Building a Research University Ecosystem: the Case of

Software Engineering Education at Sofia University

Roumen Nikolov, Sylvia Ilieva

To cite this version:

Roumen Nikolov, Sylvia Ilieva. Building a Research University Ecosystem: the Case of Software En-
gineering Education at Sofia University. The 6th joint meeting of the European Software Engineering
Conference and the ACM SIGSOFT Symposium on the Foundations of Software Engineering, Septem-
ber 3-7, 2007 - Track on ”Widened Software Engineering” (WISE 2007), 2007, Dubrovnik, Croatia.
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 Building a Research University Ecosystem: the Case of Software
Engineering Education at Sofia University
Roumen Nikolov Sylvia Ilieva
FMI – Sofiia University FMI – Sofiia University
5, J. Bouchier str., P.B. 48 5, J. Bouchier str., P.B. 48
Sofia 1164, Bulgaria Sofia 1164, Bulgaria
roumen@fmi.uni-sofia.bg sylvia@fmi.uni-sofia.bg
http://www-it.fmi.uni-sofia.bg/ http://www-it.fmi.uni-sofia.bg/

ABSTRACT Engineering education and research being held at Sofia

This paper analyses the specifics and the tendencies in building of University.
the knowledge society and the role of the universities in this The paper is organized as follows: Section 1 is Introduction and
process. Some European policies and programs dedicated to the gives the basic information about Sofia University “St. Kliment
new role of the universities in realizing the Lisbon Strategy are Ohridski”. Section 2 presents some European policies, programs
analysed as well. It is emphasized on the importance of and initiatives dedicated to the new role of the universities in the
integration of the ‘knowledge triangle’ (education, research and knowledge society. Section 3 focuses on Sofia University
innovation) into a research university and on the urgent need to specifics in the light of economic, demographic and financial
re-design the university activities according the new trends. Section 4 discusses the concept of building research
requirements. This paper describes some real experiences, university ecosystem. Section 5 presents the educational model
emerging models and lessons learnt based on the case of Software used in Sofia University. Section 6 describes Software
Engineering education and research being held at Sofia Engineering education in FMI for BSc and MSc levels with focus
University. on Master one and main research topics. Section 7 concludes the
paper with open issues and perspectives in Sofia University.
Keywords
Knowledge society, universities in knowledge society, research 2. TOWARDS A KNOWLEDGE SOCIETY
university ecosystem, advanced education technologies, software
engineering education.
2.1 From Industrial society through
Information society to Knowledge society
Information Society is the successor to industrial society. The
1. INTRODUCTION main characteristic of the IS is the dominant role of the
Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski” is the first school of
Information and Communication Technology (ICT). The recent
higher education in Bulgaria. Today it is the largest and most
fast developments of ICT and its deep penetration into the society
prestigious educational and scientific centre in the country – with
caused a dramatic change in the way people live, learn and work
over 35,000 students studying in 76 Bachelor’s and over 200
and this process is accompanied by social, industrial, and
Master’s degree programs. Since its establishment the university
organisational reconstructions and innovations. The economist
has always played a very important role for the development of
Fritz Machlup is considered as the pioneer who developed the
the country. The university experiences a lot of challenges related
concept of the information society and also discovered so called
to the overall transformation of the economic and social system in
information economics [29]. Marchup considers university, being
the country, the changing models of education, the new role of the
the center of knowledge production and teaching, as a
universities in the knowledge-based society and the great demand
“knowledge factory", equated to an industry [30]. Clark Kerr,
for ICT specialists. Among the main challenges of the university
former president of the University of California, Berkeley, cited
is to become a national and regional high-technology and
Machlup's notion of the "knowledge industry" in his influential
innovation centre, an entrepreneurial university that understands
book "The Uses of the University” [28]. Kerr laid out his views
the commercial value of knowledge [13] and drives the country
that a large modern university had to operate as a part of
towards Knowledge Economy through building a sustainable
society, no longer as an ivory tower apart from it.
university-industry-government partnership.
Peter Drucker, in his book “The Age of Discontinuity”, wrote a
This paper analyses the specifics and the tendencies in building of
section on Knowledge Society referring to Machlup's findings
the knowledge society and the role of the universities in this
[16]. Drucker predicted that, by the late 1970s, the knowledge
process. Some European policies and programs dedicated to the
sector would account for one half of the GNP, and this became
new role of the universities in realizing the Lisbon Strategy are
true. Since then the terms information society and knowledge
analysed as well. It is emphasized on the importance of
society has been matter of research and analysis for many
integration of the ‘knowledge triangle’ (education, research and
researchers, politicians, technologists, educators and other
innovation) into a research university and on the urgent need to
stakeholders in the process of global change.
re-design the university activities according the new
requirements. This paper describes some real experiences, Knowledge has been at the heart of economic growth and the
emerging models and lessons learnt based on the case of Software gradual rise in levels of social well-being since time immemorial

