Two important events took place in Kaunas University of Applied Sciences last week: the results published by the “Reitingai” journal, according to which Kaunas University of Applied Sciences took the second place in the ranking of universities, and an external international evaluation of the university activities. According to Inga Stravinskienė, Head of Department of Management and Quality of Kaunas University of Applied Sciences, this event is significant for Kaunas University of Applied Sciences, proving the quality of the university activities and gathering the community to achieve common goals.
“External evaluation is really important for any higher education institution because of international experts evaluation on how efficiently and effectively the higher education institution works and the quality of its activities. The preparation progress also plays a major role in the evaluation itself: this process lasted at Kaunas University of Applied Sciences for more than a year and gathered the entire university community to carefully re-evaluate the strengths of its activities, improve aspects and opportunities for development.
Although we carried out a very detailed and accountable analysis of our activities and outlined the way forward for the new business strategy for 2021–2025, we went back five years to the self-assessment required for the external evaluation, and together we estimated our business processes and activities, results in the context of external requirements. All this focus is on fostering one of the values of our university, which is community spirit. The encouragement of community motivation, I believe, will lead us to pursue the goals we have set out in the university strategy even more actively. Undoubtedly, in our organization, the focus on fostering a culture of quality is very high,” says the Head of Department of Management and Quality. I. Stravinskienė also reveals that the external evaluation of a higher education institution is important not only for current but also for future members of the community.
“The external evaluation of a higher education institution shows the opinion and assessment of international experts on how the higher education institution works, whether it performs its activities qualitatively, whether it properly pursues the set goals, and whether it properly implements its operational strategy. The results of this evaluation, which we look forward to, are really important because a positive evaluation is also a sign of quality,” says I. Stravinskienė, Head of Department of Management and Quality of Kaunas University of Applied Sciences, about the importance of this evaluation after a three-day experts visit.
The first conclusion of international experts: you are an organization that is guided by its values
At the end of the three-day visit of international experts, during which interviews were held with Kaunas University of Applied Sciences managers, employees, lecturers, students, graduates, and social partners, the material base of the university was assessed, and the experts presented the first conclusions to the Kaunas University of Applied Sciences community. During the presentation, Kaunas University of Applied Sciences was described as a European, proactive higher education institution.
“You are an organization that is guided by its values. From what we have seen and heard, we are convinced that you are an institution that pursues common goals, and their coherent implementation. Kaunas University of Applied Sciences is so attractive for employees and students that employees work here for a long time with no plans to leave, and graduates return to work here. As your strength, we can also mention an active desire to get feedback that includes both members of the community and the external environment. You also stand out for your commitment to providing practical studies,” said prof. Colin Raban.
“When I worked in the UK, one of the indicators of how well a university is doing was the willingness of experts to stay there longer. During these last days of our visit, we really felt like we wanted to stay at Kaunas University of Applied Sciences. The dedication of the staff to the organization, their low turnover, and the answers of the students and graduates to the questions during the interviews left a really positive impression. You create added value not only for the region but also for the whole country,” prof. C. Raban shared the first conclusions.
The evaluation team of international experts consisted of:
-
- Prof. Colin Raban (team leader), independent consultant to higher education institutions, emeritus professor of the University of Derby (United Kingdom);
- Sinead O’Sullivan (team secretary), Quality Director at University of Limerick (Ireland);
- Prof. Laust Joen Jakobsen (member of the academic community), Head of Programmes at University College Copenhagen, member of the International Association of University Presidents (IAUP), Chairman of the Board of the Adult Education Center Southern Denmark (Denmark);
- Prof. dr. Lukas Scherer (member of the academic community), Executive Director of the Institute for Quality Management and Business Administration at the FHS University of Applied Sciences St. Gallen, Director of EMBA Programmes at this university, Auditor of Swiss union for quality and management systems (Switzerland);
- Gintarė Vaitkienė (representative of the social partners), Head of the neuroclinic “Empatija”, member of the working group for the reorganization of nursing, supportive care, and small municipal hospitals of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Lithuania (Lithuania);
- Ieva Porutytė (student representative), a second-year student in the Creativity and Business Innovations study programme at Vilnius University of Applied Sciences (Lithuania).
