Institutions should have processes for the design and approval of their programmes. The programmes should be designed so that they meet the objectives set for them, including the intended learning outcomes. The qualification resulting from a programme should be clearly specified and communicated, and refer to the correct level of the national qualifications framework for higher education and, consequently, to the Framework for Qualifications of the European Higher Education Area.
Current Practice
All the faculties of the University of the Basque Country have an externally certified process management system that includes specific procedures for the design and planning of their training programs (undergraduate, postgraduate and lifelong learning). We provide an example that is extensible to all the faculties:
Link to the Design and Modification of Study Programs procedure: https://www.ehu.eus/es/web/ordenacion.academica/gradu-master-tramitazioa
In addition, the QA Committee of the Faculties is a commission appointed by the Board of the Faculty that participates together with the management team or dean's team in the tasks of planning and monitoring of the QA management system, also acting as one of the vehicles of internal communication of the policy, objectives, plans, programs, responsibilities and achievements of this quality system. The QA Committee of the Faculty will also be the body that supports and advises the management team of the Faculty and the Board of the Faculty in the planning and monitoring of the curricular development of the degrees, based on the teaching-learning model based on competencies, in which through active methodologies and with the support of information and communication technologies, self-directed learning (individual and group) and continuous evaluation are encouraged, in a context of multilingual teaching. Likewise, the QA Committee of the Faculty will be in charge of issuing the reports for the subsequent evaluation of the teaching staff.
Link to the Regulation of QA Committee: https://www.ehu.eus/documents/3049902/3088435/reglamento+Marco+Comision+Calidad.es.pdf
The process of designing new programs is carried out with the support of the university’s general services (https://www.ehu.eus/es/web/ordenacion.academica/gradu-master-tramitazioa) and is subsequently subjected to an accreditation process by an external agency accredited by EQAR:
- Ex-ante accreditation: https://www.unibasq.eus/en/degrees-verification-authorisation/
- Modification: https://www.unibasq.eus/en/degrees-modification/
- Monitoring: https://www.unibasq.eus/en/degrees-monitoring/
- Accreditation renewal: https://www.unibasq.eus/en/degrees-accreditation-renewal/
Unibasq accreditation agency also provide Unibas Quality Labels, which are voluntary acknowledgements granted by the Agency at the request of the Universities in the Basque University System (SUV).
- Dual training: https://www.unibasq.eus/es/titulos-sellos/dual-informes-upv-ehu/
- Internationalisation: https://www.unibasq.eus/es/informes-upv-ehu/