QUALITY MANAGEMENT
Quality & Project Management department
QUALITY CONCERNS ALL OF US
In Austria, all Universities of Applied Sciences are legally obliged to set up their own quality management system to ensure quality and performance (§ 2 para. 3 FHG). The FH Kufstein Tirol has opted for an integrated and process-orientated quality management system that permeates all areas of the institution. The basis for the entire process management is continuous improvement and thus the quality control loop (PDCA cycle).
MANAGEMENT
Mag. (FH) Sara Neubauer
Head of Quality Management & Project Management
Areas of responsibility
- Process management
- Accreditations and certifications
- Internal audits of all degree programs and continuing education programs
- IT-supported processing of all evaluations
- Information management
- Audit procedures in accordance with legal requirements such as the quality audit
- Establishment and development of quality objectives and a quality strategy
- Further development of organizational guidelines
- University rankings and surveys
- General study regulations
- project management
ACCREDITATIONS
Accreditations and audits are quality assurance procedures that pursue different objectives and therefore have different areas of review. Accreditation procedures serve to review an institution or a degree program according to specified (minimum) standards and to grant the temporary right to operate a higher education institution or to conduct higher education studies.
In 2012, the FH Kufstein Tirol and all of its degree programs were granted permanent accreditation by AQ Austria in accordance with § 23 HS-QSG. This means that the FH Kufstein Tirol is one of the higher education institutions in Austria that have been institutionally accredited without any further conditions due to positive evaluations in the past.
Quality-Audit
Due to its permanent accreditation, the FH Kufstein Tirol is legally obliged to carry out a quality audit every seven years. An audit reviews the institutional quality management in combination with individual core and key areas of a higher education institution.
After the first successful quality audit, the FH Kufstein Tirol also passed its second audit in summer 2023 with flying colors. The successful completion of the quality audit confirms that the University of Applied Sciences has a functioning institutional quality management system and has established it in accordance with the legal requirements (§ 22 HS-QSG). In addition, the Quality Audit also supports the University of Applied Sciences in the further development of its internal quality management.
MODIFICATIONS TO THE PROGRAM
According to international understanding, program accreditation (= accreditation of degree programs) grants a higher education institution the right to carry out degree programs (including the awarding of associated academic degrees). During program accreditation, the curriculum, personnel, material and financial resources and quality assurance with regard to the individual degree programs are reviewed (see § 23 HS-QSG).
- Report on results 2021 on the amendment procedure:
Master's degree program in European Energy Management,StgKz 0338 - Changes to the curriculum and change of program name to Energy & Sustainability Management. - Report on results 2021 on the amendment procedure:
Master's degree program in Corporate Restructuring & Reorganisation, StgKz 0350 - Changes to the curriculum and change of program title to Corporate Transformation Management. - Report on results on the amendment procedure:
Bachelor's degree program in Energy Management (StgKz 0337) in the organisational form full-time. - Report on results on accreditation:
Master's degree program in Digital Marketing, Mbb in part-time form. - Report on results on accreditation:
Master's degree program in Web Communications & Information Systems, Mbb in part-time form. - Report on results on accreditation:
Master's degree program (StgKz 0809) Smart Products & Solutions, Mbb in part-time form.
Statement SPS
Expert report SPS
- Report on results on accreditation:
Master's degree programme (StgKz 0837) Data Science & Intelligent Analytics in part-time form.
Statement DSIA
Expert report DSIA
CERTIFICATIONS
Certifications confirm conformity with specified standards and offer future users and stakeholders of the higher education institution assistance and security when choosing an institution.
By being certified with the ECTS & Diploma Supplement Label, the FH Kufstein Tirol demonstrates that it implements and applies the principles of the European Credit Transfer and Accumulations System (ECTS) in an excellent manner. The certification as a ‘family-friendly University of Applied Sciences’ confirms that the subject has been dealt with intensively. Last but not least, the SPIN quality seal (ÖSZ) proves to graduates that they have been taught in accordance with international standards for language training.
AUDIT OF QUALITY MANAGEMENT
Details
The FH Kufstein Tirol is legally obliged to carry out a quality audit every seven years to certify its internal quality management system in accordance with § 22 of the Austrian Higher Education Quality Assurance Act (HS-QSG). The internationally recognized and independent quality assurance agency evalag was commissioned to carry out both audits.
The procedure is based on the European Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ESG). The higher education institution received the first positive certification decision on 19 September 2016 and the second positive decision on 29 June 2023. Both audit reports have been released for publication.
STANDARDS & GUIDELINES FOR QUALITY ASSURANCE
Details
The FH Kufstein Tirol is guided by the ‘Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area’ (ESG). These provide the standards and guidelines for internal and external quality assurance in the European higher education sector (EHEA).
