Institutional Self-Assessment Report
National University of Ireland, Galway
Tuesday, 02 November 2010
Self Assessment Team
Prof. Chris Curtin, Vice President for Innovation and Performance (Chair)
Dr. David O’Sullivan – Director of Quality
Prof. Nicholas Allen, Moore Institute
Ms. Carmel Browne, Staff Training and Development
Dr. James Cunningham, Director of Centre for Innovation and Structural Change
Mr. John Cox, Librarian
Mr. Kieran Loftus, Executive Director of Operations
Ms. Aoife Flanagan, Institutional Research Officer
Ms. Donna Cummins, Outgoing SU President
Mr. Peter Mannion, Students Union President
Prof. Terry Smith, Vice President for Research
Ms. Orla Baxter, Research Office
Ms. Anne Marie Cryan, Quality Office Administration
Dr. Sharon Flynn, Centre for Excellence in Learning and Teaching
Ms. Marie McGonagle, School of Law
With contributions from:
Prof. Jim Ward, Registrar and Deputy President; Ms. Mary Dooley, Bursar/Sparánaí; Dr. Séamus Mac
Mathúna, Rúnaí um Ghnóthaí Acadúla (Academic Secretary); Mr. Michael Kavanagh, Registrars Office;
Mr. John Sweeney, Presidents Office; Mr. Keith Warnock, VP for Capital Projects; Prof. Gerard Lyons,
Dean of Engineering and Informatics; Prof. William Golden, Dean of Business, Public and Law; Dr.
Edward Herring, Dean of Arts, Social Sciences and Celtic Studies; Prof. Tom Sherry, Dean of Science;
Prof. Bg Loftus, Dean of Medicine; Nursing and Health Sciences; Dr. Pat Byrne, Dean of Graduate Studies;
Prof. Peadar Mac an Iomaire, Príomhfheidhmeannach an Acadaimh, Ms. Mary Ryan, Director of
Academic Administration; Mr. Gearóid Ó Broin, Director Financial Accounting; Mr. John Gaffney,
Director of Physical Resources; Mr. John Gibney, Director of Management Accounting; Mr. Seamus
O'Grady, Director of Adult Education; Dr. Iain Mac Labhrainn, Director of Centre for Excellence in
Learning and Teaching; Ms. Caroline Loughnane, Director of Marketing & Communications; Mr. Sean
O'Farrell, Director of Information Solutions & Services; Mr. Christopher McNairney, Director of HR &
Organisational Development; Ms. Bernadette Costello, Director of Internal Audit; Ms. Mary O’Riordan,
Vice-President (Student Experience).
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
Contents
SUMMARY............................................................................................................................................................................................. 4
1
INTRODUCTION AND CONTEXT.......................................................................................................................................... 5
1.1
INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................................................................................5
1.2
BRIEF HISTORY .........................................................................................................................................................................................5
1.3
PRESENT DAY ............................................................................................................................................................................................5
1.4
ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURES .............................................................................................................................................................6
1.5
KEY CHALLENGES .....................................................................................................................................................................................8
1.6
MISSION AND STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES ..................................................................................................................................................8
1.7
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS ........................................................................................................................................................................9
1.8
QUALITY ASSURANCE (QA) ................................................................................................................................................................. 10
1.9
CONCLUSIONS ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 11
2
INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW SELF-ASSESSMENT..............................................................................................................11
2.1
INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 11
2.2
SELF-ASSESSMENT STEERING GROUP (SATEAM)............................................................................................................................ 12
2.3
METHODOLOGY ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 12
2.4
INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW 2004........................................................................................................................................................... 12
2.5
QUALITY ASSURANCE ASSESSMENT.................................................................................................................................................... 13
2.5.1 Staff Surveys................................................................................................................................................................................... 13
2.5.2 Student Surveys............................................................................................................................................................................. 14
2.6
QUALITY REVIEWS................................................................................................................................................................................. 16
2.6.1 External Examiners ..................................................................................................................................................................... 17
2.7
BENCHMARKING ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 18
2.7.1 Bologna Review............................................................................................................................................................................. 18
2.7.2 Leading Thinkers and Awards ................................................................................................................................................ 19
2.8
KEY BENEFITS ........................................................................................................................................................................................ 20
2.9
EMERGING IDEAS ................................................................................................................................................................................... 20
2.10 CONCLUSIONS ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 21
3
QUALITY ASSURANCE...........................................................................................................................................................21
3.1
INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 21
3.2
QUALITY LEADERSHIP........................................................................................................................................................................... 22
3.2.1 Student Representation ............................................................................................................................................................. 22
3.3
LOCAL QUALITY ASSURANCE ............................................................................................................................................................... 23
3.4
CENTRAL QUALITY ASSURANCE .......................................................................................................................................................... 23
3.5
QUALITY REVIEWS................................................................................................................................................................................. 24
3.5.1 Review Policy ................................................................................................................................................................................. 24
3.5.2 Review Criteria.............................................................................................................................................................................. 25
3.5.3 Linked Colleges.............................................................................................................................................................................. 25
3.6
EXTERNAL EXAMINERS POLICY ........................................................................................................................................................... 25
3.7
INSTITUTIONAL RESEARCH .................................................................................................................................................................. 26
3.7.1 Research Assessment .................................................................................................................................................................. 26
3.8
RISK MANAGEMENT .............................................................................................................................................................................. 27
3.9
EXTERNAL REFERENCE POINTS .......................................................................................................................................................... 27
3.10 PUBLIC INFORMATION AND DISSEMINATION .................................................................................................................................... 27
3.11 CONCLUSIONS ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 28
4
QUALITY ENHANCEMENT ...................................................................................................................................................28
4.1
INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 28
4.2
STRATEGIC PLAN 2009-2014 ........................................................................................................................................................... 29
4.3
QUALITY & INNOVATION ENHANCEMENTS ....................................................................................................................................... 29
4.3.1 Quality Office Initiatives ............................................................................................................................................................ 29
4.3.2 Operational Planning Initiatives............................................................................................................................................ 31
4.3.3 Institutional Research Initiatives .......................................................................................................................................... 31
4.3.4 Staff Development........................................................................................................................................................................ 31
4.3.5 Innovation and Excellence Initiatives .................................................................................................................................. 32
4.4
TEACHING AND RESEARCH ENHANCEMENTS .................................................................................................................................... 32
4.4.1 Research Support ......................................................................................................................................................................... 32
4.4.2 Colleges and Schools ................................................................................................................................................................... 32
4.4.3 Programmes................................................................................................................................................................................... 34
4.4.4 Graduate Education .................................................................................................................................................................... 34
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
4.4.5 Teaching and Learning.............................................................................................................................................................. 35
4.4.6 Adult Learning .............................................................................................................................................................................. 35
4.4.7 Library.............................................................................................................................................................................................. 36
4.5
SUPPORT SERVICES ENHANCEMENTS................................................................................................................................................. 36
4.5.1 Student Services............................................................................................................................................................................ 36
4.5.2 Information Services................................................................................................................................................................... 37
4.5.3 Academic Administration ......................................................................................................................................................... 37
4.5.4 Finance and Accounting ............................................................................................................................................................ 38
4.5.5 Buildings and Services................................................................................................................................................................ 38
4.5.6 Human Resources......................................................................................................................................................................... 38
4.6
CONCLUSIONS ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 39
5
COMPLIANCE ...........................................................................................................................................................................39
5.1
INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 39
5.2
UNIVERSITIES ACT ................................................................................................................................................................................. 39
5.3
IRISH UNIVERSITIES QUALITY BOARD................................................................................................................................................ 40
5.4
EUROPEAN STANDARDS ........................................................................................................................................................................ 40
5.5
NATIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR QUALIFICATIONS ............................................................................................................................... 41
OVERALL CONCLUSIONS ...............................................................................................................................................................42
APPENDICES
A1: ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURES........................................................................................................................................................... 43
A2: EUA RECOMMENDATIONS - 2004 ......................................................................................................................................................... 44
A3: STUDENT SURVEY RESULTS .................................................................................................................................................................... 45
A4: REVIEWERS 2009/2010............................................................................................................................................................................. 47
A5: UNIVERSITY STRATEGY ............................................................................................................................................................................. 48
A6: LEARNING, TEACHING AND ASSESSMENT STRATEGY................................................................................................................ 49
A7: QUALITY AND INNOVATION – OPERATIONAL PLAN ................................................................................................................... 50
A8: QUALITY INFORMATION SYSTEMS....................................................................................................................................................... 51
A9: ACADEMIC MANUAL .................................................................................................................................................................................... 52
A10: SCHOOL INDICATORS ............................................................................................................................................................................... 53
A11: TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT .......................................................................................................................................................... 54
A12: MAJOR MILESTONES ................................................................................................................................................................................. 55
A13: QUALITY OFFICE ACTIVITIES 2010.................................................................................................................................................... 56
Accompanying Documents
The following documents accompany this report:



NUI Galway Strategic Plan 2009-2014
Quality Review Policy
External Examiners Policy
On-site Information
The following and other information will be assessable on-site during the review visit:






University Policies and Procedures
External Examiner Reports
Quality Review Reports and Action Plans
Strategic and Operational Plans
Institutional Data
Student and Staff Survey Results
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
Summary
The provision of high quality teaching, research and support services is the responsibility of all staff and
units of the University. The University community has responsibility for assuring quality through
continuous evaluation and assessment, and the generation and implementation of quality
enhancements. There is a wide range of policies to support and provide quality services, and also for
assuring and enhancing quality, including student feedback, programme management, and Bologna
compliance. Policies are implemented locally by individual staff and units. The office of Vice President
(VP) for Innovation and Performance has special responsibility for quality assurance that is
independent of teaching, research and support services. The VP, acting under the direction of the
President, has a number of quality assurance policies that are implemented centrally and include
quality reviews, annual external examiners, institutional research and strategic and operational
planning. Together both sets of policies - Local and Central - create a dynamic and challenging
environment that continuously enhances the quality of teaching, research and support services.
This institutional review is welcomed as a significant opportunity to evaluate current policies
for assuring quality and also generate new ideas for quality enhancement. During self-evaluation
various approaches were used to evaluate and assess quality. These approaches included a review of
policies and procedures, and surveys of stakeholders, including the views of staff, students,
management, and external reviewers. Benchmarking of quality systems in other organisations was also
conducted to harvest successful ideas externally. The outcomes of the self-assessment included the
immediate implementation of a number of quality enhancement initiatives, including the redesign of a
quality review system, revision and enhancement of some policies, identification of key performance
indicators and the development of quality information systems. A number of initiatives have also been
identified for development in the future.
This report presents the information and data gathered during the self-assessment exercise, and
the various initiatives both executed and planned to enhance quality across the University. It begins by
providing a brief introduction to the University, its current structures and performance and how the
University views quality assurance and enhancement. The report outlines the measures taken to
conduct the self-assessment and in particular how the self-assessment team gathered ideas from
various stakeholders including staff and students. The report then looks at how the University currently
assures quality and in particular a number of key policies for assessment, including quality reviews.
Various quality enhancement initiatives are then presented that have resulted from the ideas of
individual staff and students, as well as from recent quality reviews and external examiners. The report
concludes by mapping various policies and practices in the University against various external
standards and guidelines (in particular the Universities Act).
Quality is an ever changing concept for the University and its various stakeholders, including
students. The University’s quality assurance policies are designed to evaluate and assess quality and
feed back recommendations to teaching, research and support services for quality enhancement.
Quality assurance is also ever changing and this report recommends ways that quality assurance itself
can be enhanced to provide greater quality teaching, research and support services.
4
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
1 Introduction and Context
1.1 Introduction
NUI Galway as an organisation has been in existence since 1845 and currently has over 16,000 students
and 2,523 staff. The University’s Strategic Plan that incorporates the specific mission around ‘learning
and leadership for life’ is in turn translated into operational plans in various units within the University,
and ultimately into policies and procedures for how the University and its staff service the needs of
their various stakeholders in particular students. The Universities Act also lays out regulations for
quality assurance and how the University should evaluate and assess its activities to assure that they
are being conducted at the highest possible level of quality within existing resources. This section
presents an overview of NUI Galway from its beginnings in 1845 to its present day. Current challenges
faced by the University are presented. The specific mission and strategic objectives for the University in
meeting these challenges are outlined. Recent developments are then highlighted to illustrate some of
the results of the University’s recent plans. This section concludes with an introduction on how the
University views its responsibilities regarding quality assurance of its teaching, research and support
services.
1.2 Brief History
The University was founded in 1845 as Queen’s College Galway. It was one of the three colleges
founded under the Queen’s Colleges (Ireland) Act, the others being Belfast and Cork. Queen’s College
Galway opened its doors to 68 students on 30th October 1849. The establishment of those three nondenominational Colleges represented the response of the British Government, under Sir Robert Peel, to
the intense pressure, particularly in the wake of Catholic Emancipation in 1829, from the Catholic
Hierarchy and others for a higher education system for Catholic, Presbyterian and Dissenter students
akin to what Trinity College Dublin had provided for Established Church students, since its foundation.
The initial University building, the Quadrangle, was built over the period 1847-9 at
the height of the Great Famine. The Quadrangle building, designed by John B. Keane,
was built in local limestone in a Tudor Gothic architectural style, and includes a clock
tower based on Wren’s Tom Tower at Christ Church, Oxford. The ‘Quad’ still stands
at the heart of the University. The University began with three faculties, Arts,
Medicine and Law and there were also schools of Agriculture and Engineering.
Female students later joined the student body. In 1906 Alice Perry graduated from
the college, and she is believed to be the first female engineering graduate in the
world to receive a degree in civil engineering. Early in the 20th century, under the Irish Universities Act
(1908), Queen’s College Galway, along with Queen’s College Cork and University College Dublin (the
former Catholic University of Ireland), became a Constituent College of the new federal National
University of Ireland, and was renamed University College Galway (UCG). In 1929, the College was given
a special statutory responsibility under the ‘University College Galway Act’ in respect of the provision of
University education through the medium of the Irish language. Under the Universities Act, 1997,
University College Galway was reconstituted as a University, under the name of Ollscoil na Éireann,
Gaillimh / National University of Ireland, Galway. Together with NUI Dublin, NUI Cork and NUI
Maynooth, NUI Galway is also a Constituent University of the National University of Ireland.
1.3 Present Day
Today the University has slightly over 16,000 students, of whom 14% are international students from
over 90 countries across the world. There are 2,523 staff. The University has 82 student societies, 41
sports clubs and 75,000 alumni. In recent years, the University has greatly expanded its range of
programmes and expanded the scale of its teaching and research activities. These developments have
been accompanied by a growth in student support services, while the University’s campus has been
transformed through a €320m Capital Development Plan, which has seen the addition of a range of new
buildings to support increased activity. The table below illustrates much of the key performance data
5
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
that defines the University in its present state and comparisons with other universities.
Data
2008/2009** 2009/2010***
UCD
UCC
TCD
9870
10531
14974
Undergraduate Part-Time Enrolments (HEA)
2042
1811
1692
356
Postgraduate Full-Time Enrolments (HEA)
2679
2938
4384
Postgraduate Part-Time Enrolments (HEA)
711
807
2605
Total Enrolments (HEA)
15302
16087
23655
17006 16173 10767 ***
Total Full-Time Enrolments (HEA)
12549
13469
19358
15780 14390
Total Student FTE
14474
906.59
742.11 709.76 510.2 ***
Academic Staff (HEA Returns)
1098
1088
780.54
757.12
All Staff (HEA Returns)
2566
2523
PhD Enrolments (HEA)
785
917
PhD Graduands (HEA)
140
Academic Staff FTE (HEA Returns)
12757 10975
UL
Undergraduate Full-Time Enrolments (HEA)
8136
***
181
440
***
3023
3415
1685
***
870
1602
506
***
9821
***
2890
2494
**
1828
1135
1919
695
290
136
272
102
**
***
New Entrants UG FT (HEA)
2957
3123
4590
3334
3217
2094
***
Mature FT Enrolments (>23yrs of age) (HEA)
3441
3718
5851
4488
4743
2699
***
Mature New Entrants UG FT(>23yrs of age) (HEA)
317
364
426
354
324
214
***
Non Irish FT Enrolments (Excl. N.I.) (HEA)
1757
1875
3148
1541
1782
476
***
CAO Applications (CAO Stats)
27754
31934
52201
34065 38217 28849 ***
412
418
434
Leaving Cert Median Points (ST)
416
482
429
***
Graduands UG FT (HEA)
2195
2938
2650
1657
**
Hons Awarded UG FT (H1 and H2.1) (HEA)
1326
1900
1753
875
**
Employment (ST)
98.0%
96.0%
93.0%
Retention (ST)
89%
88%
80%
QS World University Ranking'
243
232
114
Total Recurrent Income (€m) (FS)
231
389
Research Income (€m)
59
113.3
1692*
Number of Research Papers (2003-2007) (Forfas)
Citation Impact(5 Year Avg of Research Citations (2003-2007)
80%
85%
83%
***
184
52
451
***
N/A
305
166
**
78.5
89.7
47.2
**
4510
3217
3904
1125
*
*
1.27
1.15
1.49
0.74
2008/2009
2009/2010
UCD
UCC
TCD
UL
Non-traditional Enrolments/Total Enrolments (ST)
22.0%
19.4%
17.2%
Non Irish Full Time Enrolments/Total FT Enrolments
14.0%
13.9%
16.3%
Mature FT Enrolments/Total FT Enrolments
27.4%
27.6%
30.2%
28.4% 33.0% 27.5% ***
Mature UG FT NE/Total UG FT New Entrants
10.7%
11.7%
9.3%
10.6% 10.1% 10.2% ***
64.7%
66.2%
2.02
1.53
Ratios
0.98*
92.0% 93.0% 90.0% ***
Total Student FTE/Academic Staff FTE
18.5
Hons Awards UG FT/Graduands UG FT
60.4%
PhD Enrolments/Academic Staff FTE
1.01
1.21
17.3% 16.0% 16.6% ***
9.8%
12.4%
2.70
4.8%
***
52.8%
**
1.36
***
* Figures for 2007/2008 | ** Figures for 2008/2009 | *** Figures for 2009/20010
CAO Applications 2010/2011 = 34,281
1.4 Organisational Structures
The University’s overall governance structures are, as in the case of all Universities, laid out in general
terms in the Universities Act, which provides that overall governance and responsibility rest with
Údaras na hOllscoile (The University Governing Authority). Údarás na hOllscoile has four major
committees to assist in developing policy, viz. Standing and Strategic Planning Committee,
Finance/Resource Committee, the Academic Planning and Resources Committee (APRC), and the
Support Services Committee (SSC). The Quality and Innovation Committee (QIC) reports to APRC and
SSC and thereby to Údarás regarding new policies and developments in the area of quality assurance
and enhancement and is chaired by the Vice-President (VP) for Innovation and Performance. The
University Management Team (UMT) is responsible for executing the policies of an tÚdarás and day-today management of the various offices and functions of the University. UMT is led by the President and
6
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
has representation from all functions through its other permanent members: Registrar and DeputyPresident, Bursar, Executive Director of Operations (EDO), VP for Capital Projects, VP for Innovation
and Performance and the Secretary. The Registrar and Deputy-President, to whom the Deans report,
represents all Colleges and Schools, Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge, Adult and Continuing
Education, the Library, and the Centre for Excellence in Learning and Teaching (CELT), as well as
Research (through direct report from the Vice-President for Research) and student affairs generally
(through direct report from the Vice-President for the Student Experience). The Executive Director of
Operations (EDO) represents all of the support services functions including academic services,
information systems, human resources and buildings. The VP for Innovation and Performance
represents the functions of quality assurance, institutional research, elements of staff development,
strategic and operational planning and major innovation and performance initiatives.
All academic affairs in the University are the responsibility, under Údarás na hOllscoile, of the
Academic Council (AC), including the development of programmes of study, awards and examinations
and agreement of structures and policies to carry out academic affairs. The Academic Council,
supported by its Standing Committee in the handling of most of of its routine business, meets 5-6 times
annually to agree changes to policies regarding teaching and research. All support services are the
responsibility of the EDO which is supported by the Support Services Committee of an tÚdarás. The
Quality Office (QO) is led by the part-time Director of Quality who is responsible for executing the policy
of an tÚdarás in respect of quality assurance and in particular the execution of quality reviews and the
external examiner process. The Director reports to the VP for Innovation and Performance, thus
maintaining the independence of quality assurance from the delivery of teaching, research and support
services.
