CHE teamed up with university partners from Africa and Europe to develop quality standards for dual study programmes in Mozambique and South Africa. A publication about the project has been posted as an online document on the website of the Erasmus+ project “LaTFURE – Learning and Teaching Tools Fuelling University Relations with the Economy in Mozambique and South Africa”. The website also offers a wealth of additional useful material concerning all aspects relating to “dual studies”, which was developed for the African context in the course of the three-year project.
The combination of scientific study and practical training is a growing area of interest worldwide, not only because it fosters cooperation between higher education institutions (HEIs) and companies, but also because it can enhance graduates’ career prospects. This trend was also picked up by LaTFURE, a funding project implemented within the “Capacity Building in the field of Higher Education” section of the EU Erasmus+ programme between 2017 and 2020. The goal of the consortium comprising 16 institutions – eleven from Africa (South Africa and Mozambique) and five from Europe (Austria, Finland and Germany) – was to establish the dual study model as an integral part of the higher education landscape in South Africa and Mozambique by implementing several sub-projects. The objective was to strengthen the relationship between the respective higher education system and its wider economic and social environment. To achieve this, the project participants first reflected on and improved governmental and institutional conditions, and then developed a total of four dual study programmes, which were launched as prototypes.
Quality and quality assurance play a key role in enabling dual study programmes to develop their full potential for students, HEIs and practice partners, and in giving all stakeholders a concrete idea of what to expect from a dual study programme. During a discursive process involving workshops and online surveys, CHE identified and analysed the existing governmental and institutional framework conditions and structures for the quality assurance of study programmes at HEIs in South Africa and Mozambique. Enriched with insights and experience in quality management in dual study programmes in Germany, the findings were further developed and combined to create a quality assurance framework for dual study programmes.
The quality assurance framework focuses in particular on the combination of theory and practice as the central characteristic of dual study programmes. It also identifies four overarching quality dimensions that should be addressed by quality assurance to ensure the best possible teaching, learning and management in dual study programmes:
1. Quality Dimension 1 – Study concept and learning objectives
2. Quality Dimension 2 – Admission and support of dual students
3. Quality Dimension 3 – Programme design and examination
4. Quality Dimension 4 – Management and quality control
In addition, corresponding checklists are available as practical implementation assistance for those in HEIs responsible for planning, implementing and further developing dual study programmes.
For more information, please refer to the aforementioned publication and the LaTFURE website at https://www.latfure.eu/
Quality standards for dual study programmes: Dimensions and Checklists 28. January 2021 0.00 KB 19997 downloads
Nickel, Sigrun; Schulz, Nicole: Quality standards for dual study programmes: Dimensions...More about dual higher education: