Organisation and responsibility for Course QA
Quality Assurance of Study Courses (CdS) is a constituent element of the management, monitoring and measurement of the dynamics governing teaching, knowledge and know-how.
Study courses, in particular, are at the heart of the educational mission of higher education institutions. They are designed through the design of one or more output figures, defined through the identification of their scientific, cultural and/or professional characteristics and, consistently, of the training paths leading to the acquisition of the specific knowledge and skills associated with the output profiles.
Course design must involve students and external stakeholders most appropriate to the character and objectives of the course. The external stakeholders of the study course include all the actors and organisations and institutions potentially interested in the cultural and professional profile of the graduates designed by the study course (organisations representing the production of goods and services, the professions and/or - if considered relevant to the project - scientific societies, research centres, academic and cultural institutions of national or international relevance, etc.). Where functional for the proposed project, stakeholders may be represented by a Steering Committee, consisting of a representation of the Department's faculty and representatives from the world of work, culture and research representing the stakeholders of one or more study courses.
Degree courses should be constantly updated, reflecting the most advanced knowledge in the disciplines, also with a view to the continuation of studies in subsequent cycles, ensuring interchange with the world of research and the world of work.
For the purposes of Quality Assurance, each course of study is required to
- apply, as far as it is competent, the policies and general guidelines for Quality established by the Governing Bodies;
- carry out self-assessment and review activities of its own training pathway and of the management of the study course according to the analyses reported in the annual report of the Joint Committee of Teachers and Students (CPDS) and of the data provided by ANVUR, the Evaluation Committee and the Management and Control division also comparing itself with similar courses of study with a view to benchmarking;
- promoting continuous improvement and evaluating its effectiveness;
- implementing the evaluation of teaching in accordance with the University's arrangements.
The Course Council, through its President, is also responsible for the information reported in the ANVUR documents (SUA-CdS, Annual Monitoring Form, Cyclic Review Report).
To this end, each study course establishes a Review Group (RG) consisting of figures from within the study course itself, who are able to contribute to the evaluation of the course from different perspectives (teaching staff, technical-administrative staff, students). The Review Group normally consists of the study course President, the study course Quality Assurance Manager (RAQ), a student representative and an Education Manager from the study course's Department. The Review Group has the task of guiding the study course towards the goal of continuous improvement of its results. The Review Group manages the self-evaluation process, i.e. the process by which the study course monitors its own performance and evaluates its own results, also in accordance with the guidelines established by ANVUR.
In the course of the self-evaluation process, the Review Group examines everything that may contribute to the analysis of the study course results and, in particular:
- the annual report provided by the Joint Committee of Teachers and Students of reference;
- the report of the Evaluation Committee;
- the progress of students' careers;
- the availability of context services (tutoring, internationalisation, orientation, internships, etc.);
- consultation with the socio-economic system of reference (including the Steering Committee, sector studies, specific meetings with social partners, etc.);
- the availability of resources (human and infrastructural);
- student opinion on teaching, the organisation of the course of study and the training pathway;
- any other report provided by the Quality Assurance Manager, the Education Manager and the Coordinator/Responsible for the Education Quality Service.
The work of the Review Group takes the form of the compilation of an Annual Monitoring Form and the drafting of the Cyclical Review Report, which is discussed within the Council of the relevant study course and forwarded to the University Quality Assurance Committee and the University Evaluation Committee.
Finally, the Quality Assurance Manager (RAQ) has the function of monitoring and verifying the proper implementation of the improvement actions approved by the course council. The RAQ is identified from among the course teaching staff members.
In this context, the role of the Departments, which are key organisational structures for carrying out scientific research, teaching and training activities, as well as for the transfer of knowledge and innovation and for related or ancillary external activities, is of primary importance. The Director and the Departmental Council represent the Departmental Governing Bodies responsible for defining the Quality Assurance Policies for Departmental Research and Teaching.
Within each department, the various operational and liaison bodies between the department and the University Quality Assurance Committee are established.
Organisation of the Department
Departmental Quality Assurance Joint
Committee of Teachers and Students
The documentation relating to the Departmental Quality Assurance objectives and the annual report on the activities of the Departmental Quality Assurance Joint Committee is accessible at https://sea.unipr.it/it/dipartimento/qualita-di-dipartimento.