President
VP
Innovation &
Performance
Executive
Director
Operations
VP
Student
Experience
Shared
Services
ISS
HR
Buildings
and Services
Registrar
and Deputy
President
Deans
Academic
Affairs
Library
VP
Research
VP
Capital
Projects
Bursar
Secretary
CELT
An
tAcadamh
Adult and
Continuing
Education
The primary output from the Quality Office is information regarding quality assurance across the
University, and recommendations for quality enhancement initiatives by its reviewers and external
examiners. In this respect the office also works very closely with the office of ‘institutional research’
whose responsibility is principally quality and performance data management. Together, both functions
work with the ‘Institutional Operational Plan Steering Group’ chaired by the VP and whose mission is to
facilitate quality and performance enhancement through operational plans by all academic and support
services units. In relation to quality reviews and external examiners, the Quality Office interacts with an
tÚdarás through three major committees - the Quality and Innovation Committee, Academic Planning
and Resources Committee and Support Services Committee (SSC). The Quality Office also interacts with
Academic Council and SSC with respect to review policy, review outcomes and proposed reviews for
academic and support services respectively. Central quality assurance is represented on UMT through
the VP for Innovation and Performance. More detail on general organisational structures and key
individuals is presented in the Appendices.
7
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
1.5 Key Challenges
The environment in which NUI Galway operates has changed significantly in recent years. Ireland has
repositioned itself as a Knowledge Society. NUI Galway is being challenged to enhance its 4 th level
opportunities and compete strongly for research and development funds particularly, schemes such as
Science Foundation Ireland (SFI), Programme for Research in Third-Level Institutions (PRTLI), EU
Framework 7 and Enterprise Ireland. NUI Galway is also being challenged to increase its output of
graduates with research degrees (Masters and Ph.D.s) and place greater emphasis on technology
transfer and commercialisation. The recent increase in unemployment has also seen a major increase in
the need for upgrading of skills and qualifications, demanding that NUI Galway create more lifelong
learning opportunities and continuing education to create a more flexible and agile workforce. The
recent economic downturn has created a demand for rationalisation and collaboration within the 3 rd
and 4th level sector. It has focused attention on the need to create more value for taxpayer’s money. The
‘value’ being created by the University needs to be more measurable and evidence based. The HEA
Recurrent Grant Allocation Model, although imperfect, is creating more transparency among Irish
universities. The international ranking of universities also provides a challenge. Despite the inability of
the rankings to take into account different functions of universities, NUI Galway cannot ignore the
potential impact on its future reputation. Within the current economic climate there is also a severe
constraint on new resources, and in particular staffing. The Employment Control Framework constrains
new appointments and promotions, and this in turn creates severe constraints across the University.
Finally, there are other challenges of a more global nature facing the University. These include the need
for more environmental awareness that can lower impacts on carbon emissions; the need for new ideas
for the green economy, and how Ireland can best position itself to benefit from economic growth in
these sectors. Each of these challenges is informing thinking among all staff across NUI Galway. This is
manifest in the most recent strategic and operational plans for the University, and in the ideas that are
emerging for quality and performance enhancement.
1.6 Mission and Strategic Objectives
The general mission or ‘objects’ of the University are laid out in the Universities Act 1997 and include:
“to advance knowledge through teaching, scholarly research and scientific investigation” and “to
promote learning in its student body and in society generally”. An additional element in the Act is “to
promote the highest standards in, and quality of, teaching and research”. These and the other mission
statements have guided and informed the
University’s Strategic Plan (2009-2014). The
University
University’s first plan was published in 1997 and
Strategic Plan
(2009-2014)
positioned ‘Quality’ as its first strategic priority with
the words ‘NUI, Galway will develop and implement a
LTA
Research
total quality culture and systems to assure and
Strategy
Strategy
control the quality of its services and programmes to
(2009-2011)
(2009-2011)
students, staff and its external publics’. The specific
Operational
Operational
Operational
mission for the current plan is ‘Learning and
Plans
Plans
Plans
Leadership for Life and Work’ and visualises a
(2010/2011)
(2010/2011)
(2010/2011)
university that provides ‘a holistic educational and
cultural experience’, ‘international leadership in
selected areas’, and ‘reflects national priorities and
Individual
Individual
Individual
the needs of our region’. The University believes it
Work
Plans
Work
Plans
Work
Plans
realises this vision as it establishes itself as ‘the
(2010/2011)
(2010/2011)
(2010/2011)
university of choice for our region’, ‘the university of
choice nationally in selected areas of expertise’,
‘internationally recognised in priority research areas’ and whose ‘students are engaged with their
learning and with the community around them’. This vision is based on a number of identified values
that include: ‘a commitment to excellence’, ‘collegiality in all our interactions’, ‘respect for academic
freedom’, ‘a culture of performance’, ‘rewarding achievement’ , ‘engagement of all staff and students’
and ‘fostering partnerships’.
8
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
The strategic plan identifies five strategic priorities: Teaching, Learning & Research;
Infrastructure & Environment; Organisation & Staff; An Ghaeilge & Regional Development;
Communications & Resources. Within each priority it has identified strategic objectives to be achieved
over the lifetime of the plan. Specific targets have been set to measure progress towards the
achievement of these objectives and include ‘growing international students to 15% of student
population’, ‘increasing the population of non-traditional students to 7.5%’, ‘graduating 200 Ph.D.
students per year’ and ‘increasing the number of mature students to 27% of all entrants’. The
University’s strategic plan is translated into individual operational plans in each of the major units of
the University (i.e. colleges, schools and supports services). Colleges and schools are also informed by
the ‘Learning, Teaching and Assessment (LTA) Strategy (2009-2011)’ and the ‘Research Strategy (20092011)’. Operational plans are informed by the University’s Strategic Plan but also contain goals and
actions that reflect local priorities within the unit. The LTA Plan focuses on a wide range of strategic
objectives for improving learning, teaching and assessment. It provides many detailed guidelines and
policies on how units, in particular colleges and schools, need to develop. The Research Plan sets out a
range of strategic objectives for the development of research supports and research priorities of the
University. Together these plans inform the actions of individuals across the University in the
development of their own personal work plans and goals for the future. Abridged versions of University
Strategy and LTA Plan are contained in the Appendices.
1.7 Recent Developments
Recent developments across the University can best be illustrated with a concise look at what stories
have made the news for NUI Galway in 2009 and 2010. In 2009 NUI Galway was
selected as ‘Sunday Times University of the Year’ for the second time in less than
10 years. The citation noted record increases in numbers of student applications,
the best record for student retention, attracting students from non-traditional
backgrounds, a strong record in graduate employability, and an excellent record
in commercialisation of research. NUI Galway moved to 243rd in the ‘Times
Higher World University Rankings 2009’, an increase of 125 places on the 2008
position, and almost 250 places up on the 2007 ranking. The University also
created new organisational structures, streamlining the governing authority, reducing the number of
academic units into five Colleges and 16 Schools, and restructuring of the University Management Team
with a focus on innovation and performance. The new Strategic Plan (2009-2014) aims to strengthen
NUI Galway’s position and to increase the University’s international profile. The strategy was translated
into operational plans in each of the teaching, research and support services of the University. Campus
developments included a new Sports Centre (2008), new Nursing and Midwifery Library (2009),
refurbishment of Student Centre (2009), new €40 million building for Engineering (2010). NUI Galway
was in the top three big winners of PRTLI 5 (2010) securing circa €60 million in research funding. The
NUI Galway projects include three new research buildings estimated at €50 million: The Arts
Humanities Social Sciences Research Building; The Biosciences Research Building and; The
Translational Research Facility. NUI Galway also enjoyed considerable success in the EU FP7 funding,
securing several awards including two €3 million awards for health-related research projects. In the
last two years, NUI Galway has received in excess of €58 million in research funding from Science
Foundation Ireland, including a €15 million refunding of the Digital Enterprise Research Institute, and
almost €10 million in refunding for the Regenerative Medicine Institute.
NUI Galway was awarded the Republic of Ireland’s first UNESCO Chair in Children, Youth and
Civic Engagement (Prof. Pat Dolan) and opened a new Centre for Disability Law and Policy. The Health
Promotion Research Centre was designated the World Health Organisation Collaborating Centre for
Health Promotion Research. The prestigious role of President of the Royal Irish Academy was accepted
by Prof. Nicholas Canny, while another five researchers joined the ranks of its membership, and Prof.
Chris Dainty became Vice President of the Optical Society of America. NUI Galway researchers
discovered a new coral reef off the west coast of Ireland, were awarded a national Competence Centre
for Biorefining and Bioenergy, and discovered that using disinfectants could cause bacteria to become
resistant to antibiotics. One of NUI Galway’s scientists developed Ireland’s own capability of forecasting
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
Icelandic plume dispersion, in the wake of the volcanic eruption. Internet technology, developed by the
Digital Enterprise Research Institute, was adopted by the Obama Administration to increase the
transparency of the US Government, while funding was secured for a major new Lifecycle Institute.
Professor William Schabas was awarded the Vaspasian V. Pella Medal for International Criminal Justice.
The Technology Transfer Office held the best record in the Irish University sector for patents, licences
and numbers of spin out companies in 2009. Four staff were awarded national teaching awards from
the National Academy for the Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning (NAIRTL) - out of a total
of 15, over three years, across all HE institutions in Ireland. Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering
lecturers and students were among the winners of the MacJannet Prize for Global Citizenship for
Engineering projects developed to address genuine community needs.
NUI Galway and the University of Limerick entered into an institution-wide strategic alliance in
2010 across all of the key areas of activity including teaching, research, technology transfer, lifelong
learning and the provision of services. The objective of the alliance is to better support the social and
economic development of the wider region by combining the strengths of the two Universities.
Admissions performance in 2010 continued to grow ahead of national trends. Demand for entrance has
increased by 18% in the last two years according to figures released by the Central Applications Office
and the University holds 14.3% of all first preference applications across Ireland – 4 th place in terms of
popularity behind UCD, Trinity and UCC that are located in much larger catchment areas. Growth in
demand has been partially attributed to 20 new undergraduate programmes in the last three years.
1.8 Quality Assurance (QA)
NUI Galway has formally recognised quality and quality assurance as an important strategic priority
since its first strategic plan in 1997. Since then, quality and quality assurance have become part of the
cultural fabric of the University. Quality assurance and enhancement in many respects is something that
has permeated all university activities since 1845. However, 1997 was the first time it was mentioned
explicitly as an important strategic priority. In this context, the University can be said to carry out two
primary activities - the delivery of quality services and secondly, the ‘quality assurance’ of the delivery
of quality services. The Universities Act 1997 section 35 defines the quality assurance activity as
involving both the periodic ‘evaluation’ and ‘assessment’ of quality ‘by those responsible including
students’.
The University’s QA policy emphasises
that all academic and support services are
responsible for delivering high quality processes
Delivery of Quality
and services. They are also responsible for quality
Services
assurance and continuous improvement. Three
(& Local QA)
levels of quality assurance can be defined – Local
QA that is carried out by the unit, Central QA that
is independent of the units and Institutional QA
carried out by an independent body outside the
University (i.e. the IUQB) – see Figure opposite.
Central
QA
The Quality Office and Institutional Research
Office are responsible for Central QA. The Quality
Office is responsible in particular for the periodic
‘evaluation’ of quality through quality reviews and
external examiners. Institutional Research is
Institutional
primarily responsible for the ‘assessment’ of
QA
quality primarily through data analysis and
surveys. Both offices report directly to the VP for
Innovation and Performance. This maintains the independence of Central quality assurance from the
delivery of quality processes and services by teaching, research and support services. Associated
activities by both the Quality Office and Institutional Research include the enhancement and assurance
of the strategic planning process and broader initiatives around innovation and performance.
In addition to providing high quality services, all academic and support services have their own
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
Local quality assurance responsibilities that include ‘evaluation’ and ‘assessment’ activities. Evaluation
is primarily conducted through the operational planning process and periodic self-assessment as part of
quality reviews. Assessment activities include student feedback, surveys, programme boards, and
performance measurement. Together both ‘Local’ and ‘Central’ quality assurance provide a dynamic
and continuous quality enhancement process. The results of all Central quality assurance activities are
published widely and most data are available to the public. The results are available to internal staff.
This fosters internal benchmarking and idea generation across academic and support services.
The concept of quality assurance applied at NUI Galway is continuously evolving. The
Universities Act 1997 laid out clear requirements for definition and application of quality assurance.
However, quality assurance is also informed by European Standards and the activities of the Irish
Universities Quality Board and the Irish Universities Quality Committee. Since the 1997 Act, NUI Galway
has broadened the concept of quality assurance from quality reviews to include external examiners,
institutional research and elements of training and development (i.e. Deans and Heads conference).
More recently the University has adopted an even broader perspective that now includes strategic and
operational planning; staff work-plans, staff mentoring, benchmarking, and various quality information
systems. This more holistic perspective on quality assurance brings together a number of important
strands of quality enhancement for facilitating units in delivering higher quality services and processes.
1.9 Conclusions
NUI Galway as grown significantly since its foundation in 1845. It has pursued a national and
international reputation for research and teaching. In recent years it has restructured itself with the
aim of being more dynamic and responsive to key challenges in its environment. Chief among these is
the need to provide more opportunities for students, to demonstrate evidence of performance and
value. The University is also responding to new challenges particularly within its research priorities
despite severe constraints on staffing and promotions. Recent figures in attracting research funding and
new students have been ahead of national trends and suggest a university that is growing and meeting
its objectives. The University’s approach to quality assurance is becoming more holistic. Quality reviews
and external examiners remain the key mechanisms for ‘central’ quality assurance. ‘Local’ QA is
supported by various policies. Enhancements to Central QA have seen the development of institutional
research, strategic and operational planning and the introduction of innovation. QA is one of the
principal mechanisms for quality enhancement in addition to strategic planning and the efforts of
individual staff. This section has presented an overview of NUI Galway and brief introduction to quality
assurance that will be expanded in later sections. In the next section the University’s approach to the
activities and thinking behind the creation of this self-assessment report is outlined.
2 Institutional Review Self-Assessment
2.1 Introduction
The Institutional Review self-assessment exercise comprised a number of activities beginning with the
formation of the self-assessment steering group (SATeam). The SATeam agreed on a methodology for
conducting the self-assessment that included openness and self-criticism. This section describes the
activities of the SATeam, which began with a review of the recommendations of the Institutional Review
in 2004, before assessing various compliance criteria, international standards, and a review of the
activities of central quality assurance activities. The SATeam then initiated a number of activities
beginning with a variety of surveys of staff and students, benchmarking against other organisations and
concluding with an assessment of quality assurance at NUI Galway culminating in the production of this
report. The SATeam extracted a number of key benefits from the application of quality assurance at NUI
Galway and in particular Central QA. They also identified a number of key challenges for quality
assurance and enhancement in the future. This section presents each of these issues in turn, including a
brief description of how the process was designed to engage as many staff as possible throughout the
University. It concludes with a description of some of the ideas that emerged from the various surveys
11
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
and assessments for enhancing quality assurance in the future.
2.2 Self-assessment Steering Group (SATeam)
The SATeam was formed in March 2010 following the first meeting of the newly convened Quality and
Innovation Committee (QIC). The mission of the SATeam was the assessment of quality throughout the
University and in particular the assessment of quality assurance and enhancement (both local and
Central QA). The SATeam were also interested in compliance with various criteria and in particular the
Universities Act. The group anticipated the need to develop a number of quality assurance and
enhancement initiatives prior to the onsite Institutional Review visit and in particular a redesign of the
Quality Review process and various quality information systems. The SATeam comprised individuals
from various roles in the University including staff and students. The team was led by the VP for
Innovation and Performance and membership comprised the following:
Prof. Chris Curtin, VP Innovation and Performance (Chair); Dr. David O’Sullivan – Director of Quality;
Prof. Nicholas Allen, Moore Institute; Ms. Carmel Browne, Staff Training and Development, Dr. James
Cunningham, Director of Centre for Innovation and Structural Change, Mr. John Cox, Librarian, Mr.
Kieran Loftus, Executive Director of Operations, Ms. Aoife Flanagan, Institutional Research Officer, Ms.
Donna Cummins, Outgoing SU President; Mr. Peter Mannion, SU President; Prof. Terry Smith, VP
Research; Ms. Orla Baxter, Research Office; Ms. Anne Marie Cryan, Quality Office Administration; Dr.
Sharon Flynn, Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning; Ms. Marie McGonagle, School of Law; Ms.
Anne Forde, Buildings and Services.
2.3 Methodology
The SATeam agreed a methodology for conducting the self-assessment based on a number of principles:






Engage in honest, non-defensive self-assessment
Present a self-assessment report that reflects weaknesses expressed as new initiatives
View the exercise as a significant opportunity to identify quality enhancements
Involve as wide a range of colleagues as possible through surveys and discussions
Disseminate regular drafts of self-assessment report to key staff and invite feedback
Identify initiatives that can enhance quality; and implement as many as possible
The remainder of this section presents some of the key mechanisms used in the self-assessment and
some of the key findings. Other findings are presented in detail in the remaining sections of this report.
The assessment began with a review of the Institutional Review 2004.
2.4 Institutional Review 2004
NUI Galway underwent its second institutional review of quality
assurance in 2004 as part of the European Universities Association
(EUA) review of the Irish university sector. The first ever review of
quality assurance across the entire University was in 2000 by a
group of external experts appointed by the University. The 2004
institutional review was the first review coordinated by an external
body and made 12 specific recommendations to NUI Galway and 29 general recommendations for the
Irish university sector. A synopsis of each of the 12 specific recommendations and comments regarding
compliance are presented in the table below. Of note are the migration by the University towards larger
units – schools and colleges, the establishment of a council of deans, and a new office for institutional
research. In the 2004 recommendations the reviewers noted large class sizes, too few computers and
few student services. The SATeam noted that there has been a significant building programme to
alleviate some of these issues in the interim and the perception is that student services have also
increased under the direction of the VP for Student Experience. Computer services have also improved
and are now supplemented significantly with migration towards student ownership of computers (e.g.
12
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
laptop schemes). Some temporary buildings remain, there is also some overcrowding in lectures, and
there are some pockets of dispersion of staff within the same subject or discipline across the University.
The recommendation of ‘systematic evaluation of all courses’ received attention. While policies
are in place for programme boards, student feedback and attendance, the results of surveys later in this
section will show that not all students are engaged in student feedback. It was noted that consistency of
implementation of student feedback varies considerably across the Irish university sector in general.
There was a sense that student and programme feedback needs to be revised if not actively managed
through a ‘central’ system. The 29 general recommendations by the EUA to the Irish University sector
were also assessed and a table of each recommendation and comments by the SATeam is presented in
the Appendix.
EUA Recommendations 2004
…advocacy strategies for tertiary education…
…meld smaller units into larger ones
…review Academic Council and Governing Authority
…establish council of deans
…transparency around resource allocation
…internationalisation in is broadest sense
…establish institutional research office
…large classes, little space, few computers, and few student
services
…systematic evaluation of all courses…
…review recommendations to be sensitive to resources
available…
...conduct reviews in combination with accreditations
…extend review period from 5 to 7 years…
NUI Galway Compliance
President assumes ultimate responsibility as chief executive
of university under governance from governing authority.
All staff also encouraged to become advocates for higher
education.
55 departments and 7 colleges are now melded into 16
schools and 5 colleges. Similar restructuring has occurred in
support services.
Governing Authority has significantly reduced the number
and increased the focus of committees. AC is restructured
and now includes Standing Committee.
Established and meets regularly.
Establishment of RGAM by HEA allows complete
transparency at institute level. Divisional Reporting
facilitates reporting within institute.
International policy created and International committee
established chaired by Registrar. Vice Deans for
internationalisation in each college.
Established with two staff reporting to VP Innovation and
Performance.
Extensive building programmes are completed or
underway. Computer facilities greatly enhanced in addition
to ‘laptop initiatives’. Vice President for Student Experience
established.
Policies established include student feedback, grouped
evaluations (CELT), use of ‘Blackboard’, programme boards,
promotion criteria and students complaints procedure.
Communicated through policy statement and verbally by
Director of Quality prior to reviews.
Established policy.
Nominal period of five years remains but units allowed
more flexibility and support regarding deferral requests.
