Success Factor Curriculum by FH Campus Wien

www.fh-campuswien.ac.at gefördert von der MA 27 im Rahmen des Call 9 „Qualitätssicherung der Lehre an Wiener Fachhochschulstudiengängen“ funded by the MA 27 within the framework of Call 9 „Quality Assurance for Instruction in Degree Programs at Universities of Applied Sciences in Austria”

ISBN: 978-3-902614-18-6

Erfolgsfaktor Curriculum Success Factor Curriculum

Favoritenstraße 226 1100 Wien, Austria T: +43 1 606 68 77–6900 F: +43 1 606 68 77–6909 projektentwicklung@fh-campuswien.ac.at

SCHRIFTENREIHE > BAND 2

FH Campus Wien Organisations- und Projektentwicklung

> ORGANISATIONS- UND PROJEKTENTWICKLUNG

Erfolgsfaktor Curriculum Gestaltung von Curricula als Weiterentwicklungsprozess Success Factor Curriculum Curricula Design as a Further Development Process Susanna Boldrino, Ruth Zach (Hg.innen)

SCHRIFTENREIHE > ORGANISATIONS- UND PROJEKTENTWICKLUNG > BAND 2

Success Factor Curriculum Curricula Design as a Further Development Process

Susanna Boldrino, Ruth Zach (Editors) SERIES> ORGANIZATION AND PROJECT DEVELOPMENT> VOLUME 2

CONTENTS

Contents Forwords

Preliminary Considerations

Empirical Study

Development of the Standards for Curricula

Standards for Curricula

Anchoring in the Processes of the FH Campus Wien

Summary of the Results and Outlook

Appendix

Bibliography

122

CONTENTS

Figures Figure 1: Percentages of Students Accourding to University Type to the Total Population; Germany, Finland, Austria, Swizerland

Figure 2: Distribution of Students in Germany According to University Type Status as of 2009/10

Figure 3: Development of Student Numbers at Universities of Applied Sciences in Germany

Figure 4: Distribution of Studentsin Finland According to University Type Status as of 2009/10

Figure 5: Development of Student Numbers at Universities of Applied Sciences in Finland

Figure 6: Distribution of Students in Austria According to University Type Status as of 2009/10

Figure 7: Development of Student Numbers at Universities of Applied Sciences in Austria

Figure 8: Distribution of Students in Swizerland According to University Type Status as of 2009/10

Figure 9: Development of Student Numbers at Universities of Applied Sciences in Swizerland

Tables Table 1: Percentage of Students to Total Population Germany, Finland, Austria, Swizerland

Table 2: Percentage of Students to Total Population Germany, Finland, Austria, Swizerland

CONTENTS

Abbrevations

AQA

Austrian Agency for Quality Assurance

Accreditation guidelines

BBT

Federal Office for Professional Education and Technology

ECTS

European Credit Transfer System

ENQA

European Network of Quality Assurance in Higher Education

EVD

Federal Department of Economic Affairs

FHK

Austrian Association of Universities of Applied Sciences

FHR

FH Council

FHStG

University of Applied Sciences Studies Act

FINHEEC

Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council

OPE

Organization and Project Development

QSG

Quality assurance framework law

FOREWORD

Foreword by the FH Campus Wien Dear Ladies and Gentlemen, The European Commission has drafted a strategy Europe 2020. It contains three key elements: Intelligent, sustainable and integrative growth. Thus, universities will play an important role in the national innovation system. The Austrian university plan currently under development will provide a comprehensive strategy for the national higher education area. A major focus of the plan will be to strengthen the quality of universities and research institutions. 1 Since 2001, the dynamic development at the FH Campus Wien has lead to the establishment of 35 degree programs and courses in construction engineering, engineering, health, social work, applied life sciences and public management. We value diversity and internationalism and bear a great responsibility towards the industry, society and the people who will spend several years of their lives studying with us. Curricula are the basis for education at universities, and therefore their quality is of such great importance. Yet, what do we mean by a high-quality curriculum? Have we as a university body in the Bologna area developed a common understanding regarding curricula? How do we ensure that the content of our curricula will provide our students with the knowledge and skills they will later need in their professional lives? We answered these and other questions together with partner universities and experts in the European area, to whom I wish to express my deepest thanks for their cooperation. Sincerely, Dr. Heinz Schmidt Chancellor of the FH Campus Wien

See Karl, Beatrix: Hochschulplan: SchlĂźsselrolle der Hochschulen im nationalen Innovationssystem. Guest commentary. In: Ă&#x2013;sterreichische Hochschulzeitung Ă&#x2013;HZ 08/2010, p. 19

FOREWORD

Foreword by the Austrian Association of Universities of Applied Sciences (FHK) The concept of autonomy, ancient Greek for “one who gives oneself their own law”, was introduced into the university sector in the 19th century under the keyword “Berlin University model” above all by the private scholar Wilhelm von Humbodt. He already understood “autonomy” on the one hand to be the financial independence of a university, as a turning of their backs to the institution of the state, and on the other hand to be the freedom of science and instruction in the sense of a renunciation of censorship. 2 Since in the modern university systems not only the university itself but also the stakeholders within this organization are entitled to independent autonomous areas, the understanding of autonomy is rarely uniform or completely without friction. So it is that autonomy for the universities of applied sciences may mean the right to develop a new degree program or to award academic degrees. For the colleges or their deans it in turn also means independence from the chancellor of the university of applied sciences in academic decisions, for teachers it is scientific freedom, and the students experience autonomy within the framework of the student union and their competencies. Autonomy is thus understood and experienced in many ways in the university of applied sciences sector. The University of Applied Sciences Studies Act (FHStG) standardizes the principle of freedom of science and instruction in § 3 Section 2 Subsection 1, and provides in § 12 Section 2 Subsection 5 as an accreditation requirement that the development team and the teaching and research staff possess autonomy “suitable for universities” and that the appropriate involvement of the students in decision-making processes is ensured. Furthermore, the law

Rüegg, Walter: Das Autonomieverständnis von Humboldts Universitätsmodell, VSH-Bulletin No. 1, April 2007

FOREWORD

assigns differing degrees of competency to various groups such as the courseproviding bodies, colleges, deans and student representatives. In the university sector, the autonomy postulate was also anchored in the constitution. The establishment of the â&#x20AC;&#x153;autonomous action of the universities within a legal frameworkâ&#x20AC;? 3 displays the clear commitment of the legislature towards institutional, university autonomy, which the Austrian Association of Universities of Applied Sciences also demands for their sector. Despite the sometimes challenging task of achieving the best possible harmonization of the multifaceted concept of autonomy in the interest of all its members, the FHK has always seen itself as a clear advocate of university autonomy and will continue to pursue this goal in the future.

Dr. Helmut Holzer President of the Austrian Association of Universities of Applied Sciences

See Article 81 c B-VG

FOREWORD

Foreword by the Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz The European university system has undergone a continuous process over the past two decades that is characterized by the fact that former state control systems have been increasingly replaced or supplemented by the self-control of the scientific system as a whole and the individual universities in particular. This is accompanied by a replacement of the detailed control with a system of global control, which is realized in different ways, be it in the form of agreements on objectives between the political system and the individual universities, or through indicator-based resource allocation models. The result of this paradigm shift is that universities provided with a global budget at first glance appear to have greater autonomy. However, this is also associated with increased requirements for accountability, and hence with the legitimization of actions taken within the universities. The increase in autonomy is therefore counteracted by a stronger opening up within the society, which means that different groups of stakeholders, such as employers and employee associations, must become more closely involved in the affairs and decisions of the universities, or at least systematically taken into consideration. At the same time, the transfer of control decisions to within the universities is also associated with the need to establish new internal structures, in particular to regulate the distribution of resources. This is insofar linked with special demands in that the distribution models must follow rational criteria and be perceived as fair, because with the increasing autonomy, the potential conflicts and â&#x20AC;&#x153;distribution strugglesâ&#x20AC;? over resources that previously took place between university policy and scientific system are now also transferred to within the universities. Thus, questions of accountability and evidencebased practice in decision-making processes become increasingly important. Looking at the development of quality assurance in the European higher education area in recent years, two successive developments in initially undifferentiated forms can subsequently be observed. In a first step, insofar as state-funded universities are concerned, the implementation of generally

FOREWORD

inter-university initiatives or systems of quality assurance can be observed. These are characterized by an accentuation of structures that are organized in the form of agencies or associations and at first mainly involve evaluations, often in the form of so-called internal and external evaluations, in other words an expert assessment based on an internal evaluation report (peer review process). The focus was generally the idea of successively improving the quality of research and instruction through evaluation procedures, whereby a majority of the procedures initially placed particular emphasis on the evaluation in the area of the instruction. From the beginning, the results of the evaluations were handled differently. For example, in England the results were directly linked to the distribution of resources, while in other countries universities initially relied on the intrinsic and self-regulatory effects of the evaluations. A wellknown method in this regard is that of the European University Association, which as an institutional evaluation, attempts to determine and evaluate all the performance areas of universities and is essentially of a recommendatory nature. Parallel to the Bologna process, a procedure should be established with regard to the tendency towards the increasing importance of possible consequences. The accreditation of degree programs with its quasi-official character calls for more binding decisions. Even though they generally have a strong scientific focus, in the context of accreditation, a stronger influence of university policy stakeholders can be observed, which is mainly due to the fact that with the accreditation, a key area of the degree program authorization has been transferred from the political to the scientific administrative area. This applies to different degrees for both countries that have a state-level accreditation system, such as France for example, as well as for countries that nominally have a science-level accreditation system, like Germany for example. However, an early focus on the development and expansion of university quality management systems can be observed in several countries in which procedures have been established that are mainly concerned with the evaluation of the quality assurance systems in the universities themselves, as is the case in Switzerland, Norway, Finland and, since the middle of the last

FOREWORD

decade, Austria, although they do not concern nationwide systems and in part were and are conducted parallel to institutional accreditations and program accreditations. Here, some differentiation can be found according to the university types (universities versus universities of applied sciences) and course-providing bodies (private versus public universities), which leads to a divergent use of particular procedures. In recent years, however, an increasing harmonization can be observed throughout Europe, such that the development of internal university quality management systems is gaining in importance. There are various reasons for this. On the one hand, it became increasingly clear that the accreditation of individual degree programs by external agencies, as was the practice above all in Germany, would not be affordable in the long run through university external agencies both in terms of quantity, as well as quality, particularly with regard to reaccreditation procedures. The introduction of the system accreditation in Germany was therefore initially to be understood as a reflex to the program accreditation, which had been the subject of criticism since its introduction. In addition, however, the system accreditation opened the way in many universities for the design of quality management systems. The general requirement for accreditation was also, but not solely, responsible for this development, which only left the choice between the program and system accreditation open to the universities. In fact, regardless of these developments, an increasing understanding emerged in the individual universities of the potential of an elaborate quality management that could serve as a regulative for the internal controls and thus for any related internal conflicts, and that could combine competencies in the areas of quality assurance and development. The development of quality management systems understood as a complex interaction between control and quality assurance and as a process for generating objectives, their practical design and the evaluation of the effects and the introduction of appropriate measures for improvement can therefore be seen as a logical step towards a (relatively) autonomous university.

FOREWORD

However, this initially welcome development with regard to the selfempowerment of the universities also brings hidden dangers. Particularly worth mentioning here are those that lead to closure towards other universities and university systems and to questions with regard to the degree program and instruction and the compatibility between degree programs. Thus the appropriate design of accreditation processes will become of increasing importance in the future. If we are to avoid returning to the accreditation of individual modules or courses, it cannot be excluded that prospectively the institutional accreditation of individual universities amongst each other will gain in importance. This also speaks for the establishment of quality management systems that universities, however, should not misunderstand as technical systems and focus exclusively or essentially on the process level. Dr. Uwe Schmidt Director of the Center for Quality Management and Development (ZQ) of the Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz

1. Preliminary Considerations Excursus on Quality Assurance in the University of Applied Sciences Sector Susanna Boldrino

PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS

The preceding prefaces address the strategic importance of the quality of curricula, the understanding of autonomy of the universities and the importance of quality assurance and the continuous improvement process in the European university system. Not mentioned are quality criteria for curricula based upon which the quality of curricula can be evaluated. Due to the autonomy of the universities, the definition of quality criteria is the responsibility of each individual institution, as currently no national or European standards exist that cover all the facets of the development, implementation and evaluation of curricula. The importance of the internal quality assurance of the individual universities is therefore, among other reasons, becoming increasingly important. The “Success Factor Curriculum” presents a specific FH Campus Wien approach to quality criteria of curricula under consideration of the views of six universities within Europe. The following will explain the framework, design and implementation of the project “Success Factor Curriculum” as well as the importance of the internal quality assurance with an emphasis on the university of applied sciences sector.

1.1.

Project “Success Factor Curriculum”

1.1.1. Intentions of the Subsidy Providers MA 27 (with Reference to the Directive and to the Call) The University of Applied Sciences Funding Guidelines 2005 4, by order of the Vienna City Council on December 17th, 2004, regulates the granting of subsidies of the city of Vienna to university of applied sciences courseproviding bodies in Vienna as a framework agreement for concrete calls based on the Directive for the period of 2005-2009. The submission and settlement agent is the Municipal Department 27, EU Strategy and Economic Development. With this subsidy program, the city of Vienna strives to improve the regional qualification opportunities as well as ensure a sufficient supply of specialists in the future industries. It promotes quality assurance and improvement of university degree programs in Vienna as well as the establishment of degree

4 http://www.wien.gv.at/wirtschaft/eu-strategie/wirtschaft/calls/foerderrichtlinie2005.html Accessed on May 13th, 2011 at 10:51

PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS

programs at universities of applied sciences that are of importance for technology and economic policy. Focus: »

Ensuring the quality of instruction

Promoting education-related research and development

Internationalization

Initial financing of degree programs of importance for technology policy

The awarding of subsidies takes place within the framework of a competitive system for project plans (calls), and high demands are placed on the content as well as the technical qualifications of the applicants. General as well as call-specific criteria are taken into consideration in determining the eligibility for subsidies. General criteria are, for example, the contribution to the improvement the quality of education, compliance with the objectives of the City of Vienna, the promotion of disadvantaged groups, the quality of the project, the effectiveness of the measures, the adequacy of the applied resources, gender mainstreaming and cooperation and networking with other educational and research institutes. The project “Success Factor Curriculum” received funding in 2009 within the framework of Call 9 “Quality Assurance for Instruction in Degree Programs at Universities of Applied Sciences in Vienna” with the goal of ensuring optimal study conditions for students at universities of applied sciences in Vienna. Calls were made for various core areas, including among others quality assurance systems. 1.1.2. Starting Situation with Regard to Internal Structures The Organization and Project Development (OPE) is the department of the FH Campus Wien that is entrusted, among other things, with the quality assurance and process support for the accreditation and reaccreditation. In the academic year 2006/07, the Health Department with eight new degree programs and the existing graduate programs at the FH Campus Wien were changed over to the bachelor’s/master’s system. In total, 21 degree programs have been developed and submitted for accreditation.

PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS

Already back then, it was foreseeable that the curricula for a large number of the degree programs would have to be updated and further developed during the every five-year statutory re-accreditation in 2012. The experience gained in 2006/07 led to the development of a standardized process for accreditation. It turned out that the degree programs at the FH Campus Wien in the departments of construction engineering, engineering, social work, health and applied life sciences as well as public management all had very different framework conditions: market conditions, financing, size, applicant structures, disciplines, cooperations, etc. These were also reflected in the different approaches in the curriculum design. What was missing from the process support for the accreditation 2006/07 was a concerted joint FH Campus Wien perspective in terms of the quality development of the curricula. The Council of Universities of Applied Sciences (FHR) itself is committed to continually integrating the current trends in education, such as competence orientation, re-evaluation of experiences, modularization, etc., into the accreditation guidelines. This has resulted in a continuous adaptation of the accreditation guidelines in recent years. Through consultation and workshops, the knowledge and experience of the Council of Universities of Applied Sciences were imparted to the university of applied sciences course-providing bodies on the basis of best practice examples and theoretical introductions. Furthermore, the Austrian Association of Universities of Applied Sciences 5 strives to provide the universities of applied sciences with the experiences from the European area through further training in curricula development. Apparent here are the different approaches and framework conditions which provide little consistency and allow the respective organizations leeway for their own definitions. Therefore, there is no common view regarding the quality of curricula. Firmly established legal frameworks and content exploding knowledge areas require a profound knowledge in the development of educational concepts in order to ensure studiability on the one hand, and a high level of skill of the graduates on the other hand. Thus, the legal requirements are fulfilled and the demands of the industry and society are satisfied. The development of education programs takes place in this area of competing interests.

www.fhk.ac.at Accessed on May 13th, 2011 at 12:57

PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS

Therefore, the Organization and Project Development was commissioned by the Executive Management and the Chancellor of the FH Campus Wien to develop the project “Success Factor Curriculum” and submit it to the MD 27 for funding in order to generate an appropriate quality framework for the reaccreditation in 2012 that is also valid for new accreditations as well. 1.1.3. Curriculum: A Success Factor? There is no universal definition for the term “success factor”. In business administration, the evaluation of success factors within the framework of the company analysis is important, however, the scientific level of knowledge is rather modest. The term “success factor” does not only stand for business success factors, but also implies certain leadership determinants of success, e.g. determinants for change management. A distinction is made between exogenous determinants, i.e. environmental factors, and endogenous factors, in particular the quality of the management (leadership quality: professional skills, ability to develop strategies, ability to motivate, commitment, assertiveness). Factors that are critical for the success of an industry are referred to as “industry success factors”. It has been proven that the image of a company has a strong effect on its success. From a qualitative standpoint, success factors can be divided into strategic/non-strategic and primary/derivative success factors. From this, a matrix can be created. Primary strategic success factors are to be considered as the most significant determinants of success. Strategic success factors are those that have a long-term effect on the economic success of a company. Primary success factors are core or root factors. 6 Referring to the statement that the instruction and therefore the curriculum form the core business of universities of applied sciences, the (further) development of curricula can be seen as a key factor of success and as an industry success factor for a university of applied sciences and thus has a significant influence on the company's success and its improvement as well as the quality of the university of applied sciences. Curricula can therefore be considered as strategic, primary success factors. 6

See Haeseler, Herbert: Erfolgfaktoren und Erfolgsindikatoren. In: Österreichische Zeitschrift für Rechnungswesen (RWZ), 1998/5, pp.143-145

PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS

In this study curricula are therefore viewed holistically from different perspectives (organizational development, change management, quality assurance, cost efficiency). The participants in the study agree on the following definition of curriculum: The systematic presentation of the intended instruction objectives, content and methods over a specific period of time as a consistent system with multiple subjects for the purpose of the optimal preparation, implementation and evaluation of the instruction. The relevant elements of a curriculum in the broader sense are the learning objectives, learning contents and the process features of the learning. In the strict sense of the term, curriculum is understood to be the learning objectives and learning content. 7 The terms curriculum, as well as curriculum development, are not defined consistently in the literature. For example, curricula are viewed either as a product or a process of a university. Several conceptual variations illustrate these different approaches: curriculum analysis, curriculum planning, curriculum process, etc. are used as synonyms for curriculum development. In most cases, the terms are understood as all â&#x20AC;&#x153;curricular activitiesâ&#x20AC;?, based on the production of a reference to already existing curricula. What all the approaches have in common is the effort to develop new and qualitatively better curricula 8. In order to position a curriculum as a success factor, a holistic view is required of the (further) development based on the process of optimizing the content, structures and processes of a curriculum. 1.1.4. Design and Implementation of the Project Initial Hypothesis Quality criteria exist for curricula, that can be quantitative and qualitative verified and serve as a basis for a continuous further development process.

http://wirtschaftslexikon.gabler.de/Definition/curriculum.html Accessed on May 13th, 2011 at 17:34 Note: In the following text, the definition of curricula is used in the strict sense. 8 See Brand, Sylvia: Curriculumentwicklung in der Hochschule, pp. 39-40

PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS

Objectives, Content and Results The result of the project is a study with standards for the (further) development of curricula of a university. The aim is to ensure the further development of a curricula portfolio in the tertiary education sector at a high level. The project began with a structural comparison of the current curricula of the FH Campus Wien. The starting point for the identification of standards was the subsequent structured interviews with department heads of the FH Campus Wien and representatives of project partner universities in the European area as well as national experts. In the interviews, the individual knowledge of curricula, their creation and optimal further development was determined. The involvement of the European perspective and the cooperation with project partners from Germany, Finland and Switzerland were key components in the project. The standards derived in the course of evaluating the interviews, supported the creation of a common understanding for improvements of the (further) development of curricula. The responsibility of the department heads for educational concepts is not reduced by this process, but supported by the pooling of knowledge.

Course of the Project March 1st, 2009 to July 15th, 2011

Phases

Results

Research

Literature

Comparison of the curricula at the FH Campus Wien

Data collection

Interviews with the department heads of the FH Campus Wien

Internal report

PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS

Visits to partner universities with interviews Interviews with experts for the (further) development of curricula

External report with a university comparison

Derivation of common quality criteria for curricula and their evaluation from the internal and external reports

Standards for the (further) development of curricula

Four coordination meetings with the department heads of the FH Campus Wien

Establish a common view of the standards, coordination and approval of the standards

Development of a concept for the study and drafting of the chapters

Study â&#x20AC;&#x153;Success Factor Curriculumâ&#x20AC;? with approval by the Executive Management and the Chancellor

Integration in the procedures of the FH Campus Wien

Anchoring in the processes for the (further) development of curricula

Printing and mailing

Sharing of the knowledge gained with other universities

Project Team Project Role

Name

Project Commissioners

FH-Prof. DI Dr. Heinz Schmidt Chancellor, FH Campus Wien Ing. Wilhelm Behensky, MEd CEO, FH Campus Wien Mag.a (FH) Sabina Paschek MBA CEO, FH Campus Wien

PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS

Project Manager

Mag.a (FH) Susanna Boldrino, Head of Organisation and Project Development, FH Campus Wien

Project Coordinator / Project Team Member

Mag.a Ruth Zach Project Developer, Organization and Project Development, FH Campus Wien

Project Team Member

Mag.a Dr.in Christine Gruber Head of Social Economy and Social Work, FH Campus Wien

Project Team Member

FH-Prof. Mag. Dr. Manfred Steiner Assistant Head of Construction Engineering and Construction Management, Full-Time Professor, FH Campus Wien

Project Team Member

Mag. Gerold Unterhumer Head of the Masterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Degree Program for Radiological Technology, Full-Time Professor of Radiological Technology, FH Campus Wien

Involved Actors Development of the Data Set, Interviews, Standards Project Team 25 department heads and course directors of the FH Campus Wien Representatives of the 6 partner universities (2-8 persons each): >

Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz

University of Applied Sciences MĂźnster

Oulu University of Applied Sciences

Vaasan Ammattikorkeakoulu

FH Salzburg University of Applied Sciences

Zurich University of Applied Sciences

PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS

4 experts on curriculum development >

FH Technikum Wien

Austrian Agency for Quality Assurance (AQA)

University of Innsbruck, Institute of Education Sciences

FH Campus Wien (student representatives)

Consulting/Optimization FH Campus Wien Chancellor CEO Expert for qualitative research from the Center of Excellence for Social Work Teaching Support Center Quality Management Representative and Head of Quality Management Decision/Recommendation FH Campus Wien Chancellor (Chancellor and Provost for Quality in Instruction) Management (CEO and CEO, Deputy CEO and Quality Management Representative)

1.2. Excursus on Quality Assurance in the University of Applied Sciences Sector 1.2.1. Developments in the University of Applied Sciences Sector The university of applied sciences sector is a young sector in the tertiary education landscape of Austria in which since the creation of the legal foundation in the year 1993, a continuous external and internal quality assurance is provided for. The Council of Universities of Applied Sciences 9 (FHR) has been the responsible accreditation and oversight authority since 9

www.fhr.ac.at

PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS

that time. The main tasks of the FHR are the accreditation of university of applied sciences degree programs and the evaluation of university of applied sciences institutions. With the quality assurance framework law (QSG), a restructuring of the external quality assurance in Austrian higher education is proposed, which will make a significant contribution towards improving the quality of the university programs offered. The QSG defines the obligatory, external quality assurance in a law and provides for the implementation of a new, cross-sector organization for external quality assurance. In addition, the internal quality assurance systems will be of crucial importance. The central framework conditions of the quality assurance procedures will be managed jointly for Austria's tertiary education system. 10 Provisions of the Universities of Applied Sciences Studies Act were therefore amended and adapted. This is accompanied among other things by a significant change in the process for the re-accreditation of degree programs. Previously, university of applied sciences degree programs were approved for a maximum of five years and then had to undergo re-accreditation, and thus an evaluation of the further development and actuality of the curricula and the entire education program. The new QSG does not provide for any external re-accreditation of individual degree programs, but rather an audit of the entire quality management system of a university every seven years. In the future, the curricula will therefore be evaluated by external accreditation bodies less often than before.Is it not possible that this could automatically lead to a deterioration in the quality of the curricula? No, because universities of applied sciences are responsible for developing new curricula and further developing existing curricula and ensuring that they are kept up-to-date through a close connection with the industry and society. The structure of the programs in the university of applied sciences sector complies with the Bologna Process and is defined in the Universities of Applied Sciences Studies Act (FHStG), a slim framework law, and in the currently valid and effective accreditation guidelines (AR). Standardized quality criteria for curricula are not anchored in the law. Although the FHStG will be amended by the new QSG, it still, however, will not provide any explicit standards for curricula.

http://bmwf.gv.at/fileadmin/user_upload/qualitaetssicherung/Qualitaetssicherungsrahmengesetz -Eckpunkte.pdf Accessed on May 13th, 2011 at 13:35

PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS

Through the QSG, universities of applied sciences in Austria are required to take internal measures to ensure a high quality (further) development of curricula. The positive effect of this is that the transfer of a greater autonomy to the universities of applied sciences will further strengthen the innovative power of the universities of applied sciences. 1.2.2. Quality Assurance in Universities of Applied Sciences The instruction, and as its basis the curriculum, form the core business of the universities of applied sciences. Universities of applied sciences provide profession-oriented education and further education based on needs and acceptance analyses. Degree programs are developed in close cooperation with the industry and society. Both bachelorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and masterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s degree programs enable graduates an education in theory and practice with clear professional fields. In recent years, the university of applied sciences sector has developed dynamically and has expanded to include various new fields. Due to the increasing competition among educational institutions in the tertiary education sector and the fact that quality assurance is required by law, university of applied sciences course-providing bodies are implementing their own quality assurance measures and standards in the organizations, and continue to strive to acquire know-how in this field, establish procedures and develop themselves. A clear profile and a recognized quality of the degree programs of a university of applied sciences attract young emerging talent as students, as well as teachers, for the respective education programs. There are common procedures for the implementation of the quality assurance for organizations. In particular, manufacturing companies have developed a rich know-how in this area. For universities of applied sciences, however, individual approaches must to an extent be found. In particular, specific knowledge for the development of the quality of the instruction, the education and specifically the curricula must be developed further. The university of applied sciences internal quality assurance is supported by country-specific subsidies. In Vienna, this occurs specifically through calls from the MA27, the Municipal Department for EU-Strategy and Economic Development of the City of Vienna. In the course of a competition, the MA27 calls for projects for promoting quality assurance and improvement of

PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS

university of applied sciences degree programs in Vienna. Project submissions are bound to issue-specific invitations, known as calls. 1.2.3. Status and Change in the Legal Framework The change in the legal framework, which was formulated in 2010 and is expected to be concluded with the enactment of the Quality Assurance Framework Law in the summer of 2011, further strengthens the importance of the issue of quality assurance of curricula. The external quality assurance by the Council of Universities of Applied Sciences is legally anchored in the Universities of Applied Sciences Studies Act (FHStG), the slim framework law already mentioned in the introduction, and the effective accreditation guidelines (AR), whereby an amendment of the legal foundations is pending (see comments of FHK 11). The establishment and development of university internal quality management systems is anchored in the FHStG, ยง 2 Section 3. The design is the responsibility of the respective university which is free to define those organizational units and competencies that are to be provided with the internal quality assurance. The duration of the project has been extended for an extra five months due to the upcoming change in the legal framework because it is still planned within the project to anchor the quality standards in the processes of the FH Campus Wien. The process of developing new degree programs will remain unchanged. The new framework conditions will be incorporated in the reaccreditation process as well as the process for making changes to the curriculum. Due to the proposed elimination of the external accreditation, the establishment of appropriate internal structures for the change and further development of the curricula will be of particular importance. Consequently, also the question of which criteria will be used coordinated throughout FH Campus Wien for the further development of the quality of the curricula. Assuming a systemic-holistic approach to management, the responsibility for quality will be shared by all members of the organization. Quality assurance is no longer based exclusively on evaluation processes, various forms of

http://www.fhk.ac.at/index.php?id=20 Accessed on May 13th, 2011 at 13:03

PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS

regular monitoring and feedback are used for the organizational and quality development. 12 The approach to the organizational development and thus the participation of the responsible persons, as well as the careful process support, was of great importance in this project. On the one hand, in order to improve the result, and the other hand, in order to achieve a high degree of acceptance. Thereby, a common understanding of the topic of quality of the curriculum was developed. The responsibility for the quality of the curriculum has thus also been transferred to all parties who are involved in the further development of curricula.

See Hanft, Anke / Kohler, Alexander: Qualitätssicherung im österreichischen Hochschulsystem. In: Zeitschrift für Hochschulrecht 6, 2007, pp. 83-93

2. Empirical Study Ruth Zach

EMPIRICAL STUDY

2.1.

Design of the Survey

The project team designed the structured questionnaire for the internal survey of the department heads of the FH Campus Wien, the survey of the experts and the external survey of the partner universities in June 2009. The discussion in the project team was very important to determine the relevance of the issues and to specify a number of formulations in advance (see internal interview guide, Appendix p. Fehler! Textmarke nicht definiert.).The guideline was tested on the basis of interviews with three department heads from different departments of the FH Campus Wien in order to test the clarity of the questions, the structure of the guideline and the planned length of the interview. After the incorporation of a number of inputs, the comprehensive survey of the department heads and course directors of the FH Campus Wien could be completed at the beginning of January 2010. A total of 25 interviews were evaluated and the results were combined in an internal report that was made available to all the department heads of the FH Campus Wien at the beginning of July 2010. Following the internal survey, the interview guideline was adapted for the external survey. Some of the questions were adapted or removed, however, the interview schedule was maintained in its basic structure to allow a comparison of the results (see external interview guidelines Annex p. Fehler! Textmarke nicht definiert.).The 6 interviews with representatives of German, Finnish, Austrian and Swiss universities were conducted in the fall of 2010. The interviews took place either on location at the respective universities, or at the FH Campus Wien during a visit of representatives in Austria. The expert talks were conducted in Vienna with four people who have national and international experience with the development and accreditation of curricula. The results of the evaluation of the external interviews were consolidated in an external report that was made available to the department heads of the FH Campus Wien, the project partner universities, and the experts. During the course of the interviews consistently interesting and informative talks and discussions arose. It became clear that not only the FH Campus Wien, but also the partner universities and experts possessed a broad spectrum of extensive knowledge from different viewpoints on the topic of

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quality criteria for curricula. The approach taken for the survey made a pooling of cross-national experience possible. 2.2.

Evaluation â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Qualitative Content Analysis

The basic idea of qualitative content analysis according to Mayring 13 is the systematic analysis of communication materials and texts in which the material is dissected and analyzed step by step. A theory-based category system developed from the material is applied in advance. The aim of the analysis is to reduce the material in such a way that the essential content is preserved and a manageable corpus is created through abstraction that still presents an image of the base material. In this process, abstract statements that paraphrase the original material are obtained through omission, generalization, construction, integration, selection and bundling. These abstract paraphrases are subsumed under categories and finally used for the identification and description of the individual case. The interviews were recorded in an electronic protocol which, if necessary, the interviewee supplemented, improved and released for evaluation. The completed interview protocols were coded and thus an anonymous evaluation of the results was ensured. Since the guideline was already pre-structured and divided into sections, the sub-questions could be used very well as categories. The interview statements were assigned to and analyzed in these categories during the evaluation.

See Mayring, Philipp 1996; Lamnek, Siegried 1995; Lamnek, Siegfried 2005

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2.3.

The Results of the Internal and External Survey

The results of the internal and external surveys illustrate the situation of a total of seven universities in four countries (for details see Appendix “University Comparison” p. Fehler! Textmarke nicht definiert.), that are part of the European higher education area. The development, organization, implementation and quality assurance of a degree program are anchored in the laws and recommendations of each country. The implementation of the Bologna process is largely completed and all the surveyed universities award ECTS credits for the performance of their students. In a direct comparison of the four countries it becomes immediately apparent that the framework conditions of the universities are marked by different characteristics as the following examples illustrate. The European Credit Transfer System regulates the workload of the students and facilitates the accreditation of study periods abroad. The “ECTS Guide” of the Directorate General for Education and Culture of the European Commission 14 describes the basic considerations of the Bologna system, the calculation of ECTS credits and the modularization. The workload of an average student for one academic year is defined as 60 ECTS. According to the recommendation, which, however, is interpreted differently from country to country, this corresponds to between 1,500 and 1,800 hours. In Austria, a conversion factor of 25 hours per ECTS is anchored in the law, while other countries assign between 25 to 30 hours (Germany, Switzerland) or 27 hours (Finland). Based on the Bologna recommendations, a range of credits are awarded for the first two Bologna cycles (bachelor’s and master’s degree programs). Qualifications of the first cycle generally consist of 180 to 240 ECTS. Qualifications of the second cycle generally consist of 90 to 120 ECTS, whereby at least 60 credits must be awarded at the level of the second cycle. In order to complete the first two stages in accordance with the Bologna system, a total of 300 ECTS must be completed (see ECTS Guide). In Austria, the scope of a bachelor's degree program is defined by law as 180 credits. In the countries of the partner universities (Germany and Finland), it 14 http://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-policy/doc/ects/guide_de.pdf Accessed on May 13th, 2011 at 11:00

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is possible to design the duration of the degree program individually within the framework of the recommendation. Within the framework of the internal and external surveys, 18 common criteria were evaluated as a basis for the standards for curricula. 1.