1
[15]. Knowledge economy is based on the activities of groups of (WEF) competitiveness index, and as one of the most developed
people who produce and exchange (co-produce) new knowledge IT economies. It was ranked top in the OECD’s Program for
on a mass scale using information and communication International Student Assessment (PISA) studies of learning skills
technologies. The authors analyse the start of the digital era as a and educational attainment, and also achieved the highest
revolution in knowledge instruments, and as being of great Knowledge Economy Index in the World Bank comparisons [41].
importance since it influences the technologies used to produce The various elements pertinent to a knowledge economy—
and distribute information and knowledge. economic incentives, education, innovation, and IT
infrastructure—also seem to be well balanced in Finland. As late
Some analysts believe that information society has already come as the late 1970s, Finland ranked at the lower end of the OECD
to an end and that the next stage in human evolution is a
countries in R&D intensity. Today, Finland’s investment in R&D
knowledge-based society, in which specialised institutions will no
accounts for approximately 3.5 percent of GDP, which is the
longer be happy simply to provide information but will also
second highest in OECD and the third highest in the world, just
“plant” knowledge, through the direct involvement of
after Sweden and Israel. Education is considered as the key
information-science specialists (now known as “knowledge
element of a knowledge-based, innovation-driven economy. It
workers”) in the knowledge process [8]. Since the beginning of
affects both the supply of and demand for innovation. Human
the 20th century we have seen a new characteristic of economic
capital and skilled labor complement technological advances.
growth in the form of greater “intangible” capital as compared to
Finland’s innovation system successfully converted R&D and
“tangible” capital [1]. The economies of developed countries are
educational capacity into industrial strengths in close coordination
increasingly based on knowledge and information. The problem
between the public and private sectors.
is that access to knowledge-based economies is still very
restricted and there are big disparities between different countries 2.3 European initiatives
and different social strata.
2.3.1 Lisbon strategy
Knowledge was recognised by the Organization for Economic The Lisbon strategy and its objective to make Europe "the most
Cooperation and Development (OECD) as the driver of competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world"
productivity and economic growth, leading to a new focus on the led to important policy initiatives [18]. One of them aimed to
role of information, technology and learning in economic refocus the European and national budgets on research and
performance. The term “knowledge-based economy” stems from innovation, as stated by the Barcelona European Council and
this fuller recognition of the place of knowledge and technology reach a level of 3% of GDP [19]. The Kok’s Report [20] re-
in modern economies. confirmed that Europe’s future economic development would
depend on its ability to create and grow high value, innovative
2.2 World Bank Programme and research-based sectors capable of competing with the best in
The World Bank started the ambitious Knowledge for the world. Among the main measures for achieving the Lisbon
Development (K4D) Programme [40]. They point out that the goals, Kok’s report emphsises that Europe needs to build a
increased importance of knowledge provides great potential for “creative interaction between universities, scientists and
countries to strengthen their economic and social development by researchers on the one hand and industry and commerce on the
providing more efficient ways of producing goods and services other, which drives technology transfer and innovation, is
and delivering them more effectively and at lower costs to a necessarily rooted in the close physical location of universities
greater number of people. The knowledge revolution also raises and companies”. In addition, increased efforts should be
the danger of a growing 'knowledge divide' (rather than just a mobilised at national and EU level by all concerned stakeholders
'digital divide') between advanced countries, who are generating to promote technological initiatives based on Europe-wide
most of this knowledge, and developing countries, many of which public–private partnerships.
are failing to tap the vast and growing stock of knowledge
because of their limited awareness, poor economic incentive EC very clearly recognized the role of the universities in building
regimes, and weak institutions. The Knowledge for Development Europe of Knowledge [22]. All European universities are facing
Programme is based on the assumption that in order to capitalize very serious challenges, such as:
on the knowledge revolution to improve their competitiveness and
• Increased demand for higher education. Despite of the
welfare, developing countries need to build on their strengths and
low birth rate in Europe (and particularly – in Bulgaria)
carefully plan appropriate investments in human capital, effective
increased demand for higher education is observed and it is
institutions, relevant technologies, and innovative and competitive
expected to continue in the next years.
enterprises. The opportunities for rapid progress are well
illustrated by countries like Finland, Korea, Ireland, Chile, etc. • The internationalisation of education and research.
Finland, for instance, is a country that has successfully European universities are attracting fewer students and in
transformed itself into a knowledge economy in a short time [14]. particular fewer researchers from other countries than their
The Finnish experience of the 1990s represents one of the few American counterparts.
examples of how knowledge can become the driving force of • To develop effective and close cooperation between
economic growth and transformation. During that decade, the universities and industry. Cooperation between
country became the most ICT specialized economy in the world universities and industry needs to be intensified by gearing
and thus completed its move from the resource-driven to it more effectively towards innovation, new business start-
knowledge- and innovation-driven development. Four times to ups and, more generally, the transfer and dissemination of
date at the beginning of the twenty-first century, the country has knowledge.
been ranked as number one in the World Economic Forum’s

