This article discusses social issues in the Bologna process and who benefits from these social issues. The Bologna Declaration did not come out of the blue. It was preceded by the 1998 Sorbonne Declaration, which in turn built on the 1997 Lisbon Recognition Convention. Rather than discussing recognition of exams and degrees, the author takes the Lisbon Convention as a starting point to talk about recognition of human values. The author talks about how the Lisbon Convention underlines the social and cultural dimensions of higher education in Europe. The author discusses the important parts of the higher education system. One is the qualifications framework. Another important element of the higher education framework is quality assurance. The author believes that equal access of all qualified candidates to higher education is an important element of higher education policies in Europe.