2.5 Quality Assurance Assessment
The SATeam embarked on an assessment of quality assurance at NUI Galway. This assessment involved
a number of key elements: (i) Staff Surveys; (ii) Student Surveys; (iii) Quality Reviews; (iv) External
Examiners; (v) International Standards; (vi) Benchmarking; and (vii) Bologna Review. Each of these
elements is presented briefly below. The findings from all elements are brought together in Section 2.8
Key Benefits and Section 2.9 Emerging Ideas.
2.5.1
Staff Surveys
A survey of staff was carried out in the period January–March 2010. The purpose of the survey was to
gather data on the redesign of the Review Process and also solicit ideas for additional quality assurance
and enhancement activities. The survey had three key elements: (i) Online survey of all staff; (ii)
Management interviews; and (iii) Focus Groups. Findings from these staff surveys are contained in a
detailed report which will be available during the review visit.
13
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
Online Survey: The online survey posed three questions: (i) what staff liked about the Review process;
(ii) what they would change; and (iii) other quality enhancement ideas. In total 198 ideas were
harvested, many overlapped. Many ideas focused on changes to the review process and others on
associated and new QA initiatives. In addition a number of key strengths with the existing system were
recorded.
Management Interviews: All senior managers and many middle managers, including heads of unit,
were interviewed by the Director of Quality, and independently by the VP for Innovation and
Performance. They each identified a number of strengths in the current quality assurance policies and
also key recommendations for change.
Focus Groups: Five identical Focus Group sessions were carried out by an independent consultant with
strict instructions to remain objective in gathering the views of participants. There was a variety of staff
and students asked to assess the review process and general quality assurance. Five separate one hour
sessions with different groups of participants provided a rich source of consensual ideas.
2.5.2
Student Surveys
Four student surveys were assessed; (i) National Survey 2010; (ii) Student Satisfaction Survey 2009;
(iii) Student Attrition Survey 2010; and (vi) Student Feedback Survey 2010.
National Survey 2010: The Irish Universities Study (IUS), commissioned by the Irish Universities
Association, funded under SIF 1 (Strategic Innovation Fund) and conducted by the Geary Institute, UCD
was conducted over three rounds between 2007 and 2010. The scope of this project was to gather
information from three distinct populations: undergraduate and taught graduate students; research and
Ph.D. students, and researchers across the seven Irish Universities. With regard to student satisfaction
the results show NUI Galway comparing favourably to the university sector as a whole:
Satisfaction with …
… your University
… your Course
… your Interaction with Lecturers
Undergraduate
NUIG
Sector
91%
88%
86%
84%
58%
57%
Taught Postgraduate
NUIG
Sector
92%
84%
89%
83%
79%
75%
Research Students
NUIG
Sector
84%
81%
84%
82%
N/A
N/A
Regarding ‘Student Feedback Mechanisms’ NUI Galway compared favourably against other Irish
Universities, with 35% of students reporting that they have given feedback in most programmes versus
a university sector average of 21%. The IUS survey is a very comprehensive survey. Within each of the
student categories there is a wide range of information gathered from Health and Well Being to
feedback on Teaching and Learning, which has helped NUI Galway identify areas for improvement. Key
charts are attached in the Appendices of this document and the full reports are available during the
review visit.
Student Satisfaction Survey 2009: NUI Galway conducts an Undergraduate Student Satisfaction
Survey on a biennial cycle with the objective of assessing students’ perceptions of, and satisfaction with,
services. In 2009, overall satisfaction with Education and Services showed a steady improvement each
year since 2003 with a mean score of 5.29 out of 7. The percentage of students that are extremely or
very satisfied is increasing (48%). Satisfaction with lectures, tutorials and seminars also increased from
a mean of 5.03 to 5.11 since 2007. Student satisfaction with dealings with College Offices or Heads of
Departments has also improved from a mean of 5.50 to 5.58. There was a slight decrease in the average
satisfaction levels among some service areas: Registration, Fees/grants, Counsellors, Careers Office and
Sports Centre. Since the completion of the 2009 survey a student ‘contact centre’ has been established
and the new Sports Centre has been completed. These developments may result in improved indicators
of satisfaction in the 2011 survey. The satisfaction survey also tracks service usage over time to assist in
resource allocation. The survey also gathers some social and personal information on undergraduate
students i.e. students’ financial circumstances, necessity to work part-time, living and travel
arrangements etc.
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
Student Attrition Survey 2010: A survey was distributed in June 2010 to students who withdrew
before graduation in 2009/2010. One hundred and nineteen mainly 1st year undergraduate students
(71 women and 48 men) completed the survey. The reason for withdrawing for 34.5% of students was
to ‘take time out’. Almost half (41.3%) planned to return to NUI Galway and of these, 80% planned to
return in either 2010 or 2011. Approximately half of students had discussed their decision to withdraw
with student support services (44.9%) or with other academic staff (53.4%). The most frequently
consulted staff were the careers office and individual lecturers. 25.2% (30) of students did not discuss
their decision with staff. The most cited reasons for withdrawing were ‘wrong course choice’ (43.2%)
‘unsuitability of course’ (36.5%), ‘financial difficulties’ (19.2%), ‘emotional / psychological issues’
(15.4%) and ‘pressure of academic work / transferring to another university / college’ (13.4%). There
was a statistically significant relationship between speaking to staff in student support services and
planning to return to NUI Galway. There was no relationship between speaking to other NUI Galway
staff or being a member of a club or society and planning to return to NUI Galway.
Student Feedback Survey 2010: Systematic student feedback was a recommendation of the
Institutional Review of NUI Galway in 2004. The Virtual Learning Environment (Blackboard) has
allowed more staff and students to engage in student feedback. NUI Galway’s policy is that all students
have the opportunity to provide formal feedback to teaching staff, and that all staff use this feedback to
inform and enhance their teaching. Institutional Research has been independently assessing the level of
student feedback activity for the past three years, through a Student Feedback Survey at the end of each
Semester. The survey is also used to track feedback mechanisms used and those preferred by students.
The last survey was completed at the end of Semester 2 in 2009/2010 and compared with the results of
the Survey from Semester 2 in 2008/2009. The findings show that all Colleges showed an overall
improvement in feedback. Up to 4% of all students reported that they are “never” asked for feedback on
any module or programme – a decrease of 2% from 2008/2009. Almost 20% of all students reported
that they are asked for feedback on all of their modules, up 6% on last year. The written Questionnaire
continues to be the most dominant method although Blackboard continues to be the students’ preferred
method. From the data extract below, there is clearly room for improvement in the systematic use of
student feedback mechanisms.
Extract from 2010 Survey
“During this 2nd
semester, how
often have you
been asked to
provide feedback
on your courses?”
Medicine, Nursing
and Health
Sciences
Business Public
Policy & Law
14
On all courses
10
On more than
4 courses
On 4 courses
8
On 3 courses
On 2 courses
21
20
19
14
17
36
7
14
11
19
9
8
40
11
On 1 course
Never
19
22
17
17
6
21
26
24
22
25
19
14
24
19
17
15
10
6
Total 2008/2009
4
Total 2009/2010
14
5
14
14
5
9
8
4
Arts, Social
Engineering and
Sciences & Celtic
Inf ormatics
Studies
14
4
Science
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
2.6 Quality Reviews
The Quality Office at NUI Galway comprises
Academic Year
No.
Review Type
No.
three staff – a part-time director and two
1995/1996
3
Academic
90
administrators. It is primarily responsible for
1996/1997
4
Service
17
managing Central QA policies of quality
1997/1998
4
Programme
31
reviews and external examiners. Additional
1998/1999
5
Research
8
activities include, an annual ‘Deans and
1999/2000
10
Total
146
Heads’ conference, quality information
2000/2001
11
Reviewers
No.
systems and facilitating units with creation
External International 152
13
and revision of policy and procedures. Quality 2001/2002
reviews are the main resource intensive
2002/2003
20
External Industry
83
activity of the unit. The primary purpose of
2003/2004
9
External Irish
140
quality reviews is evaluating and assessing
2004/2005
10
Cognates
138
units and promoting enhancement of quality
2005/2006
12
Rapporteurs
143
through the recommendations of reviewers.
2006/2007
10
Total
656
The Office has administered 146 quality
2007/2008
12
reviews since 1995/1996 (see Table) and
2008/2009
10
utilised 656 reviewers. There have been 90
2009/2010
13
academic reviews (colleges, schools and
Total
146
departments), 17 support services reviews
(e.g. library), 31 programme reviews (e.g. Master of Business Administration) and eight research centre
reviews. Of the 656 reviewers, 152 were from universities outside Ireland, mainly UK, 83 were
reviewers from industry and 140 were reviewers from other Irish universities. The vast majority of
reviewers are senior academics and in particular Professors. A complete list of reviewers from the
2009/2010 review season is presented in the appendices.
The cycle time for quality reviews from ‘review visit’ to agreed ‘action plan’ is typically three
months and shorter. In 2009/2010 for example there were 13 quality reviews that began in October
2009 and ended in April 2010. All review ‘action plans’ are followed-up for two years following the
review where units are asked to report on the status of the actions agreed following the review.
Unit
Technology Transfer Office
Irish Centre for Human Rights
MSc (Corporate Strategy & People Management)
School of Business & Economics
Clinical Teaching
B.Sc. (Earth & Ocean Sciences)
Research Office
School of Law
B.Sc. (Occ. Health & Safety Systems)
Moore Institute
Centre for Innovation and Structural Change
School of Physics
Master Medical Science Programme
Visit Start
06/10/2009
14/01/2010
20/01/2010
26/01/2010
02/02/2010
10/02/2010
16/02/2010
23/02/2010
26/02/2010
02/03/2010
04/03/2010
09/03/2010
16/03/2010
Visit End
08/09/2009
14/01/2010
20/01/2010
28/01/2010
02/02/2010
10/02/2010
18/02/2010
24/02/2010
26/02/2010
02/03/2010
05/03/2010
10/03/2010
16/03/2010
Follow-up
24/05/2010
13/05/2010
06/05/2010
06/05/2010
13/05/2010
18/05/2010
24/05/2010
13/05/2010
18/05/2010
14/05/2010
14/05/2010
18/05/2010
13/05/2010
Actions Agreed
10/06/2010
25/05/2010
09/06/2010
10/06/2010
09/06/2010
10/06/2010
10/06/2010
10/06/2010
10/06/2010
14/06/2010
14/06/2010
10/06/2010
02/06/2010
The principal mechanisms used for quality reviews are the self assessment, independent reviewers,
review reports and action plans. Templates for many of the documents used in the review process have
in the past encouraged dialogue. Recent developments arising from this self-assessment and presented
later now emphasise more ‘evidence’ and data and less dialogue. There is also a very strong emphasis
on conciseness of wording and quantification of evidence. All review reports, action plans and follow-up
reports are available for review through the public web site and Quality Office intranet. Various annual
reports to an tÚdarás(Governing Authority), IUQB and the HEA that have reported a synopsis of the
main findings from quality reviews are also available.
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
In 2009/2010 there were 220 recommendations made to various units in the University as a result of
the quality review process. There were 171 recommendations made to the units under review, 28
recommendations to their parent units and 21 recommendations to the University Centre.
Recommendations led to agreed and published action plans. Below is concise wording for a sample of
recommendations to particular units. Full review reports need to be read to provide context. A detailed
analysis of all 220 recommendations will be available during the site visit.
Recommendations to Units


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


















2.6.1
Collaborate with other units
Seek accreditation
Create distinctive features
Benchmarking against international units
Develop performance indicators
Enhance activities of programme boards
Reduce teaching burdens in favour of research
Increase transparency of work loads
Provide more interdisciplinary modules
Counterbalance theory and practice in modules
Increase student feedback returns
Develop better writing skills for students
Improve timely feedback on student assignments
Expand range of assessment techniques
Increase completion rates and student engagement
Align research with university priorities
Develop research supports for staff
Audit research outputs for all staff
All staff to attract Ph.D. students
Forge links with University of Limerick
Find cross-discipline research funding opportunities
Engage more with industry
Establish external advisory board
Recommendations to Parent Units

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



More staff – academic/admin/technical
Review of relationships between units
Clarify reporting relationships
Succession planning
Implement work plan model (PMDS)
Mentoring for staff
Greater sharing of modules
Recommendations to University Centre


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




More space for particular units
More philanthropic efforts
More school autonomy
Greater budgeting transparency
More staff mentoring
Deploy work plan model
Better student attendance
Faster migration towards Bologna
External Examiners
Another major element in Central QA is the external examiner process. External examiners are a long
established process for assuring the quality of teaching and research. All modules, programmes,
Masters and Ph.D. theses are subject to independent external examination by a senior academic from an
external university. Until this year the process was administered by the central NUI in Dublin. This
activity has now been transferred to various offices at NUI Galway and in particular the Examinations
Office and the Quality Office. There are two main types of external examination – subject examination
(i.e. programme(s) and discipline (s)) and thesis examination (e.g. Ph.D.). The Quality Office is
responsible for the QA element of the subject examination process where examiners are given
guidelines for the creation of reports. The process currently involves feeding reports back to subject
leaders and the creation of a synopsis of recommendations that are reported to senior management in
the University and Academic Council. External examiner reports are sent to the Dean of College for
distribution to subject leaders for discussion and later follow-up. There are approximately 150 external
examiners who report at different intervals throughout the year, mainly summer. A common theme in
external examiner reports is consistency with the standards in other universities. A sample of the
abridged ‘recommendations’ is presented below without context. The number in brackets shows
frequency of mention of recommendation across all reports. Detailed analysis is available on request.




Exam scripts should be anonymous (7)
Thesis guidelines and policy to be established (7)
Examiner comments on scripts and thesis reports to be more detailed (7)
Standardise the division of marks awarded from paper to paper (5)
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway


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Percentage of students achieving an overall first is disproportionately low (5)
Feedback and marking standards need to be clarified (4)
Grades appear to be skewed towards higher grades. (4)
Students need to develop more critical awareness (4)
Number of continuous assessments unsustainable (3)
High work load for staff (3)
Poor writing skills of some students (3)
Review policies to make it more difficult to re-sit exams (2)
Second marking of thesis reports is essential (2)
Tighter systems of attendance (2)
Attention needed in areas of student feedback (2)
Reinforce the word limit policy with staff and students for Dissertations (2)
Introduction of an agreed form of ‘moderation’ of script-marking (2)
Create effective marking scheme for thesis reports (1)
Return assignments to students to facilitate reflective learning (1)
>50% failure rate in a module will impact negatively on student morale (1)
Interdisciplinary topics would enhance the programme (1)
Increase the practical content of modules (1)
2.7 Benchmarking
A number of benchmarking studies of quality assurance in other organisations were carried out as part
of the self assessment. Some of these were desk based while others involved site visits. The principal
benchmarking studies conducted included University College London, University of Chemnitz
(Germany), Quality Assurance Association (U.K.), University College Hospital Galway, Queens University
Belfast (U.K.), Minho University (Portugal) and the Norwegian University of Science and Technology
(Norway). Each of the other Irish Universities were also casually reviewed mainly through meetings of
the Irish Universities Quality Officers Group (IUQOG). In addition, QA systems in other Universities
were reviewed online and in particular the University of Cambridge. Some of the main ideas from these
studies are as follows:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
2.7.1
Quality manual for all key policies and procedures (UCL)
QAA primarily responsible for quality assurance of teaching (not research) in UK (QAA)
RAE primarily responsible for research in UK (Queens)
Conformance to policies and procedures is primary quality assurance mechanism in industry
Quality enhancement is driven by operational planning and action plans
Quality assurance in universities needs careful balance between academic freedom and excessive
bureaucracy and form filling
Research assessment needs to focus also on ‘impacts’ locally and internationally
University culture needs to be carefully protected from culture derived from IOT sector (UCL)
Strategic, operational planning and personal work plan essential for quality enhancement
Focus more on evidence and data rather than dialogue (Queens)
Need for focus on Bologna compliance (DCU)
Focus on thematic or themed reviews in addition to academic and service (NUIM)
Separate review process for service units based on ISO9000 (UL)
Entire Colleges and Schools accredited to ISO9000 (Chemnitz)
Bologna Review
A major part of the Learning, Teaching and Assessment (LTA) strategy introduced in section 1.6 is
based on the aim of achieving Bologna compliance. The tracking and monitoring of the LTA strategy,
through the Council of Deans and the Vice Deans for teaching and learning, includes monitoring of
Bologna compliance. An internal audit of the Bologna Process was conducted in January 2010 and
shows that the University demonstrates a significant degree of compliance to each of the London
Bologna action lines, excluding the awarding of Joint Degrees (as defined by the Bologna Process).
There is a high level of appreciation of the steps that need to be taken to maintain and further improve
this situation. The changes introduced to date have led to substantial reform and conformity with the
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
norms demanded by the Bologna Process. These changes have been supported and promoted by each of
the Colleges, CELT, participation in several national schemes and training conferences (e.g. NAIRTL,
HEA’s Bologna Training), organisation of conferences at both national and international level,
participation in European Thematic Networks and the EU’s Tuning of Higher Education in Europe
project. Outlined below are the principal actions recommended to be taken to ensure full compliance
and enhance NUI Galway’s international standing. The full survey is available during the site visit.
• Finalise and standardise our usage and description of ECTS using a common template, make this
policy available on the web page and then apply for the European ECTS label
• Benefit from the work undertaken in making Diploma Supplements available to graduates by
applying for the European Diploma Supplement Label
• Be more proactive in the awarding of Joint Degrees
• Promote the development of high end (NQAI Level 8 and above) Life Long Learning products.
• Continue to work with the various authorities to ensure that, where not exempted by law, the
principles of the Bologna Process apply to all professionally accredited degree programmes
• Schools must continue, in conjunction with the Careers Development Service and CELT, to
develop work-related specific and generic competences within courses
2.7.2
Leading Thinkers and Awards
Three of the most important contributors to the evolution of the quality movement are W. Edwards
Deming, Joseph Juran, and Philip B. Crosby. Though all three of them have concentrated on quality in
the industrial and manufacturing sector their contributions can also be applied to other sectors,
including education. W. Edwards Deming is regarded as the father of the quality movement. In 1982,
Deming’s important book on transforming American management was published under the title ‘Out of
the Crisis’ where he expressed concern about the failure of management to plan for the future and
foresee problems before they arise. According to him fire-fighting and short-term thinking creates
waste and raises costs. He emphasised prevention rather than cure as the key to quality. Joseph Juran
defined quality as ‘fitness for purpose’. He identified three steps to quality improvement: Structural
annual improvement plans; Training for the whole organisation; Quality directed leadership. According
to Juran poor quality is the result of the failure of management. He states that 85% of the problems in
an organisation are due to systems failure and the remaining 15% are due to individuals. Philip B.
Crosby focuses on the senior management, and is associated with two popular statements – ‘Quality is
Free’ and ‘Zero defects’. Crosby has four absolutes of quality management: quality is conformance to
customer requirements; reach quality through prevention rather than detection; standard of
performance is zero defects; and the measurement of quality is the price of non-conformance. Crosby
was also responsible for the Quality Management Maturity Grid, for organisational maturity.
Quality Awards: There are a number of other international standards and criteria for assuring quality
in organisations, the most common of which include: (i) ISO9001/ISO9004 (ISO); (ii) European
Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM); (iii) Malcolm Baldrige Award (MBA); and (iv) the Deming
Application Prize (DP). These awards have widespread acceptance within the business and service
communities. ISO, EFQM and MBA have also made impact in the academic community. During some of
the benchmarking studies of other Universities, ISO was quoted as a valuable standard. In one case ISO
was being regarded as a possible standard for the support services units (UL) whereas in another case,
an entire Faculty of Engineering has achieved ISO accreditation (Chemnitz). ISO is regarded as a
minimum standard and best practice suggests that it needs to be supplemented by an award such as the
Malcolm Baldrige Award. All of these awards are internationally recognised awards funded and
endorsed by both the U.S. Government and the European Union. They were developed so that
organisations can achieve external validation for the manner in which they run their operations. These
awards are holistic frameworks which deal with the totality of activities in an organisation. They are
based on the degree to which organisations put in place a set of recognised best practices and can
demonstrate - with measurable results - how well those practices are working for them. Those that
qualify for these awards not only reap the benefits of a well-defined quality structure within their
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
organisation, they also have a ‘seal of approval’ that they can use in marketing themselves and when
negotiating contracts with customers and suppliers. These awards were a natural step in the evolution
of quality towards a holistic concept that embraces every aspect of an organisation viz Total Quality
Management (TQM). In order to help people more easily understand what was needed to be done to
achieve excellent world class performance, sets of best practices were drawn up and arranged into
frameworks by the U.S. and EU institutions and made available to all organisations wishing to pursue
excellence and competitive performance. Although these frameworks were originally developed to help
large companies, the criteria of excellence have since been adapted for the Education, Healthcare and
SME sectors.
