A quarterly publication of AQU Catalunya

80

January 2016

On 29 October 2016 it will be twenty years that AQU Catalunya has been in existence.

The regulations that have shaped the Agency are:

1. Legislative decree 355/1996, 29 October, whereby the Agency was established as an instrument for the external review of quality assurance and enhancement in the universities and higher education system in Catalonia.
2. Act 1/2003, 19 February, concerning the universities in Catalonia (LUC, the Catalan Universities Act), which transformed the Agency from a consortium into a public entity and granted it the powers and jurisdiction to undertake the review and assessment of teaching staff.
3. Act 15/2015, 21 July, on the Catalan University Quality Assurance Agency/AQU Catalunya (AQU Catalunya Act), which provided for better compliance with European standards, a more flexible structure and further underpinned its powers as a QA agency.

Many people have contributed their talent to making AQU what it is and making it bigger and better.

The Agency has been fortunate to have been led by various important academics, for example, as president, Dr. Antoni Serra Ramoneda (1997-2008) and Dr. Joaquim Prats Cuevas (2008-2013); as director, Dr. David Serrat Congost (1997), Gemma Rauret Dalmau (1998-2006), Javier Bará Temes (2006-2009), Josep Anton Ferré Vidal (2009-2013) and Martí Casadesús Fa (2013-present); as chairpersons of the teaching assessment committees, Dr. Joan Rodés (2003-2014), Dr. Lluís Torner (2014-act.), Dr. Teresa Garcia-Milà (2003-2005), Dr. M. Lluïsa Hernanz (2005-2014) and Dr. Joan Nogué (2014-present), and many other recognised academics who have been involved in review panels and contributed with their knowledge and understanding to the growth of AQU Catalunya.

And none of this would have been so easy without the Agency’s in-house staff, a committed team that transmits a sense of pride in belonging to all of us who have been lucky enough to form part of this big family. They are Josep, Josep Manel, Esteve, Jordi, Carme P., David, Núria C., Núria M., Montse, Carme T., Sílvia, Anna P., Carme E., Esther H., Cati, Albert B., Esther A., Eva B., Eva E., Lorena, Anna G., Marta, Carlota, Àngels H., Griselda, Rocío, Glòria, Noèlia, Georgina, Conchita, Àgata, Rosa, Erica, Òscar, Sònia, Àngels G., Maribel, Oriol, Albert S., Albert P., Carina, Raquel and Maria. To all of you, many thanks for the key role you have played and continue to play.

Neither would all of the progress made by the Agency have been possible without the essential institutional support it has received from the different governments of the Generalitat de Catalunya (Government of Catalonia) and from the universities in Catalonia, and without forgetting all the technical staff who work for these bodies and towards the growth, despite the restrictions, of a university and higher education system that is cohesive, efficient and placed high in the rankings at international level.

AQU Catalunya has grown and matured during these twenty years. The initial seed has grown into a young and consolidated agency that is recognised at international level and is on course for growth in almost every strategic area in which it operates.

This celebration comes during what is one of the most intense years of its existence because, in addition to undertaking its more usual QA activities involving study programmes and teaching staff review and evaluation, this year the Agency faces the challenge of managing the climax of the process of external site visits to university faculties and institutes in connection with programme reviews. In principle, 315 degree programmes will undergo review and assessment by external panels, or an increase of 64% in the number of visits compared to 2015, with the consequent mobilisation of economic and human resources.

Work will also start this year on the 2017 survey on the employment outcomes of graduates from Catalan universities, along with the organisation of the next survey of employers perceptions of the employability and skills of recent graduates in Catalonia, as well as handling the increasing demand for the Agency’s participation in international projects and preparations for the international external review of AQU Catalunya in accordance with European standards.

In these twenty years the Agency has given impetus to many actions and activities, the assessment of which, in all modesty and bearing in mind the constructive criticism that has been made and the need to draw attention to certain aspects that we know still need to be reinforced, has been highly positive. For all of this, it is important this year to find time to acknowledge and thank those behind the driving spirit of the Agency, the collaborators and all of you who support us in building and improving the Agency.

To all of you, many many thanks for being with the Agency, for your unconditional work and support in making AQU Catalunya so much better.