Members of Degree Program Teams Involved in the Development

Composition and Work of the Development Team

Guaranteeing Studiability

Concepts and Theories that Form the Didactic Context

Classroom and Distance Phases

Criteria for Determining the Form of the Course and Size of the Group

Contact and Exchange with Potential Employers

National and International Comparability

Legal Regulations

10. Organizational and Administrative Regulations 11. Cost Effectiveness 12. Characteristics of a Full-time and Part-time Curriculum 13. Characteristics of Bachelor and Master Curricula 14. Implementation and Further Development of the Curriculum 15. Documentation of Changes to the Curriculum 16. Relevance of Research Results for Future Curriculum Development 17. Need for Support in Curriculum Development or Re-accreditation 18. Recommendations for Curriculum Development In order to avoid redundancy of the evaluated interviews and the resulting standards, the differences and similarities will be exemplified on the basis of four selected criteria. For this purpose, aside from actual quotations of excerpts of the interviews, similar statements have been collected and summarized.

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Ad 1: Members of the Degree Program Team Involved in the Development of a Degree Program Internal Survey The department heads and course directors of the FH Campus Wien understand the term “degree program team” to mean the department head or course director, degree program or course assistants, and full-time instructors. The department head, together with the full-time instructors, is responsible for the (further) development of the degree program. The number of full-time instructors varies from degree program to degree program. Accordingly, the respective level of cooperation and the number of tasks to be undertaken by each individual varies greatly. The integration of full-time instructors in the (further) development increases the internal acceptance of a degree program. Curricular changes may affect the work of the instructors. This may among other things cause insecurity, which can be reduced by transparency. The development of a new degree program follows the UAS-wide valid process “Development of a Degree Program” (for details see chapter “Anchoring in the Processes of the FH Campus Wien” p. Fehler! Textmarke nicht definiert.), which is anchored in the Organization and Project Development. For the development of a new degree program, a department head may in some cases not yet have been named. Therefore, in these cases a study team does not yet exist that can be involved in development work. Instead, the respective project developer, department heads and full-time instructors integrate professionally relevant degree programs in order to ensure a link and demarcation to existing curricula and to act upon of potential synergies. There is currently no standardized process for the further development of a degree program, however, one is currently being developed (for details see chapter “Anchoring in the Processes of the FH Campus Wien” p. Fehler! Textmarke nicht definiert.). External Survey The term “degree program team” is broadly defined by the universities surveyed. They include the department head, full-time instructors, part-time instructors and colleagues that work in interface organizational units. Project managers, controllers, educationalists and people who are responsible for the implementation of a curriculum in the form of a course plan, are already involved in the development phase of a new degree program or in the revision of an existing degree program.

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All the universities surveyed have an established approach for the creation of a new, or the revision of an existing degree program. This process is formulated in differing amounts of detail: In some organizations, there are recommended actions that have been proven in the past. Others have clearly defined process descriptions with document templates and status reports and necessary drafts that are prepared and submitted at certain stages of the development. Decision-making bodies in the department and at the general organization level (most of which are equally represented) control the development of a new degree program. The differences in the design of the organizational structure are often decisive for the differentiated integration of organizational units and people. For example, there is an expert committee for degree program and instruction, a staff position for the organization of the degree program or a curriculum commission. At several universities, the quality management department is also responsible for the (further) development of degree programs. The range extends from universities with their own center for quality assurance which is responsible for the system accreditation, to universities that implicitly implement quality management in the respective departments. Ad 2: Composition and Work of the Development Team In Austria, the composition of the development team is subject to legal requirements which are governed by the accreditation guidelines and the FHStG. The composition of the team is very important for the progress of the development of the degree program and requires an appropriate lead time that must be taken into consideration. Internal Survey In addition to the legal requirements, at the FH Campus Wien the following representatives are consulted in the development of a curriculum to enable a balanced discussion: Âť

Full-time instructors

Âť

External lecturers of the degree program

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Department head and instructors from thematically adjacent degree programs

Student representatives and graduates of the degree program

Experts from: »

Other universities of applied sciences

Universities

Companies/organizations from the professional field (e.g. practical instructors)

Interest groups

Related sciences

Equivalent educations

The above-mentioned people have specialist expertise from the core subject area or a subject-relevant related science. Furthermore, the following subject areas are covered: »

Didactic and distance learning

Bologna expertise/internationalization

Gender and diversity

The development team fulfills the legal and technical requirements and is supplemented by people who play a multiplier role in the labor market. The teamwork of the people, as well as a balance with regard to the hierarchy levels and gender, enrich the development. The establishment of a relationship of trust (personal and professional) with a few select people can be helpful in discussions during meetings and can positively influence group dynamics. Ultimately, the development team leader (in most cases, the future department head) is responsible for controlling the alignment of the proposed degree program, and in this process must be sure to take the current developments in the labor market and in the professional field into consideration. External Survey In the European countries that were visited, either no regulations for the composition of the development team exist, or they only exist as

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recommendations that are handled completely autonomously. However, the involvement of external parties who contribute insight into the trends and changes in the professional field to the development process represents an added value for almost all the interviewees. Cooperation with representatives from the professional field took on many different forms, ranging from involvement in the discussion process from the beginning as a development team member, to input which is introduced in the form of an expert opinion, and all the way to participation in needs analysis reflecting the labor market. The involvement of students and graduates is a matter of course for almost all the partner institutions. Here too, the possibilities for cooperation are varied and can take the form of participation in development team meetings or the preparation of an expert opinion for example. The cooperation with external parties is an important tool for aligning the core competencies of a degree program with the needs of the professional field. This focus is much more important for universities of applied sciences than it is for universities, as the former places an emphasis on orientation towards a professional field. The cooperation with external parties who have sound professional training and experience in the professional field but no didactic training or no teaching experience can inhibit the development process of a curriculum.

Ad 3: Guaranteeing Studiability The results of the internal and external surveys on the topic of studiability are presented in the following in a summarized manner as it became apparent that the orientation of the answers was identical. Guaranteeing studiability is a major concern and can be anchored in several areas of the curriculum. A key criterion for studiability is the outcome orientation of the curriculum, which works to avoid an overburdening with teaching content. The discussion of andragogy and didactic methods has a significant influence on the studiability of the curriculum, since the special needs of adult-related learning are addressed.

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During the curriculum development, modules are developed on the basis of the competence profile and assigned a specific number of ECTS credits. Only in a next step, are the associated courses defined. During the development of the curriculum, the didactic methods of the implementation are planned at the same time. This has an influence on the number of assigned semester week hours and ECTS credits. The studiability depends on a highly transparent structure of the degree program and clear guidelines for classroom and distance phases. Here, it is necessary that the instructors possess an understanding of the topic of self-study and new teaching methods. The number of examinations and when they are administered during the semester influence studiability. A concentrated number of examinations at the end of the semester for example, can be avoided by varying the examination types and arranging modules and courses in blocks. Module examinations appear to be a rather small task in comparison to course examinations. However, for module examinations the need for coordination among the students is higher, and thus requires a greater investment of time. For some students, a module examination presents a greater burden because the volume of the content is larger. A positive aspect of the module examination is the ability to draw upon a network of acquired knowledge. Here a countryspecific difference arises: where in Austria it is at the discretion of the department head to provide for a module examination, in Germany it is only possible to complete the courses with individual examinations in exceptional cases, (see Common National Structural Guidelines of the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs in Germany 15).

Ad 18: Recommendations for Curriculum Development The internal and external recommendations for the curriculum development provide a consistent picture regardless of the framework conditions of the respective country. The orientation of the recommendations differ only in whether the respondent has a university or university of applied sciences background, since the relevance of the professional orientation is valued differently. 15

http://www.kmk.org/fileadmin/veroeffentlichungen_beschluesse/2003/2003_10_10Laendergemeinsame-Strukturvorgaben.pdf Accessed on May 13th, 2011 at 12:15

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From the viewpoint of all the interviewees, the following parameters, among other things, influence the creation of a curriculum: For the planning and alignment of a curriculum it is important that the target group and framework conditions for the (further) development are clearly defined. As a rule, it is important to avoid time pressure in order to allow time for a reflection phase. Optimally, this is already taken into consideration during the project planning phase. Curriculum development is a holistic process that is improved through quality assurance by the instructors in the form of critical reflection. The employees are highly qualified, and regular opportunities should be given to revise the degree programs through evaluations for example. A university-wide evaluation system with common criteria provides the basis for improvement measures. The development team members are selected carefully and it is ensured they form a balanced group. External expertise is important in order to prepare graduates for the professional field. Instructors are involved in the development in order to guarantee internal acceptance. The implementation of the curriculum (sequence of the courses and modules in the semester) and the location of the practical training are taken into consideration from the beginning of the development in order to achieve an optimal alignment. This is an important aspect for the development of internationalization activities. The planning of the implementation of the curriculum during development makes it possible to evaluate the cost effectiveness, guarantee studiability and supports the resolution of any alignment problems already during the development phase. The curriculum is not overloaded and the estimation of the individual performance of the students for the assignment of the ECTS credits is conducted realistically. The use of synergies from the different departments and student groups represents an added value for both the teachers and the students. An outcome orientation is essential and enables the curriculum to be focused on the specific professional field. The qualification profile should be reflected in the curriculum. A clear central theme should be evident throughout the

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curriculum, linking everything from the professional field to the qualification profile and skill areas, all the way to the module structure and curriculum matrix. Therefore, a curriculum should never be (further) developed by a single person, but always by a group of people, because the discourse significantly contributes to the acceptance of a degree program. The paradigm shift brought about by the change to the Bologna structure (from an input to an outcome orientation of the curriculum) requires time in order to adapt structures and ways of thinking. The curriculum development is a creative and innovative process which is not completed with the submission of the request for accreditation. It is necessary to continually be on the lookout for new ideas for the design and implementation of the curriculum.

3. Development of the Standards for Curricula Susanna Boldrino

DEVELOPMENT OF THE STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

3.1.

Derivation of the Standards

3.1.1. Europe and Bologna Process In the Berlin Communiqué of September 19th, 2003, the European Network for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA) of the Ministers of the Bologna Signatory States received the order to develop an agreed system of standards, procedures and guidelines for quality assurance and to evaluate processes for quality assurance and/or accreditation. The Bologna Follow-up Group was to provide the ministers of the Bologna Signatory States with a report on the systems developed by ENQA by 2005. Approval for this report was issued in the communiqué of the ministers in Bergen responsible for the universities (May 19th to 20th, 2005). 16 The report “Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area” 17, was completed in February 2005. It is seen as a first step towards the creation of universally shared values, expectations and best practices related to quality assurance by universities and agencies of the European Higher Education Area. The most important result of this is that European standards now exist for internal and external quality assurance at universities and for external quality assurance agencies. This gives rise to common reference points for quality assurance. The standards for curricula in the project “Success Factor Curriculum” refer to the section of the report which deals with the internal quality assurance at universities (see “Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area”, p. 7): »

Development of a strategy for continuous quality improvement

Development of a culture that recognizes the importance of quality and quality assurance in their work

Development of formal mechanisms for the approval, regular evaluation and monitoring of programs and degrees of the university

The European Higher Education Area - Achieving the Goals, Communiqué of the Conference of European Ministers Responsible for Higher Education, Bergen, (May 19th to 20th, 2005) http://www.bologna-bergen2005.no/Docs/00-Main_doc/050520_Bergen_Communique.pdf p. 3 Accessed on May 20th, 2011 at 09:40 17 http://www.enqa.eu/files/ESG_3edition%20(2).pdf Accessed on May 20th, 2011 at 09:30

DEVELOPMENT OF THE STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

The purpose of the standards and guidelines of the ENQA is to support universities in the Bologna signatory states in developing their own quality assurance systems and to create a common reference framework. A principle of the ENQA is that the providers of tertiary education have the primary responsibility for the specific educational offering and quality assurance. For this reason, the FH Campus Wien developed standards for ensuring the quality of the curricula in order in compliance with the European standards to on the one hand maintain the diversity and different forms of the curricula of the degree programs at the FH Campus Vienna, and on the other hand to create a common reference framework for the establishment of an accorded perspective on the concept of quality of curricula 3.1.2. Context and Relationships In Austria, the Universities of Applied Sciences Studies Act (FHStG), as well as the existing accreditation guidelines (AR) for governing the accreditation, provide the legal and content framework for the standards for curricula. The pending amendment of the legal foundation is already mentioned in the introduction of the study (see the chapter “Preliminary Considerations”, p. Fehler! Textmarke nicht definiert.).A general section of the currently valid AR defines the basic framework conditions for all universities of applied sciences in Austria. A specific section provides the requirements for the accreditation of the framework for the respective specific content, legal and organizational designs of the different degree programs. Especially in the core chapters of Professional Fields & Qualifications Profile, Curriculum & Examination Regulations and Didactic Concept, points of reference can be found to the standards for curricula developed for the project “Success Factor Curriculum”. The standards for curricula are thus oriented towards the “Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area” and the “Accreditation Guidelines of the Austrian Council of Universities of Applied Sciences” as well as the following further standards: •

Austrian Agency for Quality Assurance (AQA)

DEVELOPMENT OF THE STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

o •

•

Austrian Accreditation Council o

Orientation Framework for Experts (Institutions) 19

Orientation Framework for Experts (Degree Programs) 20

Foundation for the Accreditation of Study Programs in Germany Accreditation Council o

•

Guideline for Quality Standards for Procedures for Skill Assessment in the School-to-Work Transition 22

FICE, IFCO and SOS-Kinderdorf o

3.2.

Criteria for the Accreditation of Degree Programs

Federal Institute for Vocational Education o

•

Guidelines for Program Accreditation 18

Q4C Quality Standards of the three organizations 23

Understanding of the Standards

As explained in the foreword of the Austrian Association of Universities of Applied Sciences on page 3, Humboldt’s understanding of autonomy has shaped the tertiary education sector towards the entrepreneurial university. University of applied sciences course-providing bodies in Austria appreciate this autonomy, as the respective degree programs have different needs that result from differences in the organizational form, the subject areas, the regional access and the financial resources.

http://www.aqa.ac.at/main.php?prim_nav=14&sec_nav=139&content_id=139&content_typ=fold er&language=de Accessed on Dec. 13th, 2010 at 09:00 19

http://www.akkreditierungsrat.at/files/downloads_2010/Orientierungsrahmen%20Institutionen.pd f Accessed on May 20th, 2011 at 11:42 20

http://www.akkreditierungsrat.at/files/downloads_2010/Checkliste%20für%20Studiengänge.pdf Accessed on May 20th, 2011 at 11:44 21 http://www2.fzs.de/uploads/kriterien_studiengaenge.pdf Accessed on May 20th, 2011 at 11:53 22 http://www.kompetenzen-foerdern.de/imbse_qualitaetsstandard.pdf Accessed on Dec. 13th, 2010 at 9:05 23

http://www.quality4children.info/navigation/cms,id,31,nodeid,31,_country,at,_language,de.html Accessed on Dec. 13th, 2010 at 9:10

DEVELOPMENT OF THE STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Through autonomy, competition intensified between the universities for funding and public attention. The quality assurance of the instruction and the curriculum 24, as well as the entire organization of a university, have become a central factor. The term quality assurance is very broad and requires a specific definition. “Quality assurance is a generic term in higher education which lends itself to many interpretations: It is not possible to use one definition to cover all circumstances.” 25 In this study, the term “quality assurance” is related to the curriculum through the definition of criteria and factors. If universities are serious about autonomy, it is essential to design internal control loops for further developments. This is the evidence for efficient internal quality assurance during external audits and evaluations. A jointly-developed commitment to certain standards can therefore support universities in ensuring autonomy. The standards form a control loop for the further development of curricula while ensuring the individuality of the degree programs and enable an establishment of organizational knowledge of curricula. 3.2.1. Purpose of the Standards Standards ensure »

that targets are achieved, documented and reflected upon.

that content is understood and results are used.

Standards »

increase transparency, orientation and selection, as well as cooperation and acceptance.

provide information, orientation and suggestions.