2.8 Key Benefits
A number of benefits can be noted from the various self assessments carried out and in particular the
review process, since this was the main QA mechanism identifiable by staff. Almost all participants in
the various surveys agreed that the current quality review process provides a forum for many
opportunities including networking, collaboration, benchmarking and improved efficiencies. In
particular, staff noted the following benefits:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Current review process is established, comprehensive, robust, structured, thorough,
supportive
Self-assessment provides a focus and forum for self reflection, collaboration, gathering
perspectives and the sharing of ideas. The self-assessment phase requires a review of all the
current activities and capabilities of the unit, including the identification of any challenges and
opportunities facing the unit as well as providing a focus for future operational planning
Self-assessment phase produces a single document that maps out and raises awareness of all
the activities of the unit
Review process is designed to involve everybody and is designed to provide opportunities for
all members of a unit to contribute
Review process is designed with a view to effecting change and is focused on quality
enhancement
External reviewers provide valuable, independent, open, positive, expert, constructive input
with the intention and spirit of enhancing and supporting the performance of the unit.
Review outcome is to establish a focused action plan with assigned responsibilities and this is
an important aspect of the review process
Review process promotes transparency
Review process provides opportunities to form links with the rest of the University
Benchmarking element is informative and useful
Reviewers and reviewees are trained
2.9 Emerging Ideas
The various surveys described earlier, and in particular the staff survey, identified a number of ideas for
change that could enhance quality assurance in the University. These can be divided into two areas;(a)
enhancements to the review process; and (b) associated initiatives for quality assurance.
Review Process: The following is a list of key enhancements to the University’s review process:

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
Maintain ‘self-assessment’ approach to quality review
Reviews to focus on major units i.e. schools, institutes and support services
Reviews to also focus on major cross-functional processes and themes
Build strong linkage between planning, performance, training, reviews and innovation
More focus on high quality 'living' data during review
Eliminate unnecessary documentation and streamline entire process
Concise wording and text throughout, focus on core issues
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway

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
More support and facilitation of unit during self-assessment
Benchmarking against cognate and international units
Faster cycle time from review to action
Selection, training and orientation of high calibre peer reviewers
More time for reviewers to reflect and focus on top recommendations
Follow-up on recommendations and actions plans by line management
Concise annual progress report on agreed action from all stakeholders
Review and progress results to be used by resource allocation committees
Associated Initiatives: The following is a list of associated initiatives for enhancing QA both ‘Central’
and ‘Local’ within the University:
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2.10
New Review System focused on evidence and larger units
Staff Mentoring for all younger staff
Benchmarking against international renowned universities
Permanent Quality (Excellence) Team in each major unit
Survey staff and students annually for ‘one great idea’ for improvement
Effective and sustainable student feedback mechanisms for modules and programmes
Light Programme Reviews
Better more accessible Quality Information Systems (Intranet, Sandbox)
Quality Manual (aka Academic Manual) for all Policies & Procedures
Measurement, review and rewarding of research excellence
Benchmarking against International Standards e.g. Baldrige, EFQM and ISO9000
Staff performance appraisal and linking with operational and strategic plans
Creation of more effective and well-defined policies for Local QA
More effective implementation of policies and procedures for Local QA
Conclusions
In preparation for the Institutional Review of NUI Galway, the institutional SARTeam embarked on a
number of assessments including staff and student surveys, benchmarking, quality reviews and
external examiners and a review of international standards. The outcome of these assessments asserted
a number of benefits from quality assurance at the University and in particular a number of ideas for
improving quality assurance. In the next section a detailed look at some key policies will be presented
for assuring quality both Locally and Centrally.
3 Quality Assurance
3.1 Introduction
The University’s quality assurance policy is defined by the Universities Act 1997 Section 35 that states
the need for the ‘evaluation’ and ‘assessment’ of teaching, research and support services. This has led to
the recommendation of quality enhancements within the limitations of resource constraints. Everyone
is responsible for providing high quality teaching, research and support services. Everyone is also
responsible for assuring quality i.e. evaluating, assessing and enhancing the quality of the work they
perform. The Universities Act further mandates the publication of the results of its quality assurance
activities. Two types of quality assurance (QA) were identified earlier – Local QA where every
individual and unit is responsible for quality assurance and Central QA led by an independent body that
can evaluate and assess quality of units and provide recommended changes for quality enhancement. In
fulfilling this mission, the University has made specific arrangements for quality assurance that can be
presented under the headings of ‘Quality Leadership’, ‘Local Quality Assurance’ and ‘Central Quality
Assurance’.
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
3.2 Quality Leadership
NUI Galway Strategic Plan 2009-2014 emphasises the importance of values and organisational culture
by which to bring about change in the University and to achieve strategic objectives. The statement of
values in the Strategic Plan emphasises excellence, respect for academic freedom, collegiality, integrity
and openness, and commitment to innovation, effectiveness and value for money. The University wants
to “continue to develop a culture which encourages and rewards innovation, flexibility and
achievement, promotes good governance and performance accountability, embeds consciousness of
individual responsibility for community success and develops ability to assess and manage risk in the
University’s operations.” NUI Galway strategy sets out the means by which it will become selfimproving to achieve that vision. It affects all aspects of organisational working and all staff within the
University.
Providing, assuring and enhancing quality is everyone’s responsibility. Everyone has a
leadership role to play in delivering quality services and in turn evaluating and assessing the quality of
what they do. NUI Galway has in place a number of specific policies aimed at supporting and facilitating
all staff in assuring and enhancing quality. Leadership structures are evolving and in recent years have
been enhanced by the creation of larger academic and support services units and new appointments, in
particular the posts of Vice President of Innovation and Performance and Executive Director of
Operations. In common with all senior management both of these leaders have responsibility for quality
assurance and enhancement and have developed their own organisations specifically tasked with
assuring and enhancing quality. The table below presents some of the key organisational units
responsible for some of the main aspects of central quality assurance. Not named specifically are all of
the teaching, research and support services and committees that also have responsibility for local
quality assurance.
Leadership
An tÚdarás
APRC
SSC
AC
UMT
Vice President for
Innovation and
Performance
Quality and Innovation
Committee (QIC)
Quality Office
Director of Quality
Institutional Research
Officer
Centre for Excellence in
Teaching and Learning
Students
All Units and staff
3.2.1
Description
An tÚdarás has primary authority for quality assurance and enhancement policy
executed through its APRC and SSC committees.
Academic Planning and Resources Committee has responsibility for quality assurance
policies related to academic units. Quality is a permanent item on APRC agenda.
Support Services Committee has responsibility for internal quality assurance policies
related to support services units. Quality is a permanent item on SSC agenda.
Academic Council has responsibility for local quality assurance policies in all teaching
and research related processes. Quality is a permanent item on the AC agenda.
University Management Team has responsibility for providing line management for
the execution of all quality assurance policies – local and central. It also provides line
management to the quality office and institutional research.
The Vice President has primary responsibility for executing central quality assurance
policy and provides line management for the Quality Office and institutional research.
Chaired by Vice president, the committee has wide representation of university units,
including students, and has responsibility for defining policies for central quality
assurance and providing recommendations for enhancing quality.
The Quality Office is responsible for executing specific central quality policies under
the direction of the Director of Quality, and also facilitating the University in the
development of policies and various other quality enhancement initiatives.
A senior academic with experience of quality management and continuous
improvement. Responsible for executing central quality assurance.
A senior professional with experience of quality and performance management
responsible for institutional data and research.
Specialist unit with responsibility for research, information and support on the quality
of teaching and assessment.
Student representation on various committees.
All staff are responsible for delivering high quality services having regard to the
resources available and assuring and enhancing quality locally.
Student Representation
Students participate in leading quality enhancement across a wide range of committees in the
University. They are represented on the following major policy creating university committees:
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
Governing Authority/Údarás na hOllscoile; Standing and Strategic Planning Committee; Academic
Council; Finance/Resource Committee; Support Services Committee; Academic Planning and Resource
Committee; Quality & Innovation Committee.
In addition to having two representatives in College meetings, students are also represented on a
large number of staff student liaison committees in individual colleges, disciplines, programmes and
subject areas. They also engage in the following functional committees: Crèche Policy Committee;
Partnership – Human Resources Sub-Committee; Mobility Management Committee; Safety Committee;
Environmental Policy Committee; Sports and Recreation Union; University Societies Committee;
Student Projects Fund Committee; Student Services Sub Committee; Research Committee; Catering
Policy Group & Catering User Liaison; Student Loans and Fees Committee; University Centre and
Management Group; Student Complaints Procedure Committee; Discipline Committee; Parking
Management (PMAG); College Campus Radio Ltd. ; Student Health Unit.
3.3 Local Quality Assurance
Local quality assurance is practised by all staff and units in the University for evaluating, assessing and
enhancing quality in everything that they do. Many factors contribute to the ability to assure quality
from staff selection, induction, mentoring and continuous development to University’s policies and
procedures for teaching, research and support services. The process can be said to begin with each
individual reflecting on how to deliver higher quality in his or her day-to-day activities. The process
also involves a large number of more explicit policies and procedures for guiding the way day to day
activities are performed. A number of direct policies within NUI Galway can be identified that
specifically address elements of the Universities Act regarding Quality Assurance. These include policies
for ‘student feedback’, ‘programme boards’, ‘Bologna compliance’, ‘staff mentoring’ and many others.
But, they can also include associated policies for activities such as ‘post graduate admissions’,
‘plagiarism’ and ‘student code of conduct’. In carrying out this self-assessment over 80 policies and
procedures were identified for ‘local’ quality assurance. In addition to policies, quality enhancement is
delivered locally by operational plans that explicitly identify initiatives for enhancing quality and
performance. Local QA is also supported by best practice guidelines, benchmarking initiatives and
recommendations from external reviewers and examiners. A portfolio of documented policies, best
practices and recommendations are presented in the prototype ‘Academic Manual’. New policies and
other documents are regularly added to this portfolio, whereas existing policies are regularly revised
and updated. The ‘Academic Manual’ (aka Quality Manual) is a work in progress and is evolving
continuously to provide a centralised source of all key policies and other documents for staff to
facilitate delivery of high quality teaching and research (see appendices). All staff members will have
access to the Academic Manual. Access to the manual and other quality information management
systems will be available during the review visit. For the purpose of definition local policies include
those created by some major units including CELT who have policies, plans and resources for enhancing
teaching and learning excellence; Research Support with policies for enhancing research excellence and
focus and Support Services, with policies for standard operating procedures across the University.
3.4 Central Quality Assurance
While quality assurance and enhancement permeates everything that the University does from
classroom teaching to the provision of new buildings, a subset of policies can be identified that
specifically support Central QA. The key policies for Central QA are presented in the table below.
Quality Assurance Policies
Institutional Reviews
Quality Reviews
Institutional Research
External Examiners
Description
Periodic peer review of quality assurance by external experts facilitated by an
external professional body (e.g. IUQB).
Periodic self-assessment and peer review of all major units in the University
regarding quality assurance and performance facilitated by Quality Office.
Assessment of key data and surveys of student satisfaction and advice on
quality and performance enhancement.
Annual review of teaching and learning by external examiners and
recommendations for quality enhancement.
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Institutional Self-Assessment
Assessment Report – NUI Galway
Affiliation with Quality Bodies
Strategic and Operational Planning
Staff Training and Development
Affiliation and active participation with external quality assurance bodie
bodies in
particular the Irish Universities Quality Board.
Board
Development of operational plans including action plan for enhancing quality
and performance.
Staff training and development including
i
induction, mentoring, Deans & H
Heads
forum and teaching excellence conference.
Central policies are mainly the responsibility of the VP for Innovation and Performance
Performance. Three major
policies are of particular interest in this section - quality reviews, external
ternal examiner
examiners and institutional
research.
3.5 Quality Reviews
Quality reviews are one of the principal mechanisms for ‘central’ quality assurance
assurance. The purpose of
reviews is to firstly facilitate units in carrying out their own self-assessment in order to identify quality
enhancements, and later to provide recommendations from a peer review group for quality
enhancement to both the units under review and to their parent units. In the last six months the quality
review process has been significantly enhanced based on feedback from the staff survey and a study of
review practice in other Universities. The review process is comprehensive but three elements can be
extracted here to illustrate the principal operation. They are (i) Review Policy; (ii) Review Criteria and
(iii) Review List. Full documentation of the review process accompanies this report
report.
3.5.1
Review Policy
The University’s
’s goal for developing more effective processes and services
s ervices is centred on its staff and
their ability to assess and continuously improve quality, innovation and performance. Performance is
enhanced through a number of specific measures including
institutional research, strategy and operational planning, staff
sta
training and development, enhancing teaching excellence, staff
mentoring, focused research priorities and quality assurance. Quality
is assured through various initiatives including external examiners,
student feedback, benchmarking and periodic review.
review Reviews
involve two separate but interrelated mechanisms: Self-assessment
and Peer Review. Self-assessment is focused around staff assessing performance against international
best practice and generating ideas that can significantly increase value for their
their various stakeholders.
Self-assessment involves improving the processes that lead to change including: identifying
international best practices; understanding own strengths and weaknesses;
weaknesses understanding stakeholder
requirements; settings strategic goals;
goal monitoring performance; engaging staff and generating ideas
that meet requirements. Peer Review is the process of inviting peers to provide insight on how to
improve the effectiveness of the unit’s
unit self-assessment and continuous improvement process.
The University’s
’s policy for periodic Reviews is based around the following:
• Review of all major units i.e. academic schools, research institutes, support services, and of major
cross-functional
functional processes and strategic themes every five to seven years
• Development of a concise self-assessment
self
report that focuses on easily accessible data regarding
unit goals, system performance, actions, individual performance and high level operational data
• Support, facilitation and training to unit staff undergoing review
rev
in self-assessment
assessment techniques
and management best practice
• Efficient and effective self-assessment
assessment and peer review processes
• Benchmarking against cognate and organisations of high regard internationally
• Selection, training and orientation of senior reviewers
reviewers of high international standing
• Provision of concise guidelines and templates for self-assessment and peer review
• Development of concise review reports around key recommendations and action plan for each
review
• Review and progress results communicated
communicated to major resource allocation committees
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
• Annual Progress reports on actions by all stakeholders
This policy extends to encouraging units to continuously develop systems and processes that yield selfassessment data automatically. Peer review will yield a short concise list of key recommendations for
improvements that can in turn increase value for stakeholders while taking account of resource
availability. Successful performance can lead to further investment in resources through appropriate
resource allocation committees. Guidelines and a list of units, services and processes to be reviewed are
to be prepared annually for approval. Following reviews, review reports and action plans are processed
annually for approval and subsequently made available to the public.
3.5.2
Review Criteria
Review criteria are intended as a guide and checklist for Units under review and also for Reviewers. Not
all groups of criteria are relevant for particular units and additional criteria may be added. Criteria are
worded so that they may be easily translated into identifiable ‘Requirements’ by units during selfassessment or turned into ‘Recommendations’ by reviewers during the peer review stage. The table
overleaf presents all of the criteria currently selected by the University to encourage quality
enhancement. These criteria are supplemented by detailed guidelines used by units under review and
reviewers.
3.5.3
Linked Colleges
NUI Galway has formal links with three other colleges: St. Angela’s College, Sligo, Shannon College of
Hotel Management and the Burren College of Art. All three colleges are part of the quality review
portfolio of NUI Galway. St. Angela’s College, Sligo became a College of NUI Galway on January 1, 2006,
while preserving its independent and separate legal status and traditional ethos. It underwent an
institutional review in 2008/2009 and is due a further such review in 2014/2015. The Shannon College
of Hotel Management underwent a college review of quality assurance in 2006/2007 and is due another
review in 2012/2013. The Burren College of Art has one programme which is due a ‘light’ review over
the coming years. All colleges are treated seamlessly in terms of central quality assurance policies
including external examiners. They also share access to various policies that support local quality
assurance including student feedback and Bologna compliance.
3.6 External Examiners Policy
External examiners were presented earlier as an important resource for ‘central’ QA. Examiners have a
unique opportunity to review the teaching and research quality of a subject area. Their views, by
comparing their experiences at NUI Galway with their experience elsewhere, in particular their home
Universities, can offer significant insights for enhancing quality. In 2010 the responsibility for
administering external examiners was transferred from NUI in Dublin to NUI Galway. This change
provided an opportunity to review and redesign the external examiner process. In the last six months a
new policy has been developed for the external examiner process that introduces a number of new
features. These features now include; (i) structured template for external examiner report; (ii) the
addition of responsibilities for the external examiner in the area of student feedback, learning
outcomes, internal oversight of exam papers and teaching practice, etc.; (iii) the requirement for
Actions Plans to be created by subject leaders based on analysis of external examiner reports and
copied to examiners; (iv) the provision of explicit recommendations for change by examiners; (v)
development of summary reports of all external examiners’ reports for the University community; and
(vi) the facility to label extern exam reports as ‘urgent’ and for the attention of the Registrar and Deputy
President.
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
Thrust
Aims and Objectives
Aims and Objectives
Aims and Objectives
Aims and Objectives
Aims and Objectives
Aims and Objectives
Aims and Objectives
Aims and Objectives
Aims and Objectives
Organisation and Management
Organisation and Management
Organisation and Management
Organisation and Management
Organisation and Management
Organisation and Management
Organisation and Management
Organisation and Management
Organisation and Management
Organisation and Management
Programmes and Instructions
Programmes and Instructions
Programmes and Instructions
Programmes and Instructions
Programmes and Instructions
Programmes and Instructions
Programmes and Instructions
Programmes and Instructions
Programmes and Instructions
Programmes and Instructions
Programmes and Instructions
Programmes and Instructions
Scholarship and Research
Scholarship and Research
Scholarship and Research
Processes & Services
Processes & Services
Processes & Services
Processes & Services
Processes & Services
Processes & Services
Processes & Services
Processes & Services
Processes & Services
Criteria
Requirements of key stakeholders are gathered and documented
Statements of strengths and weaknesses inform goals
Statement of mission is focused on key stakeholders
Goals are long term and ambitious and align with university strategy
Goals are strategic, distinctive and unique
Indicators are defined that measure progress towards goals
Actions for short term change are appropriate for meeting goals
Ideas from all staff are welcomed and evaluated appropriately
International benchmarks are ambitious and realistic
Values, ethics and cultural spirit is challenging and rewarding
Leadership is motivational and effective
Structures and groupings are appropriate for achieving goals
Age and experience profile is appropriate for cultivating leadership
Staff are reviewed annually regarding personal goals and workload
Workloads are equitable and evenly distributed
Resource requests are appropriate and communicated effectively
Learning and continuous development is supported for all staff
Communication of information is effective and efficient
Mentoring of staff is encouraged and is effective
Student feedback is implemented for all programmes and modules
Outcomes of learning are appropriate and clearly communicated
Appropriate teaching methods and technologies are adopted
Teaching is informed by active research and/or industry best practice
Programmes and modules are popular and generate appropriate FTEs
Programme boards are effective in guiding programmes of learning
Extern examiners have their recommendations for change acted upon
Exam papers are appropriate and are tested and validated
Curriculum of programmes is appropriate, coherent and balanced
Non traditional and special needs students are well accommodated
Participation by staff and students is monitored and actioned
Programmes offer an appropriate level of module choices to students
Funding is actively sought by academic staff
Publications are used to disseminate knowledge
PhD completion rates are appropriate
Services by the unit to the wider community are effective
Students and staff are supported to engage in community service
Services are focused on stakeholder requirements and interaction
Processes are mapped and reengineered periodically
Service performance is monitored and effectively changed periodically
Skills and competencies are appropriate for providing effective services
Contingencies are planned for non-regular requests and risks
Service plans are well documented and controlled
Suppliers and supply chains are effective and provide value
v
3.7 Institutional Research
Institutional Research is primarily about understanding and transforming institutional data into valid,
reliable and useable information and the ‘assessment’ of the University’s quality. Results of assessments
and information are disseminated to enhance institutional quality, effectiveness and performance and
to support strategic planning and decision making. Institutional Research involves a wide range of
assessments in teaching and research including student surveys, research performance measurement,
benchmarking, performance indicators, application and enrolment analysis, comparative analysis of
national data sets, analysis of internal data sets including staff, student, financial and space databases,
University rankings performance, measurement of institutional performance against publicly stated
goals, competitive analysis and external accountability reporting.
3.7.1
Research Assessment
The University has undertaken a number of initiatives to assess its research performance. Over the last
three years the Institutional Research Office has examined the Universities performance in national and
international rankings, including its performance in the related research measures; citations per faculty
and research income. This resulted in a project, involving Institutional Research, the Library and the
Research Office, which corrected errors in the University’s bibliometric data in both Scopus and
Thomson Reuters Web of Science. This resulted in a more accurate reflection of the University’s
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research outputs in international rankings. Since then, benchmarking bibliometric studies have been
carried out against the other Irish Universities by discipline. This information was used to inform the
PRTLI 5 bid, as well as the University’s research strategy, which now contains specific five-year
publication and citation targets. The University is continuing to develop its competencies in this domain
and has begun to undertake a number of pilot studies, which will use the HEA Forfás Bibliometric Study
published 2009 and the newly acquired Thomson Reuters National Citation Report and related InCites
tool, to baseline and benchmark research performance across Schools. The baseline year of the HEA
Forfás Bibliometric Study positions NUI Galway 4th behind TCD, UCD and UCC, in terms of journal
articles published, with 2757 articles published in 2007 and 6th in terms of citation impact, behind TCD,
UCD, UCC, DCU & NUI Maynooth, with a 5 year average, 2003 -2007, citation impact of .98. The need to
not only increase publication outputs, but more importantly the quality of those outputs, as measured
by citation impact, is reflected in the goals and targets of University’s Strategic Plan. Section 5.1.4 of the
plan states that ‘a significantly increased number of research outputs will be achieved during the period
of this plan, with an average increase of 12% per annum in the number of published books, monographs
and peer review journal articles. Enhanced quality will be evidenced by increased citations and
publications in top ranking journals with an increase of 20% per annum in total citations of research
publications from NUI Galway staff.
3.8 Risk Management
As part of the formal process for goal and direction-setting decisions, the University considers risks to
the achievement of corporate strategies and goals, related tolerance levels, and the quality of the
related internal controls. Risk Management is principally concerned with identifying and quantifying
the threats and opportunities which, if not managed, could prevent the achievement of the University’s
strategic objectives. The University is embracing best practice processes in risk management to create
strong linkages and dependencies in how we manage risk and assess the University’s performance The
process currently being developed links performance management metrics to the reporting and
measurement of risk. The key steps involved are: (i) Identification and assessment of the key risks that
could assist or prevent the achievement of the strategic objectives; (ii) Linking the risk and
performance management processes by transforming our data into actionable information and riskinformed metrics to track performance; and (iii) Periodically assessing the existing risk management
infrastructure and capability to continuously identify opportunities to improve the risk management
processes.
3.9 External Reference Points
NUI Galway continues to play an active role in the development of quality assurance across the
University sector in Ireland. This is achieved principally through its engagement with the Irish
Universities Quality Board (IUQB), the Irish Universities Association Quality Committee (IUAQC) and
the Irish Universities Quality Officers Group (IUAQOB). The role of IUQB in providing external
institutional quality assessment as well as guidelines on best practice is significant. The Irish university
sector is unique from other third level colleges in one main respect – its mission to create new
knowledge. Associated with this is the need for academic freedom ‘to question and test received
wisdom, to put forward new ideas and to state controversial or unpopular opinions’ (Universities Act,
1997).
3.10 Public Information and Dissemination
The Universities Act stipulates that a Governing Authority ‘shall provide for the publication in such
form and manner as the governing authority thinks fit of findings arising out of the application of those
(QA) procedures.’ The policy of Údarás na hOllscoile is to make available to the general public all
quality review reports and action plans arising from reviews. The Quality Office web site is used for this
purpose through the link http://www.nuigalway.ie/quality. In addition all policies, surveys, reviewer
recommendations, performance data and operational plans are available through the University’s
various intranet sites. The University has a de facto policy of releasing all information for public
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
consumption and is constantly improving ‘ease of access’ to the vast array of information being
generated. There are some notable exceptions. University policy excludes the publication of ‘selfassessment’ reports of quality reviews in order to foster a thoroughly self-critical and holistic selfassessment of quality deficiencies by units. Also excluded from public view is student feedback to
individual lecturers. This is to encourage a frank and open exchange between individual lecturers and
their students and also protect lecturers from extraneous comments from some students. Recent
discussions regarding access to student feedback information by staff supervisors and in particular
discipline professors have identified a mechanism whereby staff can create ‘action plans’ of ideas
arising from student feedback and that these can then be openly exchanged with colleagues.
3.11 Conclusions
Quality assurance is about evaluating and assessing teaching, research and support services across the
University. Everyone is responsible for delivering quality services and also for assuring that the quality
meets recognised criteria and standards within resource constraints. Two types of quality assurance
can be defined:(i) Local QA that includes a wide variety of routine policies; and (ii) procedures - and
Central QA where there are policies for assuring quality that are independent of the teaching, research
and support services. There are a wide variety of policies for Local QA including student feedback,
programme boards, Bologna compliance and student code of conduct. The main policies for Central QA
include quality reviews, external examiners, and institutional research. The quality review process is
the most resource intensive aspect of Central QA and has evolved recently in response to staff surveys
and the changing University environment towards being more evidence-based, focused on large units
and less cumbersome for units under review. Institutional research has grown in importance with the
need to provide data to units to assist them with operational planning, continuous assessment of
performance and surveys of staff and students. A key aspect of central Quality Assurance is the
continuous dialogue with other universities and in particular agencies such as the Irish Universities
Quality Board. The main outputs from policies such as institutional research, quality reviews, external
examiners, student feedback, and programme boards etc are the recommendations and ideas for quality
enhancement. These ideas can inform operational plans. They can also generate specific actions for
quality enhancement. When combined with ideas naturally generated by staff - through benchmarking
and their own creativity - they create a dynamically changing environment for quality enhancement and
performance improvement. In the next section, a wide range of quality enhancement initiatives for
major units in the University are presented.
4 Quality Enhancement
4.1 Introduction
Quality enhancement is ongoing and continuous and permeates all activities in the University as
evidenced through strategic and operational plans, individual action plans of units and recorded in unit
minutes and reports. Quality enhancement is also evidenced through quality review and external
examiner reports and the action plans arising. This section presents a synopsis of quality enhancement
activities by major groupings in the University. Many of these enhancements have been initiated
through quality assurance activities such as quality reviews, external examiners and benchmarking but
many more are initiated by operational plans and individual staff often stimulated by their own interest
and motivation to enhance quality and performance. This section begins by revisiting the Strategic Plan
of the University and associated Operational Plans that are the main driving force behind strategic
change and in some instances informed by the recommendations of reviewers in recent quality reviews.
It then begins to look at quality enhancements in various areas of the University beginning with quality
enhancement within in a grouping called ‘Quality and Innovation’ led by the VP for Innovation and
Performance. The section then looks at quality enhancement in the areas of Teaching, Research and
Support Services. Finally, this section focuses on enhancements recently completed, planned or
proposed to be implemented in the next three years.
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4.2 Strategic Plan 2009-2014
‘Quality Enhancement’ can be said to begin with the Strategic Plan of the University defined in the
Universities Act 1997 as ‘the aims of the governing authority for the operation and development of the
University and its strategy for achieving those aims’. The University’s strategic plan informs all of the
operational plans of individual units and in turn the personal development plans of each individual in
NUI Galway. Quality Review policy continues to supplement reviewers’ information packs with copies
of all relevant strategic and operational plans. While the relevance of the strategic plan has sometimes
been lost during reviews of programmes and departments, its relevance will become much more
significant in future reviews of major units such as schools, colleges and research institutes. The
intention is to focus quality enhancement and increased performance within all major units on strategic
priorities while also allowing units to define their own local goals and actions and ideas for
implementation. A concise and abridged version of the University Strategy is contained in the appendix
and illustrates the key priorities over the next five years. Individual operational plans for all major units
have also been created that marry the top level goals of this plan with the local goals and actions of the
unit. A complete portfolio of plans, key performance indicators, action plans will be available for review
during the site visit. Included in these will be an operational plan for the function of ‘Quality &
Innovation’ which highlights plans for enhancement to ‘central’ quality assurance. The operational plan
for ‘Quality & Innovation’ is contained within the appendices.
4.3 Quality & Innovation Enhancements
The new role of VP for Innovation and Performance has brought together a number of key personnel
responsible for Central QA activities namely: quality office, institutional research, operational planning,
elements of staff development and innovation. Their role is to independently assure and support the
quality of teaching, research and support services. Presented below are a number of quality
enhancement initiatives within each of these areas, namely: (i) Quality Office Initiatives; (ii) Operational
Planning Initiatives; (iii) Institutional Research Initiatives; (iv) Staff Development and Promotion
Initiatives; and (v) Innovation and Excellence Initiatives.
4.3.1
Quality Office Initiatives
Listed below are initiatives that have recently been completed or are in progress and due for
completion in the near future. Also included are initiatives under review for possible future
implementation.
New Review System: (Completed) The old review system was focused mainly on small departments
and programmes and the process involved much dialogue and effort by units. The new review process
presented earlier and also in the appendices is focused on large units; concise evidence-based self assessment, strategic priorities and concise review reporting.
Quality Intranet: (Completed) In the last 12 months the Quality Office has developed an internal
quality information system to support efficient operation of the office. This intranet contains all
information related to central quality assurance and essential workflows mainly for reviews and
external examiners. The intranet has significantly streamlined activities for what is a relatively small
quality office. Benefits will include maintaining the ‘part-time’ nature of the role of Quality Director,
thereby releasing time for active research and teaching and empowering other staff to focus on quality
assurance. See the Appendix for screen shots of the ‘Quality Intranet’. A full demo will be available
during the site visit.
Sandbox: (Completed) One of the major associated developments to support the new review process
and foster a culture of concise evidence-based information systems is the so-called ‘Sandbox’. Sandbox
is a generic information management system for any academic unit. Its purpose is to demonstrate to
academic units how simple information systems can be used to manage many types of information and
supports openness and sharing of information among all staff that can assist in identifying potential
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
quality enhancements. See the Appendix for a ‘screen shot’ of the ‘Sandbox’. A full demo will be
available during the site visit.
Benchmarking Initiative: (Completed) A new benchmarking initiative was launched in 2010 to
encourage academic and support services units to visit other organisations or carry out desk-based
research. The scheme provides a small amount of funding mainly to support travel in return for the
delivery of a report of findings.
External Examiners: (Completed) A review of the external examiners process was presented earlier
and a detailed description of the proposed new process in Section 3. This enhancement to the external
examiner process will place renewed emphasis on external examiners as an important ‘Central’
resource for quality assurance.
Academic Manual: (In Testing) The ‘Academic Manual’ is a central information repository for all
identifiable policies and procedures in the University. In this respect it mainly contains hyperlinks to
web pages within various units and repositories of ‘minutes’ of meetings where policies are agreed. It is
anticipated that as policy documents become more formalised in the future the Academic Manual may
also contain ‘controlled documents’. The Academic Manual also contains other valuable information for
quality assurance including analysis of ‘Reviewers Recommendations’, results of ‘Staff and Students
Surveys’, and ‘Good Practice’ reports from IUQB and other sources. See the Appendix for screen shot of
the ‘Academic Manual’. A full demo will available during the site visit.
Student Feedback Policy: (In progress) Student feedback will be enhanced through changes to the
External Examiner process and Review process that explicitly demands a review of this activity. In
addition a new policy is being drawn up that makes explicit requirements on lecturers and programme
directors. Additional feature of the policy will be the creation of an Action Plan from the analysis of
feedback that will be shared with and overseen by heads of school or their nominees (e.g. head of
discipline or Professor).
Controlled Documents Policy: (Under review) As the University expands and the number of policies
increases there is need for a more consistent definition of policies and procedures that can assist in
effective implementation of policy, minimise risk and also foster continuous improvement. The idea of
creating a formal document control system complements the work already being done through the
development of the ‘Academic Manual’.
Excellence Teams: (Under review) Some ideas around ‘excellence teams’ formed at College level are
being discussed. The purpose of ‘excellence teams’ (working title) will be for a team within a College to
meet regularly to monitor and assess operational plans (i.e. goals, indicators and actions). They may
also be responsible for facilitating College-wide idea generation for quality enhancement and
performance improvement. They may also be responsible for follow-up on quality reviews and external
examiners reports. The team is likely to be led by a Vice Dean.
‘Light’ Reviews: (Under review) Earlier the external examiner process was highlighted as an important
way to assure quality of programmes and subject areas. While effective and important the process does
not allow for a detailed review of programme content, learning outcomes and pedagogy. Since the new
review policy of the University has shifted from small units to large units there may be a gap between
the external examination and quality review policies i.e. programme reviews. Recent policy changes
regarding programme boards provide a significant mechanism for local quality assurance by the unit of
programmes. However it is felt that there may also be a need for independent or possibly central
quality assurance of programmes administered by the Quality Office. A major impediment is the
number of programmes available across the University – currently 224 taught undergraduate and
taught postgraduate programmes. The concept of a ‘light’ review for all programmes at NUI Galway is
still under review.
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4.3.2
Operational Planning Initiatives
Operational planning has been in use in the University for many years. However this year a new
approach was adopted that followed a concise ‘balanced scorecard’ approach to planning. Under the
direction of the ‘Institutional Operational Plan Steering Group’ chaired by the VP for Innovation and
Performance, the group developed a methodology for converting the University’s strategic plan and key
performance indicators into operational plans within major units i.e. Schools and Colleges. These
operational plans created a balance between the requirements of the University through its strategic
plan and the local goals and actions of individual units. Operational plans have three major elements –
long-term goals, medium-term performance indicators and short- to medium-term actions. The
planning methodology adopted by the Institutional Operational Plan Steering Group now include
workshops for unit managers and publication of plans that allowed benchmarking across units. The
emphasis will also be on creating concise plans that reflect key priorities for change within units in the
current academic year while keeping an eye on long-term goals. The process also emphasises
measurement of progress using performance indicators and engagement of staff in idea generation and
implementation.
4.3.3
Institutional Research Initiatives
The Institutional Research office are planning the following initiatives that will enhance the quality of
various management and planning processes:
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4.3.4
Performance Indicators - comprehensive menu of measures and indicators for all academic
units in particular schools to assist them in selecting key performance indicators for their
operational plan
University Strategic Goals – Annual tracking of institutional performance against the Strategic
Goals of the University as outlined in its Strategic Plan and the alignment of University
performance indicators with key risk indicators
Research Performance Measurement – A plan is being developed in conjunction with the VP
of Research to implement School and College performance indicators regarding publications,
citations etc. using the 2009 Forfás bibliometric study as a baseline
Integrated Research System – Working with a Steering Group to identify a series of system
requirements to support the University in meeting its own and external imperatives in the areas
of research data management, reporting and dissemination alongside open access to research
publications. It is clear that lack of integration between existing systems or with external
systems is a barrier to efficient and sustainable workflows, resulting in incomplete data, timeconsuming reporting processes and loss of competitive advantage
Data Warehousing – A project initiation document is being developed with Information
Services Solutions (ISS) to develop data warehousing capabilities to support the systematic
reporting of the University’s performance indicators and the development of a management
information system
Benchmarking – enhanced support for academic units on benchmarking projects
Quality review process – provider of richer information to support the new data driven
Quality Review process
University Rankings – Maximise the University’s performance in national and international
rankings systems and monitor the University’s performance against other benchmarked
institutions
Improvement of Student Surveys – Plans to develop the bi-annual survey to capture
importance ratings by students as well as satisfaction ratings
Staff Development
The University has a comprehensive portfolio of training and development opportunities under the
categories: Teaching Effectiveness; Quality/Customer Service; Career Development; Promotion
Management Training; Professional Skills Training; Web Training; Life Planning; Language Classes;
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
Information Technology; Induction and Orientation; Policies and Procedures Training; Research
Training; Management Development. These programmes are promoted and administered by the Centre
for Excellence in Learning and Teaching and the Staff Training and development unit within Human
Resources. A more detailed outline of courses available is contained in the appendices.
4.3.5
Innovation and Excellence Initiatives
The final area under the direction of the VP for Innovation and Performance is enhancement in
Innovation and Excellence across the University. This is an evolving activity and is focused on
identifying major initiatives that can create ‘breakthrough’ or even ‘radical’ enhancements in quality
and performance. Two major initiatives have been started in addition to the formation of the Quality
and Innovation Committee reporting to an tÚdarás:
New Offices: (In Progress) The VP for Innovation and Performance has commissioned a new suite of
offices for the Quality Office and Institutional Research i.e. those functions responsible for central
quality assurance. The suite of offices will house the VP, Quality Director, Institutional Research Officer
and potentially four administration support staff. The suite will be located in a newly renovated area in
the main Quadrangle building. This location will also mean a permanent meeting room for all quality
related activities including Quality Reviews. Plans are available for inspection and completion is due in
early 2011.
Innovation Fund: (In progress) A fund has been allocated to collect ideas from all staff that have the
potential to transform quality in any aspect of the University. A call for ideas and proposals is currently
underway. A committee comprising membership from academic and support staff and students will
select the best ideas and the fund will be used to set up project teams for key projects.
4.4 Teaching and Research Enhancements
The following sections outline quality enhancement initiatives over the next three years for major
teaching and research activities and services units in the University. These include: (i) Research
Support; (ii) Colleges and Schools; (iii) Programmes; (iv) Graduate Education; (v) Teaching and
Learning; and (vi) Adult Learning.
4.4.1
Research Support
The Research Office has identified a number of quality and performance enhancement initiatives over
the coming years that include: Redesign of Research Support Services, associated Processes and
Policies; Establishment of a campus-wide network of research support personnel; Review and improve
IT systems capacity to improve Research Support; Development of a new integrated Researcher Profile
Database and Open Access Publications Repository; Communication of research performance within the
University and externally. In addition, there are initiatives planned for Technology Transfer activities.
4.4.2
Colleges and Schools
Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge (Academy of University Education through the medium of the
Irish language): Among the priorities in the Acadamh’s strategic plan are for it to function as a full Irishlanguage college of the University and to bring its academic profile gradually into line with that of the
University, for example by increasing the level of staff holding Ph.D.s to 25%, putting in place a training
and development scheme for support staff and an induction programme for new staff. It also intends to
increase courses offered so that there is a 4th level degree programme in each of the main disciplines in
which it is engaged; to raise the FTEs by 50% and to provide various new programmes, including
modules and a one year residential programme in the Gaeltacht (Irish-language speaking regions) for
students from other institutions. The provision of enhanced training f or staff in appropriate teaching
methodologies and development of a research programme with a focus on the interface between the
disciplines it is pursuing and the needs of the Irish speaking community and the Gaeltacht are further
objectives, as well as to lay down an agreed system for qualitative and quantitative feedback on the
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
delivery of courses. Strengthening collaboration with other Irish and foreign institutions and links with
the community, second level schools and summer colleges, as well as developing a national archive for
print, sound and video in Irish are among the other activities the Acadamh is committed to pursuing.
College of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences: The College has identified strategic academic and
research partnerships across the academic and the clinical domain to establish an enhanced leadership
profile. Specific quality and performance enhancement initiatives over the coming years will include:
Western Academic Health Network (a University/HSE partnership); NUI Galway/University of Limerick
collaboration for graduate-entry Medicine and related Therapies; Individual Schools are focussed on
specific partnership objectives, which include developing links between the School of Nursing and
Midwifery and Danbury College / Fairfield University, Connecticut, where a new international degree
programme is being developed. The Medical School is adding to its overseas recruitment strategy
through a NUIG /UCC joint venture with the Allianze College Medical School in Penang, Malaysia.
The development of critical-mass research capacity includes further development of the
National Centre for Biomedical Engineering Science (NCBES) and the new centres for Translational
Research and for Clinical Research. The new building to house both of these adjacent to the Medical
School and Galway University Hospital is due to break ground in September 2010. The designation of
the Health Promotion Research Centre as a WHO-recognised centre of excellence in 2010 is also seen as
a significant boost to research capacity within the College.
