– The evaluations of postgraduate education is a peer review system that rests on three legs. The evaluations will ensure that the students reach the expected goal fulfillment and examine that the doctoral students’ educational environment is of sufficient breadth and depth. The third leg of the evaluation is about reviewing the higher education institutions’ quality assurance work, says Jeanette Johansen investigator at the University Chancellor’s Office.
The development of methods for evaluationg postgraduate studies has been underway since early spring. Jeanette Johansen, who is the responsible investigator for method development at UKÄ, says that some questions still need to be sorted out. For example, about the defeinition of a postgraduate studies be defined, the layout of templates for the self-evaluations and the composition of the panels of assessors.
– Similarly to the evaluation system for first and second cycle, courses will be able to be challenged and have a year to explain how the quality deficiencies have been rectified. However, it is likely that the assessment will be made on a two-point scale and not a three-point scale, which has been the case for the programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels.
Another novelty is that the universities will have the opportunity to comment on assessors’ opinions before the decision is made by the University Chancellor. The opinions will also be fuller and more constructive than they have been at the undergraduate and graduate levels.
– We hope that the reviews will be more constructive and assist universities in their own quality work, says Jeanette Johansen.
At the end of the year, the referral of proposals on evaluation of postgraduate education will be sent out. The universities and other commentators will have approximately two months to respond to the referral. The first evaluation round will launch in the spring by 2015.
– The work schedule is packed. The referral will be this year’s Christmas present, and after we have compiled, evaluated and ruled on respondents’ answers, we will begin preparations for the first round of evaluation.
