Korkeakoulujen arviointineuvosto — Rådet för utvärdering av högskolorna — The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council (FINHEEC) Ossi V. Lindqvist (FINHEEC): Towards a Shared Conception of Internal Quality Assurance Internal Quality Assurance at HE Institutions Bern, December 2, 2005

Korkeakoulujen arviointineuvosto — Rådet för utvärdering av högskolorna — The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council (FINHEEC) 2 ‘ Towards a shared conception of internal Quality Assurance’ describes the nature of the working method with the aim of creating a common and shared understanding of the HEI’s internal QA present state and current challenges, also in relation to the European standards. This method has been in use by FINHEEC in the development and execution of the Finnish audit system, and in its introduction to the Finnish HEI’s, both the universities and the polytechnics.

Korkeakoulujen arviointineuvosto — Rådet för utvärdering av högskolorna — The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council (FINHEEC) 3 Remember the ‘homework’: Representatives of the HEI’s (incl. students): Come up with one sentence that captures the current state of internal QA in your home institution; Representatives of QA agencies and others: Come up with one sentence that captures the current state of internal QA in your region/country. This group work should not be ‘deadly serious’, please do enjoy it and be creative and innovative! At the end, this is all a ‘secret ballot’.

Korkeakoulujen arviointineuvosto — Rådet för utvärdering av högskolorna — The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council (FINHEEC) 4 Something about FINHEEC  The starting point of evaluations is TRUST in the quality of higher education: the aim of evaluations is towards development;  FINHEEC evaluations are mainly qualitative; the quantitative performane of HEI’s is monitored in annual contract negotiations between the HEI’s and the Ministry of Education (MoE).

Korkeakoulujen arviointineuvosto — Rådet för utvärdering av högskolorna — The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council (FINHEEC) 5  FINHEEC is independent from the MoE and the HEI’s for the methods of evaluations; FINHEEC serves as a buffer organisation between the HEI’s and the MoE.  The main responsibility of quality lies within the HEI’s themselves.

Korkeakoulujen arviointineuvosto — Rådet för utvärdering av högskolorna — The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council (FINHEEC) 6 Aims of audits  Evaluation of the HEI’s QA systems as a quality management and development tool;  Supporting the development of the HEI’s by providing feedback on the strengths and challenges of their QA systems;  To prove, through desciption and evaluation of the HEI’s QA systems, the functioning and credibility of the QA system to their cooperative partners.

Korkeakoulujen arviointineuvosto — Rådet för utvärdering av högskolorna — The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council (FINHEEC) 7 Starting points of audits  The HEI’s themselves are responsible for their own quality;  Diverse HEI profiles – diverse QA systems (EFQM, ISO, BSC, EQUIS, etc.) – no need for harmonisation!  Different developmental phases – audit schedule based on the registration of the HEI’s; evidence-based.

Korkeakoulujen arviointineuvosto — Rådet för utvärdering av högskolorna — The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council (FINHEEC) 8  Audit will target on the QA processes, not the operative results as such;  In addition to direct feedback, the audit reports also aim towards dissemination of good practices;  The Bologna-Prague-Berlin-Bergen process as background: ▪ increased student/staff and workforce mobility; ▪ ENQA Standards and Guidelines for QA in the European Higher Education Area (EHEA)

Korkeakoulujen arviointineuvosto — Rådet för utvärdering av högskolorna — The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council (FINHEEC) 9 QA systems  Comprehensiveness of QA  Effectiveness of QA  Transparency of QA  Planning of education  Delivery of education  Evaluation and improvement of education

Korkeakoulujen arviointineuvosto — Rådet för utvärdering av högskolorna — The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council (FINHEEC) 10 Quality relative to Higher Education  Quality meaning the exceptional, where quality is related to the conception of excellence;  Quality meaning perfection, where quality has consistent and error-free attributes;  Quality meaning fit for purpose, where quality fulfills the perceived requirements of stakeholders;

Korkeakoulujen arviointineuvosto — Rådet för utvärdering av högskolorna — The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council (FINHEEC) 11  Quality meaning value, where a governmental agency, subsidizing employer, or agency find optimum benefit relative to cost;  Quality meaning transformation, where quality necessarily involves a change from a current to an ideal end state. (L. Harvey In: Tertiary Education and Management 3(1):25-35.

Korkeakoulujen arviointineuvosto — Rådet för utvärdering av högskolorna — The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council (FINHEEC) 12 More info: FINHEEC: The Academy of Finland: About the Finnish HE and innovation system: