Study Tour Poland

October 2015

Inspiring professionalism in higher education

Ever wondered how a country emerged from the devastation of the Second World War, the rise and fall of communism, and how it forged a higher education system on its own terms?The AUA Poland Study Tour took place between 10th and 17th May 2015. Covering three cities, a diverse range of public and private HEIs, and related organisations, it had the following objectives:

• Toundertakeafact-findingmissionand produce a report on the Polish HE systemwhichincorporatesanalysisofsimilaritiesanddifferencesandconsidersways of sharing best practise;

• To enable participants to gain an international perspective on aspects of HEdecisionmaking,policyandpractice;

• To allow tour participants the opportunity to challenge their existing notions about HE and undertake researchinanon-UKenvironment.

Though Polish higher education has previously been reported (including an OECD report, 2007 – see Further Reading), muchofwhatwesawprovidesanupdateonthepresentsystem,andthelessonsthatperhapswecandrawfromit.Thesystemhasmorechangeontheway.Demographicshavebeen,andwillbe,amajordriver.ThePolishsystemhadtoexpandrapidlypost-communismtocopewithincreasingstudentnumbers,andnowthere is a contraction that will undoubtedly leadtosomerestructuring.

Basedondeskresearch,theteamdecidedonthreeoverarchingthemes:

• Governance, including the student voice • Quality assurance • Growingstudentdemand,including

internationalisation and the rise of the Private Sector

The report of this Study Tour will provide insightsintothesetopics,anddemonstratehowPolishhighereducationismovingonto a new set of challenges. We hope, as with all AUA Study Tours, that this report willhelptheUK’suniversityadministrationcommunitytoreflectuponourownwork,share practice and build relationships.

WelcomeContentsWelcome 3

Theme 1: Governance and the Student Voice 6

Theme 2: Quality Assurance 8

Theme 3: Internationalisation and Student Demand 12

Other Emerging Issues 16

Reflections and Further Reading 20

Appendices and Acknowledgements 21

HEI Profiles and Good Practice 22

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Poland: History

ThePolish-LithuanianCommonwealthdominatedEasternEuropeandtheBalticin the 16th and 17th centuries. Although strongly Catholic, in the 16th century PolandtookacomparativelyliberalapproachtotheriseofProtestantismand avoided the tensions and violence experiencedbymanyEuropeanstates.Italsoembraceddecentralisationofpowerandaformofdemocracy,withconsiderable authority given to the nobility andparliament.Thisallowedthecountryto experience a Golden Age of culture and prosperity.

Fromthe17thcenturyon,however,Poland’s neighbours began to cause problemsanddecentralisationprovedaweakness.TheCrimeans,RussiansandSwedes all invaded. By the 18th century the diminishedkingdomwaseasypreytotheemergingpowerhousesofPrussia,Austriaand Russia. Between 1772 and 1796, these threeempiresdividedPolandbetweenthemanditdisappearedofficiallyfromthemap.The nation was not restored until 1918 as part of the Treaty of Versailles.

Further disaster was to follow. In 1939, Germanyinvaded,shortlyfollowedbytheSovietUnion.Polandbecamecaughtupinthe front line of the Second World War and wasdividedbetweentwooccupyingarmies.The Polish resistance was so well organised thatitevenencompassedundergrounduniversityeducation(theGermanshadclosed all universities). The Polish people paid a high price for their stubbornness anditisestimatedthat6millionPoleswerecasualties of the war and the occupation.

In negotiations at the end of the war, the Soviet Union secured de facto control of PolandandarrangedforaCommunistgovernmenttobeinstalled.ThesuccessoftheSolidaritymovementinthe1980swasasignal that helped to encourage other anti-CommunistmovementsinEasternEurope.In 1989, Solidarity was victorious in the country’selections,leadingtotheformationofanon-Communistrepublic.

Poland’shistoryisevident,withmonumentstothepasteverywhere;wardead,victimsofmassacres,orheroesoftheResistance,armyandairforce.Theconstantshiftingofboundaries and political control has been accompaniedbymovementsofpopulation

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Populat ion: 38 million (6t h most populous in t he EU)

Land area: 121,000 sq miles (9 t h largest in Europe)

Kingdom of Poland founded 1025

Current Republic of Poland established in 1989 af ter t he fall of Communism

Joined t he EU in 2004 (outside t he Eurozone)

groups so that ethnically, the country issurprisinglyhomogenous,with93%describingthemselvesasPolish.