2
• The proliferation of places where knowledge is The European University Association defines some leading
produced. The increasing tendency of the business sector to principles the European universities should follow in order to
subcontract research activities to the best universities mean meet the challenges of the Europe of Knowledge [27]:
that universities have to operate in an increasingly
• universities provide a unique space for basic research;
competitive environment.
• universities play a crucial role in the training of researchers
• The reorganisation of knowledge. The universities should
thus ensuring the continuity of the “research pipeline”;
urgently adapt to the interdisciplinary character of most
advanced research and development areas The activities of • universities are research institutions based upon the integral
the universities tend to remain organised within the link between teaching and research;
traditional disciplinary framework.
• universities pursue excellence in disciplinary research, and
• The emergence of new expectations. Universities must provide environments that enable the cross-fertilisation of
cater for new needs in education and training which stem ideas across disciplines;
from the knowledge-based economy and society. These
• universities are knowledge centres that create, safeguard
include an increasing need for scientific and technical
and transmit knowledge vital for social and economic
education, horizontal skills, and opportunities for lifelong
welfare, locally, regionally and globally;
learning, which require greater permeability between the
components and the levels of the education and training • universities are engaged in knowledge transfer as full
systems. partners in the innovative process;
• universities’ willingness to focus and concentrate their
The EC aims at increasing universities' excellence in research
efforts through enhanced cooperation and networking
and teaching. The European universities have to identify the
among themselves and with business, industry and other
areas in which different universities have attained some essential
partners.
for Europe excellence and to concentrate funding on them to
support academic research. The commission supports not only 2.3.2 The Seventh Framework Programme
intra-European academic mobility, but also mobility between The Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) [23] tries to
universities and industry, thus opening up new career integrate all EU research-related initiatives in order build the
opportunities for young researchers. The EC reports also that the 'knowledge triangle' - research, education and innovation - is a
number of young technological ("spin-off") companies created by core factor in European efforts to meet the ambitious Lisbon goals
universities has been on the rise in Europe. Their average density [25]. The FP7 tries to establish horizontal links with the new
nevertheless is far smaller than it is around the American Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme
campuses. A major obstacle to better application of university (CIP), Education and Training programmes, and Structural and
research results is the way intellectual property issues are handled Cohesion Funds for regional convergence and competitiveness. It
in Europe. In addition, European universities do not have well- is also a key pillar for the European Research Area (ERA).
developed structures for managing research results. European Technology Platforms (ETPs) [26] help industrial and
academic research communities in specific technology fields to
Another important measure is to open up universities to the co-ordinate their research and tailor it to a common “strategic
outside world and increasing their international attractiveness research agenda” (SRA), which sets out research & development
and to prepare them to a broader international competition, (R&D) goals, time frames and action plans for technological
especially with the American universities attract the best talent advances that are relevant to industry and society [EC, 2006b].
from all over the world. It is reported that the European SRA’s aim is to mobilise a critical mass of national and European
universities host almost as many foreign students as American public and private resources. ETPs help industry and academia to
universities, in proportion they attract fewer top-level students better structure and co-ordinate their research in order to build
and a smaller proportion of researchers. This means that the links between the various elements of the innovation process.
learning and research environment offered by the European
universities is less attractive. The regions of the EU are supposed 2.3.3 The European Institute for Technology
to play a very important role through the development of The European Institute for Technology (EIT) is considered as
technology centres, science parks, and other cooperation an important step to fill the existing gap between higher
structures between the business sector and the universities, and education, research and innovation, together with other actions
thus - to catalyze development of university regional development that enhance networking and synergies between excellent research
strategies and stimulating regional networking of universities. and innovation communities in Europe [24]. The commission
The EC considers the universities as motors of the new, admits that Europe is good at inventing, but falls short in
knowledge-based paradigm but clearly states that “they are not in exploiting the results of its research work. The main reasons for
a position to deliver their full potential contribution to the re- that are:
launched Lisbon Strategy” [21]. The main conclusion is that • Lack of critical mass: The EU’s higher education and
“Europe must strengthen the three poles of its knowledge research systems are too fragmented, leading to dispersed
triangle: education, research and innovation. Universities are innovation efforts.
essential in all three. Investing more and better in the
• Not enough top-class excellence: There are too few
modernisation and quality of universities is a direct investment in
internationally renowned, excellent EU universities.
the future of Europe and Europeans.”