Relevant elements: (1) in a wider sense: Learning objectives, teaching content, process characteristics of learning; (2) in a narrower sense: Learning objectives and content. See http://wirtschaftslexikon.gabler.de/Archiv/122434/curriculum-v4.html Accessed on Dec. 9th, 2010 at 10:15 Note: In the following text, the definition of curricula is used in the strict sense. 25 http://www.enqa.eu/files/ESG_3edition%20(2).pdf, p. 12, Accessed on May 20th, 2010 at 9:30

DEVELOPMENT OF THE STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

3.2.2. Basic Principles »

The standards for curricula are designed to be outcome oriented. The targeted result is described and can be evaluated qualitatively and quantitatively.

Standards for curricula provide assistance for reflection and a framework for the development of new degree programs. They are the foundation for a common understanding.

The standards serve as a guideline for evaluation on the path of further development of the curricula according to the strategy. Based on the results, the degree programs develop suitable optimization measures, and the core organizational units the appropriate tools and services as well as the latest know-how to support the further development of the degree programs.

3.3.

Structure of the standards

Title Description Contains a short and clear specification of the title Reason Related to the selection of the standard Key Questions Serve the self-evaluation and clarification of the spectrum Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria Requirements or recommendations for the fulfillment of the respective standard Qualitative Evaluation Answering of the key questions Quantitative Evaluation Fulfilled / not fulfilled in relation to the regulations for criteria fulfillment

DEVELOPMENT OF THE STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

indicators, key performance indicators

Possible supplementation to be expanded individually by the universities: Notes on Implementation Contains practical statements and advice as to how these standards will be achieved 3.4. Process of the Development of the Standards The basis for the development of the standards for curricula was the 35 structured interviews (for details see chapter “Empirical Study” p. Fehler! Textmarke nicht definiert.) with the: »

Department heads of the FH Campus Wien

Project partner universities

Experts on curricula and quality assurance.

Categories arose from the interviews that when bundled resulted in 17 terms which represented a first designation for each standard. By assigning specific quotations from the interviews to the different terms, a thoroughly comprehensive preliminary picture of the content emerged. A clustering of the designations revealed a recurring sequence of development phases, and derived from that, a life cycle for a curriculum became evident. The standards were then developed from this life cycle. These are described in terms of content and the selection is justified. Key questions stimulate selfreflection on the curriculum. The regulations for the criteria fulfillment substantiate the requirements for the fulfillment of the respective standards. The project team developed the first drafts of the standards. The department heads were presented the first drafts of the standards in three workshops. They were then supplemented and optimized in discussion rounds. Absolutely essential were the evaluation of the liveability and a realistic assessment of the accessibility of the standards. The entire portfolio of standards was then given to the department heads with the request that they be discussed within the degree program teams. In a

DEVELOPMENT OF THE STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

fourth workshop with the department heads, the entire portfolio was once again discussed and finally approved. Afterwards, the project team discussed the measurability/evaluation and these were agreed upon with the Executive Management, the Chancellor and the Director of the Quality Management Department. 3.5. Basic Theoretical Model: The (Further) Development Control Loop Through a clustering and temporal juxtaposition of the standards, a control loop for the (further) development of a curriculum became evident. The life cycle of a curriculum begins with the design of the contents and the structure of the curriculum. Afterwards, the curriculum is implemented during the performance phase. If it becomes apparent during the course of an internal and/or external evaluation that a change to the curriculum is necessary, a revision of the curriculum begins again in the design/redesign phase. External accreditation, or re-accreditation occurring at defined periods, also begin in the design/redesign phase. This control loop can also be performed during the performance phase as a smaller further development process if through the implementation of a curriculum the need for a change becomes apparent.

DEVELOPMENT OF THE STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Design/Redesign

Lebenszyklus Life Cycle Curriculum Curriculum Understand the development Entwicklung des Curriculums of the curriculum as a als fortlaufenden Prozess verstehen continuous process

an c

or m

n tio

ua al

Legend: Design………… Develop the degree program (“plan”) Performance ... Implement the degree program (“do”) Evaluation…….Evaluation the implementation of the degree program (“check”) Redesign………Make improvements (“act”)

DEVELOPMENT OF THE STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

3.5.1. Standards for Curricula Design/Redesign 1.

“Ensure continuity and allow new ideas to develop through the orientation of the concept for the degree program”

“Implement legal requirements and international recommendations”

“Plan the outcome of the degree program and anchor it in the education and labor market”

“Design the curricular structure and consider implementation factors”

“Establish the relationships within the concept for the degree program”

“Ensure studiability”

“Create a didactic concept specifically for each curriculum”

“Ensure the cost effectiveness of a degree program”

Performance 9.

“Attract personalities for the degree program”

10.

“Take the influence of the learning environment in the classroom into consideration”

11.

“Ensure clear responsibilities, roles and assignment of tasks”

12.

“Maintain contact and exchange with cooperation partners”

13.

“Incorporate research findings into the curriculum”

Evaluierung 14.

“Ensure the skill acquisition of the students”

15.

“Practice a constructive feedback culture”

16.

“Develop common knowledge”

17.

“Ensure national and international comparability”

DEVELOPMENT OF THE STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Curriculum development is not completed with the submission of the request for accreditation and the quality of the curriculum is not to be determined at a specific point in time. It is necessary to continually be on the lookout for new ideas for the design and implementation of the curriculum in order to develop it further in terms of content. A curriculum methodology is identified as a new research field that draws its impetus much more strongly than before from the qualifications research to ensure that sustainable development and “real” trends can be identified early and implemented curricularly. This also includes the international component of the curriculum work 26. Thus, the life cycle of a curriculum can be seen as an extremely complex, spiral-shaped continuous further development process. How should universities handle this? Various conditions must be created. Skill development, structures and processes. An important fundamental skill is the “willingness and ability to act self organized and creatively, as well as handle uncertainty and changing challenges” (Enggruber/Bleck, 2005, p. 10). A positive attitude towards continuous change is necessary in order to provide innovative education. 3.6.

Evaluation of the Standards

In the literature, the question of with which instruments can the “quality” of a curriculum be evaluated or measured has yet to be answered 27. A measurement in the scientific sense can then be spoken of when the measurement process itself is conducted exactly the same for each object to be measured and a comparable measuring result is to be expected. 28 Since the criteria fulfillment of the standards in the project “Success Factor Curriculum” occurs both qualitatively and quantitatively, an evaluation is spoken of and not of measurability in the scientific sense. The goal is to derive concrete, practical, useful recommendations for action from the respective result.

See Buchmann, Ulrike / Huisinga, Richard: Curriculum und Qualifikation , pp. 40-41 Verlag der Gesellschaft zur Förderung arbeitsorientierter Forschung und Bildung, Frankfurt am Main, 2003 27 See Silvia Brand, Curriculumentwicklung in der Hochschule, p. 309 28 http://www.uibk.ac.at/psychologie/mitarbeiter/leidlmair/haeseler_hoermann_3.indd.pdf Accessed on May 20th, 2011 at 14:22

DEVELOPMENT OF THE STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Although the act of the Federal Minister for Science and Research on intellectual capital (Intellectual Capital Act 2010 - WBV 2010) 29 mentions several of the indicators, also with regard to curricula, these, however, have little significance for the determination of the evaluation of the standards for curricula. The question as to what extent the models/indicators/instruments are suitable for quality evaluation for standards is posed intensively during the design phase. A general answer cannot be given to this question. It is obvious that the importance of measurability is increasing. The implementation of the European degree program architecture has increased awareness for this topic through the complete transformation of the degree program and course offerings. Curricula are being renewed with regard to content and modularized. Accordingly, the budgeting is also being re-thought. At the University of Vienna, the reorganization of the degree program and course offerings led to a rethinking in the budgeting of the curricula and to an instruction controlling based on the principles of the development plan 30. However, here too it does not concretely concern the measurability of the quality of the curriculum. Accordingly, a mixed form of review and analysis was developed for the standards for curricula which is a result of the answering of fulfilled / not fulfilled questions about the regulations of the criteria fulfillment in combination with measurable quantities of indicators and an informative value. This combination makes it possible to: »

create a comparison of periodic evaluations/analyses

generate the foundation for an external reporting

derive concrete recommendations for action

integrate the management objectives

distinguish between primary and secondary objectives

make the delta on the objective evident.

http://www.bmwf.gv.at/fileadmin/user_upload/wissenschaft/recht/wbv_2010.pdf Accessed on May 20th, 2011 at 15:01 30 http://studieren.univie.ac.at/index.php?id=1184 Accessed on May 20th, 2011 at 14:10

DEVELOPMENT OF THE STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Thus, this combination is an effective tool for the control of curricula in both the top and also the subordinate levels of management and can represent an effective analytical instrument with a prognostic capability.

4. Standards for Curricula

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

4.1.

Design/Redesign

Standard 1: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Ensure continuity and allow new ideas to develop through the orientation of the concept for the degree programâ&#x20AC;? Description: The concept for the degree program is characterized by a clear orientation with unique features. Employees at the FH Campus Wien are know-how carriers, know specific procedures and act in accordance with the strategic orientation (degree program and FH Campus Wien). People associated with the FH bring an external current view and enable the establishment of new degree programs and new orientations and content through joint reflection. Reason: A specific orientation of the concept for the degree program ensures the acceptance of the FH Campus Wien and the graduates in the academic and educational landscape and on the labor market. The FH Campus Wien, as an educational organization, and its employees experience a profit in know-how through the integration of internal and external knowledge. Key Questions: What trends and developments in the subject areas require the focus of the degree program? What areas of knowledge are relevant for the degree program? What new functions are expected in the professional field? Is the composition of the group of people responsible for the (further) development of the curriculum consistent with the statutory requirements and the FH internal criteria? Does a national and international network exist for the long-term cooperation with representatives of the scientific community and the labor market? What cooperations are in place and what is the focus of the cooperation? How do you ensure that the FH internal personnel possess the latest knowledge in their subject areas in order to be able to assess external inputs?

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Have the necessary time resources been discussed and defined both internally and externally?

Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria: The orientation of the degree program is clearly defined and in alignment with the academic environment. It is consistent with the mission statement and the strategy of FHCW and the strategy of the department. The composition of the group of people responsible for the (further) development of the curriculum fulfills the statutory requirements and the FH internal criteria 31. Time resources are available. A national and international network and cooperation partnerships exist that determine the cooperation based on concrete goals and quality criteria. The current state of knowledge of the internal personnel of the FHCW is ensured through defined measures (e.g. annual training concept, participation at specialist conferences, making current literature available). Publications show the achieved level of knowledge and ensure its acceptance in the scientific community.

Evaluation: Qualitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment Quantitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment: >

fulfilled / not fulfilled

Time resources for curriculum work of internal employees per academic year (percentage of annual working hours)

Number of visiting days at professional conferences in the academic year

Number of publications in the academic year

31 All existing documents e.g. business regulations, position descriptions and concrete criteria of the University Chancellor (to be designed)

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Standard 2: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Implement legal requirements and international recommendationsâ&#x20AC;? Description: The legal guidelines and international recommendations are implemented in terms of the vision, mission statement and strategy of the FH Campus Wien and in accordance with the development plans of the public sector. This requires a current knowledge of education policy processes and a fundamental interest in education policy discussions. Reasons: Compliance with legal requirements and international recommendations is necessary in order to obtain an accreditation, or in the case of health professions, a professional license. The accreditation by a recognized institution ensures bottom-up communication. Equally necessary is the compliance with the regulations for the award of certificates that can be acquired on the basis of the degree program (e.g. PMA certification). The prerequisite for defining the necessary legal regulations is the identification of stakeholders 32 for the curriculum. Key Questions: Who are the stakeholders of the curriculum? What are the fields of interests of the stakeholders and how are they determined? What legal principles are relevant to the degree program and where exist bandwidths and margins for the curriculum design? What international recommendations are relevant and what are the implications for the curriculum? If a mobility window is planned: What national and international frameworks are a prerequisite for the design? How do current education policy discussions impact your curriculum?

32 By stakeholders anatural or legal person is meant who has an interest in the (further) development or the result of a curriculum.

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

How do you ensure the legal foundations, international recommendations and education policy topics are up-to-date?

Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria: The curriculum and, subsequently, the entire educational concept comply with the legal requirements, are within the framework of the international recommendations, and reflect the vision and mission statement of the FH Campus Wien. The stakeholders are defined and their interests are clear. The implementation of the laws and the interpretation of the international recommendations are understandable in the context. A system is in place for monitoring the legal foundations, international recommendations and education policy topics.

Evaluation: Qualitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment Quantitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment: >

fulfilled / not fulfilled

Standard 3: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Plan the outcome of the degree program and anchor it in the education and labor marketâ&#x20AC;? Description: The curriculum is aimed towards a certain target group of students who acquire specific knowledge in a defined spectrum of subjects qualifying them for academic, professional and personal developments, tasks and activities. To achieve this they are taught specialized theoretical, practical, methodical and interdisciplinary skills. Reasons: By keeping the target group and the image of the opportunities of the graduates in mind, the curriculum is developed with a clear orientation. This

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

results in a targeted structure of the network necessary for the curriculum development. Key Questions: How is a clear orientation towards the expected fields of activity and the future functions and activities of the graduates ensured? What are the key skills of the degree program? Is the diploma awarded for the degree program consistent with national requirements? (Does it use the occupational title that is established in the labor market?) How is a balanced instruction of technical, methodological and interdisciplinary skills ensured? How is a balanced integration of theory and practice is ensured? Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria: An objectively formulated survey of the labor market is carried out with regard to the required skills, the established occupational title and the field of activities for the future graduates. The survey is carried out in a timely manner so that the results can be used as inputs for the (further) development. The concept for the degree program is oriented towards the acquisition of qualifications. These include technical, methodological and interdisciplinary skills. The key skills 33 of the degree program and a balanced interrelation of theory and practice are clearly recognizable. The skills focus are oriented towards: > the ability to practice defined activities on the basis of theoretical knowledge in the relevant professional field > the acquisition of methodical (e.g. scientific) skills suitable for the respective orientation of the degree program > the acquisition of skills, among others for personal development

Key skills are â&#x20AC;&#x17E;acquirable general skills, attitudes and knowledge elements that are useful in solving problems and acquiring new skills in as many content areas as possible, so that a capacity to act arises which makes it possible to meet both individual and societal demands.â&#x20AC;&#x153; See http://www.uni-osnabrueck.de/11571.html viewed May 31st, 2011 at 11:15

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Evaluation: Qualitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment Quantitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment: >

fulfilled / not fulfilled

The number of unemployed graduates per degree program per key date in relation to the total number of graduates

The number of graduates active in the intended professional field per key date in relation to the total number of graduates

ECTS distribution of theory/practice/personal development in relation to the total number of ECTS credits

Standard 4: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Design the curricular structure and consider implementation factorsâ&#x20AC;? Description: A modular curriculum structure with assigned courses is designed that is in alignment with the required skill portfolio. The design follows the Bologna recommendations and allows for innovation and flexibility. The planned teaching content and methods are considered in determining the course type. Several influencing factors are used to determine the size of the group. Reasons: The content concept determines the modular and curricular structure within the framework to be defined and consequently the module- and course planning. Key Questions: What are the main focuses of the teaching content and how can they be divided into modules? What infrastructural conditions (e.g. size and equipment of the rooms) must be considered?

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

How are the human resources designed and ensured for the future? What factors affect the size of the group? Is the design of the modules consistent with the internal understanding of the FHCW and are the recommendations of the Bologna Follow-Up Group 34 taken into consideration? Was a mobility window designed under consideration of the organizational form? Do descriptions for all the modules exist with regard to the content and organizational framework?

Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria: The focus of the teaching content ensures the key skills are achieved (listed in Standard 3). Planning is carried out for the personnel and infrastructure resources that also takes the educational aspects of group sizes into consideration. The modules are presented clearly and transparently with regard to size, assignment to the respective skill area, position in the curriculum, skills acquired, courses assigned, course types, teaching content, exam modalities and the workload. Mobility aspects are well thought out and, where appropriate, the mobility is ensured by a corresponding structure in the curriculum.

Evaluation: Qualitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment Quantitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment: >

fulfilled / not fulfilled

Number of modules and their respective ECTS values

Standard 5: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Establish the relationships within the concept for the degree program 35â&#x20AC;&#x153; 34 http://bmwf.gv.at/uploads/tx_contentbox/empfehlung_lehrpl.pdf Viewed Dec. 2nd, 2010 at 12:15 p.m.

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Description: The formal and contentual relationship of the concept for the degree program is created on the basis of the curriculum. The curriculum and the detail planning as well as the framework for the implementation of the curriculum have a strict, logical relationship. The â&#x20AC;&#x153;central themeâ&#x20AC;? of the educational concept and in particular the logical sequence of the modules are reflected by an external perspective. Reasons: A logically structured educational concept forms the basis for the implementation and studiability of the curriculum. The presence of the formal and contentual relationship ensures the outcome orientation. Key Questions: Is the acquisition of the defined skills within the module in alignment with the qualification profile of the graduates? How is it ensured that the modules are in alignment with each other? What is aligned between the modules (e.g. previous knowledge, content, skill building)? What is aligned within a module (e.g. methods, contents, determination of skill acquisition)? How is it ensured that the teaching content is in alignment within a module? Which internal and external people reflected upon the curriculum with regard to formalities and content? What further developments resulted from this reflection?

35 The concept of the degree program includes the determination of expert knowledge and interdisciplinary knowledge, includes the determination of methodological and generic skills, is pedagogically and didactically sound, is coherently structured, is objective oriented with regard to defined qualification goals, is studiable, above all with regard to the expected entry qualifications, realistic workloads, exam organization, existing consultation and support services, design of practical training phases and accreditation rules for work performed externally, includes a suitable selection process if required, is consistent with the specific demands for degree programs with a particular profile demand (e.g. for part-time degree programs) and implements the approach of the university for gender equality. See http://www2.fzs.de/uploads/kriterien_studiengaenge.pdf Viewed June, 1st 2011 at 9:45 a.m.

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

How is the outcome orientation recognizable? Does a systematic and accompanying skills assessment exist?

Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria: The module architecture is carried out in alignment with the established qualification concept. There is an understandable structure of the modules on the basis of a concept. The teaching content of the individual modules is in alignment between and within the modules. An internal and external reflection upon the curriculum took place in a reasonable period of time. The resulting changes are documented. A systematic and accompanying skill assessment exists.

Evaluation: Qualitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment Quantitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment: >

fulfilled / not fulfilled

Standard 6: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Ensure Studiabilityâ&#x20AC;? Description: A degree program is studiable if an average student with the required entry knowledge and skills is able to achieve the study goal under the specified workload within the standard time. Reasons: The studiability fosters a low student drop-out rate and a high number of graduates in the standard time. Key Questions: What factors in this education contribute in particular to the studiability (e.g. classroom hours only on weekends, length and location of the internship)?

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

What criteria determine the entry qualifications for the degree program? Upon which considerations is the calculation for the workload of the students based? How is the actual workload of the students determined? What forms of the performance evaluations exist? How is the exam density for the students reviewed and what measures are taken to make improvements? What counseling and support services are offered for the students? How can the status quo of the support situation for the students be ensured or improved? How does the structure of the curriculum influence the flexibility of the students (e.g. range of electives, integration of career-specific knowledge, percentage of distance phases or self-study)?

Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria: The entry qualifications are well formulated and understandable. The workload calculation is realistic and evaluated. The mix of course types is balanced and this results in a variety of exam and performance evaluation types. The exam density is aligned and evaluated. The counseling and support services for the students is sustainably ensured. The need for flexibility is determined and margins are defined. The factors that influence studiability are in a coherent relationship. Evaluation: Qualitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment Quantitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment: >

fulfilled / not fulfilled

Examinations completed on time per semester (% of ACTUAL to TARGET value for graduates per semester)

Graduates per year who complete the degree program in the standard period (%)

Drop-out rate per key date (Is there a deviation in a particular semester?)

Number of drop-outs per key date

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Standard 7: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Create a didactic concept specifically for each curriculumâ&#x20AC;? Description: The didactic conception of the teaching content is suitable for achieving the skill acquisition. The acquisition of the necessary knowledge as well as the abilities and skills are supported by an integration of theory and practice. Classroom instruction phases and self-directed learning promote selforganization of the students and are complemented by adequate distance learning concepts. The methods of performance evaluation are suitable for evaluating that skill acquisition has occurred. Reasons: The basic concept of a university of applied arts degree program lies in the presentation of the relationship between the occupational fields of activity, the career-specific qualification profile and the curriculum, in that this profile and the presentation of the implementation of this relationship is reflected in the didactic concept. The high priority of didactic concepts results in the university of applied sciences sector if nothing else from the fact that the university of applied sciences degree programs have to realize the educational mission of a practical vocational training at a university level under limited time conditions. 36 Key Questions: Which didactic principles have you drawn upon for the implementation of your curriculum? Do multiple people responsible for the (further) development of the curriculum have didactic training? What type of didactic training do they have? How is theoretical content linked with practical elements? How is it ensured that students can apply the theoretical knowledge in practice? How is the intended skill acquisition assessed in the modules?

36 http://www.fhr.ac.at/fhr_inhalt/02_qualitaetssicherung/bildungsauftrag.htm Viewed Dec. 2nd, 2010

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

To what extent are e-learning elements used in the degree program? Which concepts were developed for this purpose? How is the functionality of the virtual learning environment ensured?

Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria: The didactic principles are clearly understandable. In the circle of people responsible for the (further) development, at least one person possesses adequate, in-depth, didactic knowledge. The integration of theory and practice is conclusively demonstrated. The methods for performance evaluation are suitable for the topics areas. The e-learning concept represents an asset to the impartment of knowledge. The technical design is suitable for the implementation.

Evaluation: Qualitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment Quantitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment: >

fulfilled / not fulfilled

Average of the course rating (scale of 1-6) per semester

ECTS proportion of e-learning in relation to the number of ECTS credits for the semester

1-2 courses per semester are supported by new media

Standard 8: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Ensure the cost effectiveness of a degree programâ&#x20AC;? Description: Cost effectiveness is a general measure of efficiency and for the rational use of scarce resources. It is defined as the ratio between the achieved results, taking into consideration the requirements of the internal and external quality specifications and the funds necessary therefore.

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Reasons: The tertiary sector is characterized by a scarcity of resources and dependence on public funding and subsidies. The initial situation and the funding may be different in the respective subject areas, however they all carry a social responsibility to the extremely careful and outcome-oriented use of the allocated funds. Key Questions: For which exercises/seminars are group divisions necessary for didactic reasons? What is the proportion of courses with group divisions to those without group divisions? In which courses are cost-effective didactic methods employed? Through which didactic methods is a cost reduction achieved and what types of costs do they concern? Does a degree program calculation based on the real costs and the budget allowances exist? Are an appropriate number of students ensured to at least reach the breakeven point? What is the ratio of full-time instructors to part-time instructors? What is the ratio of classroom time (semester hours per week x course weeks x 0.75 per student) to self-learning phases (difference to the ECTS hour rating) for the duration of degree program?

Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria: Group divisions are only carried out for exercises and seminars in which the students require a discursive exploration, an individual or a permanent transfer of knowledge or a permanent performance evaluation in order to acquire the desired skills. The didactic concept takes possible synergies into consideration and sets an innovative focus in each semester. Thus a balanced cost-performance ratio is established. A calculation based on the budget exists for the (further) development of a degree program. Personnel costs are in an understandable relation to the total budget. At least 50% of the courses of a

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

degree program are held in plenary assemblies. The break-even point is calculated and includes a margin of 10% of the total budget.

Evaluation: Qualitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment Quantitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment: >

fulfilled / not fulfilled

At least 50% of the courses are held in plenary assemblies (number of the semester week hours without group divisions), justified deviations require the approval of the management and the University Chancellor.

1-2 courses per semester use synergies between courses or degree programs

The ratio of full-time to part-time instructors per semester

The ratio of classroom times to self-study phases per semester

The number of students per degree program (minimum bachelor’s 35 beginner places, master’s 15 beginner places)

Full capacity utilization of the university places as of the key date

4.2.

Performance

Standard 9: “Attract personalities 37 for the degree program” Description: People involved in the implementation and further development of the curricula have technical, didactic and social skills, especially management and leadership skills 38. They act as a role model for students and colleagues

37 An important person who recognizes the demands for social progress earlier and more clearly than others and is capable of assuming a leading role in society See www.dwds.de/?kompakt=1&sh=1&qu=Persönlichkeit Viewed Dec. 9th, 2010 at 11:30 a.m. 38 Leadership means to inspire and motivate followers with visions. Leadership brings about creativity, innovation, self-fulfillment and change. See www.harvardbusinessmanager.de/heft/artikel/a-620896.html Viewed Dec. 9th, 2010 at 11:45 a.m.

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

during day-to-day operations. These people are self-reflective, open for change and can handle conflict well. Reasons: Personalities further the degree program, they guarantee a sharpening of the profile in the internal and external impact, ensure the actuality of the content and increase the innovation content of a degree program. They provide an impetus for the reorganization and redimensioning of the curriculum during the implementation and further development of the curricula. Key Questions: What is the educational philosophy and personality related attitude for the degree program? Is there an individual mission statement for the degree program? Which degree program-specific criteria can be derived from the mission statement for the appointment of instructors/employees? How are the subject-specific/practice relevance, pedagogical, didactic and social qualifications of the instructors determined? How is it ensured that instructors are up-to-date with current research in the subject area in order to conduct their own research activities with the students or to be able to review external studies? What measures are taken for personnel development and performance incentives? Which profile/which employee behaviors are necessary for the further development of a curriculum? Which of these aspects are already covered in your group of instructors? What action is the result? Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria: The educational philosophy and the image of humanity of the degree program paint a clear picture for alignment. The necessary qualifications of the instructors/employees are determined based on degree programspecific criteria. The individual personal development and networking of instructors/employees is promoted in a targeted manner.

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Evaluation: Qualitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment Quantitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment: >

fulfilled / not fulfilled

The number of full-time instructors (full time equivalents per key date)

Number of guest lectures incoming and outgoing in an academic year

Standard 10: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Take the influence of the learning environment 39 in the classroom into considerationâ&#x20AC;? Description: Based on the content of the curriculum, spatial and material resources as well as location-related conditions determine the instruction/learning situation and the group dynamic processes. Reasons: The learning environment influences the atmosphere of the instruction and affects the learning behavior of the students. Key Questions: What specific requirements exist with respect to spatial and material resources as well as location-related conditions for the degree program? How is a trouble-free spatial planning and organization ensured? 39 A learning community needs an inviting environment through design of > the rooms, > the schedules, > the interpersonal relationships and > the additional educational programs. This environment, embedded in the entire educational mission, also promotes learning on the social and affective levels. Everyone consciously contributes to the conducive learning environment. See www.blikk.it/angebote/schulegestalten/se_suedtirol/ses412.htm Viewed Dec. 9th, 2010 at 1:30 p.m.

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

How are the needs of the learning environment for teachers and students determined? What cultural aspects (e.g. team-and group-oriented work in the professional field, high significance of the measurement and quantification, handling of data e.g. confidential patient data) of the degree program have an impact on the design of the learning environment? What impact does this have on the curriculum?

Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria: The curriculum and the specific infrastructure-related conditions of the degree program are in mutual alignment. Different requirements for and approaches to the learning environment are considered in the concept for the degree program.

Evaluation: Qualitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment Quantitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment: >

fulfilled / not fulfilled

Standard 11: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Ensure clear responsibilities, roles and assignment of tasksâ&#x20AC;? Description: The (further) development of curricula is complex and consists of several task bundles. The expertise of several people are needed, additional time resources and clear role allocations are necessary. Reasons: Clear processes and responsibilities facilitate focus on the contentual (further) development of the curriculum.

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Key Questions: Who has overall responsibility for the lifecycle curriculum and how much time resources are available for it? What other functions are there within the framework of the (further) development of the curriculum? What special knowledge must be available for which function? What task bundles are assigned the respective functions? How much time resources are available for the respective task bundle? How are the task bundles aligned with each other? Which degree program-specific processes are there for the (further) development of the curriculum? To which FHCW wide processes do interfaces exist? What expertise/support is received from other organizational units?

Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria: For the lifecycle curriculum, there are defined functions and responsibilities for task bundles with concrete time resources. The special expertise required for this is defined and updated periodically. The alignment between the functions takes place in a goal-oriented and coordinated manner. FHCW wide processes for the (further) development of the curriculum are the basis for degree program-specific processes. The interfaces are defined. The expertise from other organizational units is accepted.

Evaluation: Qualitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment Quantitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment: >

fulfilled / not fulfilled

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Standard 12: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Maintain contact and exchange with cooperation partnersâ&#x20AC;? Description: The starting point is the network from the scientific community and the professional field which was created during the planning of the degree program. Potential cooperation partners are selected. An exchange on concrete issues for the benefit of the parties involved is specifically planned and carried out. Reasons: A specifically constructed circle of cooperation partners supports the further development of the curriculum and represents an added value for project partnerships and application and experience possibilities of the students. Possible practical experience flows back into the everyday life in the degree program. Furthermore, the possibility of attracting personalities to the degree program is increased. Conversely, the degree program can thereby place emphasis on relevant topics for the respective professional field. Key Questions: What network arises from the planning of the degree program? According to which criteria do cooperation partnerships arise from this network? For which topics do cooperative partnerships arise and what benefits does the degree program draw from them? Which inputs resulted for the curriculum from the coooperation partnerships? How is a long-term cooperation maintained with the cooperation partners and which perspectives result from the partnership?

Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria: Targeted cooperations are established from the network of the degree program with a benefit and a long-term perspective for all involved. Inputs from the co-operation are used for the (further) development as well as the implementation of curricula.

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Evaluation: Qualitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment Quantitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment: >

fulfilled / not fulfilled

The number of active cooperations in one academic year

The number of projects with cooperation partners (e.g. number of theses in cooperation with companies) in an academic year

Standard 13: “Incorporate research findings into the curriculum” Description: Research and development is not directly visible in the curriculum, but the various levels of research activities influence the content of the curriculum, e.g. research results are used by instructors in the classroom, within the degree program students are involved in research projects or explore a research topic in the context of the master’s thesis. Reasons: Results from research and development influence the actuality and the high quality of the curriculum. Key Questions: How can theoretical research content be taught in a practice-oriented manner? Which conditions (e.g. time/structure/sequence of modules or courses) for teachers and students need to be considered in order to facilitate research activities in the degree program? How is it ensured that new research results are incorporated in the teaching of theory-based professional decision-making skills? How can it be ensured that the course content is always oriented towards latest knowledge of the subject (e.g. use rather broad course designations and content descriptions in the curriculum in order to also be able to make updates without the need for “amendments”)?

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

At what degree level, in correspondence with the “Dublin Descriptors”, is a move from exclusive reception towards independent research to be strived for?

Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria: Concrete processes and communication structures exist in the degree program that ensure the understandable transfer of research results into the instruction.

Evaluation: Qualitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment Quantitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment: >

4.3.

fulfilled / not fulfilled

Evaluierung

Standard 14: “Ensure the skill acquisition of students” Description: The teaching content and desired skill acquisition of the modules/courses as well as the embedding in the module structure are communicated to the students at the beginning of the semester. The instructor is aware of which sub-skills should be taught in the course and bases their instruction on the teaching content defined in the curriculum. The didactic approach and the design of the performance evaluation are appropriate for the defined skill acquisition of the module. At the end of the module/course of the skill acquisition of the students is assessed. Reasons: The assessment of the skill acquisition of the students after each module/course ensures the “central theme” of the concept for the degree program and thus the outcome orientation of the curriculum is ensured.

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Key Questions: How is the information concerning the teaching content and the skill orientation provided to students and teachers? How is it ensured that the module content and performance evaluation are in alignment and are appropriate for the intended skill acquisition? How is it ensured that the didactic concept of the course and skill acquisition is supported in the module? How is the skill acquisition of the students assessed? How is it ensured that the students can apply the content of the degree program in practice?

Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria: The requirements for skill acquisition placed on the students and istructors are transparent. The content of the module as well as the course and the modular architecture are coordinated and reflected upon. The didactic concept supports the skill acquisition of the students and is appropriately reviewed.

Evaluation: Qualitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment Quantitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment: >

fulfilled / not fulfilled

Standard 15: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Practice a constructive feedback cultureâ&#x20AC;? Description: Feedback on the concept for the degree program is reviewed. Corresponding points are discussed with the affected persons and common approaches to further development are defined. Substantive changes initiate a redesign of the curriculum.

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Reasons: An actively practiced feedback culture strengthens the association with the degree program and the acceptance and understanding of all those involved. The satisfaction of the stakeholders increases with the possibility of being actively involved in the design. The perspective is widened and thus the options for action increase. Key Questions: What feedback instruments (degree course-specific as well as universitywide) enable feedback to be given on the concept for the degree program? How is willingness to give feedback encouraged? Is the feedback anchored in the process steps? Are there topics that are discussed systematically? What consequences are provided for deviations of the implementation from the planning: >

Workload evaluation

Alignment within a module

Skill acquisition

Didactics

Module structure

Other topics

How are the consequences drawn from the results of the feedback published?

Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria: Appropriate feedback instruments exist for the range of stakeholders which promote a proactive introduction of diverse opinions. If necessary, relevant key points of the concept for the degree program will be fully reflected upon with regard to the consequences. Through changes due to new requirements, the curriculum is further developed. The feedback procedure is outlined transparently to the stakeholders.

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

Evaluation: Qualitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment Quantitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment: >

fulfilled / not fulfilled

Standard 16: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Develop common knowledgeâ&#x20AC;? Description: Individual knowledge about curricula is tied to people. Through dialogue, a broadening of the knowledge base occurs for the benefit of everyone. It is important for a university of applied sciences to sustainably ensure experiences and strategically further develop joint key points. Reasons: This provides those responsible for the curriculum work with an additional impetus and a common knowledge of the university of applied sciences arises. Key Questions: In which processes is the knowledge of curriculum work anchored? How are changes in the curriculum documented? How is it determined that the information for the curriculum development is consistent with the state-of-the-art? What internal and external information sources are the basis for the curriculum work? How is a regular dialogue on curriculum topics ensured?

Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria: The documentation of the creation and further development of the curriculum/curricula of the degree program is structured and accessible to multiple people. University-wide processes and applicable documents are

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

used and supplemented for the specific degree program. Knowledge of curriculum work is updated by internal and external contacts and information sources.

Evaluation: Qualitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment Quantitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment: >

fulfilled / not fulfilled

Standard 17: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Ensure national and international comparabilityâ&#x20AC;? Description: The aligned national and international orientation of the degree program is controlled long-term in a structured manner, e.g. through a targeted benchmarking with comparable educational institutes and educational programs. The relationships with cooperation partners are diversified and sustainable. Reasons: The education program is anchored long-term in the education market and the need for change in the curriculum is recognized quickly through comparison and opportunities for reflection. Key Questions: How is the national and international comparability of the degree program ensured? With which national and international educational institutions or education programs is benchmarking conducted? Which criteria are considered in the selection of benchmarking partners? How often is benchmarking conducted? Which organizational forms of cooperations exist?

STANDARDS FOR CURRICULA

How often do changes to the curriculum or the concept for the degree program arise from the benchmarking? How does benchmarking contribute to a redesign of the concept for the degree program? Is there any additional international certification?

Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteria: Comparable national and international educational institutions or education programs are selected according to defined criteria. National and international comparisons are conducted regularly. Long-term contact is maintained with the relevant institutions. The results from the comparisons contribute to changes in the curriculum or to a redesign of the concept for the degree program.

Evaluation: Qualitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment Quantitative measurement of the criteria fulfillment: >

fulfilled / not fulfilled

The number of national and international educational institutions or education programs with which benchmarking is conducted with regard to the curricula in an academic year?

5. Anchoring in the Processes of the FH Campus Wien Susanna Boldrino

ANCHORING IN THE PROCESSES OF THE FH CAMPUS WIEN

The development of the FH Campus Wien began in 2001 and since then has been growing steadily. Since 2009, 14 locations have been combined in one main building and this is a visible sign of the transition of the FH Campus Wien from a pioneering phase into a differentiation phase. An organization in the pioneering phase is flexible and characterized by improvisation. Employees are generalists and services and products can be quickly adjusted to the needs of the customers. The organization is outcome oriented, and the pioneering company tends rather not to know planning and organizational tools. In the differentiation phase people, processes and work methods are now brought in line with a precisely described standard. There are organizational charts, job descriptions, forms, etc. 40 In 2008, a strategy was developed at the FH Campus Wien that through common measures forms a path up in the individual organizational units. Since January 2011, the FH Campus Wien has a new organizational diagram based on the principles of a process and project-oriented matrix organization. Processes are operationalized and the results are subject to regular monitoring. The results of this monitoring flow back into planning and management decisions for the university of applied sciences and its processes. When a curriculum is viewed as described in the chapter “Preliminary Considerations – Curriculum: A Success Factor?” on page Fehler! Textmarke nicht definiert. as a strategic success factor of a university and thus has a decisive influence on the business success, then requirements are derived from this for the design, control and optimization of the process objectives. 41 The applicable processes at the FH Campus Wien that affect the (further) development of curricula are therefore divided into three processes for which the requirements and process goals are different. »

The process, “Development of a Degree Program”, guarantees that through the closely integrated cooperation of teams a curriculum or an entire degree program can be created in a short period of time. The process addresses among other things the following key points: o

Development of the core elements of a degree program (professional field, qualifications profile, curriculum with

See Patzak, Gerold / Wagner, Karl W.: Performance Excellence, pp. 45-53, Munich, 2007 See Schmelzer, Hermann J. / Sesselmann, Wolfgang: Geschäftsprozessmanagement in der Praxis, pp. 99-100, Munich, 2008

ANCHORING IN THE PROCESSES OF THE FH CAMPUS WIEN

modules, didactics) by a development team consisting of FH internal and external experts, students and graduates and various stakeholders from the degree program environment Feedback loops between a core team (part of the development team) that develops the content and the development team that discusses, optimizes and decides upon the drafts Constant involvement of the research institute that prepares the needs and acceptance analysis for the degree program in the flow of information and integration of the (interim) results in the ongoing development

The process, “Perform a Re-accreditation”, aims to significantly further develop a degree program. After the new amendment of the FHStG has been adopted, this process will be adapted to the newly outlined legal framework. The basic principles of the process, “Develop a New Degree Program”, remain; the responsibilities are shifted and the approach is adapted.

The third process, “Make Changes in the Curriculum”, which is still under development, is concerned with the continuous improvement of the curriculum, namely to optimize the curriculum and to ensure the integration of new developments. Curricula are subject to continuous improvement and adjustment processes during the ongoing academic operations. The evaluation results of the individual courses, as well as the discussions with the degree program colleagues, thus offer important feedback.

All three processes are based on the requirement for the quality assurance of the curricula. The developed standards for curricula are therefore incorporated in the processes and anchored there as further applicable documents.

6. Summary of the Results and Outlook Susanna Boldrino

SUMMARY OF THE RESULTS AND OUTLOOK

6.1.

The Results

Based on the hypothesis that quality criteria for curricula exist that can be evaluated quantitatively and/or qualitatively and serve as the basis for a continued process of further development, a comparison was made of the processes for the development and implementation of curricula in four European countries. In addition, interviews were conducted with the department heads of the FH Campus Wien and experts for curriculum development and partners from six European universities. The university comparison showed that >

despite different approaches due to various legal and policy frameworks in the four countries, universities face similar challenges in their curriculum design and implementation possibilities;

the objectives of universities and universities of applied sciences differ only in the orientation towards a specific professional field (universities of applied sciences) or a scientific discipline (university), but not explicitly in terms of content, structures and processes for curricula;

different standards (based on the quality criteria) cannot be derived for bachelor's and master's curricula or for full-time and part-time curricula.

As different as the term curriculum is presented in the literature, and as different as the various frameworks are, so consistent is the curriculum seen from the viewpoints of the universities interviewed. Content, structure and process-oriented characteristics are the same and can be identified as standards. From this, it can be concluded that despite the autonomy of universities and the diversity of the degree programs, it is possible to optimize the (further) development of curricula on the basis of standards. 6.2.

The Standards

From the categorization of the structured interviews, 17 standards were derived that were assigned to a continuous development process. This process is a cycle that consists of three recurrent phases of Design/Redesign, Performance and Evaluation. The standards are described in terms of content and are justified. Key questions stimulate reflection on the curriculum. Fulfilled/Not fulfilled statements about the â&#x20AC;&#x153;Rules for the Fulfillment of the Criteriaâ&#x20AC;? and the to an extent supplementation through

SUMMARY OF THE RESULTS AND OUTLOOK

indicators or key performance indicators allow for a quantitative evaluation. The answers to the key questions enable a more in-depth qualitative examination of the curriculum. The combination of qualitative and quantitative evaluation provides an overall picture of the curriculum that is transparent with regard to the quality of the content, structures and processes. 6.3.

The Added Value

The overall picture of the curriculum resulting from the application of the standards enables a differentiated approach: on the one hand, the comparison of the relevant curriculum during the course of the further development process, and on the other hand, the comparison of different curricula at a specific time as an overall portfolio. From this overall portfolio, it is possible to derive measures for optimization. The structured approach during the (further) development of a curriculum brings the certainty that new advances in the professional field are integrated on the basis of the respective current legal frameworks. During academic operation, different people adopt certain tasks that go beyond mere teaching and contribute to the qualitative further development of a degree program. If these activities are based on the standards, they are bundled and made apparent and continuously flow into the further development process of the degree program. This enables a continuous further development, which replaces a one-time status survey. It is agreed upon that a common view on quality criteria for curricula through standards should be strived for, however, a standardization of degree programs is to be seen as a disadvantage. Access to a common quality assurance through standards, as opposed to common guidelines, ensures each degree program the necessary individual degree of flexibility in the framework of its continuous further development process.

6.4.

The Future

The project â&#x20AC;&#x153;Success Factor Curriculumâ&#x20AC;? ends on July 15th, 2011. Due to the planned restructuring of the legal framework in Austria, the work on the standards became of more importance than originally believed. The standards

SUMMARY OF THE RESULTS AND OUTLOOK

represent an offer for a structured quality assurance for the transfer of the reaccreditation of curricula to the internal responsibilities of the universities of applied sciences in Austria. As the next step, the project team therefore plans a phase for testing the standards in practice with several degree programs, followed by an evaluation and optimization of the drafts. Furthermore, the cooperation which was begun with the six universities from Germany, Finland, Austria and Switzerland could lead to a regular exchange of experiences with the standards and a joint further development.

THANK YOU

Thank You Many people were involved in this study and I wish to extend my deepest thanks to each and every colleague for their contributions during the course of the last months as well as for the many helpful inputs, additional elaborations and critical observations. It is very important to me that this work be seen as a joint effort of the FH Campus Wien and our project partners. In particular, I would like to thank the project team, who went through the entire process with me, introduced many new ideas and evaluated the content. We had many interesting discussions. Our Chancellor, who supported us in terms of content, was always available to offer all his expertise, was also able to make appointments possible on short notice, and who read the many drafts. Thank you! I also appreciate the confidence put in me on the part of the Executive Management which enabled me to lead this project. I thank you for entrusting me with this project. For the study, I had a special colleague at my side. She conducted the interviews, evaluated them and drafted the internal and external reports. A colleague, who through very exciting and also difficult discussions with me, drafted the standards and key questions. As project coordinator, she relieved me of much of the project work. Quite simply, without her, I would not have been able to achieve these results. It was amazing working together. A big thank you. It was also an enormous pleasure working with the universities and experts who as project partners shared their thoughts on curriculum with us. We were received so warmly by everyone, and despite the tight time constraints, the people gave us their full attention and showed great interest. My sincerest thank you for the interesting and wonderful hours spent together. I hope that we will remain in contact. I would also further like to express my respect and admiration to the department heads of the FH Campus Wien for the professionalism with which our curricula are designed. Thank you for your cooperation during the accreditations. Sincerely, Susanna Boldrino

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

About the authors Mag.a(FH) Susanna Boldrino is the Head of Organisational and Project Development at FH Campus Wien. She studied „European Economic and Corporate Governance“ at the University of Applied Sciences BFI Vienna. The Organisational and Project Development Department ist responsible fort he Project Management Office, research service, organizational development, strategy and strategic controlling, as well as the development of degree programs and § 14a courses. Mag.a Ruth Zach is a project developer at the Organisational and Project Development Department at the FH Campus Wien. She completed her degree in „Pedagogy and Special and Curative Education“ at the University of Vienna and is a certified project manager. She is primarily responsible for degree program development.

7. Appendix

APPENDIX

University Comparison General Information for Germany, Finland, Austria and Switzerland Data from the Federal Statistical Office Germany, Statistics Finland, Statistics Austria and the Federal Office of Statistics Switzerland serve as the basis for the following figures and tables. The data on the total population of each country is based on the Eurostat information. Information on accreditation procedures were researched at the accreditation authorities of the respective country. Percentage of Students According to University Type to the Total Population

Figure 1: Percentage of Students Accourding to University Type to the Total Population; Germany, Finland, Austria, Switzerland

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Percentage of Students to Total Population

Germany

Finland

Austria

Switzerland

University of Applied Sciences

0,79%

2,52%

0,44%

0,89%

University

1,73%

3,15%

3,27%

1,63%

2,59% 81.802.257

5,67% 5.351.427

3,97% 8.375.806

2,53% 7.785.806

Total Toal Population

Table 1: Percentage of Students to Total Population Germany, Finland, Austria, Switzerland

Students 2009/10

Germany

Finland

Austria

Switzerland

644.778

135.033

36.914

69.676

University

1.416.379

168.475

273.542

126.940

Total

2.121.190

303.508

332.624

196.616

University of Applied Sciences

Table 2: Percentage of Students to Total Population Germany, Finland, Austria, Switzerland

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General Data Germany Verteilung der Studierenden nach Hochschultypen in Deutschland, Stand 2009/10

Distribution of Students in Germany According to University Type Status as of 2009/10 University of Applied Sciences

Fachhochschule 31% 31%

Fachhochschule UAS University

Universit채t

University 69% 69%

Figure 2: Distribution of Students in Germany According to University Type Status as of 2009/10

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Development of Student Numbers at Universities of Applied Sciences in Germany 700.000

600.000

500.000

400.000

300.000

200.000

100.000

0 Jahr 2000

Jahr 2001

Jahr 2002

Jahr 2003

Jahr 2004

Jahr 2005

Jahr 2006

Jahr 2007

Jahr 2008

Jahr 2009

Figure 3: Development of Student Numbers at Universities of Applied Sciences in Germany

Accreditation of Degree Programs in Germany Accreditation Bodies Agencies are accredited by the Accreditation Council (Foundation for the Accreditation of Study Programs in Germany), which in turn accredit degree programs. Accredited agencies are ACQUIN, AHPGS, AKAST, ASIIN, AQA, AQAS evalag, FIBAA, OAQ, ZEvA. The Accreditation Committee is composed of several representatives from national and international universities, representatives from the provinces and the competent federal ministries. The German accreditation system is decentralized.

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Accreditation Process »

Program Accreditation - Accreditation of bachelor’s and master’s degree programs, multi-stage process based on the principle of peer review

System accreditation, accreditation of quality assurance systems: multistage process based on the principle of peer review

Accreditation of agencies - under consideration of the regulations of the Accreditation Council for the accreditation of agencies by the Accreditation Council, regular accreditation and reaccreditation of the agencies

Links http://www.akkreditierungsrat.de

General Data Finland Verteilung der Studierenden nach Hochschultypen in Finnland, Stand 2009/10 Distribution of Students in Finnland According to University Type Status as of 2009/10

University of Applied Sciences

Fachhochschule 44% 44%

Fachhochschule UAS University

Universität Universität University 56%56%

Figure 4: Distribution of Students in Finland According to University Type Status as of 2009/10

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Development ofFachhochschulen Student Numbers Studierende an at Universities of Applied Sciences in Finland 140.000 135.000 130.000 125.000 120.000 115.000 110.000 105.000 100.000 Jahr 2000 Jahr 2001 Jahr 2002 Jahr 2003 Jahr 2004 Jahr 2005 Jahr 2006 Jahr 2007 Jahr 2008 Jahr 2009 Figure 5: Development of Student Numbers at Universities of Applied Sciences in Finland

Accreditation of Degree Programs in Finland Accreditation Bodies The Ministry of Education commissions the FINHEEC (The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council) with the evaluation of degree programs, and upon a positive decision accredits the degree programs themselves. The FINHEEC is an independent body of experts that assists the universities, the universities of applied sciences and the Ministry of Education on issues of evaluation and thus contributes to the improvement of academic instruction. The committee is composed of 12 people from various universities, universities of applied sciences, students and people from the professional field, and works for the Ministry of Education.

APPENDIX

Accreditation Process The FINHEEC has no rigid model for the evaluation process. The methods used vary from case to case. »

Thematic evaluations and evaluation of educational areas (see program accreditation), the area or the topic must be important for education and society, must be growing or developing quickly, or must be problematic.