Itisalsoacountrythatisverymuchontheup.Since1990,theeconomyhasbeen in constant growth, with no quarters of recession even during the dark days of 2008-9. There has been considerable investmentininfrastructure.Althoughtheeconomyisimprovingandemploymentisrelativelyhigh,wagesremainlowcomparedtotheUKandGermany,andmanyyoungpeople still travel abroad for work.

Overview of Polish HE

The Polish Higher Education sector is characterisedbybothalargenumberofHEIscomparedtotheUK,andalargeprivate sector. The public sector consists of 132 HEIs, but note that the Polish populationislittlemorethanhalfofthatoftheUK.Thehighnumberofpublicuniversitiesispartlyduetocommunistpolicies of dividing bigger universities. In Poznan, a university town by any criterion, there are ten public universities in a cityof600,000(compareEdinburgh–4universities, 500,000). Many of the Poznan public HEIs are specialist institutions coveringareassuchas:arts,music,physicaleducation,economics.

The private sector has c.a. 300 institutions (referred to here as PEIs), of which 19 have doctoral degree granting powers.

ThehighnumbersofPEIsislargelydueto the rapid growth and initial low entry requirementsofaprivatesectorthathadtoquicklyserviceexcessdemandinthe

1990s, which the public HEIs could not meet.Thethemeonstudentdemandwillexplore this issue further, but currently, the private sector is consolidating.

By law, higher education is free for Polish studentsstudyingfull-timeatpublicuniversities. Students studying part-time(fromoutsidetheEUoratprivateuniversities) would expect to pay fees of 2,500-3,000 euros for an entire bachelor’s degree.This,comparedtotheUKsystem,is exceptionally low.

ToconfirmperceptionsoftheexceptionalPolishworkethic,part-timestudentstypicallycompleteabachelor’sdegreeoverthree years, studying on weekends. This intensive weekend delivery pattern is driven bythepreferencesofthestudentmarket.

Whencommunismfellin1989,only5%of the Polish population had a degree. Inresponse,themarketwascompletelyderegulatedandmanyprivateinstitutionsstarted in the 1990’s. This period saw ahugegrowthinnumbers,butpresentdemographicsarechangingandstudentdemandisinsharpdecline.

The Ministry of Science and Higher Education works to ensure continued sustainabilityoftheuniversitysystemanditsinternationalstanding.Italsomanagesthe funding of public HEIs.

FACT: 20% of students in Poland are attending private HEIs

Key Facts

Theme 1: Governance and the Student Voice

Public HEI Governance

Governance in Polish HEIs can be characterised broadly by whether they are public or private, though the legal frameworkunderpinningthemissimilar.Forexample,plagiarismisacriminaloffenceandHElawdescribestheframeworkforhow all universities should investigate and punishplagiarism.

Public sector HEIs in Poland are owned by thestate,thoughfinanciallyautonomous,and have both research and education missions.Thegovernancestructureswouldbe considered, by a UK viewpoint, as rather traditional.Decisionsaremadethroughconsensus of an institution’s Rector, Deans andVice-Rectors(whotypicallymeetoncepermonth),andSenateanditssub-committees.Inaddition,manyimportantpositions, such as the head of the university (Rector), are elected typically for a four yearterm,whichcanpossiblyextendintoasecondterm.

Inmanyrespects,thisisentirelyunderstandable given Poland’s recent pastanditsdesirefordemocracy.Undercommunism,theRectorandkeypositionswereappointedbytheregime.Whetherthesestructureswillcomeunderstrainasthesystemturnstomeetitsfuturechallengesremainstobeseen.

Private HEI Governance

Private sector HEIs operate using a differentbusinessmodelbasedontuitionfees. As such, they focus on education, with research activity generally aligned to supporting that.

Privateuniversitiesarenot-for-profit,butcanbeownedbyparentholdingcompanieswhichmaybefor-profit.Forexample,CollegiumdaVinciinPoznanisownedbyVox(afurniturecompany),andVistulaUniversity in Warsaw is owned by a Turkish company.EachPEIhasa‘founder’whoprovides the initial funds.

