,
Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Assets studies, advanced
Design studies, and advanced Plastic Arts studies, which, in turn,
include advanced Ceramics studies and advanced Glass studies.
Advanced
vocational training qualifies students to exercise different
professions and constitutes a non-university post-secondary level.
The 2006
Ley Orgánica de Educación, LOE
(Act on Education) established advanced vocational Plastics Arts and
Design studies, which have been developed by the 2007 Royal Decree that
establishes its organisation. These studies will replace the ciclos formativos of advanced Plastics Arts and Design from the academic year 2008/09 onwards.
When
it comes to advanced Sports studies, they provide the necessary
technical training for the professional development in the relevant
sports specialisation.