DTU is one of Europe’s leading technical universities, and educating Europe’s most competent engineers is a strategic priority for the university. Quality assurance work and ongoing programme evaluations of all DTU’s degree programmes are central to this effort.
“Things are moving fast in the field of engineering,” says Lars D. Christoffersen, Dean of Studies and Student Affairs.
“There is a great need for skilled engineers. So DTU must ensure that all students receive teaching of the very highest academic standard, enabling them to acquire skills that contribute to an international labour market that is evolving at lightning speed. The quality assurance work is a vital part of this,” he emphasizes.
"The Rolls-Royce model"
In 2021, DTU received a positive institutional accreditation from the Danish Accreditation Institution. This means that the university can organize its own quality assurance work within the national framework. At DTU, all study programmes are evaluated every six years with the involvement of external experts.
According to Jens Duus, Head of Quality and Vice Dean of Education, has adopted an ambitious approach:
“At DTU, we have opted for the "Rolls-Royce model", so to speak. We place great emphasis on the panel visits—even compared to other Danish universities. It takes both time and resources to invite an international panel of experts for a two-day visit, but we believe it is well worth the effort,” he explains, continuing:
“We take the development of our study programmes very seriously, and we also look beyond Denmark’s borders to consider developments in the engineering profession. After all, the whole world is a workplace for DTU’s engineers. But panel visits are also a way to bring industry into the engine room. They gain a very special insight into our programmes, and we ensure that the programmes remain relevant to society and to the industry, which is in dire need of our engineers.”
Evaluations ensure DTU’s high standards
The programme evaluations are drawn up in collaboration among the Heads of Studies at the departments, the Dean of Studies, the Vice Dean of Education, and the Office for Study Programmes and Student Affairs. When a programme is due for evaluation, the process begins with a self-evaluation report, in which the head of studies analyzes the programme’s strengths and weaknesses.
Sine Munk Hvidegaard is Head of Studies for the bachelor’s programme in Earth and Space Physics and Engineering, which completed its programme evaluation this spring:
“Producing a self-evaluation report is a major undertaking—but it is also a matter of due diligence. We believe we have a really good programme. Still, it is a good opportunity to examine whether we are offering the right academic content and the skills that the wider world is looking for,” she explains, continuing:
“At the same time, we used the self-evaluation report as an opportunity to involve our lecturers and course coordinators in a seminar. This provided a great deal of valuable input and gave us a shared overview of how the individual courses fit into the programme's overall structure and progression. So, as well as gaining academic insights, we also strengthened our shared understanding of the direction and purpose of the work we engage in every day.”
Like sitting an exam all over again
As part of the evaluation process, DTU invites a specially appointed international panel to conduct a two-day, 360-degree quality review of the programme based on the self-evaluation report.
The panel typically consists of three experts from various international—often Nordic and/or European—universities, as well as a representative from the industry that employs the programme’s graduates. Together, they speak with programme management, lecturers, and students and review the self-evaluation report. At the end of the visit, a joint briefing is held, during which the panel presents the impressions they have gained.
Sine Munk Hvidegaard says:
“Presenting the programme to the panel felt a bit like sitting an exam again. We have personally selected and invited leading experts in our field, of whom there are not many, so naturally, we want to make the most of their visit. And I think we certainly did.”
The BSc in Earth and Space Physics and Engineering has recently received the expert panel's final report and is now set to develop an action plan outlining the areas on which it will focus its future work.
“As expected, the panel was impressed by our programme and study environment. However, during the process, we discovered that many students find it difficult to understand how the cross-disciplinary skills they acquire on the programme can be translated into concrete value in a specialized labour market. The panel helped us to articulate this,” explains Sine Munk Hvidegaard.
“So, we’ve already started organizing a series of meetings with employers who can articulate the skills they need. And we’ve included in the action plan that we must try to describe the individual course and learning objectives even more clearly,” she concludes.
The evaluation of all 72 of DTU’s study programmes is being carried out systematically over a six-year rolling cycle. By 2025, 16 study programmes had undergone a programme evaluation.