Polandmaybedoingsomethingrightwhenitcomestotherulesonallowingprivateproviders. Unlike in the UK or the US, there are restrictions on ownership structures thatappeartohaveanimportanteffect.Profitscannotbetakendirectlyfromtheeducation part of the business. There maybetransfersfor‘centralservices’or

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The role of legislation, challenges of involving students in decision making, private and public governance and ownership structures, and academic democracy verses management are explored in this theme.

The Student Voice

Therearecommonalitiesbetweenpublic and private HEIs: the legal requirementsasregardsthestudentvoicearesimilar,asistheobviousinteraction between governance and quality assurance covered in the next theme.

In Poland, there is a national Student Parliamentandstudentrepresentationisenshrinedinlaw(20%onSenateandkeycommittees).Theextenttowhichstudents actively participate varies, withgenerallybetterengagementin public HEIs, though the privates tend to have a higher proportion of part-timestudentsthatarehardertoengagewith.Therearealsosomenon-governmentalstudentorganisations.

There is a Students Union (or equivalent)inallHEIsandsignificantrepresentationatfacultylevel.Someofthesehavesignificantfinancialinfluence,eitherthroughrepresentationonkeycommitteesordirectlythroughbudgets.Forexample,theStudentParliamentattheWarsawUniversityof Technology has a budget of approximately500,000eurosper

annumanddecideshowtospendit(with a veto by vice-rector for student affairs); there is also a large budget (ofaround10meurosperannum)forsocial affairs, including student housing.The PEIs we visited regarded student involvementinapositivelight,andactively encouraged and resourced student extra-curricular activities. In one such case (WSB), they proudly toldusaboutoneoftheiralumniwhobecamethefirstpresidentofthenationalstudentparliament.

As a response to having a higher proportionofpart-timestudents,thePEIswemetwithtookproactivesteps to encourage participation. Forexample,WSBhaveintroduced,inthelasttwoyears,aprogrammewhereby selected UG students are entitled to free tuition in return for acting as student reps, communicatingwithother students and bringing issues to the attention of the Dean.

propertyrents,butfundamentally,profitsmustbereturnedtotheeducation provision.

Consequently, providers are generally runningtheirbusinessasalong-terminvestment,andasasourceofsteadyincome(becausethefoundersoftenappointthemselvesaschancellorsandrectorsetc.anddrawasalary).Somearefamilybusinesses,orestablishedbygroupsofacademicswhowantedtocreateagoodworkingenvironmentforthemselves,toteachinthewaytheyliked,andtosupplementtheirlowpayinthepublic institutions. Additionally, with the lowfeesofferedbythePEIs,itbecomesclearwhyprivateequityfirmshavenotyetenteredthismarket;theywouldnotbeable to realise a level of return considered worthwhile.

Unsurprisingly, PEI governance structures areasbusiness-orientedasispermittedbythelegalframework.PEIswereoriginally

freetodeterminetheirowninternalgovernance but the rules were changed in 2005. Most PEIs have a charter that definestheirgovernance,andhowitcanbe changed. In practice, the charters have to be changed every 2-3 years to adapt to new legislation. The Ministry can veto thecharterifitdoesnotcomplywiththeir regulations. This usually leads to a clearmanagerialstructurewherestrategydevelopmentincludessomeconsultationanditeration,butisessentiallysimilartothe process in a post-92 university.

Quality Assurance in Overview

ExternalqualityassuranceismanagedbythePolishAccreditationCommittee,orPolskaKomisjaAkredytacyjna(PKA).ThePKAhasthreemainroles:1. Evaluationofprogrammes2. Evaluationoffaculties/departments3. Advising the Ministry of Science

and Higher Education in relation to authorisations of new institutions and degree awarding powers.

ThePKAwasfirstestablishedin2002(thenamechangedin2011).Incontrast,the UK’s Quality Assurance Agency was established in 1997 as a successor to previousexperimentsinnationalqualityauditmechanisms.Giventhatmassificationof higher education started in the UK in themid-1980sandinPolandafter1990,thePolishtimelinebroadlyconcurswiththe UK’s. One difference is that the PKA is fundedbycentralgovernment,whereastheQAA is funded jointly by universities and the funding councils. The PKA is intended to operatefairlyautonomouslyandadvisestheMinister for Science and Higher Education.

