Navigating round higher education degrees: a cross comparison of bachelor, master and PHD learning outcomes

The call for Higher Education accountability and comparability brings into light the relevance of learning outcomes as a fundamental tool in the Bologna educational reform. Notwithstanding the wide range of definitions, learning outcomes refer to what a student should know, understand and be able to demonstrate at the end of a learning period. The emphasis is placed on objectives coherence, which is closely related to the student expectations in terms of knowledge, skills and competences. Accordingly, it would be expected, as suggested by literature review, that different qualification levels have different outcomes levels. Bachelor, Master and PhD degrees should have dissimilar orientations and competence profiles increasingly complex, based on personal, academic and job market requirements. This study intends to analyze how learning outcomes have been defined by Portuguese Higher Education institutions, per bachelor, master, and PhD degree: do learning outcomes become more complex and demanding as academic level increases? In the scope the new study programs submitted to quality accreditation in Portugal, since 2009, the content of learning outcomes was analyzed, using a conceptual matrix theoretical and empirically validated. In general, results reveal that learning outcomes are differently defined according to each qualification level. As qualification level increases, learning outcomes become more demanding, complex and challenging. Ability to be creative and to innovate, the oral and written communication skill, information management ability and the strive for excellence are particularly stressed in PhD programs when compared with the other programs. In fact, as corroborated by literature review, knowledge, skills and competences required in each domain of Dublin descriptors become more complex as the level of qualification increases, which is clearly reflected on learning outcomes content.