A new dispute erupted between the government and PASOK following a report about private universities. It is noted that six private universities will operate in Greece from the next academic year, 2025-2026, following a recommendation from the National Higher Education Authority (ETHAE) to the leadership of the Education Ministry, according to Kathimerini. Meanwhile, five applications were not approved, while there was one application that was withdrawn, according to the same report.
PASOK on private universities: The much-hyped “Sorbonne” was left out
In a statement regarding the report, Stefanos Parastatidis, PASOK’s education spokesperson, initially noted “it’s bad to build palaces on sand,” adding that “And somehow the much-hyped ‘Sorbonne’ with one ‘n’, which wasn’t of course the university of international distinctions, did not receive an operating license for the 2025-2026 academic year.”
Marinakis responds to PASOK
Shortly after, government spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis responded, stating that “PASOK’s anxiety to justify its unjustifiable stance, with which it opposed the establishment of private university branches, leads it to a series of unreasonable and mainly hasty announcements, the latest being today’s from the responsible spokesperson, who based himself on a report without waiting for official decisions.”
The detailed announcement from Deputy Minister to the Prime Minister and Government Spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis
PASOK’s anxiety to justify its unjustifiable stance, with which it opposed the establishment of private university branches, leads it to a series of unreasonable and mainly hasty announcements, the latest being today’s from the responsible spokesperson, who based himself on a report without waiting for official decisions.
Initially they anticipated the unconstitutionality of the bill. They were spectacularly proven wrong by the Council of State. Then they said no university would come to the country. They were proven wrong by 13 foreign universities that applied, 4 of which are in the highest positions and the rest at the average of Greek universities.
Then they denounced that there are no serious criteria and that no control would be conducted. They are being proven wrong by ETHAE which evaluates each application with the strictest criteria in Europe and whose decisions are expected to be announced. These decisions will determine which universities will be ready to be licensed in September 2025 and which will still have pending issues to resolve so they can possibly be licensed later. Mr. Androulakis continues to attack specific universities by name and chose to align his party with the most backward political forces, who want Greece to remain a sad exception along with Cuba. It would be preferable for him to admit this historic mistake, rather than persist in making black white. This kind of opposition, after all, doesn’t “hit” the government, but turns against young people and their families.
Statement by Stefanos Parastatidis, MP for Kilkis and PASOK education spokesperson
It’s bad to build palaces on sand. And somehow the much-hyped “Sorbonne” with one “n”, which wasn’t of course the university of international distinctions, did not receive an operating license for the 2025-2026 academic year. The French university Paris 13 – Sorbonne Paris Nord, which would collaborate with the Institution d’Etudes Francophones, was left out and with it collapsed the central argument of former Education Minister Kyriakos Pierrakakis that the law supposedly establishes non-profit universities of international reputation. The reality is more mundane as the law baptized as universities the colleges that had been operating for years in Greece. Given that a few months ago the then responsible minister characterized PASOK as “the eternal teachers in somersaults,” it would be interesting for the government to explain to us whether the “Sorbonne” is finally coming.
P.S. More from us soon.