ThePKA’sprimarybusinessisconductingreviewsofprogrammes.Thereareapproximately1000(ex-anteandex-post) evaluations undertaken every year. Evaluation is free of charge, but obligatory,every5to6yearsatprogrammeor institutional level. The PKA is also responsible for approving new universities, and would be responsible for approving branchcampusesofforeignproviders

though this has not been tested yet. It shouldbenotedthatthestrongest40%ofuniversities, those with habilitation awarding rightsinawideenoughnumberofsubjects,candecidetodevelopnewprogrammesindependently; otherwise Ministry approval is needed.

Ifanacademicunit(normallyaFaculty)hashadatleasthalfitsprogrammesevaluatedandnoneofthemwereassessednegatively,theunitmayhavewhatisdescribedas‘institutionalevaluation’.Asuccessfulinstitutional evaluation allows the unit toavoidfurtherprogrammeevaluationsduring the period of approval. This was intended to be an incentive, but universities have actually tried to avoid participating ininstitutionalevaluation.Forexample,iftheydiscoverthattheywillmeetthecriteriatheyrestructureandmoveprogrammesaround.ThePKAremainshopefulthatthistoolwillbemoreproductiveinthelongrun,intermsofsupportingenhancement.Itisbelievedtobeeasiertomakesignificantchangesatdepartmentallevel,asopposedtoprogrammebyprogramme.Anotherincentive offered is a slight increase in funding for those who receive an outstandingjudgement.

Most of the PKA’s criteria for evaluation are as would be expected. They include, for programmeevaluations,factorssuchas:• evidence of a coherent strategy• alignmentoflearningoutcomeswiththeirNationalQualificationsFramework

• alignmentbetweenlearningoutcomesandassessmentmethods

• effectiveness of internal quality assurancesystems

• provisionofadequatestaffingandphysical resources

• evidenceofemployerengagement

Asiscommonpractice,theprocedurestarts with a self-evaluation followed by a site visit undertaken by a panel. The panel ismadeupofacademicpeers,students,employerrepresentativesand(ifapplicable)international experts.

Ensuring Adequate Staffing

Poland has adopted a strict quantitative approachtoverifyingadequatestaffing.TherearelegalrequirementsregardingthenumberofPhDandhabilitation-holders,andprofessorswithinthedepartmenttoteach degrees at different levels. These laws were introduced to address concerns thatacademicswereworkingmultiplejobsandattachingtheirnametovariousdegreeprogrammes,butactuallyteachingverylittleon each, leaving the bulk of the work to be donebyunder-qualifiedfaculty.

In the UK, this would be seen as overly proscriptive,anditdoespresentanumberofchallenges.Forprovidersitmeansthattheyneedrelativelyhighstudentnumberstomakeitworthwhileteachinganewsubject. They can only offer niche subjects asspecialismswithinabroadermajor.Itcanalsobedifficulttodevelopteachinginanewandemergingdisciplineasthereareunlikelytobeenoughqualifiedstaffavailable.Therefore,manyinstitutionsretainemeritusprofessorsasemployeesformanyyearsbeyondretirement.

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Theme 2: Quality Assurance

The framework for quality assurance in Poland is explored in this theme, along with: issues of assurance vs enhancement, working with learning outcomes and qualifications frameworks, as well as the parity of public and private sector and the ‘academic’ and ‘practical’.

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Private providers face a particularly acute challenge as only a smallminorityhavePhD awarding powers toallowthemto‘growtheirown’.Theypreviously relied on inputfromfaculty,

whosemainjobwasatapublicuniversity but who were willing to undertake someadditionalteachingtosupplementtheirincome.Underthenewrules,thereisaminimumamountofhoursthatissupposedtobetaughtforafacultymembertocount.Also,academicsmusthaveonlyonemainjob.Theycanworkforanotherinstitution only with the approval of their Rector.Sometimesreciprocalagreementsaremadetoenableindividualstohavetwoemployers.

Upholding Academic Standards

NoexternalexaminersareusedinPoland,at least not in the UK sense. During a PKA review,thepanelexaminessamplesofassessmentsinabroadlysimilarwaytohowaccrediting bodies in the US operate. In the UK,HEIsappointexternalexaminersandrun the process, whilst the QAA checks that the processes are in place and functioning. In the Polish approach, the use of external experts in PKA inspections supplies external oversight of standards.

