Accomplishing the tasks spelled out in the 1999 Bologna Declaration requires reforming the structures of higher education in the countries of Europe to bring them into closer harmony, while preserving fundamental values and traditions in education that have been formed in each country. The author discusses fundamental differences between the Russian educational system and those of other Bologna signatories that require adoption of two new basic concepts in the European-wide system of education: (1) Reciprocal counting of credits; and (2) Modular educational approaches. Under current conditions, says the writer, it is not possible to make a transition to the modular principle of the organization of the educational process, because it is in conflict with firmly established standards in Russia, which are set per subject, requiring restructure of the entire system of precollegiate education. The author points out that not all universities in the other signatory countries have restructured in accordance with the Bologna reforms: some higher educational institutions are "waiting for the time to be right." Although slower than others, Russia's entry into the Bologna process is officially recognized by the country's leaders today as an essential link of integration with Europe, as a mutually beneficial way to form a unified European market for highly qualified labor and higher education.