3
• Low business involvement: Low level of involvement of • the income of the university for R&D from Bulgarian
business in education and research. enterprises has declined 15-20 times since 1989;
• Education and research structures tend to stifle • the income from university contracts with the Ministry of
entrepreneurial initiative and rapid response to social and Education & Science has declined 500—700 times for the
economic needs. same period.
• Brain-drain: Working environments fail to attract or keep As a result, Sofia University, similarly to the other Bulgarian
the best talents in Europe. universities, is gradually loosing its capacity due to lack of
• Lack of funding: Insuffi cient private funding for education enough funding and teachers. This tendency must end very soon.
and R&D.
Despite the negative tendencies Bulgaria is a rich reservoir of ICT
The EIT is considered as one part of an integrated strategy to specialists and the country is very popular as outsourcing
mobilise education, research and innovation towards the Lisbon destinations for software development and ICT services, as well
goals. as for establishment subsidiaries of large foreign ICT companies.
The Bulgarian Competitiveness Initiative and the National
3. THE CASE OF SOFIA UNIVERSITY Competitiveness Conference, 18-19 April, 2001, have sent a clear
Like all other Central and East European Countries (CEECs) message: ‘the stronger the university-industry-government
Bulgaria is experiencing a dramatic change in all areas of its cooperation is, the more competitive is the national economy’
society. There is a lack of enough public support and [10]. According to the Overall Competitive Ranking presented at
understanding of the political and economic changes in Bulgaria. the Davos Forum, Bulgaria is ranked behind the first sixty
In addition, there is an urgent need to transform the existing countries. Both universities and industry in Bulgaria experience
companies to be ready for the knowledge economy and, at the severe problems and they could hardly build a strong cooperation
same time, create favorable conditions for emerging private in a short period of time.
enterprises. This requires better knowledge in ICT, economics, However some recent studies suggest that individual
business, company and knowledge management. Sofia University, entrepreneurship has driven the take-up of many economic
as the national leader in higher education, plays a crucial role in activities in Bulgaria. The emergence of a large number of small
this process by providing better e-skills oriented education and and medium size enterprises (SMEs) in the ICT sector, in
training, targeting the needs of the industry. particular, is largely attributed to individual entrepreneurs who
A growing demand for university level education is observed in have been able to start business from scratch and find market
Bulgaria – there is increasing number of candidate-students in niches for growth. A lot of examples of successful ICT related
conditions of a constant annual enrolment. Changes in the labor businesses developed in an environment of uncertainties and
market and in the demand for new types of qualifications and a risks, unattractive to foreign investors, could be observed in
new graduate profile, as well as for demand for lifelong Bulgaria, and in other CEECs. Individual knowledge and skills, as
learning/continuing education are the reasons for increasing the well as entrepreneurship and leadership, have been important
number of part-time students and older students. A major threat to factors for the success of these companies.
the technological development of the country lies in the Being fully aware of all of the above, Sofia University is taking
emigration of high skilled professionals. During the last twelve measures to become more entrepreneurial and better recognize the
years the Bulgarian population has decreased by nearly one economic value of knowledge. The academic staff should exhibit
million people. The majority of those who emigrated were well some of the characteristics of practicing entrepreneurs: they
educated specialists. This fact causes great concern that it would acquire contract research and contract teaching and engage in
be increasingly difficult for the Bulgarian system of education to, technology transfer projects. The university also tries to find a
at least partially, make up for the high skilled migration with a way to let its students, during the course of university studies,
new generation of high technology experts. In fulfilling this task achieve the knowledge and skills needed to become individual
Sofia University has a national responsibility. entrepreneur. Because of its size, capital location, institutional
Financial downturn seems to be one of the most important factors prestige and available research resources Sofia University is able
that affect the university development. There is a clear tendency to achieve a substantial influence on the process of cooperation
of shrinking governmental funding for higher education, e.g. from between universities, industry and administration. The question is:
4.2% of GDP in 1991 to 2.2% of GDP in 1998. There is an almost How could a large and ‘classical university’ becomes more
total withdrawal of the government from scientific research. For entrepreneurial?
instance, the R&D sector of Sofia University reported that: In conditions of an increasing competition with other universities
in the country and abroad Sofia University seems to gradually
loose some of its competitive advantages. The new private
universities, such as New Bulgarian University, American
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more dynamic and entrepreneurial. The emerging e-Learning
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otherwise, or republish, to post on servers or to redistribute to lists, becoming entrepreneurial. City University, USA opened a
requires prior specific permission and/or a fee. Distance Learning Center in Bulgaria a few years ago and later on
Conference’04, Month 1–2, 2004, City, State, Country. it has evolved into a City University - Bulgaria branch. There are
Copyright 2004 ACM 1-58113-000-0/00/0004…$5.00.