The possible introduction of an external examiningsystemhasbeendiscussed,butfeedbackfromthesectorwasthatitcouldbe considered intrusive.

Most countries in the world operate without externalexaminers,exceptwhenitcomestoPhDs.Othermethodsofmaintainingacademicstandardsacrossadiversesectorincludeagreementofsubjectbenchmarksorgenericlearningoutcomes,andagreementofaqualificationsframework.InPoland,muchofthediscoursearoundqualityrelatestolearningoutcomes.Theprogrammereviewcommitteeapprovesthelearningoutcomes,andtheassessmentformatsusedtoassessthem.IfthePKAissatisfiedthattheprogrammereviewprocessisworkingproperly,theacademicstandardsoftheprogrammeisconsideredacceptable.Markers are trusted to know what they are doing and grade students appropriately.

Enhancement and Sharing of Practice

Forumsforsharingbestpracticeacrossthesector are being developed. The PKA’s role isprimarilythatofanauditingbody.Itdoesconductsometrainingforthepeopleactingasreviewers(academics,andstudentandemployerrepresentatives).Theyorganisea‘QualityForum’onaregularbasis.Itsformatvaries–sometimesitisaregularconferenceandothertimesitismoreofatraining/workshop event, depending on the current topic.

Internalprogrammemonitoringandreviewinvolvesemployerrepresentativesand student feedback, but there is no requirementtohaveanexternalacademicinput. Instead, various external reference pointsareusedforcurriculumdesign,especiallythePolishNationalQualificationsFramework(NQF)genericlearningoutcomesandsubjectdomainoutcomes,accreditingbodiesandsometimestheUK’ssubjectbenchmarkstatements.Whilstthe use of these reference points helps tomakeallcurriculabroadlysimilar,theopportunity for discussion and debate with peers could be lost.

Similarly,thelackofanexternalexaminingsystemmeansthatprogrammeteamsmissout on that conversation with a critical friend.Externalexaminershelpprogrammeteamstodealwithproblemsandcanoffersuggestionsaroundchangestoassessmentsormodules.Similarly,actingasanexternalfor another institution can be invaluable foracademicstogaininspirationfortheirownprogramme.ThereisasmallerroleforexternalityinthePolishqualitysystem(see also below) and this possibly hinders enhancement.

Desire was expressed to increase opportunities for fora to encourage academicsandqualityprofessionalstoshareinnovativepracticeandupdatethemselvesondevelopmentsacrossthesector.Wealsoheardfromsomeindividualinstitutionsthatthey were placing a greater focus on internal staffdevelopmentinlearning,teachingandassessment(e.g.theJagiellonianandWSB).

Therewassomeconcernthatfacultytendedto stick with one institution throughout their careersandthismightalsobelimitingtheexchangeofideas.Thatsaid,mostPolishacademicswereveryinterestedinEU-

funded activities and there appeared to be good willingness to seek opportunities for international staff exchange visits.

Operationalising Quality Enhancement

All of the institutions we visited took quality very seriously. We observed a diversity ofstructuresinsupportofthisfromfullcentralisation of quality, to devolution to faculties and oversight of different sites in a multi-locationHEI.

Thepublicssawtheprocessasmoreofaconfirmationofthestandardsthatthey already upheld. As such the PKA systemswereseenasveryformalisedandquantitative,andlackingemphasison discussion of how to teach or how to dothingsbetter.Aspecificexamplewasafocusuponformaldescriptionsoflearningoutcomesratherthantherealreviewofprogrammecontent.

The view of the private HEIs was subtly different.TheysawthePKAsystem,andastrongperformancewithinit,asaclearstatusmarkerandendorsementoftheireducational offer. They also proactively seek accreditationfromotheroutsidebodies.Forexample,WSBPoznanisseekingIACBEaccreditationofits2businessprogrammes:FinanceandAccounting,andManagement.(InternationalAssemblyforCollegiateBusiness Education, a US based accrediting body for teaching-led colleges and universities.)WehavefocusedonKozminskiasoneexampleofgoodpracticeinqualityassurance; it holds three international accreditations: EQUIS, AMBA and AACSB, andthedistinctionfromPKAforprogramsinManagement,AdministrationandLaw.

