This article describes and analyses changes made in the organisation of higher education studies in Germany and Norway, following the recommendations of the Bologna Declaration. In both countries, the characteristic modes of university study have been circumscribed by the tradition of Humboldtian values and ideals, albeit to a different extent. On the basis of a cross-national and historical comparison of degree structures, implementation measures undertaken, results gained and the interpretation of various groups of actors involved in the reform process, we argue that the Bologna process has created considerable tensions within the higher education systems in the two countries. The domestication of the Bologna process in Germany and Norway testifies not only to the durability of the Humboldtian legacy, but also to the susceptibility of the Bologna process to national adaptation processes.