Audits of quality assurance systems of universities and universities of applied sciences (system accreditation)

Evaluation of “centers of excellence” in the educational area

Links http://www.kka.fi/ http://www.minedu.fi/

General Data Austria

der Studierenden nach Hochschultypen in Österreich, Stand 2009/10 DistributionVerteilung of Students in Austria According to University Type Status as of 2009/10 Fachhochschule University of Applied Sciences 12% 12%

Fachhochschule UAS University

Universität

Universität University 88% 88%

Figure 6: Distribution of Students in Austria According to University Type Status as of 2009/10

APPENDIX

Studierende an Development ofFachhochschulen Student Numbers at Universities of Applied Sciences in Austria 40.000 35.000 30.000 25.000 20.000 15.000 10.000 5.000 0 Jahr 2000 Jahr 2001 Jahr 2002 Jahr 2003 Jahr 2004 Jahr 2005 Jahr 2006 Jahr 2007 Jahr 2008 Jahr 2009 Figure 7: Development of Student Numbers at Universities of Applied Sciences in Austria

Accreditation of Degree Programs in Austria Accreditation Bodies The Austrian Accreditation Council is responsible for accreditation at private universities. The Council of Universities of Applied Sciences (FHR) is responsible for universities of applied sciences. The FHR is an agency that is responsible for external quality assurance (accreditation and evaluation) in the Austrian university of applied sciences sector. The FHR is composed of 16 members, whereby half of the members must be recognized in the scientific field through the publication of a postdoctoral thesis; the other half must have evidence of several years of

APPENDIX

experience in a professional field relevant to the university of applied sciences degree program. The members of the FHR are appointed by the Federal Minister for Science and Research, whereby four members are to be appointed on the basis of proposals of the Advisory Council for Economic and Social Affairs. The term lasts for three years, whereby a member may be re-appointed for a second term immediately following their first term. In accordance with the constitutional provision, the members of the FHR are free to exercise their functions without being bound by any instructions. Accreditation Process In the Austrian university of applied sciences sector, the following external quality assurance procedures are conducted: Initial and re-accreditation of degree programs and evaluation of institutions. The establishment of a new degree program requires accreditation by the FHR which is valid for a maximum of five years. Before the end of the accreditation period, a re-accreditation of the degree program is required. Courses in accordance with ยง 14a FHStG are approved by the FH Council by a decision not to ban. The university of applied sciences institutions are generally subjected to an institutional evaluation in the 6-year cycle (see regulations of the Council of Universities of Applied Sciences on the evaluation in the Austrian university of applied sciences sector), with an emphasis on the university internal assurance and development of the quality of the degree programs. The results of the institutional evaluation are taken into consideration in the re-accreditation process. Public universities do not require accreditation. They have internal quality assurance systems.

Links http://www.akkreditierungsrat.at http://www.fhr.ac.at

APPENDIX

General Data Switzerland Verteilung der Studierenden nach Hochschultypen in der Schweiz, Stand 2009/10

Distribution of Students in Switzerland According to University Type Status as of 2009/10

University of Applied Sciences Fachhochschule 35% 35%

Fachhochschule UAS University

Universit채t

University 65%65%

Figure 8: Distribution of Students in Switzerland According to University Type Status as of 2009/10

APPENDIX

Development Student Numbers Studierende of an Fachhochschulen at Universities of Applied Sciences in Switzerland 80.000 70.000 60.000 50.000 40.000 30.000 20.000 10.000 0 Jahr 2000 Jahr 2001 Jahr 2002 Jahr 2003 Jahr 2004 Jahr 2005 Jahr 2006 Jahr 2007 Jahr 2008 Jahr 2009

Figure 9: Development of Student Numbers at Universities of Applied Sciences in Switzerland

Accreditation of Degree Programs in Switzerland Accreditation Bodies The accreditation of universities of applied sciences and their degree programs has existed in the university of applied sciences sector since 2005. The Federal Office for Professional Education and Technology (BBT) at the Federal Department of Economic Affairs (=DEA, see ministry) is responsible for the accreditation of the universities of applied sciences. In 2008, the Federal Department of Economic Affairs approved five agencies which, under commission of the DEA, may evaluate applications for accreditation (OAQ ACQUIN, AHPGS, ASIIN FIBAA). The agencies evaluate the applications for accreditation according to standards that are consistent with the legal requirements of the Federal Government and the European standards

APPENDIX

(ENQA standards). The evaluation then takes place within the framework of a three-stage process applied European-wide. With the help of the accreditation recommendation of the respective agency and the opinion of the Federal Commission for Universities of Applied Sciences (FCUAS), the DEA finally decides on accreditation, accreditation with conditions or denial. Accreditation Process »

Program accreditation - accreditation of degree programs of universities of applied sciences.

Institutional accreditation - accreditation of universities of applied sciences, similar to the system accreditation, only that master’s degree programs must still be approved by the DEA. Innovative bachelor’s degree programs that cannot be found on the list of the DEA must also be approved by the Federal Government.

The system is Switzerland is, however, going through a transition. Trends point towards a standardized quality assurance through an accreditation authority for the entire tertiary sector. Links http://www.bbt.admin.ch http://www.oaq.ch

Information on Partner Universities Germany Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz http://www.uni-mainz.de/ Number of Students: 35.300 (Status as of 2010/11) Degree Programs/Departments: Theology

APPENDIX

Media and Sports Law, Management and Economics Medicine Philosophy and Philology Translation, Linguistics and Cultural Studies History and Cultural Studies Physics, Mathematics and Computer Science Chemistry, Pharmaceutics and Geosciences Biology School of Music, Academy of Fine Arts FH M眉nster https://www.fh-muenster.de/index.php Number of Students: ca. 9750 (Status as of 2010) Degree Programs/Departments: Architecture Civil Engineering Chemical Engineering Design Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Energy 路 Buildings 路 Environment Mechanical Engineering Home Economics and Nutritional Sciences Nursing and Health Engineering Physics Social Studies Business Administration

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2 Central scientific units: Institute of Teacher training for Vocational Education Institute of Business Management in Technology

Finland Oulu University of Applied Sciences http://www.oamk.fi/english/ Number of Students: ca. 9000 (Status as of 2010/11) School of: Business and Information Management Health and Social Care Engineering Engineering and Business Renewable Natural Resources Music Dance and Media Vocational Teacher Education Vaasan Ammattikorkeakoulu (VAMK) http://www.puv.fi/en/ Number of Students: ca. 3500 (Status as of 2010/11) Faculties: Business Economics and Tourism Health Care and Social Services Technology and Communication

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Austria FH Campus Wien http://www.fh-campuswien.ac.at Number of Students: 3162 (Status as of 2009/10) Departments: Applied Life Science Engineering Construction Engineering Health Social Work Public Sector

FH Salzburg http://www.fh-salzburg.ac.at/ Number of Students: 2262 (Status as of 2010) Departments: Information Technologies Wood & Biogene Technologies Business & Tourism Media & Design Health & Social Work

Switzerland Z端richer Hochschule f端r Angewandte Wissenschaften (ZHAW) http://www.zhaw.ch/ Number of Students: ca. 9000 (Status as of 2010/11)

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Departments: Architecture, Design and Civil Engineering Health Professions Applied Linguistics School of Engineering School of Management and Law Life Sciences and Facility Management Social Work Applied Psychology

What Differences Can Be Determined from the University Comparison? Education Sector-specific Differences »

Market shares of universities of applied sciences

Relative sizes of the sectors

Different growth rates of the university of applied sciences sector

Country-specific structures of the accreditation landscape with different actors and different degrees of centralization

Legal requirements

University-specific Differences between the Project Partners »

Differences in the Number of students Sector affiliation, university of applied sciences:university (5:1) Departments (number, concentration and types) Financial framework conditions Strategic orientation Organizational structure and process orientation Regional versus international orientation

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Conclusion Both the market and sector-specific conditions as well as the characteristics of the organizations of the individual universities display a country-specific differentiation.

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Mission Statements of the Partner Universities University Mainz From mission statement to strategy In making the transition to a structured and profiled major university, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz sees its task and competitive opportunity in attracting the best researchers, teachers and students, as well as generating funding, which is becoming scarcer all the time. To this end, the university initiated a comprehensive process of reform in 1999, for which the Center for the Advancement of Higher Education (CHE) awarded it the title "best practice university 2002." The entire process of reform centers on realizing excellence in the various fields: as an outstanding research center with a committed teaching staff, a customer-oriented administration and, finally, efficient and professional management. In this context, there is no conflict between "excellence" and "size". On the contrary: Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz views its size and the multiplicity of its disciplines as positive, profile generating aspects providing opportunities and scope for development and interaction. The profiling and positioning of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz is conducted on the basis of a strategic concept that was approved by the senate. Starting with the mission statement, a concept has been devised that guides the development of the university as a whole over the next three to five years. Science and research: excellence through concentration An international research location with a clear profile: In science and research, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz consistently and conscientiously pursues the strategy of promoting excellence. The most important building block for attaining prominence as a center of scientific expertise and outstanding high-level research is the bundling of research potentials by establishing and strengthening focus areas. Ensuring quality is also a key function: Regular internal and external evaluations are designed to reveal potentials for scientific development and to promote and ensure quality in science and research.

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Studying and teaching: commitment to students The increasing international character of the academic labor market presents new requirements for the professional qualification of college graduates and demands courses of studies that are increasingly differentiated and practiceoriented. Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz takes these developments into account by differentiating and modularizing the structure of its courses of study. In addition, one of the university’s central tasks is to continually improve the quality of teaching and the conditions of learning. Further scientific education: lifelong learning In our information and knowledge-based society, lifelong learning – researchbased and research-related – is a necessity. In light of this fact, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz is enhancing the professional focus of its further education programs and expanding the range of market-oriented classes that are offered. At the same time, the continuing education programs continue to profit from the university’s potentials: the latest and most innovative level of knowledge available, the interdisciplinary integration of content and the opportunities to transfer directly to professional practice. In addition to research and teaching, the two traditional tasks of a university, the third pillar of the University of Mainz is scientific further education. Internationalization: cosmopolitan outlook as a hallmark Europeanization and globalization are changing the political and economic environment. That is why Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz views internationalization as an interdisciplinary requirement for research, teaching, continuing education and administration. For example, the university is further expanding its program of smoothly functioning international partnerships, improving international joint ventures in the research, teaching and continuing education departments, and increasing student mobility. Opening up the university: "The experience of cooperation" As a university of the Rhine-Main region, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz fulfills its responsibilities in the context of the national and

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international network of science, education and culture. It sees itself as a competent partner interacting with the arenas of science, politics, art culture and society. Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz supports joint ventures with, among others, the City of Mainz, the State Theater of Mainz, various educational institutions and media outlets, but also notably with schools and corporations. In cooperation with its partners, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz has developed a wealth of new initiatives and has optimized existing concepts. The process of reform: performance and autonomy "Securing performance – gaining autonomy" – this was the goal Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz set for itself with the process of reform it initiated in 1999. What is background for these measures? Detailed government control and regulation are increasingly being replaced by steering based on general guidelines and targets. This provides institutions of higher education with substantial leeway to design and improve their programs and activities. The university views this autonomy and self-determination in a two-fold sense – as freedom to make decisions, but also as the ability and empowerment to make decisions. In order to be able to responsibly utilize these latitudes for shaping and designing activities, the university must optimize its organizational forms and management structures, and also acquire new areas of expertise.

Mission Statement of Münster University of Applied Sciences With its educational opportunities and the research it undertakes, Münster University of Applied Sciences is highly committed to the members of our society. Highly competitive In teaching, research and knowledge transfer, we combine expert knowledge with methodological and social competence. Backed by a network of active

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partnerships, we are consolidating our leading position amongst the top German higher education institutions. Inquisitive and enterprising We have a clear-sighted understanding of the ever-changing professional world and private lives. This applies equally to the academic landscape, which we actively supply with innovative ideas. We consider openness to the proposals and impetus of others to be a fundamental premise of our actions. Sustainable Thinking today about tomorrow constitutes a living reality for us. We always take into account the long-term economic, social and ecological impact of the decisions we make, and are fully aware of the responsibility we have towards future generations. Our Mission Statement expresses the way in which the university sees itself. It is implemented at all levels and in all spheres of activity. Our cooperative style of leadership is an expression of our democratic self-conception. On this basis, and whilst fully aware of its social responsibility, the university follows five maxims. Practice orientation Science-based learning and research are practice-oriented if they are in touch with the practical side of things. Our academic teaching is geared towards the demands of today's and tomorrow's occupational fields; researchers derive their topics from application-oriented problems. In the process, we take into account the expectations of practitioners, and have a shaping influence on them, too. Interdisciplinarity The tasks of modern society are complex, and can only rarely be assigned to individual academic disciplines. The requirement for comprehensive solutions is that the manifold approaches of subject areas are brought together. Which is why interdisciplinary cooperation in teaching and research is a matter of course for us.

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Interculturality Dialogue between different cultures requires open-mindedness towards the unknown and treating one another with respect. We overcome language and cultural barriers in our everyday work, and also belong to a global network of cooperation partners. Conveying the cross-cultural skills required for this is an equally important matter to us as integrating our international students. Equal opportunities The university views the diversity of people as an enrichment. For this reason, we are strongly committed to ensuring comprehensive access to our offerings - regardless of gender, ethnic or social origin, religion, ideology, disability, age or sexual identity. Commitment to service The actions and decisions taken by universities must be oriented towards the legitimate interests and needs of current and future students, employees and partners. For this reason, a strong service philosophy is an essential aspect of our culture of quality.

Mission statement of Vaason Ammattikorkeakoulu (VAMK) Our Mission Our concept is to educate international professionals and achieve results in research and development activities that bring additional value to the area. Our Vision Vamk, University of Applied Sciences, is the educator of professionals and regional developer. Our objective is to be among the five best universities of applied sciences as measured by Ministry of Education barometers.

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Our Values Expertise We educate experts for working life and we ensure our own knowhow and expertise through continuous learning. Customer-orientation We anticipate and know the needs and expectations of our customers, and through high quality operations, we will meet those needs and expectations. Continuos development We will give additional value to the Vaasa region developing our operations persistently and innovatively. Mutual respect We will build mutual confidence by respecting everybody as a human being and we will openly give positive and constructive feedback.

Mission Statement FH Campus Wien Positioning As a University of Applied Sciences we offer a wide spectrum of different specialist disciplines, future- and practically orientated and scientifically based teaching, research and further education at an academic level. Core expertise Our core expertise is the development, mediation and integration of technical, methods and social competences. We thereby orient ourselves to the requirements of the students, the economy and society and set fresh impulses.

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Image We are among the most important universities of applied sciences in Austria. Our achievements comply with extremely high standards. Our motivated staff are our most important resource. They orientate themselves to the needs and requirements of the students in partnership with them. Networking At our location in the centre of Europe we are taking advantage of synergies between the different technical disciplines and are building a national and international network with strategic partners. Gender Mainstreaming and Diversity Management flow into all areas of teaching, research and development. They also constitute an integrating part of communication inwards and outwards. The University of Applied Sciences thereby fulfils its sociopolitical responsibility.

Vision of the FH Campus Wien Network - Improve â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Expand We are a respected European university of applied sciences which is integrated in a vital network of federal, provincial, other universities of applied sciences and universities, as well as companies and organizations in the private and public sectors.

Mission of the FH Campus Wien Our mission is to contribute to a national and a European qualification offensive. A special concern of ours is ensuring the economic and social location Austria, with particular consideration to Vienna and its surroundings (Centrope). Derived from this, we define our service areas as education, further education, research and development and scientific services. The awareness that we can only fulfill this task as an â&#x20AC;&#x153;excellentâ&#x20AC;? university of applied sciences, determines our strategic planning and our daily actions.

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Mission Statement of the University of Applied Sciences Salzburg The University of Applied Sciences Salzburg Guarantees Quality The University of Applied Sciences offers the students a sound university education with high standards of quality built upon the principles of scientific excellence, sustainability and actuality in the fields of Information Technologies, Wood & Biogene Technologies, Business & Tourism, Media & Design, Health & Social Work. Full-time, scientifically qualified teachers ensure the academic foundation for instruction and research, just as qualified teachers from the professional field guarantee the actuality of the practical training. Each and every employee contributes to the quality of the University of Applied Sciences Salzburg through their outstanding professional and social skills and personal commitment. The University of Applied Sciences Salzburg further develops their quality continually by increasing effectiveness and efficiency.

The University of Applied Sciences Salzburg Promotes the Potential of its Students and Employees In their areas of expertise, the University of Applied Sciences Salzburg is an interdisciplinary thought leader and a driving force in regional and national economic, scientific and social development. The modular curriculum ensures students individual flexibility and allows a special orientation towards the increasing competition and the expanded EU labor market. The primary aim is, in addition to the transfer of expertise, the promotion of personal potential and skills, and the ability to act with responsibility, self-organization and social competence. This applies for the students, teachers and UAS-Services employees. The University of Applied Sciences Salzburg promotes a commitment to lifelong learning.

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The University of Applied Sciences Salzburg Leads to Success Through Knowledge As a knowledge center, the University of Applied Sciences Salzburg provides not only the companies and institutions with soundly educated workers, but also promotes the transfer of knowledge essential for remaining competitive by cooperating with international and national companies and institutions, universities and colleges in all areas of expertise. Their network function is supported by their active membership in the networks of the Salzburg Chamber of Labor and the Salzburg Chamber of Commerce as well as in other national and international networks. The University of Applied Sciences Salzburg manages knowledge by actively conducting research, and structuring existing knowledge and making it widely available.