Studentsurveyswereacommonfeatureofall the HEIs we visited. As in the UK, they areusedtoevaluatemoduleteaching,andmorestrategicallyaroundsatisfactionofcoursesandstudentservices.Theymanagetoachieve,insomecases,impressiveresponseratesofupto50%.Inbothpublicand private HEIs they considered use of modulefeedbackdevelopmentalratherthanpunitive.Thatsaid,someprivateHEIswouldappeartousethemaspartoftheirappraisal process.

Talkingtoacademicsandqualityprofessionals in Poland, we found they often referredtolearningoutcomes–whetherthe

learningoutcomeswereright,orwhethertheyhadbeenmet.Sothoseconceptswerefirmlyembeddedwithintheinstitutionaldiscourse. The NQF project has evidently beenimportantinPolishHEasameansofestablishingsomekindofconsistencybetweentheprogrammesofferedbydifferent providers.

Plagiarismatuniversityhasledtosomedevelopmentoftheresponsesagainstit.HEIsreportedtheuseofplagiarismcheckingsoftware, though not as yet universally. As in theUK,studentstendtofindwritingessaysandworkingingroupsdifficult.NotethatinPoland,academicmisconductiscoveredbythe penal code.

AtWSB,retentionwasdiscussedinsomedetail. Strategies included: identifying somebodyineachinstitutionwithresponsibility for student retention;

monitoringmarksindifferentcoursesandtaking action if there was a high fail rate; providingahardshipfund;spreading‘toughexams’moreevenlyacrosstheyear;offeringextratutorials(normallyfree)inthemostdifficultsubjects,e.g.mathematics.

Followingfromtheabove,wealsosaw structured approaches to course developmentandreview.AsintheUK,various stakeholders such as industry panels andmarketinformationwereemployed.Though student surveys have proved useful feedbackinoperationalisingmodules,someHEIs have found that the responses are not alwayssoinformativeonthemorestrategiclevel of course review.

Overall,therewasevidenceofamovementfromacompliancebasedqualityculturetoanenhancementbasedone.

Learning Outcomes and Qualifications Frameworks

ThePolishNationalQualificationsFrameworkhasrecentlybeenintroducedand is aligned with the European QualificationsFramework.Genericleveldescriptors have been developed for qualificationsatlevels6,7and8(first,second and third cycle). Underneath that,therearedomain-specificlearningoutcomesfortheeightknowledgeareaswhichhavebeendefinedinPolishlegislation on higher education:

• Humanities• Social sciences• Mathematicsandscience• Environmentalstudies• Engineering and technology • Medical studies• Agriculture, forestry and

veterinarian studies• Arts

Outcomesaredefinedintermsofknowledge,skillsandsocialcompetences.Universitiesandfacultiesmaythendefinethelearningoutcomesfortheirprogrammebutmustmapagainstthedomainspecificoutcomesthatarerelevant(maybemorethanonedomain).Inreviewingprogrammes,thePKAwouldcheckthatthelearningoutcomesaresuitably aligned.

Thegenericoutcomesareverybroadandare in line with what would be expected, giventhattheyhavetofitinwiththeEuropeanFrameworkandtheBolognaprocess.Thedomainspecificoutcomesarealittlemoredetailed.ComparedtoUK equivalents, there is perhaps slightly lessemphasisonresearchandcriticalevaluation,andlessmentionofconceptssuch as equality, social responsibility and global citizenship. Responsibility for lifelong learning, ability to work both autonomouslyandinteams,andabilityto relate the subject of study to the wider social and political context are all present.

The Ministry is keen to see Recognition ofPriorLearning(RPL)usedmorewidely,thoughinstitutionsremainunsurehowtoapproachthis.Forstudents,thismeanstherearestillmanyobstaclestocredittransfer and articulation. The vocational post-secondary sector has not been broughtintotheFrameworkandthereisno easy articulation between this type of education and university.

The Boom and Rise of the Private Sector

Much of the story of Polish higher education in the last 25 years can be accountedforbydemographics.TheendoftheColdWarsawanexplosionindemandfor higher education, partly due to a surge ofyoungpeopleandpentupdemand.WearethankfultoTEBAkademiaforpreparingthetwofollowinggraphsfromofficialdata.Thefirstgraphillustratestheimportanttrendsinstudentnumbers.