4
many Bulgarian higher education institutions - universities and The concept of integrated education at a research university
colleagues that also provide ICT education and training. Several requires restructuring both the pedagogical and the management
Greek universities and subsidiaries of Western universities are aspects of the university. The Boyer’s Commission defines the
attracting the same target group as Sofia University does. For main goals of a research university, namely:
instance, City College affiliated to Sheffield University. There
already appeared several accredited virtual universities, such as • Make the research-based learning the standard. The main
Jones International University and Cardean University - a ‘joint principle is that learning is based on discovery guided by
venture’ of Columbia Business School, Stanford University, mentoring rather than on the transmission of information.
University of Chicago Graduate School of Business, Carnegie • Construct an inquiry-based freshman year. The first year of
Mellon University, and London School of Economics and a university experience needs to provide new stimulation for
Political Science. Sofia University should gear its organizational intellectual growth and a firm grounding in inquiry-based
structure and management in order to become more competitive learning and communication of information and ideas.
and adaptive to the local and international educational market.
The university management feels the need for transformation and • Build on the freshman foundation. The freshman experience
changes in the organizational structure and university behavior in must be consolidated by extending its principles into the
order to make it more competitive and adequate to the economic following years. Inquiry-based learning, collaborative
and social situation in the country. Strengthening the role of Sofia experience, writing and speaking expectations need to
University as a research university is among the main measures characterize the whole of a research university education.
to be implemented along with improving the quality of education Those students who enter the research university later than
and training. the freshman year need to be integrated smoothly into this
special atmosphere.
4. BUILDING A RESEARCH UNIVERSITY • Remove the barriers for interdisciplinary education.
ECOSYSTEM Research universities must remove barriers to and create
While the European Institute of Technology tries to integrate mechanisms for much more interdisciplinary undergraduate
education, research and innovation at a MSc and PhD level, many education.
of the American research universities target the BSc level as well • Link communication skills and course work. Undergraduate
[9]. The new model of such universities is to make the education must enable students to acquire strong
baccalaureate experience an inseparable part of an integrated communication skills, and thereby create graduates who are
whole. Universities need to take advantage of the immense proficient in both written and oral communication.
resources of their graduate and research programs to strengthen
the quality of undergraduate education. Some research faculties • Use information technology creatively. Because research
might find new stimulation and new creativity in contact with universities create technological innovations, their students
bright, imaginative, and eager baccalaureate students, and should have the best opportunities to learn state-of-the-art
graduate students would benefit from integrating their research practices — and learn to ask questions that stretch the uses
and teaching experiences. In this respect the research universities of the technology.
are very different from small colleges, and they can offer a
learning environment which is not typical for the small colleges • Culminate with a capstone experience. The final semester(s)
and non-research universities. The baccalaureate student who should focus on a major project and utilize to the fullest the
studies in such environment develops his or her own research research and communication skills learned in the previous
capabilities. The research universities could be both student- semesters.
centered and research-centered through a “synergistic system in • Educate graduate students as apprentice teachers. Research
which faculty and students are learners and researchers, whose universities must redesign graduate education to prepare
interactions make for a healthy and flourishing intellectual students for teaching undergraduate students as well as for
atmosphere”. other professional roles.
Since the research universities commit to create new knowledge, • Change faculty reward system. Research universities must
they consider research capability as a primary qualification for commit themselves to the highest standards in teaching as
appointment and promotion, and they are very proud on having well as research and create faculty reward structures that
world-class scholars among their staff. The America’s research validate that commitment.
universities typically have an international orientation - they
attract students, particularly at the graduate level, from many • Cultivate a sense of community. Research universities
parts of the world, thereby adding valued dimensions of diversity should foster a community of learners. Large universities
to the community. The international graduate students often must find ways to create a sense of place and to help
become teaching assistants, so their presence becomes a part of students develop small communities within the larger
undergraduate experience. And many research universities offer whole.
an array of interdisciplinary programs seldom available in smaller
Some European universities are also involved in designing new
institutions. The graduates of these programs make the names of
models for higher education in computing, such as the Active
the American research universities recognized and respected
Learning in Computing (ALiC) initiative that aims to facilitate a
throughout the world.
shift towards far higher levels of active student engagement where
knowledge is obtained by sharing, problem-solving and creating,