Mission Statement of the Zurich University of Applied Sciences Values We respect the dignity of every person and protect their integrity. We are committed to equal opportunities. We are loyal and reliable. We take responsibility for the environment, society and economy. We set high standards of quality for our work. We communicate openly. We are open to change. Mission The ZHAW is the leading university in the field of applied sciences in the greater Zurich area. The ZHAW also acts as an entrepreneur. The scientifically based, practice-oriented degree programs offered by ZHAW provide professional competencies and are oriented towards the professional ability of the graduates.

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The ZHAW instruction and research adheres to international standards. The ZHAW empowers its graduates to be successful on the national and international labor market and in cross-cultural work environments. The ZHAW maintains a close cooperation with companies, institutions, universities and research institutes both nationally and internationally. The ZHAW unites several disciplines engaged in disciplinary and interdisciplinary instruction and research under one roof. Profiling Characteristics The ZHAW distinguishes itself in the educational landscape through the six characteristics of internationality, interdisciplinarity, selectivity, personal development, social anchoring and cost-effectiveness in the educational landscape.

Guideline-Supporting Interview internal Brief Description of Interview Partner Interview partner: Interviewer: Study program: Experience in curricular creation: Do you know the process description â&#x20AC;&#x17E;Develop a new study programâ&#x20AC;&#x153;? Initial Question: What is your experience with the development of the curriculum? CURRENT STATE Analysis Which criteria were important for you in developing the curriculum?

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What members of your study program team or which persons of your university are involved in curriculum work (what do the responsible persons contribute)? How do you assemble your development team? How do you assure the curriculum can be completed in a given time? What concepts and theories form the didactical framework of your curriculum? Did you include presence and absentee phases into your curriculum? (which models, what support is necessary) What criteria do you apply for assigning course type and group size? How do you assure the graduatesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; acceptance at future employers? Did the national and international comparisons or orientations play a role in designing the curriculum? Were curricula from other national universities and from universities of selected European countries used for subject comparison? Which legal, organizational, and administrative framework conditions influence the quality of the curriculum? How do you deal with this? What role did cost considerations play?

What features of the curriculum characterize your fulltime/work-study program? Which of these characteristics do you believe influence the quality of the study program? Which characteristics or special features do you consider when designing curricula for bachelor or master study programs? Did the curriculum prove as workable during course planning? How do you advance your curriculum over time? Does feedback from teaching play a role in the advancement of the curriculum?

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What effect do new research results have on the advancement of the curriculum? How do you document changes? How do you evaluate cost-efficiency?

TARGET STATE Analysis Based on your experience in implementing the curriculum, is there anything you can recommend for the advancement of the curriculum? What would you do differently the next time you design a curriculum? What support do you think is needed in designing curricula resp. for the reaccredidation? Which subject-related and methodological experts would you like to include in the development of curricula in order to increase the quality? What institutional framework for curricula should we set at the FHCW? (e.g. number of weeks per semester, total number of semester hours per week provided) Your opinion to Best-Practice What experts for curricula do you know? Within this project a number of external interviews will be conducted. Do you know organizations or universities we should visit in order to subsequently perform benchmarking? Which theoretical models and literature are important to you in creating curricula?

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Final question: Can you provide any inputs which you may want to add to the questions concerning curriculum development?

Guideline-Supporting Interview external Profile: University The term University: Number of students: What is the ratio of students attending a bachelor versus a master program? What is the ratio of students working and studying versus students in fulltime programs? Disciplines: Are the universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s objectives grounded in one strategy? Organization of the university (process and project orientation) How is the leadership structure at the university designed? Financial structure How does the university fund itself? Is a financial framework provided for creating curricula?

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Market Size (volume): see enclosed document What is the estimate of market growth or market fluctuations? Structure (applicants, organizational forms, competition, unique marketing proposition) Position (market share) â&#x20AC;&#x201C; does this have an effect on the organization? Characteristics (quality requirements, political influence) General environmental factors Political and legal factors Benchmark Objects Structures: Departments/positions (responsible persons) that participate in assuring the quality of curricula Responsibilities during the creation/advancement of curricula Processes/indicators Processes to develop curricula of vocational programs Processes/indicators/framework requirements to assure quality of curricula

Brief Description of Interview Partner Interview partner: Interviewer: Position: Area of responsibility: Experience in curricular creation:

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Curriculum Development CURRENT STATE Analysis Which criteria were important for you in developing the curriculum? What members of your study program team or which persons of your university are involved in curriculum work (what do the responsible persons contribute)? Are outside persons involved in the creation of the curriculum? If yes, what criteria are used to select them and how is the cooperation set up? How do you assure the curriculum can be completed in a given time? What concepts and theories form the didactical framework of your curriculum? Did you include presence and absentee phases into your curriculum?(which models, what support is necessary) What criteria do you apply for assigning course type and group size? How do you assure the graduatesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; acceptance at future employers? Did the national and international comparisons or orientations play a role in designing the curriculum? Were curricula from other national universities and from universities of selected European countries used for subject comparison? Which legal, organizational, and administrative framework conditions influence the quality of the curriculum? How do you deal with this? What role did cost considerations play?

What features of the curriculum characterize your fulltime/work-study program? Which of these characteristics do you believe influence the quality of the study program?

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Which characteristics or special features do you consider when designing curricula for bachelor or master study programs? Did the curriculum prove as workable during course planning? How do you advance your curriculum over time? Does feedback from teaching play a role in the advancement of the curriculum? What effect do new research results have on the advancement of the curriculum? How do you document changes? How do you evaluate cost-efficiency?

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Final question: Can you provide any inputs which you may want to add to the questions concerning curriculum development?

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Bibliography Adams, Adrian/Erath, Peter/Jovelin, Emmanuel: Social Work and Science. ISIS, Eichstätt 2008 Bernstein, Basil: div. Literatur zur sozialen Schicht, Sprache und Kommunikation Brand, Sylvia: Curriculumentwicklung in der Hochschule. Begründungen für eine beispielhafte Evaluation des Zusatzstudiengangs Sport und Bewegung der Universität Siegen. Hamburg 2006 Buchmann, Ulrike / Huisinga, Richard: Curriculum und Qualifikation, Frankfurt am Main 2003 Buttner, Peter: Das Studium des Sozialen: Aktuelle Entwicklungen in Hochschule und sozialen Berufen. Hand- und Arbeitsbücher H15, Deutscher Verein, Berlin 2007 ENOTHE, Tuning Educational Structures in Europe, Reference Points for the Design and Delivery of Degree Programmes in Occupational Therapy, ISBN: 978-84-9830-150-2 Fähnrich, Sabine/Schmidt, Uwe (Hrsg.): Das Modellprojekt Systemakkreditierung an der Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz. Mainzer Beiträge zur Hochschulentwicklung, Band 15, 2009 Gruber, Elke: Beruf und Bildung – (k)ein Widerspruch. Studienverlag, 2001 Haeseler, Herbert: Erfolgfaktoren und Erfolgsindikatoren. In: Österreichische Zeitschrift für Rechnungswesen (RWZ), 1998/5, S.143-145 Hanft, Anke / Kohler, Alexander: Qualitätssicherung im österreichischen Hochschulsystem. In: Zeitschrift für Hochschulrecht 6, 2007, S. 83-93 Huisinga, Richard: Bildungswissenschaftliche Qualifikationsforschung im Vergleich. Qualifikationsbedarf & Curriculum Band 3. Frankfurt am Main 2005 IT curriculum development toolkit www.nwcet.com IZHD Hamburg (Hg.): „Master of Higher Education“. Modellversuch zur didaktischen Professionalisierung von Hochschullehrenden. Bielefeld 2004 JQI – Joint Quality Initiative: Shared Dublin descriptors for the Bachelor´s, Master´s and Doctoral awards. Dublin 2004

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Karl, Beatrix: Hochschulplan: Schlüsselrolle der Hochschulen im nationalen Innovationssystem. Gastkommentar. In: Österreichische Hochschulzeitung ÖHZ 08/2010, S 19 Klüsche, Wilhelm: Modularisierung in Studiengängen der Sozialen Arbeit. FH Niederrhein, Mönchengladbach 2003 Konrad, Klaus: Selbstgesteuertes Lernen: Grundwissen und Tipps für die Praxis. Klinkhardt 2008 Lamnek, Siegfried: Qualitative Sozialforschung. Weinheim: Psychologie Verlags Union, 2005 Lamnek, Siegfried: Qualitative Sozialforschung. Band 2. Methoden und Techniken. Weinheim: Psychologie Verlags Union, 1995 Lehner, Martin: Allgemeine Didaktik. Bern 2009 Lehner, Martin: DICFO – Forum Hochschuldidaktik. Beispiele guter Lehre an Fachhochschulen. Wien 2008 Markowitsch, Jörg: Praktisches akademisches Wissen. Bedingungen praxisbezogener Hochschulbildung, WUV 2001

Werte

und

Markowitsch, Jörg: Der Nationale Qualifikationsrahmen in Österreich. Beiträge zur Entwicklung., Berlin 2009 Mayerhofer, Hemma: SozialarbeiterInnen, 2007

Wissens-

und

Kompetenzprofile

von

Official Journal of the British Curriculum Foundation Mayring, Philipp: Einführung in die qualitative Sozialforschung. Eine Anleitung zu qualitativem Denken. Weinheim: Psychologie Verlags Union, 1996 Pätzold, Günter/Rauner, Felix: Qualifikationsforschung und Curriculumentwicklung. Zeitschrift für Berufs- und Wirtschaftspädagogik (ZBW), Heft 19. Stuttgart 2006 Patzak, Gerold / Wagner, Karl W.: Performance Excellence, S 45-53, München, 2007 Reinhold, Nickolaus: Didaktik – Modelle und Konzepte beruflicher Bildung. Orientierungsleistungen für die Praxis. Baltmannsweiler 2008 Robinsohn, Saul B.: Bildungsreform als Revision des Curriculum, Neuwied 1967

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Rüegg, Walter: Das Autonomieverständnis Universitätsmodell, VSH-Bulletin Nr. 1, April 2007

von

Humboldts

Schmelzer, Hermann J. / Sesselmann, Wolfgang: Geschäftsprozessmanagement in der Praxis, S 99-100, München, 2008 Simon, Fritz B.: Gemeinsam sind wir blöd?! Die Intelligenz von Unternehmen, Managern und Märkten. Heidelberg 2006 Wagenschein, Martin: Verstehen lernen. Weinheim 1999 Wahl, Diethelm: Lernumgebung erfolgreich gestalten: Vom trägen Wissen zum kompetenten Handeln. Klinkhardt 2006 Wilfing, Heinz: Zur Ausbildung in Österreich. Evidence based social work. Soziale Arbeit 5-6, Berlin 2005 Willke, Helmut: Wissensmanagement

Standardliteratur

zur

Systemtheorie

und

List of References Preliminary Considerations www.fhr.ac.at http://bmwf.gv.at/fileadmin/user_upload/qualitaetssicherung/Qualitaetssicher ungsrahmengesetz-Eckpunkte.pdf http://wirtschaftslexikon.gabler.de/Definition/curriculum.html

Empirical Study http://www.wien.gv.at/wirtschaft/eustrategie/wirtschaft/calls/foerderrichtlinie2005.html www.fhk.ac.at http://www.fhk.ac.at/index.php?id=20 http://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-policy/doc/ects/guide_de.pdf

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Development of the Standards for Curricula http://www.bologna-bergen2005.no/Docs/00Main_doc/050520_Bergen_Communique.pdf http://www.enqa.eu/files/ESG_3edition%20(2).pdf http://www.aqa.ac.at/main.php?prim_nav=14&sec_nav=139&content_id=139 &content_typ=folder&language=de http://www.akkreditierungsrat.at/files/downloads_2010/Orientierungsrahmen %20Institutionen.pdf http://www.akkreditierungsrat.at/files/downloads_2010/Checkliste%20für%2 0Studiengänge.pdf http://www2.fzs.de/uploads/kriterien_studiengaenge.pdf

http://www.kompetenzen-foerdern.de/imbse_qualitaetsstandard.pdf http://www.quality4children.info/navigation/cms,id,31,nodeid,31,_country,at, _language,de.html http://wirtschaftslexikon.gabler.de/Archiv/122434/curriculum-v4.html http://www.enqa.eu/files/ESG_3edition%20(2).pdf http://www.uibk.ac.at/psychologie/mitarbeiter/leidlmair/haeseler_hoermann_ 3.indd.pdf http://www.bmwf.gv.at/fileadmin/user_upload/wissenschaft/recht/wbv_2010. pdf http://studieren.univie.ac.at/index.php?id=1184

Standards for Curricula http://bmwf.gv.at/uploads/tx_contentbox/empfehlung_lehrpl.pdf http://www2.fzs.de/uploads/kriterien_studiengaenge.pdf www.dwds.de/?kompakt=1&sh=1&qu=Persönlichkeit

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www.harvardbusinessmanager.de/heft/artikel/a-620896.html www.blikk.it/angebote/schulegestalten/se_suedtirol/ses412.htm

http://www.uni-osnabrueck.de/11571.html

Appendix Universities Comparision General Data Germany, Finland, Austria, Switzerland Viewed May 25th 2011 http://www.statistik.at/ http://www.destatis.de/ http://www.bfs.admin.ch/ http://www.stat.fi/index_en.html

Number of students http://www.statistik.at/web_de/static/ergebnisse_im_ueberblick_studierende_ 021630.xls http://www.destatis.de/jetspeed/portal/cms/Sites/destatis/Internet/DE/Content/ Publikationen/Fachveroeffentlichungen/BildungForschungKultur/Hochschule n/SchnellmeldungWSvorlaeufig5213103118005,property=file.xls http://www.stat.fi/til/opiskt/2010/opiskt_2010_2011-01-26_en.pdf http://www.stat.fi/til/opiskt/2010/opiskt_2010_2011-01-26_tau_001_en.html http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/de/index/news/publikationen.html?public ationID=3939; siehe Publikation Studierende an den Fachhochschulen 2009/10

Number of population http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/tgm/table.do?tab=table&language=de&pcode =tps00001&tableSelection=1&footnotes=yes&labeling=labels&plugin=1

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General Data Germany Viewed May 26th 2011 http://www.destatis.de/jetspeed/portal/cms/Sites/destatis/Internet/DE/Content/ Publikationen/Fachveroeffentlichungen/BildungForschungKultur/Hochschule n/StudierendeHochschulenEndg2110410107005,property=file.xls http://www.destatis.de/jetspeed/portal/cms/Sites/destatis/Internet/DE/Content/ Publikationen/Fachveroeffentlichungen/BildungForschungKultur/Hochschule n/StudierendeHochschulenEndg2110410107005,property=file.xls http://www.akkreditierungsrat.de General Data Finland Viewed May 26th 2011 http://www.stat.fi/til/opiskt/2010/opiskt_2010_2011-01-26_tau_001_en.html http://www.stat.fi/til/opiskt/2006/opiskt_2006_2007-01-19_tie_001_en.html http://www.stat.fi/til/opiskt/2009/opiskt_2009_2010-01-26_tau_001_en.html http://www.kka.fi/ http://www.minedu.fi/

General Data Austria Viewed May 25th 2011 http://www.statistik.at/web_de/static/ergebnisse_im_ueberblick_studierende_ 021630.xls http://www.statistik.at/web_de/static/studierende_an_fachhochschulstudiengaengen_1994_-_2010_021633.xlsx http://www.akkreditierungsrat.at http://www.fhr.ac.at http://www.fhr.ac.at/fhr_inhalt/00_dokumente/Dokumente/EvalVO082009.pdf

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General Data Switzerland Viewed May 26th 2011 http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/de/index/themen/15/06/tab/blank/studiere nde.html http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/de/index/news/publikationen.html?public ationID=3953, siehe Publikation Studierende an universitären Hochschulen 2009/10 http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/de/index/themen/15/06/data.html, Studierende an den Fachhochschulen (Basistabelle 1997/98 – 2010/11) http://www.cus.ch http://www.oaq.ch

Informationen on Partner Universities Universität Mainz Johannes Gutenberg-Universität http://www.uni-mainz.de/ FH Münster https://www.fh-muenster.de/index.php Oulu University of Applied Sciences http://www.oamk.fi/english/ Vaasan Ammattikorkeakoulu (VAMK) http://www.puv.fi/en/ FH Campus Wien http://www.fh-campuswien.ac.at FH Salzburg http://www.fh-salzburg.ac.at/ Züricher Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften (ZHAW) http://www.zhaw.ch/

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Imprint All rights reserved The responsibility rests with the contributing authors. Media owner and publisher: FH Campus Wien, FavoritenstraĂ&#x;e 226, 1100 Wien, Austria www.fh-campuswien.ac.at Editors: Susanna Boldrino, Ruth Zach Frontispiece: Artist: Karla Neplech Photograph: Bernhard Havel Printing: digiDruck GesmbH ISBN: 978-3-902614-18-6 Vienna, June 2011

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