Like the Qualifications Framework, ECTS and Diploma Supplement, the ESG are intended to contribute to transparency and mutual trust in the EHEA and to promote the recognition of degrees, degree programs and other study programs across borders.
ECTS Label
Details
The ECTS Label is a quality label awarded to higher education institutions by the European Commission. With this label, the EU certifies the excellence of higher education institutions in the application of the principles of the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS).
Diploma Supplement Label
Details
The European Commission awards a Diploma Supplement Label to higher education institutions throughout Europe for excellent implementation of the guidelines of the European Commission, the Council of Europe and UNESCO.
The Diploma Supplement is a bilingual final document with extensive explanatory notes in order to achieve good transparency and documentation of the content of higher education qualifications and thus increase international mobility.
HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTION AND FAMILY
Details
A better work-life balance is an issue in our modern societies. It is always a challenge, especially for students with caring responsibilities, to do justice to their degree program, sometimes combined with a career. In order to make the everyday organization and life plans of employees and students easier, the FH Kufstein Tirol has been working intensively on the question of what makes a family-friendly higher education institution since 2012.
ERASMUS CHARTER 2021-2027 OF THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Details
The European Commission has awarded the FH Kufstein Tirol the Erasmus Charter for Higher Education as part of the new Erasmus+ 2021-2027 program.
The Erasmus Charter for Higher Education (ECHE) is the prerequisite for participation in the Erasmus+ program period 2021-2027 and represents the basic quality framework for the implementation of European and international cooperation activities of the FH Kufstein Tirol within the program.
Only higher education institutions with a valid Erasmus Charter for Higher Education are eligible to participate in the EU funding programme. By being awarded the Erasmus Charter, the FH Kufstein Tirol commits itself to the principles and requirements laid down in the programme and to complying with them.
LANGUAGE CENTRE WITH SPIN SEAL OF QUALITY 2019
Details
The Language Centre at FH Kufstein Tirol was honored the SPIN quality seal by the Austrian Language Skills / Competencies Centre (ÖSZ) for its innovative language and internationalization concept.
A decisive feature of the award is the integration of the concept into the bachelor's degree programs (full-time). This integrated internationality enables the linguistic and cultural diversity of teaching and learning experiences. The concept achieves qualitative and quantitative improvements in the area of language teaching and learning and promotes networking with other educational programs within and outside Europe.
From the point of view of the ÖSZ, the language projects of the FH Kufstein Tirol are excellent quality and progressive measures for learning a new language. The FH Kufstein Tirol is now allowed to use the SPrachenInnovationsNetzwerk (SPIN) logo in recognition of its quality-assured work.
HIGHER EDUCATION RANKINGS
TREND MAGAZINE: BEST EMPLOYERS IN AUSTRIA
In cooperation with the European employer review platform kununu and the market research company Statista, the business magazine trend has been identifying Austria's 300 best employers every year since 2017. The employer ratings are collected through four different evaluation channels.
In 2022, FH Kufstein Tirol was recognized as the best employer in the Austrian higher education sector.
GRADUATE SURVEY
The Quality & Project Management department regularly conducts standardized surveys on the topics of recommendation probability (NPS), satisfaction with the choice of University of Applied Sciences and general satisfaction among various target groups (students, alumni, teaching staff and employees). The aim is to obtain meaningful results that help the higher education institution to continuously develop and improve.
CHE Ranking
The university ranking of the Centre for Higher Education Development (CHE) is a ranking of German universities & higher education institutions including universities from other countries that offer degree programs in English. The ranking is a subject-related and multi-perspective ranking. It does not assess the higher education institution as a whole, for example based solely on the acquisition of third-party funding, but rather individual departments based on several different data sources. Each year, only some of the subjects included in the CHE Ranking are analyzed. The FH Kufstein Tirol therefore participates in the relevant degree programs every three years.
U-Multirank
The FH Kufstein Tirol has been taking part in U-Multirank since 2016. This international university comparison included information on 1,945 higher education institutions from 96 countries in 2021. U-Multirank offers a user-orientated methodology and compares higher education institutions in various performance areas.
In 2019, 2020 and 2021, the FH Kufstein Tirol was once again ranked in the area of student mobility - the only higher education institution in Austria in this segment.
AQ ANNUAL REPORT
In accordance with § 23 FHG Lit 2 and FH-JBVO (Annual Report Ordinance), the providers of FH degree programs prepare an annual report for the Agency for Quality Assurance & Accreditation Austria (AQ Austria) on developments in the previous reporting year.