Butlletí

A quarterly publication of AQU Catalunya

78

July 2015

EDITORIAL

The new AQU Catalunya Act: sincere thanks to everyone involved!

On 8 July 2015 the Parliament of Catalonia passed the AQU Catalunya Act (Llei de l'Agència per a la Qualitat del Sistema Universitari de Catalunya). Following seven years of insistence by AQU Catalunya that new legislation to cover the Agency was necessary, the Act was finally passed after the third attempt.

And first off it is worth pointing out that there was consensus about the Act. During the debate all of the parliamentary groups expressed a favourable opinion on both the work carried out by AQU Catalunya and the proposed legislation, as reflected in the final vote (87 votes in favour and 40 abstentions).

AQU NEWS

• Meeting of the Employers project discussion group on the ICT sector 12.06.2015
• AQU Catalunya participates in the CEENQA workshop on the Impact of Quality Assurance and Accreditation09.06.2015
• Revised edition of the Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ESG)02.06.2015
• Call for applications for the assessment of merits of teaching and research staff at private universities and affiliated institutions in Catalonia11.06.2015
• AQU Catalunya publishes the Guide to the monitoring of recognised doctoral programmes 29.05.2015
• Start of the second stage of the Employers survey 28.05.2015
• Degree course accreditation certificates27.05.2015
• Ceremony for the award of the first accreditation certificates to Catalan universities20.05.2015
• Results of the second call made in 2014 for the accreditation of research and advanced research19.05.2015
• Guide to the Certification of IQAs Implementation07.05.2015
• Fourth Workshop on Excellence in Education04.05.2015
• AQU Catalunya at ESDAP30.04.2015
• Meeting of the AQU Board29.04.2015
• AQU Catalunya workshop: "Employers' opinions regarding university graduates: results, findings and challenges"27.04.2015
• Setting up of the Special Committee for the Certification of IQAs Implementation24.04.2015
• More than 1,300 businesses participate in the Employers project survey22.04.2015
• Meeting of the Quality Assessment Committee 20.04.2015
• Further deadline extension for applications for the accreditation of research and advanced research20.04.2015
• INQAAHE 2015 Conference09.04.2015
• Deadline extension for applications for the accreditation of research and advanced research01.04.2015

ARTICLES

• Main results of the employers survey
  The Employers project was started by AQU Catalunya in 2014, with funding from Obra Social "la Caixa", with the aim of improving the employability of graduates from universities and other higher education institutions in Catalonia. The objective of the Employers project is to gather and analyse the opinions of employers and professionals from different branches of economic activity on the skills and education level of the recent graduate population in Catalonia. The perceptions of employers complement those of higher education graduates, which are detailed in the surveys on graduate employment outcomes carried out on an on-going basis in Catalonia since 2001.
  Queralt Capsada Munsech - Project manager
• The AQU Catalunya Act
  The purpose of legislation (Law 15/2015, 8 July) just recently passed by the Catalan Parliament (the AQU Catalunya Act) is to strengthen the Agency through the updating of its functions, providing it a more flexible structure and enhancing its compliance with European standards as regards its independence nature as an agency.
  Jordi Escolar Bañeres - Legal advisor to AQU Catalunya

OPINION

• Graduate employability and Catalan business
  

  Pere Torres Grau
  Secretary for Business and Competitiveness, Government of Catalonia

  When one speaks about graduate employability, one must of necessity take three concurrent aspects into account: What do young people entering university want to study?; What courses does the university system offer?; What kind of professional profiles do enterprises want?
  
  The central position of the university is evident in that it links the expectations of future professionals with the requirements of employers. This position can lead to the labour market either having a positive cohesive effect on higher education or, quite the opposite, it can lead to a negative distortion effect. It is therefore salutary that the universities reflect on how they must perform this role.

AQU RECOMMENDS

• The AQU Catalunya Act
• Employers’ perceptions of the employability and skills of recent graduates in catalonia
• Employer Engagement. Emerging Practice from QAA Reviews
• Estàndards i directrius per a l'assegurament de la qualitat en l'Espai europeu d'educació superior