College of Engineering and Informatics: The College has identified a number of discrete initiatives
and projects aimed at quality enhancement and performance improvement. Enhancement is supported
by a new College level governance structure that includes the appointment of three Vice Deans for:
Teaching, Learning and Internationalisation; Research and Graduate Studies; and Planning,
Performance and Strategy. The College has also appointed a Health and Safety Co-ordinator a H&S
Advisory Group, and Teaching and Learning Advisory Group. The following is a sample of the scope and
thrust of the initiatives and projects being ‘actioned: Portfolio review of all academic programmes
within the College; Re-accreditation of all relevant undergraduate programmes by Engineers Ireland;
Extend our successful civic engagement learning initiatives across all disciplines within the College;
Plan, execute and complete the “decant & move” into the New Engineering Building for all Engineering
disciplines, including the re-fit of 33 laboratories, within a very tight timeframe and ensuring full
compliance with all Health and Safety regulations; Formalise the College level Risk Assessment and
Review mechanisms and raise staff awareness across the College; Complete the College-wide roll-out of
formalised work plan for academic staff; Implement the “Structured Ph.D.” format for all new Ph.D.
entrants and ensure 100% compliance with Graduate Research Committee reviews and reporting
mechanisms.
College of Business, Public Policy and Law: Major quality enhancements and initiatives will include:
Accreditation of individual programmes (e.g. Executive MBA and BSc (Business Information Systems);
Re-launching the EMBA with ‘block release teaching’ elements in line with quality review
recommendations; Redesign of Law programmes with focus on community engagement and clinical
legal education; Review of academic components of professional legal education; Expansion of LL.M.
programmes in, for example, Disability and Commercial Law; Development and expansion of the Centre
for Innovation and Structural Change; Communication enhancements with prospective and current
students, alumni and community; Improvement in web presence; Review of internal structures;
Establishment of School advisory Boards in both Schools; Attract an increased number of international
students.
College of Arts, Social Sciences and Celtic Studies: Perhaps the most important development within
the College over the next three years will be the building and populating of the new Arts, Humanities,
and Social Sciences Research Building, which was funded under PRTLI V. This building will be a
resource for the entire research community of the Colleges of Arts, Social Sciences, and Celtic Studies
and of Business, Public Policy, and Law and will consolidate links with our external partners in the
wider community. The Research Institutes of the two Colleges will be anchor tenants of the building. It
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
will also house all the research students of the College. The state-of-the-art facilities, including fully
accessible archives, will have a major impact on our international research standing. Complementary to
this development is the launch of a new Visiting Fellowship scheme, which will attract leading scholars
to NUI Galway for short-term residencies. A second, related matter, is the intention to drive up the
number of doctoral graduations. The improved facilities and enhanced research environment offered by
the new building will contribute to this goal. However, the major thrust is directed towards the bedding
down of the Structured Ph.D. programmes pioneered by the College. In three years time the first cohort
from the College’s main Structured Ph.D. will be approaching completion. The College’s structured
doctoral programmes should ensure improvements in both completion rates and times when compared
to the traditional Ph.D.. The final major new initiative within the College is the proposal to develop a
Centre for Performance. At present this initiative is at the consultation stage but we anticipate a formal
proposal being presented for consideration at a meeting of the College during this academic year.
College of Science: Initiatives aimed at improving quality and performance include: Enhancement of
Student Engagement Project; College-wide “clickers” initiative; Provision of training to all lecturing staff
involved in 1st year courses; Encouraging earlier student engagement by introducing semester one
examinations; New BSc and MSc programmes; Development of Structured Ph.D. Programmes;
Establishment of new research groups/programmes; Outreach & Science Promotion
through Galway Science & Technology Festival and increase the visits to second level schools; Run a
seminar programme suitable for the public; Organise a national art/poster competition in ‘Capturing
Chemistry; Provide a new public course in Astronomy as part of the Adult & Continuing Education
Office Short Course Series; New Research MSc Programme in Cancer Biology; Taught MSc Programme
in Environmental Science; Undergraduate BSc Programmes in Molecular & Cell Biology and Molecular
Genetics.
4.4.3
Programmes
There are 61 undergraduate, 163 taught post graduate and 325 research Masters and Ph.D.
programmes on offer in the University. While it is not possible to assess all of the enhancements being
developed or under consideration it is possible to assess the types of enhancements that have lead to
Quality Review action plans in the Programmes reviewed in 2009/2010. Below is a concise list of the
recommendations (quality enhancements) from external reviewers to various programmes over the
next three years.
Aims and Objectives
Communicate aims and objectives more clearly.
Improve marketing of the programme.
Organisation and Management
Establish programme boards.
Wider Context
Collaborate with similar programmes in UL
Collaborate with institutions in fieldwork and mapping.
Enhance engagement with professional organisations.
Track graduates’ career progress.
Utilise external experts for programme delivery.
4.4.4
Programmes and Learning
Provide detailed student handbook.
Consider phase-out of printed materials.
Spread supervisory load among more staff.
Provide more student guidance feedback.
Consider balance between theory vs. practice.
Introduce second internal marking for dissertations.
Increase match between supervisor interests and
dissertations.
Involve past graduates in career seminar.
Foster better writing skills.
Review learning outcomes of each module.
Review curriculum and benchmark.
Improve timely feedback on assignments.
Implement effective student feedback.
Explore measures to improve student attendance.
Support staff with use of technology-enhanced learning .
Graduate Education
A number of enhancements are being developed for graduate education including: (i) Advance a
structured Ph.D. programme of education for all graduate research students with emphasis primarily
on the quality of the research experience as well as the development of generic, transferable and
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
discipline-specific training; (ii) Recognise and reward the best supervisors and students by a formal
award scheme; (iii) Develop and review taught graduate courses to meet new demands while
incorporating new modes of delivery and facilitating inter-institutional delivery; (iv) Invest in the
development of management information systems which will ensure that all Deans, Heads of School,
Vice Deans, students, supervisors and academic staff have access to information to inform decision
making; (v) Engage with academic staff leaders in undergraduate education to promote the merits of
graduate study; (vi) Collaborate with the Research Office to ensure full alignment with key research
strategies; (vii)Collaborate with International Office to promote effective recruitment strategies for
international students; (viii) Promote and support broader professional development and enrichment
activities for graduate students, in collaboration with CELT; and (ix) Build Graduate School alumni
support in key areas.
4.4.5
Teaching and Learning
The Centre for Excellence in Learning & Teaching (CELT) has driven a number of major enhancements
including the drafting of the institution’s Learning, Teaching & Assessment Strategy. This is facilitated
through specific supports and collaborative initiatives with academic units, Library, ISS, Graduate
Studies, College administration, Deans and the Registrar. Examples of such work include:
• The implementation of formal, professional training for academic staff in teaching, learning and
assessment (with Postgraduate Certificate, Diploma and MA qualifications available on a parttime basis);
• The use of the Blackboard virtual learning environment (now integrated with student and module
registration databases) and associated tools for creative and interactive approaches to learning;
• state-of-the-art audiovisual systems deployment including high-definition video-conferencing,
pilot projects on automated lecture recording and the use of ‘clickers’ in promoting student
participation in class;
• NUI Galway’s Annual Symposium on Higher Education which typically attracts around 200
participants with invited international keynote presentations and themes centred on issues
crucial to high quality teaching and learning;
• Vice-Deans’ Group on Teaching, Learning and Assessment, recently established and which
informs the Council of Deans and Registrar on key issues of practice and policy development;
• Training and support for curricular reform and the implementation of Bologna compliant
programmes;
• Liaison and partnerships with individual academic staff, programme leaders and schools .in
'responsive mode' to issues arising, which often leads to new projects or resolution of issues;
• Co-ordination of the student volunteering programme, facilitation of the embedding of ‘service
learning’ (where students work with community groups and NGOs as part of their formal
academic programme) and promotion of greater university-society linkages.
4.4.6
Adult Learning
Proposals for non-traditional students and lifelong learning opportunities over the period 2010 – 2014
include: Development and expansion of pre-development courses for non-traditional and socioeconomically disadvantaged students; Development and provision of new degree programmes,
including Early Childhood Studies; Development of a comprehensive educational guidance service;
Development of a portfolio of Continuing Professional Development programmes to meet current
labour market needs; Development of new and innovative learning projects and networks for
community groups, ranging across the lifecycle; Development of specific courses, activities and action
research initiatives with older adult learners across the region; Development of an institution-wide
project and unit to promote and facilitate Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) () more widely within
the University; Establishment of a programme of research into lifelong learning; Creation of a new
organisational model and structures; Development of more targeted promotion and marketing
initiatives to enhance awareness of lifelong learning opportunities; Development of new collaborative
partnerships with Higher and Further Education and development agencies that will enhance lifelong
learning provision for the regional and national population.
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
4.4.7
Library
Recent enhancements to Library services include extended opening hours, increased access to journals
and leveraging of cost savings through the national IReL consortium, the publication of university
research outputs through the ARAN system, improved wireless access and power supply for laptop
users, and a new Nursing and Midwifery Library building. Planned improvements over the next one to
three years encompass a range of initiatives. Foremost among these will be the development of the Arts,
Humanities and Social Sciences Research Building (AHSSRB) which will adjoin the Library and will
include excellent facilities for archives, special collections and digitisation services. It is intended to
provide 24 x 7 access to this building, using a new access control system as part of a project with
Information Solutions and Services. This system will provide improved management information about
library use and is part of a focus on performance measurement and benchmarking. The latter includes
participation in the UK and Ireland SCONUL statistics database and the international LibQual survey.
A completely revised website, incorporating a mobile interface, will improve access to library
services, including a wider range of information skills tutorials. Liaison with academic staff to develop
collections will be optimised and access to course reading material will be extended through scanning
of book chapters and licensing of electronic textbooks. There will be a continuing emphasis on
exploiting online publishing opportunities and the ARAN service (Access to Research at NUI Galway)
will maximise access to the University’s peer-reviewed papers and theses; the integration of ARAN with
other University research systems will be a priority. Storage of archival holdings will be upgraded and
access to key archives, especially in theatre studies, will be enhanced by a systematic approach to
listing. Staff development will be emphasised, and the implementation of a competency framework
within the University’s organisational development strategy will be pursued. Beyond the campus, the
Library will play an increasingly public role through exhibitions and other promotional events in the
AHSSRB, while continuing to develop national partnerships in areas like IReL, open access to research
and collaborative storage of printed holdings.
4.5 Support Services Enhancements
The University’s 2009-2014 Strategic Plan commits NUI Galway for the first time to the development of
an Integrated Support Services Strategic Plan (ISSSP). This recognises the principles that the work of
the individual support services should be systematically aligned and planned around the needs of the
academic mission. Work started on development of the ISSSP during the 2009/2010 academic year. A
framework document has been published, which places great emphasis on the development of a
performance culture, on the importance of customer service, and on organisational development issues.
The framework document identifies 18 critical process areas and calls for the co-ordinated
development of individual strategic plans to cover each area, to be followed by an integration phase to
align these plans and set priorities for investment in service development. The following sections
outline quality enhancement initiatives over the next three years for major support services in the
University. These include: (i) Student Services; (ii) Information Services; (iii) Academic Administration;
(iv) Finance and Accounting; (v) Buildings Services; and (vi) Human Resources.
4.5.1
Student Services
The Student Experience commences prior to registration and Student Services provides a range of preentry information sessions in local communities. A major improvement in the last five years has been
the ongoing development of the Orientation Sessions for incoming first year students, meetings with
academic and support staff, comprehensive web-based information, printed student and college
handbooks and a social programme that takes place over a weekend. A range of student welfare
supports are in place including: accommodation, counselling, career development, academic placement,
chaplaincy and pastoral services for non-traditional students (students with a disability, mature
students, international students and socio-economically disadvantaged students. In addition the
Student Health Unit has been refurbished significantly, providing a state of the art premises that houses
a multi-disciplinary team of health professionals supplemented by a Health Promotion Officer.
Significant infrastructural development has taken place over the last five years. The University recently
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
completed the refurbishment of Áras na Mac Léinn as a centre for arts and cultural activities on the
campus. The building includes the Bailey Allen Hall and a range of meeting rooms, performance spaces
and a variety of facilities to support over 100 very vibrant student societies involving approximately
6,000 students. Another major development in the University is the commissioning of the new state of
the art University Sports Centre on campus which provides excellent facilities including an arena for
court sports, a swimming pool, cardio fitness and weight training rooms and a state-of-the-art gym. The
centre, which was opened in November 2008, provides a focus for the elite sports teams and individual
athletes as well as the 45+ active student clubs now operating within NUI Galway. This physical
development has been supplemented by the addition of staff to the Sports Unit.
Students Union: Some of the most significant quality enhancements over the coming year relate to
academic quality, welfare services and financial matters. The SU will contribute to improving feedback
mechanisms, introducing anonymous marking and expanding academic facilities including the library.
The SU also aims to improve welfare service provision by examining the student contact centre and
reaching out to those sections of students who are often neglected. The other big issues relate to the
cost of coming to college. Students are under very serious financial pressure and the SU aim to work to
decrease the costs of coming to college by reducing day-to-day expenditure, ensure the grant system
functions properly and that students are not required to pay fees before they are given support.
4.5.2
Information Services
Quality enhancement initiatives will be funded through potential savings or as targeted strategic
projects. The following initiatives are the likely areas of ICT development in the next 3 years: Wireless
expansion, network upgrades to support Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) and desktop video
conferencing; Deployment of infrastructure in the ‘cloud’ to improve resilience and to take advantage
of the flexibility /economies of scale; Implement Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) for all new
buildings; Upgrade staff email for future migration to ‘cloud’; Staff and Student Identity management
including identity federation; Backup solutions for staff desktops/experimentation devices; Increase
support/solutions for remote and mobile access to services. In addition, the following applications will
be enhanced: Application virtualisation (allow students access to University licensed software
on/offsite); Enhanced Virtual Learning environment; Student Customer Relationship Management
(CRM) functionality for Student Services; Develop access to student records for schools and colleges;
Develop Integration of student records systems with partner institution(s); Develop Research Support
system; Implement Post Graduate Student management system; Develop web-based employee self–
service; Integrate Campus card /electronic purse and access control; Enhance staff intranet; Develop
data warehouse capacity to support publishing of internal KPIs for schools/colleges; Implement webbased procurement and expense entry for all staff; Implement service management processes, including
adoption of industry-standard ITIL framework.
4.5.3
Academic Administration
Planned developments and quality enhancements will include: Development of online transcripts
service; Co-development of ‘Customer Relationship Management’ system in conjunction with Student
Services; Further enhancements to on-line registration; Refurbishment of Arás Uí Chathail to bring all of
Admissions and Academic Records teams together; Process review of Admissions Office; On-line
applications system for direct applications from mainly international students; Update of timetable
software; Further enhancements of the exam timetable facilitating three x two hours exam sessions per
day; Anonymous marking; Redesign of external examiner process; Online facility for Repeat Exams,
Appeals and Re-Checks; Major project on (Integrated Support Services Strategic Plan, Strategic Planning
Group) on Simplifying Academic Programme Management to strip out the huge level of complexity that
currently exists; Changes to structure and progressions rules (Marks and Standards) applied to both the
processes and the student record systems.
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
4.5.4
Finance and Accounting
In addition to the development of Integrated Support Services Strategic Plan, the Finance function
currently has the following enhancements in progress: Web-Based Expense Reimbursement for
University Staff will allow staff claimants to enter their expenses over the web and - once approved - the
claim will be added to a file for transmission to the bank and will be paid by EFT to the staff claimant's
bank account. The IMPART Project (Integrated Manpower Planning And Processing Taskforce) conjoins
Finance HR and the MSO in developing a whole range of system and process enhancements in areas like
Payroll, Pensions, HR, and ISS with the general principles of less paper, more self-service, once-off data
capture, fewer errors etc, all reflected in this project. Other developments include: the elimination of
cheque payments for wages, salaries, expenses, supplier payments etc; the elimination of payslips and
remittance advices in favour of electronic notification and employee self-service. Other developments
currently being appraised include enhancements to the finance system (Agresso) aimed at making the
processing of financial transactions more cost-effective and efficient whilst at the same time improving
the output in the form of management and control reports for users of the system. Accounting
initiatives in the area of research and academic accounting include: Charging Employer Pension
Contributions to Research Account; Research Budget Templates; and School Reporting.
4.5.5
Buildings and Services
Excluding student housing and remote locations (e.g. coastal research stations and Gaeltacht
educational facilities), the total stock of buildings is approximately 133,000m 2. The University is
engaged in a major capital programme to cope with increased teaching and research activity and to
replace unsuitable existing buildings. It includes a new Engineering School of 14,200m 2 to replace 13
existing buildings, a Biosciences Research Building of 8,200m2, an Arts Humanities and Social Sciences
Research Building of 5,300m2, a Translational Research Facility of 2,600m2, and a Human Biology
Building of 8,000m2. Two other buildings supporting expanded numbers of students in Psychology and
increased research activity in the applied social sciences are in planning and are expected to add
2,700m2 and 3,000m2 respectively by the end of 2012. These projects will add 44,000m2, an increase of
30% to the existing stock in a five-year period from 2009 to 2013. Planning is underway to ensure the
optimum use of space released by the transfer of activities to the new buildings, whether by disposal of
existing buildings, the re-location of staff from rented premises, or otherwise. This process is linked to
recently enhanced procedures for evaluating and assessing the allocation of space which are designed
to improve efficiency and productivity (for example, by facilitating adjacencies between staff with
related activities) as well as to ensure equity (and thus optimum utilisation) between the various units
of the University.
4.5.6
Human Resources
Planned enhancements will occur through the University’s ‘People Strategy’ and in the context of the
Employment Control Framework (ECF). The ECF requirement is to reduce the University’s employment
levels by 10%. This will inevitably mean individuals and units doing more work with fewer staff for less
pay and a consequential repositioning of resources within HR. In that context, a great deal of effort will
be expended on the maintenance of stable and healthy industrial relations and support will be required
for the Partnership process and a clear consultative approach for staff and their representatives. The
staff of the HR Office will work closely with the Executive Director of Operations to develop service
reviews, produce meaningful management information and develop shared service centres, and as well
as consider the use of the private sector as appropriate. Within the office itself, the role of the
Operations Team and individuals will be melded to cover the entire range of HR services. The role of the
Business Partners will also be enhanced and supported by the implementation of an agreed service plan
for HR services. Much of the development work will be done in the context of the development and
implementation of an organisational development strategy. Of particular importance will be the
embedding of an agreed vision statement at the heart of this strategy which will be wide ranging and
include a review of all the policies relating to people, including reward and recognition mechanisms,
succession management and strategies for staff engagement and leadership development. In particular
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
we will put in place a competency framework to support academic recruitment
4.6 Conclusions
Quality enhancement is continuous and driven by many factors including strategic and operational
plans, benchmarking, reviewers’ recommendations, staff and student surveys and serendipity. This
section has presented many of the new initiatives and enhancements that are currently underway or
planned for development over the coming three years. Together they reflect a University that is
continuously changing in order to enhance quality and performance. In the next, final section of this
report consideration is given to whether all of this change is in conformity with various quality
assurance criteria and in particular the Universities Act.
5 Compliance
5.1 Introduction
Throughout this report we have assessed the main drivers for quality assurance and enhancement that
include the University’s strategic plan, various local and central policies for quality assurance, and the
recommendations of external reviewers and examiners. Clearly there is a significant amount of activity
that is leading to more effective quality of teaching, research and support services in the future. What
remains is to assess how effective all of these activities are in complying with the Universities Act in
relation to quality assurance, but also how current policies and proposed enhancements measure up to
best practice as articulated through available European standards. Each section below presents
discussion around the level of compliance against each of these sets of criteria respectively.
5.2 Universities Act
The University must comply with the Universities Act 1997 and Section 35 in particular in relation to
Quality Assurance. As presented throughout this report quality assurance has two major elements –
Local QA administered by all units and Central QA administered by an independent unit within the
University. The Universities Act is explicit in laying out the statutory requirements for all Irish
Universities. It contains a number of sections including sections on Objects (read Mission), Strategic
Planning, Academic Freedom, Academic Council, and of course Quality Assurance. The table below
presents concise wording for Section 35 of the Universities Act regarding QA and also the principal
mechanisms adopted by NUI Galway in order to be in compliance with the Act.
Universities Act
NUI Galway Compliance
35. (1) A governing authority, in consultation with the academic council,
shall, as soon as practicable after the governing authority is established
under this Act and at such other times as it thinks fit, require the chief
officer to establish procedures for quality assurance aimed at improving
the quality of education and related services provided by the University.
(2) The procedures shall include — ( a ) the evaluation, at regular
intervals and in any case not less than once in every 10 years or such
longer period as may be determined by the University in agreement with
An tÚdarás, of each department and, where appropriate, faculty of the
University and any service provided by the University, by employees of
the University in the first instance and by persons, other than employees,
who are competent to make national and international comparisons on
the quality of teaching and research and the provision of other services
at University level, and
( b ) assessment by those, including students, availing of the teaching,
research and other services provided by the University,
Quality assurance policy
Quality leadership
Local policies and procedures
Central policies and procedures for QA
Academic Manual
Quality assurance
Quality reviews
Programme Accreditations
External Examiners
(Light Reviews)
and shall provide for the publication in such form and manner as the
governing authority thinks fit of findings arising out of the application of
those procedures.
Quality review policy
Student feedback policy
Student involvement with Quality Reviews
Student representation on major committees
External examiners policy
Publication on public web site
Annual reports to an tUdaras, HEA and IUQB
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
(3) A governing authority shall implement any findings arising out of an
evaluation carried out in accordance with procedures established under
this section unless, having regard to the resources available to the
University or for any other reason, it would, in the opinion of the
governing authority, be impractical or unreasonable to do so.
(4) A governing authority shall, from time to time, and in any case at least
every 15 years, having regard to the resources available to the University
and having consulted with An tÚdarás, arrange for a review of the
effectiveness of the procedures provided for by this section and the
implementation of the findings arising out of the application of those
procedures.
Action Plans and Follow-up
University and Unit Operational Plans
Staff work plans
Action Management – units, programmes, modules and
staff
Institutional reviews
(5) A governing authority, in a report prepared in accordance with
section 41, shall publish the results of a review conducted under
subsection (4).
Institutional reviews
41 (2) The governing authority shall publish the report in such form as it
thinks fit and shall provide the Minister with a copy and the Minister
shall cause a copy of the report to be laid before each House of the
Oireachtas as soon as practicable after it is received by him or her.
Institutional reviews
All policies and procedures in the University are implicitly directed towards delivering quality teaching,
research and support services. Specific policies can be identified that support the ‘periodic evaluation’
and ‘assessment by others including students’ of quality. These policies include: Quality Reviews;
External Examiners; Institutional Research; Strategic and Operational Planning; Staff Development and
Promotion; Student Feedback; Programme Boards; Bologna Compliance and many more. These policies
are regularly supplemented by new policies aimed at increasing quality and include policies around
Student Engagement, Internationalisation and Risk Management. The portfolio of policies is both
increasing and changing regularly in order to increase both compliance and quality enhancement. The
effective implementation of policies is supported by staff training and development and various local
and central monitoring and assessment methods including quality reviews and external examiners.
5.3 Irish Universities Quality Board
The IUQB was set up by the Universities in the Republic of Ireland as an independent body to oversee
the implementation of the requirements under the Universities Act to “arrange for a review of the
effectiveness of the procedures provided for by this section and the implementation of the findings
arising out of the application of those procedures” or, in other words, institutional reviews. In engaging
with the activities of the IUQB and in this self-assessment and subsequent institutional review, NUI
Galway is in compliance with the Universities Act.
5.4 European Standards
There are a number of European and other national standards and guidelines of interest in the context
of this report - Bologna and associated National Framework for Qualifications and the European
Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area. Bologna
compliance is monitored annually by the University with the latest analysis showing strong compliance
(see section 2.7.1 Bologna Review). Compliance with Bologna is supported by the University’s ‘Learning
Teaching and Assessment Strategy 2009-2011’ and associated measures include the appointment of
Vice Deans for Teaching, various staff development courses, and the annual Teaching Excellence
conference. It is also actively supported by the University’s Centre for Excellence in Teaching and
Learning.
The European standards for QA in Higher Education are synopsised in the table below together
with comments regarding NUI Galway compliance.
EUA Criteria
NUI Galway Compliance
Part 1 Standard 1 - QA Policy and Procedures:
Quality assurance policy
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
“…satisfactory institutional policies and participatory procedures that
support continuous enhancement of quality.”
(Academic Manual)
Internal Quality Reviews
Institutional reviews
Quality and operational planning initiatives
Action planning (reviews, externs, feedback, etc.)
External examiners policy
Part 1 Standard 2 – Periodic Review of Programmes: “Procedures
targeted specifically at academic programmes … periodic external
reviews of programmes are also undertaken”
Programme boards’ policy
Student feedback policy
Examination boards
Part 1 Standard 3 - Assessment of Students: “The assessment of student
learning is controlled by internal examination boards with inputs from
formally appointed external examiners. ….”
External examiner policy
Marks and Standards
Student feedback policy
Examination appeals process
Part 1 Standard 4 – QA of Teaching Staff: “All … teaching staff are
appointed by means of formal public procedures …. universities have
permanent teaching support units …. Promotion procedures … include
evaluations of teaching, research and community contributions.
…Student feedback on teaching is universal... Review groups have direct
access or can request access, to all relevant records, and teaching quality
is a standard topic for comment in review reports. A nationally agreed
individual ‘Performance Management and Development System’, which
applies to all members of staff, is currently being implemented in all the
universities.”
Centre for Excellence in Learning and Teaching
Staff work plans
Promotions policy
Student feedback policy
Quality review policy
Recruitment Policies
Part 1 Standard 5 – Learning Resources & Support:
“… provide resources to support student learning that are appropriate
for the academic programmes offered. The adequacy of these resources
and the need for improvements to enable more diverse and innovative
teaching are common themes in internal review reports.”
Part 1 Standard 6 –Information Systems:
“… have recognised the importance and usefulness of ‘enterprise data’ as
an important strategic objective for the University sector … ‘institutional
research officers’ have been appointed to coordinate data and
information management in their own institutions.”
Internal review policy
External examiner policy
Student feedback policy
Information systems
Institutional research office
University strategic plan
Unit operational plans
Student records system
Student surveys
Quality information systems
Part 1 Standard 7 – Public Information:
“… regularly publish up-to-date, impartial and objective information,
both quantitative and qualitative, about the programmes and awards
they are offering. In particular, reports of external and internal peer
reviews are published on University websites”
Quality office web site
IUQB web site
Publication of quality reviews and action plans
Annual reports to an tÚdarás, HEA, IUQB
Institutional data sets
University strategic and operational plans
5.5 National Framework for Qualifications
The University is committed to compliance with the guidelines and regulations, as agreed by the
Universities with the National Qualifications Authority of Ireland (NQAI), of the National Framework
for Qualifications (NFQ) for the delivery of learning programmes. The NFQ is designed for the
development, recognition and award of qualifications based on standards of knowledge, skill and
competence acquired by learners. Compliance is overseen by the Centre for Excellence in Learning and
Teaching who have developed strategy and various initiatives for facilitating all schools and colleges
assure and enhance compliance.
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
Overall Conclusions
NUI Galway’s mission is ‘learning and leadership for life’. Delivering on this mission requires quality to
become a key focus for every staff member in the delivery of effective teaching, research and support
services. Quality is a shared responsibility across the entire university community. To enhance the
Quality focus that leads to quality enhancement, the University also implements strategic and
operational planning that are aligned with its mission and takes it towards it vision of the future
through strategic enhancement initiatives. Quality assurance and strategic planning that lead to
enhancement initiatives have recently been greatly strengthened by the appointment of a VP for
Innovation and Performance, by academic restructuring across the University, by the reconstitution of
the committee for quality and innovation, and by the development of operational plans for all units that
include associated performance indicators.
The external competitive challenges that the University faces over the next five years are
significant. These challenges range from increased resource utilisation to increasing scholarship,
knowledge dissemination and translation into products and services for the wider community. The
confluence of external competitive challenges and the Universities mission strengthen the need for
quality enhancement that goes beyond conformance. The alignment for example between the
reconfigured quality review system that has a strategic emphasis, with quantifiable data, and strategic
and operational planning in all university units are fundamental changes in moving the emphasis of
quality assurance forward. Such changes provide opportunities for individuals and units to experiment
and innovate in the delivery of activities to key internal and external stakeholders and in aggregation,
deliver on the core mission of the University across teaching, research and support services. The
alignment between organisational structures, university strategy and quality assurance provides a
sustainable basis to accelerate quality initiatives around an innovation agenda that creates greater
opportunities for quality, innovation and performance enhancement in all activities.
This report has presented the results of a major self-assessment of quality assurance across the
University. The approach adopted was to identify strengths but also solicit ideas for further
enhancements to quality of teaching, research and support services. Many individuals were involved for
this purpose, through surveys, focus groups and benchmarking. The outcome of the assessment was the
identification of a large series of initiatives across the University that are either underway or are
planned for the future that will enhance quality and performance. The assessment also included a
review of compliance with the Universities Act and other international standards. The issue of
compliance raised a question with two elements (i) is the University in compliance; and/or (ii) does it
have the systems in place that will enhance compliance well into the future? The answer is laid out in
this report. In conclusion, the self-assessment team is keen to focus attention beyond compliance and
towards a system of quality assurance that is continuously looking for ways to add more value for the
University’s various stakeholders, in particular students and staff. The group have concluded that the
processes of quality assurance and performance enhancement are ‘fit for purpose’ in preparing the
University to take on any unforeseen challenges well into the future.
Approved by
Dr. Jim Browne, President
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
Appendices
A1: Organisational Structures
Údarás na hOllscoile (Governing Authority)
Standing and Strategic Planning Committee
Finance/Resource Committee
Academic Planning and Resource Committee
Support Services Committee
Quality and Innovation Committee
Academic Council
University Management Team
President
Bursar (Finance)
Secretary
VP Capital Projects
Executive Director of Operations
Shared Services; Information Systems and Services; Human Resources; Buildings
and Services
Registrar
VP Student Experience
VP Research
Centre for Excellence in Learning and Teaching
An tAcadamh; Academic Affairs; Council of Deans; Adult Education; Library
VP Innovation and Performance
Institutional Research Office
Quality Office
Administrative Assistant G3
Administrative Assistant G2 (Job Share)
Administrative Assistant (Part-time)
(Dr. Jim Browne)
(Dr. Seamus MacMathuna)
(Kieran Loftus)
(Prof. Jim Ward)
(Mary O’Riordan)
(Prof. Terry Smith)
(Dr. Iain Maclaren)
(Prof. Chris Curtin)
(Aoife Flanagan)
(Dr. David O’Sullivan)
(Maureen Linnane)
(Breda Kenna/ Geraldine Lyons)
(Anne Cryan)
Colleges, Schools and Disciplines
College of Arts, Social Sciences, & Celtic Studies
School of Political Science & Sociology
School of Psychology
School of Education
School of Geography & Archaeology
School of Humanities
School of Languages, Literature, & Cultures
Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge
College of Medicine, Nursing, & Health Sciences
School of Health Sciences
School of Medicine
School of Nursing and Midwifery
College of Business, Public Policy, & Law
School of Business & Economics
School of Law
College of Engineering & Informatics
College of Science
School of Chemistry
School of Physics
School of Maths, Stats and App.Maths
School of Natural Sciences
Affiliated Colleges
Burren College of Art and Design
St. Angelas College, Sligo
Shannon College of Hotel Management
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
A2: EUA Recommendations - 2004
The table below illustrates the recommendations made by the EUA following the institutional review of
all Irish Universities in 2004 and the SATeam’s comments regarding compliance by NUI Galway to each
of the recommendations.
EUA Recommendations 2004 to all Irish
Universities
…QA to inform strategy formulation…
…review results to be discussed at most senior level…
…President has overall responsibility for QA process…
…fundamental ownership is with Unit…
…max. 30 pages in self-evaluation report
…review process not longer than three months
…involve students systematically in reviews…
…units to evaluate their external environment…
…units to consider links to support units during
evaluation…
…identify synergies between review and other QA
mechanisms…
…assure regular student feedback…
…guidelines to provide broadest view of quality
…flexibility in composition of review teams
…reviewers to be independent of unit
…action meeting following review…
…action to be agreed within six months
…action plans to be considered in strategy and
resource allocation
…university to respond to action plans
…actions to be included in annual reports
…all budgets to be considered quality related
…schedule of reviews to be more strategic…
…link review cycle to other strategic cycles
…review units as cognate groups…
…review themes and cross-functional issues
…regular analysis of QA process
…better management information systems
…keep procedures simple and timely
…maximise infrastructure to create critical mass
…analyse benefits of QA
NUI Galway Compliance
Quality is part of the culture and permeates all activities.
Quality is permanent item on major committee agenda.
Adopted. President also serves on Irish Universities Quality
Board.
Culture and ideology adopted places ownership with
individual staff and units.
Adopted in guidelines.
Followed for majority of reviews.
Adopted.
Units encouraged to engage in SWOT analysis.
Adopted.
Noted.
Adopted.
Noted.
Adopted.
The volume of reviews have made this difficult until recent
change in policy.
Adopted.
Adopted for most reviews.
Quality reports reviewed by SPRC and SSC who have resource
allocation responsibility.
Resources allocated on basis of strategic priorities. Lobbying
encouraged.
Adopted.
Quality culture permeates most activities.
Noted.
Noted.
Adopted and implemented where possible.
Thematic reviews recently adopted.
Institutional Review process.
Systems upgraded continuously. Institutional research office.
Noted.
Noted.
Institutional Review process.
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
A3: Student Survey Results
The following are sample graphs from a survey of undergraduates, post graduates and researchers at
NUI Galway carried out in 2010 by researchers from the UCD Geary Institute. The graphs below show
results for undergraduates at NUI Galway and comparisons with other Colleges (i.e. Irish universities).
Satisfaction with Your University
Overall Grade Last Year (B)
Undergraduates
Undergraduates
39
Very satisfied
37
52
Satisfied
51
6
Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied
8
2
Dissatisfied
3
1
Very dissatisfied
NUIG
1
Other Colleges
0
10
20
30
40
2
A+
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD+
D
DE
F
50
3
9
9
9
9
16
15
11
10
10
10
11
3
4
1
1
13
11
4
2
16
13
1
2
1
NUIG
Other Colleges
1
0
5
Percent of Category
10
15
Percent of Category
Sample Size: 265 respondents from NUIG
Sample Size: 89 respondents from NUIG
Irish Universities Study 2010
Irish Universities Study 2010
Satisfaction with the Following Services
Undergraduates
Parking Facilities
Financial Assistance and Information
Catering
On-Campus Accommodation
Graduate Studies Office
Mature Students Support Office
International Office
Access Office
Fees Office
Careers Advisory Service
Public Transport to and from the University
Student Application Process
Student Admissions Process
Student Registration
Students' Union
Orientation and General Induction
Student Centre
Student Health Centre
Campus Safety
Laboratory Teaching and Learning Facilities
Computer Facilities
General Teaching and Learning Facilities
Clubs and societies
Buildings and General Environment
Sport and Recreation Facilities
2.3
0
1
2
3.2
3.2
3.2
3.3
3.3
3.3
3.4
3.4
3.4
3.5
3.6
3.6
3.6
3.6
3.7
3.7
3.7
3.7
3.8
3.8
3.8
3.9
3.9
4.0
3
4
Mean Satisfaction (scale 1-5)
Sample Size: 2436 Respondents
Irish Universities Study 2010
Do You Think You Have Been Marked Fairly to Date?
Undergraduates
25
Very fairly
20
65
Fairly
68
9
Unfairly
8
1
Very unfairly
2
0
Not applicable
NUIG
2
0
Other Colleges
20
40
60
80
Percent of Category
Sample Size: 286 respondents from NUIG
Irish Universities Study 2010
45
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
Satisfaction with Your Course
Satisfaction with Interaction with Lecturers
Undergraduates
Undergraduates
35
Very satisfied
13
Very satisfied
32
45
Satisfied
51
Satisfied
12
45
52
33
Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied
9
Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied
9
31
7
Dissatisfied
10
4
Dissatisfied
0
Very dissatisfied
NUIG
1
10
20
30
40
2
50
NUIG
1
Not applicable
Other Colleges
0
1
Very dissatisfied
6
1
Other Colleges
0
10
Percent of Category
20
40
50
Percent of Category
Sample Size: 265 respondents from NUIG
Sample Size: 275 respondents from NUIG
Irish Universities Study 2010
Irish Universities Study 2010
Importance of Following Attributes in a Lecturer
Have You Ever Given Feedback?
Undergraduates
Undergraduates
Has Carried out Important Research
Does Not Run Over Time
Keeps up to Date with Research
Is Available During Office Hours
Good Slideshow Presentation Skills
Arrives on Time
Provides Detailed Reading Lists
Replies to Emails Quickly
Has Practical Experience
Lively Lecturing Style
Makes Notes Available Online
Makes Available Previous Exam Papers
Approachable to Students
Willing to Answer Questions
Is Knowledgeable About Subject
2.9
3.3
3.3
3.4
3.5
3.5
3.5
3.6
3.7
3.8
4.0
4.0
4.1
4.2
4.5
0
1
2
3
4
35
Yes, in most lectures/tutorials/laboratories
21
28
Yes, in some lectures/tutorials/laboratories
35
28
Yes, occasionally
33
9
No
NUIG
12
0
5
Other Colleges
10
20
30
40
Percent of Category
Mean Importance (scale 1-5)
Sample Size: 283 respondents from NUIG
Sample Size: 2469 Respondents
Irish Universities Study 2010
Irish Universities Study 2010
Do you Think Feedback is Acted Upon?
Satisfaction with Feedback you Receive
Undergraduates
Undergraduates
12
Yes, definitely
33
31
Maybe
4
4
NUIG
5
8
0
Other Colleges
10
37
11
Dissatisfied
19
Don't know
41
35
34
Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied
32
16
No, probably not
7
Satisfied
29
No, definitely not
7
Very satisfied
8
Yes, possibly
20
30
13
Very dissatisfied
4
Not applicable
3
40
4
NUIG
4
Other Colleges
0
10
Percent of Category
20
30
40
Percent of Category
Sample Size: 281 respondents from NUIG
Sample Size: 280 respondents from NUIG
Irish Universities Study 2010
Irish Universities Study 2010
Satisfaction with Handouts from Lectures
Average Wait for Free Computer
Undergraduates
Undergraduates
14
Between 5 and 10 minutes
52
Satisfied
Very dissatisfied
Between 30 and 40 minutes
7
Between 40 and 50 minutes
0
Between 50 and 60 minutes
0
More than an hour
0
1
7
0
Do not know
NUIG
5
Not applicable
10
20
30
40
5
3
Not applicable
Other Colleges
50
0
Percent of Category
9
2
0
1
7
1
47
33
22
13
Between 20 and 30 minutes
21
Dissatisfied
27
Between 10 and 20 minutes
50
20
Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied
25
Less than 5 minutes
14
Very satisfied
7
NUIG
5
Other Colleges
10
20
30
40
50
Percent of Category
Sample Size: 276 respondents from NUIG
Irish Universities Study 2010
30
Sample Size: 267 respondents from NUIG
Irish Universities Study 2010
46
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
A4: Reviewers 2009/2010
The following table is a list of all of the reviewers from the 2009/2010 review season and where they came from.
External Industry means reviewers were from industry. External Intl. means reviewers came from universities
outside of the Republic of Ireland. External Irish means reviewers come from other universities within Ireland.
Reviewer
McArdle Peadar Mr., Geological Survey of Ireland
Kelly Rachel Ms. Beckman Coulter
Fallon Lucy Ms. National Centre for Partnership & Performance
MacAodha Eamonn Mr. Irish Human Rights Commission
Williams John Dr. General Hospital Sligo
Crowe Caitriona Ms. National Archives of Ireland
Bree Seamus Mr. Enterprise Ireland
O'Loughlin Ronan Mr. Chartered Accountants Ireland
Babb Jane Ms. Arthur Cox Law Firm
Ryan Jim Dr. CIRCA Group Europe Ltd.