5
rather than by passive listening [6]. The Techno-Café is proposed teachers, virtual friends, network servers, digital artifacts,
as an alternative of the typical university computer lab that etc. The virtual reconstruction of university spaces makes
provides flexible working environment that that allows a variety possible physically distinct spaces to be joined into virtual
of learning activities. One of the main goals of ALiC is to auditoriums, workshop rooms, reading rooms, cafes,
demonstrate how to better integrate research and teaching libraries, where students from different locations can
activities by following the recommendations of Boyer’s interact as if they were together face-to-face. The space,
Commission Report and the Roberts’ Report [33]. The Roberts’ time, equipment, and all teaching materials and information
Report follows the development of science and engineering skills resources could be used in an extremely flexible way. The
through school, further and higher education and draws some key system of forming classes by age might be quitted soon and
recommendations in each area. The report identifies an existing students in different age might work and study in small
gap in the supply of science and engineering skills in the UK and groups.
the difficulties employers face in recruiting highly skilled
scientists and engineers since science and engineering graduates’ • The main principle in the learner centered pedagogy is that
and postgraduates’ education does not lead them to develop the the learners do not receive ready-made knowledge but
transferable skills and knowledge required by R&D employers. rather they discover and construct their knowledge, which
Many of the Roberts’ Report recommendations resemble the ones does not mean to reinvent it though. The students get
of the Boyer’s Commission. opportunities to obtain knowledge both in the school
settings and outside school system. The students obtain new
knowledge while solving real problems and transfer their
5. USING ADVANCED INFORMATION knowledge to other students. They learn autonomously
AND EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGIES taking the responsibility for their learning and following
Sofia University applies advanced information and educational their individual cognitive styles, interests, preferences. The
technologies in higher education for more than 12 years now [34; students learn how to learn.
35; 37; 38]. Some basic characteristics of the targeted educational
• The teachers are mostly facilitators, co-learners, persons
model are [34]:
ensuring the right educational resources at the right time,
• Cooperative learning, as an alternative of the competitive helping students get access to other relevant resources. They
learning [31], is widely integrated and implemented in a also diagnosis the students’ problems, and help them any
highly interactive (virtual) learning environment comprising time when needed. The formative evaluation of students’
computer support cooperative learning systems. achievements and evaluation based on project outcomes is
dominant. The students are also encouraged to self-
• The working on a project school activity is accepted as an evaluation of their achievements and outcomes and are
alternative of the traditional classes and realized according enabled to present them. (ICT offers new opportunities for
to the project pedagogy [31] principles, which is gradually global student presentations.) The teachers work both
shifted from the university settings to a school level now. individually and in small groups with the students. They
Networked multimedia communication enables project might be assisted by students-mentors who would help them
teams working together independently of time and space. and other students in using software tools.
• The teachers are given higher degree of freedom as the Most of the mentioned principles give rise to some new
Internet allows them to work together across their developments both in educational science and in technology and
classrooms and freely share ideas and experience. They provide a unique chance to start filling the gap between the
facilitate students’ inquiry, manage their learning process, advancements in the e-Learning research and the real university
and help them navigate in a shared global information practice. Nikolov & Nikolova proposed a model for a Virtual
space. The curriculum and the teaching and learning Environment for Distance Education and Training (VEDET) that
processes are highly individualized. Different pathways and offers a comprehensive metaphor to be used both for human-
support for learning are offered to students who can computer interface and instructional design [35]. It also gives a
progress with a different speed. The school is open towards paradigm for restructuring traditional education and training by
the world. The problems the students solve are formulated complementing them with a virtual component. Thus the VEDET
either by themselves or by the teacher and come from their does not intend to replace the traditional school, university or
everyday life. The students and the teacher cooperatively training department, but rather extend their facilities and tools and
solve these problems. make their activities more flexible and technologically enriched.
VEDET offers a conceptual model of a virtual environment for
• The design principles of the learning environment are based
open and distance learning that allows co-operation and training
mostly on asynchronous space and time and interactive
for a multicultural and multilingual virtual learning society. It
learning environments combining virtual and physical
includes an integrated virtual extension of the existing educational
spaces. By complementing face-to-face interactions and
institutions and could serve as a virtual environment for distance
digital communication, the physical constraints obstructing
education course development and delivery. In addition - it
one-to-one consultation between a teacher and a student, as
provides a common virtual research environment for some remote
well one-to-many and many-to-many type of discussions,
collaborative partners.
are significantly lowered, and all sorts of new pedagogical
groupings may become both feasible and effective. All The most popular pedagogical model for teaching design is
students have their own responsive ICT-based learning project-based learning – PBL, i.e. students to learn design by
environment allowing communication with her peers,

6
experiencing design as active participants [17]. The ability to placement. Instead of it we have internship at the end of the last
work as an effective member of a development team is a primary year. The internship procedure we are accepted is following:
goal of the SE education and one of the the main learning
outcomes which the accreditation agencies and commissions • FMI team contacts with Bulgarian private software
would be happy to observe [40]. companies and governmental organizations in order every
three months to have updated pool of current requests for
internship.
6. SOFTWARE ENGINEERING
• That pool of requests is made available for students and
EDUCATION AT SOFIA UNIVERSITY they are supposed to apply for the preferable one
Faculty of Mathematics and Informatics (FMI) at Sofia University
is a leading educational and research organization in the field of • In case of more then required applications for given request
Informatics and Information and Communication Technologies the selection procedure is started based on evaluation of
(ICT). An internal university project for re-designing the students’ skills and motivation. In some cases, depending on
computing curricula according the ACM/IEEE guidelines started the company/organization, it is possible the requests to be
four years ago. Following the ACM/IEEE CC2005 series extended to more people or event two teams to work in
recommendations [3] FMI has developed the BSc programs in: parallel on the same task.
Computer Science [5], Software Engineering [4] and Information
Systems [2] – see Figure 1. The main aims were to introduce • Every student has two tutors – one from the University and
some well established curriculum standards and new style of from the company
teaching. The main challenge was how to satisfy • Each internship ends with evaluation from the company
recommendations of the ACM/IEEE Computing Curricula, the tutor.
Bologna Declaration, and several European ICT curricula
recommendations [11], [12]. Usually after the internship students receive offers for full time
position at the same company.
The other new schema for internships is in the process of
establishment. It foresees internships in other European
universities we are cooperating with for the work on national or
European level real projects.
One way to have access to contemporary equipment and software
is the strong cooperation with the ICT industry. A good example
in this direction is the Sofia University Cisco Regional Academy,
which was established in 2001 in order to implement the Cisco
model of Public-Private-Partnership at a regional and national
level. Similar cooperation programs were initiated with Microsoft
(Microsoft IT Academy), Oracle (Oracle Academic Initiative), HP
(HP training centre), SAP labs, IBM and other international IT
vendors. The cooperation with the local ICT industry is
considered as a strategic goal of FMI in order to better adapt the
computing curricula according the needs of this industry, and to
open doors for a professional carrier for every FMI graduate.
Several bi-lateral programs for carrying out student internship
programs with some local IT companies (e.g. Rila Solutions,
Fadata, Technologica, Sirma, etc.) were established. The major
Fig. 1. Intersection of the BSc Computing Curricula in
Bulgarian ICT associations, such as BASSCOM, BAIT and
Computer Science, Software Engineering and Information
ASTEL, also provide their services and support for achieving
Systems
better cooperation between FMI and the Bulgarian ICT
Quality of education was considered as the major indicator for companies.
success while designing and implementing these programs.
More detailed information about BSc program in Software
6.1 Bachelor of Science Program in Software Engineering is available on www.fmi-uni.sofia.bg.
Engineering 6.2 Master of Science Program in Software
The initial step of the Software Engineering Curricula Task Force
at FMI was to create a vision and plan for curricula development.
Engineering
In addition, FMI offers large number of Master degree programs,
The development process consisted of three main phases –
such as Software Engineering, Information Systems, eBusiness
analyses, design and evaluation. More detailed information about
and eGovernance, Artificial intelligence, Mobile Technologies
those phases, real implementation and educational materials can
and Distributed Systems, eLearning, Information Security,
be found in [36].
Mechatronics and Robotics, Computer Graphics, Computational
Comparing our BSc in Software Engineering program with Science and Engineering, etc.
similar programs in UK we can see that we are missing the 1 year