Edwards Dianne Prof. Cardiff University
Hamalainen Pavivi Mr. Tampere University
Phelps Nicholas Prof. University College London
Gane, Christopher Prof, University of Aberdeen
van der Schans Cees Dr. Hanze University Groningen
Wood Geoffrey Prof. University of Sheffield
McGowan John Prof. University of North Carolina
Ross Michael T Dr. University of Edinburgh
Rogers John Dr. University of Stirling, UK
Redman Tom Prof. Durham University
Hutton Neil Prof. Strathclyde Law School Scotland
Birch David Prof. University of Strathclyde
O'Toole Thomas Dr., Global Biotechnology Solutions USA
Shannon Patrick M. Prof. UCD
Drummond Anne Dr. UDD
Barry Frank Prof. Trinity College
Jackson John Prof. UCD,School of Law
Abrahamson David M. Dr. Trinity College
Scott Pamela Dr. Dublin Institute of Technology
Ohlemeyer Jane Prof. Trinity College
Hyland Aine Prof. UCC
Bury Gerard Prof. UCD
Kennedy Eugene Prof. DCU
Hutson Elaine Dr. UCD
Clarke Blanaid Prof. UCD
Cawley Michael F. Dr. NUI Maynooth
McLoughlin Eilish Dr. Dublin City University
Dillon Paul Mr., University of Limerick
McCormack Frances Dr. NUI Galway
O'Byrne Conor Dr. NUI Galway
Prendergast Martina Dr. NUI Galway
Tuohy, Dr. Maria, Biochemistry, NUI Galway
Hall Tony Dr. NUI Galway
Cormican Kathryn Dr. NUI Galway
Dundon Tony Dr. NUI Galway
Carroll William Dr. NUI Galway
Browne Carmel Ms. NUI Galway
Flynn Sharon Dr. NUI Galway
Shiel Agnes Prof. NUI Galway
Feely Martin Dr. NUI Galway
Crump Monica Ms. NUI Galway
Reman Matt Mr. NUI Galway
Healy Mark Dr. NUI Galway
Brown Colin Dr. NUI Galway
Malesevic Sinisa Dr. NUI Galway
Gallagher Aideen Ms. NUI Galway
Kane Aidan Dr. NUI Galway
Boyd Aoife Dr. NUI Galway
Coate Kelly Dr. NUI Galway
Dolan Pat Prof. NUI Galway
O'Donoghue Padraic Prof. NUI Galway
Cunningham James Dr. NUI Galway
Leech Donal Dr. NUI Galway
Cunningham James Dr. NUI Galway
From
External Industry
External Industry
External Industry
External Industry
External Industry
External Industry
External Industry
External Industry
External Industry
External Industry
External Intl.
External Intl.
External Intl.
External Intl.
External Intl.
External Intl.
External Intl.
External Intl.
External Intl.
External Intl.
External Intl.
External Intl.
External Intl.
External Irish
External Irish
External Irish
External Irish
External Irish
External Irish
External Irish
External Irish
External Irish
External Irish
External Irish
External Irish
External Irish
External Irish
External Irish
Rapporteur
Rapporteur
Rapporteur
Rapporteur
Rapporteur
Rapporteur
Rapporteur
Rapporteur
Rapporteur
Rapporteur
Rapporteur
Rapporteur
Rapporteur
Cognate
Cognate
Cognate
Cognate
Cognate
Cognate
Cognate
Cognate
Cognate
Cognate
Cognate
Cognate
Cognate
47
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
A5: University Strategy
The following table is an abridged version of the University’s Strategic Plan 2009-2013. The full plan is
available from the University’s web site: http://www.nuigalway.ie/president.
Thrust
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Teaching, Learning and Research
Infrastructure
Infrastructure
Infrastructure
Infrastructure
Infrastructure
Environment
Environment
Environment
Environment
Organisation and Staff
Organisation and Staff
Organisation and Staff
Organisation and Staff
Organisation and Staff
Organisation and Staff
An Ghaeilge
An Ghaeilge
An Ghaeilge
Regional Development
Regional Development
Regional Development
Communications
Communications
Communications
Communications
Communications
Communications
Resources
Resources
Goals (Abridged)
Ensure undergraduate programmes address social, economic, industrial and cultural needs and reflect national priorities
Be first choice of students nationally in our selected areas of research, and in all programme in our catchment area
Attract non-traditional students to account for 7.5% of our first-year entrants
Increase international students to 15% of our student population
Harness the synergies betw een research and teaching
Promote and rew ard teaching excellence and active, engaged forms of learning
Formalise student feedback
Foster a w ide range of life skills in our students, including vocational, sporting and cultural
Enable all students to have the opportunity to engage in volunteering activities
Ensure Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge’s programmes meet the particular needs of Irish speaking communiities
Expand graduate education
Attract high-calibre PhD students in our priority research areas
Ensure all PhD students participate in Graduate Schools
Collaborate w ith other institutions in developing programme offerings for PhD students
Expand outreach education
Increase number of mature students to 27% of all full-time and part-time entrants
Expand our professional development courses
Accelerate implementation of systems to accredit prior experiential learning
Demonstrate international recognition for our research in prioritised areas
Produce 200+ PhD graduates per year and increase masters output
All academic staff w ill engage in active research and the formation of PhD students
Create the necessary physical infrastructure to support our priority research themes
Develop proactive, customer-focused research support services
Develop and expand our collaborative research netw orks
Facilitate joint academic appointments w ith partner institutions in priority research themes
Disseminate research findings through publication in high-quality peer-review ed publications
Increase patent filings by 25%, licence agreements by 20%, w ith 5 spin-out companies p.a.
Optimise use of current space and facilities
Complete planned new infrastructural projects
Improve access to campus, University buildings and facilities for all users, including disabled
Develop the new master plan for campus
Continue to ensure efficiency and VFM in all infrastructure development and use
Continue to provide a high-quality w orking environment and an attractive campus
Continue to incorporate good design principles in the development of new , and in the refurbishment of older buildings
Develop and implement a formal environmental policy
Engage the entire University community in actively creating a more sustainable campus
Complete restructuring of University Management system
Embed new academic structures, implement w orkload model, and encourage fruitful collaborations
Deliver single support strategy for all University support services
Equip UMT and all academic and support service leaders w ith the appropriate leadership and management skills
Engage all staff in achieving strategic objectives and encourage all to take individual responsibility
Ensure that QA and QI are central in every aspect of the University’s activities
Continue to develop and deliver demand-led Irish language programmes
Develop academic programmes that meet the need for trained Irish-medium second-level teachers
Continue to develop an exemplary bilingual campus
Play a key role in developing the BMW region as an innovative, know ledge-driven and competitive hub
Support the development and expansion of a regional innovation strategy for the BMW region and Co. Clare
Support the development of the social and cultural life of the region, and in particular, the Gaeltacht region
Develop a strong brand for NUI Galw ay on the basis of its academic reputation in key priority areas
Focus our media communications on our key priority areas
Sustain increases in total and first choice applications through improved recruitment and communications
Develop our virtual communications to deliver a ‘w hole university’ experience online
Enable staff and students to become effective advocates for the University
Enable our external stakeholders to become effective advocates for the University
Maximise our income streams through a variety of sources
Optimise use of resources through VFM, re-engineering and redeployment
48
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
A6: Learning, Teaching and Assessment Strategy
The following table is an abridged version of the ‘Learning, Teaching and Assessment’ Strategy 20092011 reiterating current university policy in a number of areas and also guiding further development of
best practice in teaching excellence.
Thrust
Goal
Staff Training & Support
Professional, PgCert; Dip & MA courses from CELT available to all academic staff
University will provide adequate resourcing for staff teaching development
Deans and HoS to be provided with appropriate training and development opportunities coordinated by HR
Postgraduate students acting in teaching support capacity to be provided with training
Programme Boards to ensure training provided to all part-time, temporary and other teaching/demonstrating staff/students.
Programme Boards to oversee all courses and to ensure Bologna and NFQ compliance
All programmes and modules to use Learning Outcomes and appropriate ECTS weighting
Total workload (as specified by ECTS definitions) and expectations to be communicated to students and consistently applied
Colleges and Schools to ensure standard minimum ECTS per module is 5 ECTS
Number of bonded modules to be minimise and ensure same weighting for all modules with the same Learning Outcomes.
Decisions regarding teaching methods, assessment, etc, the responsibility of Programme boards and coordinators
Learning Outcomes should determine the choice of teaching and assessment methods used
Methods and approaches to teaching/learning should promote student engagement and responsibility
Colleges, through appropriate Vice-Dean, should undertake an audit/survey of teaching, learning and assessment
Curriculum design and review to consider totality of student experience and effectiveness of range of methods used
New teaching methods and technologies available from CELT to be considered on development and review of programmes.
Physical teaching and learning environment and technology infrastructure to match other Irish institutions
Assessment tasks will be based on specified Learning Outcomes and provide students with feedback
Students will experience a range of assessment methods
Assessment tasks should be coordinated at the year or programme
Programme Boards will monitor grading and variation across modules, making any appropriate recommendations
Students will be provided with opportunities for formative assessment
Marking and feedback to students will be timely and include pointers for future improvement
Peer-assessment and self-assessment will be made available where appropriate.
Students will be made aware, in good time, of criteria and formats of assessment and grading.
Academic staff workload models will account for time associated with marking, grading, feedback and related activities
Develop realistic methods for monitoring student attendance to identify students failing to engage
Colleges and Schools to make explicit to students expectations required of them
Colleges to have in place policies to maximise retention and the transition in the first year students
Colleges have resources to provide student learning support for traditional and non-traditional students.
Schools will implement a framework for the systematic evaluation of all courses which they offer.
Academic staff will avail of opportunities to obtain feedback on their teaching and monitoring student progress.
Students are expected to participate in opportunities for feedback and be informed of actions taken
Commitment to high quality teaching and support of student engagement will form part of the criteria for promotion
Excellence in Teaching Award scheme will be provided by the President's Office annually.
Programmes shall provide students with opportunities to be made aware of and explore current research issues
Adapt the recommendations of Jenkins, Healy & Zetter to link teaching and research
Research groups to identify ways in which their work can be better communicated within taught programmes
All Colleges and Schools will examine the opportunity for greater civic engagement in the programmes which they offer.
Each College will nominate a member of academic staff with responsibility for Civic Engagement & Service Learning.
Students encouraged to engage in voluntary activity through the ALIVE programme
Graduate Studies will collate information regarding training programmes and workshops for postgraduate research
Researchers to be offered a range of training and professional development opportunities
Training, mentoring and support for research student supervisors will be available
University Guidelines for Research Degree Programmes will be subject to ongoing review
Staff Training & Support
Staff Training & Support
Staff Training & Support
Staff Training & Support
Learning Outcomes and Bologna
Learning Outcomes and Bologna
Learning Outcomes and Bologna
Learning Outcomes and Bologna
Learning Outcomes and Bologna
Learning Outcomes and Bologna
Learning Outcomes and Bologna
Approaches to Teaching & Learning
Approaches to Teaching & Learning
Approaches to Teaching & Learning
Approaches to Teaching & Learning
Approaches to Teaching & Learning
Assessment
Assessment
Assessment
Assessment
Assessment
Assessment
Assessment
Assessment
Assessment
Student Engagement
Student Engagement
Student Engagement
Student Engagement
Feedback, Evaluation & Review
Feedback, Evaluation & Review
Feedback, Evaluation & Review
Feedback, Evaluation & Review
Feedback, Evaluation & Review
Research-Teaching Linkages
Research-Teaching Linkages
Research-Teaching Linkages
Civic Engagement
Civic Engagement
Civic Engagement
Postgraduate Research Students
Postgraduate Research Students
Postgraduate Research Students
Postgraduate Research Students
49
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
A7: Quality and Innovation – Operational Plan
The following table shows the ‘Operational Plan 2010/2011’ for the quality and innovation activities
under the office of the VP for Innovation and Performance and including the Quality Office, Institutional
Research, Strategic and Operational Planning and elements of staff training and development.
Thrust
Quality
Goal
Develop Quality Information Systems
Actions
Academic Manual
Unit Intranet - Sandbox
Quality Office Intranet
Engage Staff in Quality Assurance and Enhancement Mentoring Scheme
Training and Development
Benchmarking Scheme
One Great Idea Survey
Excellence Teams
Enhance Quality Policies and Procedures
Student Evaluations Policy
Workload Planning Policy
External Examinations Policy
Controlled Documents Policy
Integrate Operational Planning
Operational Planning Method
Operational Planning Policy
Redesign Internal Review Process
Revise Review Process Policy
Design Review Templates
Assess Old Review Process
Assure and Enhance Quality
Review Pilot Units
Institutional Review Visit
Institutional Enhance and monitor Performance Indicators
Review indicators
Research
Collect data
Disseminate results
Track performance against University's Strategic Goals Collate data for metric driven goals
Enhance Research Performance Measurement
Develop Plan with Research Office
Pilot with a number of Schools
Baseline against Forfas Bibliometric report
Support Integrated Research System Project
Ensure reporting requirements are met
Support working group in implementation phase
Initiative Data Warehousing Project
Work with ISS on Project Initiation Document
Pilot with Performance indicator Data
Support Academic Unit Benchmarking
Provide relevant information and advice
Support Internal Review Process
Support redesign process
Provide data and information required for reviews
Maximise University Rankings
Maximise performance
Monitor performance against benchmarked institutions
Enhance Student Surveys
Review Student Satisfaction Survey
Innovation Establish Quality and Innovation Organisation
Restructure Quality, IR and Innovation Organisation
Reconstitute Q&I Committee
Design New Office Accommodation
Engage Staff and fund Transformational Innovation Projects
Develop New Innovation Policies and Initiatives
Facilitate Strategic and Operational Planning
Establish Strategic Palnning Advisory Group
Facilitate Units with Operational Planning
Manage Planning knowledge base
50
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
A8: Quality Information Systems
Screen shots are presented below from three quality information systems at NUI Galway. The first pair
show views from the ‘Quality Office Intranet’. The second pair show views from the ‘Sandbox’ for
demonstrating how academic units (e.g. schools) can set up their own information systems. The final
pair of screen shots show views from the public Quality Office web site.
51
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
A9: Academic Manual
Screen shots are presented below from various modules within the online Academic Manual available
to all staff to support knowledge dissemination, continuous learning and quality enhancement. The
screen shots respectively illustrate the Home Page; Policies and Procedures; Reviewers
Recommendations; Extern Recommendations; Survey Results.
52
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
A10: School Indicators
The following is a list of key performance indicators provided to all teaching, research and support service by the ‘Institutional
Research’ function as part of quality assurance and enhancement.
Student number and FTEs by programme: U/G, Diploma, Taught Masters
Student profile % mix: U/G, Diploma, Taught Masters
Student number and FTEs by programme (EU, Non-EU, Exchange, JYA)
% of new undergraduate entrants on the CAO
Median CAO points at entry (excluding non-traditional students)
Ratio of CAO/PAC applicants to programme places available
Number and% of enrolments from NUI Galway’s catchment area
% of students enrolled on programmes that progress from year to year
% of students enrolled on programmes that progress after 1st sitting
% of students enrolled who graduate within 150% of the programme completion time
% of students enrolled who graduate within 100% of the programme completion time
Number and % of staff that completed modules in CELT Professional Qualifications Framework
Number and % of staff that have completed Certs, Diplomas, Masters in Teaching practice
Number and % of staff attending CELT meetings, workshops, conferences
Number and % of staff that completed a Leadership or Management Training programme
Number and % of staff nominated for President’s Teaching Award
Number and % of staff who received a President’s Teaching Award
Number and % of staff that have availed of the Grouped Student Evaluation Scheme
Proportion of graduates awarded H1, H2.1, H2.2, H3, Pass, Fail
Number and% of programmes for which a quality review has been completed
Ph.D. Completion time & rate
Ph.D. awards per annum
Ratio of Ph.D. FTE’s to staff FTE’s
Overall number of articles published in refereed/peer reviewed journals by discipline
Total number of citations in journals
Total number of citations per paper
Number and % of staff on sabbatical leave
Number and % of staff with up to date RSS and ARAN profiles
Total research income
Research income per staff FTE
% of undergraduate student survey respondents whose expectations were met or exceeded
First Destination Return
Number of graduates employed
Number of graduates employed in Ireland/outside EU
Number of students gone on to further education
Number and % of students participating in the ALIVE programme
Number and % of access/mature/disability student FTEs
Number of modules taught through Irish
Number of students taking modules through Irish
Number of programmes taught through Irish
53
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
A11: Training and Development
The following is a list of staff training and development courses at NUI Galway in 2010. Many of these are one day courses
administered by Staff Training and Development Unit. Some are full programmes of study regarding teaching and assessment
delivered by the Centre for Excellence in Learning and Teaching.
Induction and Orientation
Post Grad Cert in Teaching & Learning in Higher Education.
Post Grad Diploma in Academic Practice.
Masters of Arts (MA) in Academic Practice.
Research Staff Training Programme
Agresso and the Financial Management of Research Awards
Intellectual Property
Making a Research Proposal
Managing and Producing Your Thesis and Reports
Personal Effectiveness
Personal Organisation
Project Management
Technical Presentations
Using Qualitative Software: An Introduction to Nvivo (Version 7)
Writing up your Research for Publication
Management Development
Conflict Resolution & Mediation Skills
Critical Conversations
Influencing Skills and Strategies
Leadership Coaching for Women Managers
Leadership Development for Heads of School
Managing in a Job-Sharing Environment
Quality/Customer Service
The Power of Communication
The Power of Customers
Performance Management Development System (PMDS) Training
Policies & Procedures Training
Procurement Training II: Writing Specifications
Agresso Training (Introductory)
Dignity & Respect at Work
Disability Awareness Training
Equality of Opportunity
Managing Attendance
Office Procedures & Protocols
Postgraduate Applications Centre (PAC) Reviewer Training
Procurement Training: Module 5 (Negiotiations Skills)
Recruitment & Selection (Interview Techniques)
Recruitment and Selection (Academic Staff)
Recruitment and Selection (Administrative, Library and Technical Staff)
Syllabus File Data / Marks and Standards
In addition there are a number of staff training and development courses in the following areas:








Career Development
Promotion Management Training
Professional Skills Training
Web Training
Life Planning
Language Classes
Information Technology
Health and Safety Training
54
Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
A12: Major Milestones
The following is a list of major milestones for the development of formalised quality assurance at NUI Galway.
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
Nov
July
• Quality Steering Committee established
• First review (Department of Mathematics)
• Report of Meridian survey of student opinion
June
• Review of James Hardiman Library
Feb
• Quality the first major theme in Strategic Plan (1997–2006)
March
• Report of Meridian survey of staff opinion
Feb
• Review of Research at NUI Galway
Sept
• Appointment of Staff Training and Development Officer
Feb
• Survey of ‘First year student life’ at NUI Galway
July
• Director of Quality appointed, Quality office established
Oct
• Quality Committee established as subcommittee of Governing Authority
May
• Focused institutional review of University
June
• Committee for Administration and Services Quality Improvement established
Nov
• Pilot study of formative, ‘grouped-student’, teaching evaluation method’
March
• First biannual survey by IMS of undergraduate student satisfaction
• Second formal Review of Research at NUI Galway
March
• Qualitative surveys by Millward Brown IMS of student satisfaction
Sept
• Appointment of Director of CELT and establishment of Centre
Oct
• Survey of Research student satisfaction by IMS
• Survey of staff in academic departments reviewed recently
• First annual Deans and Heads Conference
Dec
• Survey of research postgraduate student satisfaction
March
• Second University-wide survey of undergraduate student satisfaction
Nov
• Initiation of first round of President’s Awards for Teaching Excellence
Feb
• Department of Electronic Engineering is first unit to be reviewed for the second time
May/Nov • Preliminary and main visits by review team for EUA reviews of NUI Galway
Nov
• University-wide survey of first-year student satisfaction on induction
Oct
• Údarás approved University’s Action Plan arising from EUA Review reports
Dec
• Needs Analysis Report on Institutional Research by Dr Mark Putnam NEU, Boston
July
• Quality Office starts to administer general External Examiners Reports
Jan
• Appointment of Institutional Research Officer
Mar
• Review of Shannon College of Hotel Management
April
• On-line University-wide survey of undergraduate student satisfaction
Nov
• Review of University Management Team (UMT)
Mar
• Review of St Angela’s College Sligo
April
• On-line University-wide survey of undergraduate student satisfaction
Jan
• Reconstitution of Quality and Innovation Committee under VP Performance and
Innovation
April/Jun • Major redesign of quality enhancement processes including internal reviews
Dec
• Institutional review of NUI Galway by Irish Universities Quality Board
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Institutional Self-Assessment Report – NUI Galway
A13: Quality Office Activities 2010
Quality Office activities in 2010 centred around completing 2009/2010 reviews, assessing quality
assurance activities, developing a new review system, piloting new reviews, preparing for the
Institutional Review, processing external examiners and developing various policy initiatives.
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