7
Our SE Master program is result from the World Bank project
“Market oriented master programs in Microelectronics, Software
Engineering and Management” and started in 2004-2005
academic year. A number of strategic documents related to
education in ICT and particularly in Software Engineering were
reviewed, such as: Bologna process and Lisbon strategy, Carrier
Space Industry Consortium, ACM/IEEE recommendations
Industry companies – Intel, IBM, Microsoft, HP, etc - initiatives
for Universities etc. Also a number of existing MSc programs in
Software Engineering in Europe, USA and elsewhere were
examined and compared. The needs of the Bulgarian ICT industry
were also identified through a survey with a specially designed
questionnaire followed by a number of individual meetings and
discussions. In addition – a representative of the Bulgarian
Software Association BASSCOM was associated to the FMI SE
task force.
Last discussions about update of our Master program in SE Figure 2. ARCADE – a Learning Management System
involve two perspectives – research community and industry. developed as a team work of four MSc students
From one side we analyze the recommendations and needs from The ARCADE environment (Figure 2) has been designed and
specialized SE conferences like Model Driven Development, developed as a complex environment for a collaborative and
Requirements engineering, XP, etc. From other side as members active e-learning. Between its chief merits there are:
of NESSI European initiative [39] we realized the need stated
from industry for education of so called “T shaped” people – both • It is based on standards – XML/XSL, Java, IMS, LTSC
deep and broad interdisciplinary education. Our strong believe is LOM, QTI, SCORM; UML widely use in development
that at Master level students the main focus of teaching is problem process
solving abilities instead of facts learning.
• Open - the use of XML import/export will make the system
The SE Master education at FMI is based on team work on class open for information exchange (including reusable
projects which are supposed to produce useful tools which are courseware content) with other similar systems;
supposed to enrich either the software environment at the work • Modular - different project modules are made as much
place of the students or the SE educational environment. The independent as possible; easy plug-in of new functional
students are involved in development, maintenance and modules;
refinement of real software that helps the students better
understand the subject and adapt to a team work style. Some of • Portable – Java servlets and JSP technology plus MySQL or
the projects the students work on come from the research areas of Oracle support make ARCADE portable between different
the professors, and they might eventually evolve into diploma platforms and operation systems.
thesis. In some cases such project matures towards a PhD thesis as Most of the MSc programs include compulsory internship student
well. In other cases projects came from the current internal placement. The programs are oriented mostly towards needs of
university needs. An example of such project is the eLearning global ICT industry and the priorities of the European RTD
Management System ARCADE [7], which was developed on a Programmes in the field of ICT. In order to satisfy the ICT
basis of team work of a team of four MSc students lead by a industry needs of technology managers Sofia University
university professor. This system has been used as an eLearning established a co-operation with Stevens Institute of Technology,
platform for delivery courses at MSc level for more than six years USA, for local delivery of an MSc program in Information
now. The systems have been gradually extended and enriched Systems [32]. An MSc program in Technology Entrepreneurship
with new functionalities and services and it was used as a basis and Innovation is under preparation for the next academic year.
for additional five MSc and two PhD works. Such measures would help the country to bridge the existing gap
of ICT specialists and managers. The international cooperation
opens new opportunities for improving the quality of education
and for positioning Sofia University in the European Higher
Education space. In process of negotiation and preparation are
some joint Master degree programs with European universities,
e.g. a MSc Program in Networked Computing together with
University of Reading, UK. Other important activities in this
direction are collaborations with Bolzen University for European
Master Program in Sofware Engineering and with Malardalen
University for Global Software Engineering – European Master.
A strategic cooperation with many outstanding universities in the
frames of the Intel Multi-core Computing Program opens new
doors for international cooperation and adaptation of the
Computing curricula according the most recent developments in
the field and adapting it to some emerging technologies. Such

8
international co-operation programs provide direct mechanisms • Establishment of a set of ICT research labs and further
for increasing the quality of education. They are very attractive involvement of PhDs and other students in concrete
for students and motivating for teachers. research and technology development activities;

6.3 Software Engineering research topics • Strengthening the innovation and entrepreneurship capacity
As a natural consequence of all efforts in FMI in direction of SE a of the university and establishment of strong technology
new department named Software Engineering was established on transfer links with ICT industry and government;
1 March 2007. The main research topics aimed so far are:
• Extending the network of partnering organizations from ICT
• Software development processes and methodologies – We industry both locally and internationally and providing
already had successful participation in European project opportunities for cross-sector mobility of students,
named eXPERT in the filed of agile methodologies [Expert researchers, professors and ICT professionals.
project]. Some important results are – development and We consider the educational change in the field of ICT at
application of new agile methodology, gap analyses and university level as being among the main factors for successful
recommendations for implementation of agile methodology development of Bulgaria towards its way towards Knowledge
in SMEs with certified process, Bulgarian summer school Economy. In addition, the ICT education and professional
on XP and Expert methodology; development of education development of ICT specialists turns to be a very strong factor for
materials and teaching of MSc course; one PhD student building a competitive country economy. Sofia University is
defended and currently one PhD student working in the prepared to take a leading role in this process.
filed of agile methodologies.
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