Studentnumbersclimbedrapidlyfromlessthan 500,000 in 1990 to a peak of around 2millionin2005(wewillcoverthedeclinelater).Ascanbeseenfromthegraph,theability of the public universities to absorb theunleasheddemand(andthatofanewdemocracytofundit)waslimited.For a generation, this led to a very strong teaching focus in Polish universities.

As a response to this, the Polish governmentallowedprivatesectorentrantswithaverylightregulatoryregime;presumablyduetoareactiontotheformercommunistcommandandcontrolregime.The new PEIs grew rapidly and absorbed theexcessdemandandgrewquicklytooveraquarterofthemarket.Asthecostof living over that period rose faster than academicwages,manyacademicsinpublicuniversitieshadsecondpart-timepositionsin private HEIs.

The private HEIs tended to focus on employmentfocusedsubjectssuchas(UG)management,languagesandinformatics;(PG)educationandmanagement,leavingminorityareastothepublicswhereefficiencyofscaleandexcessdemandwaslower.Theyalsotendedtooperatemoreinthepart-timemarketandtakestudentsfromlowersocio-economicgroups; these patterns have been observed in otherHEsystemsandtheyaresometimesdescribedasthe‘BrazilianEffect’.

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Theme 3: Internationalisation and Student DemandIn this section we examine the boom and ‘demographic cliff ’ facing Polish universities, the market drivers, and the drivers for internationalisation.

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Students in Poland

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

Public Nonpublic Total

Consolidation: the Demographic Cliff

Figure 1, also shows a strong decline in studentnumberssince2005:referredtoasa‘demographiccliff’.Pleasenotethat,unlike the HEPI report which predicted a declinethattheUKsystemhasmanagedto avoid, this is an actual decline. Total numbersareexpectedtocontinuetodeclineinthemediumterm.

The effect of this on the public universities is less pronounced (as full-timestudiestherearefree,thisisnotunexpected).Thedemographiccliffishittingminorityfields(suchasancientGreek)butthemorepopularsubjectsstill recruit well, and the publics can

Figure1:StudentNumberTrendsinPoland1990-2012

still recruit those with the best Matura scores.AtthemomentHEIsarecopingbyfreezingstaffrecruitmentinthesmallersubjectsandsheddingemeritusprofessors.Theremaybesomedepartmentmergersorchangestoprogrammes.

An interesting story is playing out in the private sector, where the decline is felt morestrongly.Inaddition,theregulatoryregimehastightened,asnotedalready.Therefore, there is now a higher cost baseintermsofacademicstaffingandcomplianceaswellasexpectationofdelivery.Norcanprivateschargemore,asthesefeelevelsareallthemarketcanafford.AlthoughthePolisheconomyisgrowing,wagelevelsremainlowincomparisontothewiderEU.

The private sector is therefore consolidating,withmanysmallerprovidersleavingthemarket.Figure2illustratesthis,withthetoptenprovidersmovingfromc.a.25%ofthePEIfirstyearbachelor’sintaketoover40%.Thistrendisexpectedtocontinue.

The response to this by the private HEIs wespoketowasconsistent:inadifficultmarket,qualityistheonlysustainablebusinessmodelineducation.Assuch,theylook to develop their educational offer and the perception of it, such as external

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Concentration – Top 10 non-public (part-time 1st year)

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Total Top 10 Top 10 share

accreditation,employability,research,university rankings as well as building on disciplinesinmarketingandcostcontroltomaximisevalue.

Internationalisation

The UK experience would suggest encouragingrecruitmentofinternationalstudentstofillthegap.Numbershavebeenincreasingby15%ayearfromalowbase(internationalstudentsgenerallymeansnon-Polish students on full courses, i.e. not Erasmus.)Thegovernmenttargetisfor5%of all students to be international by 2020. Itiscurrentlylessthan3%systemwide,thoughthisvaries.Polandhasc.a.46,000international students, though around half ofthemarefromBelarusortheUkrainewheremanyhavefamilyconnectionsthatexemptthemfromfeesinthepublicuniversities.

One would think that this could be higher; the price point of Polish HE and the cost of living is attractive given the quality that can be obtained. It is not so straightforward, asthereistosomeextent,ashortageofEnglish speaking faculty who can deliver programmesinEnglish(necessaryfortheinternationalmarket).

Therewassomescepticismthatgoodquality students could be attracted who

would be willing to pay the level of fees neededtomakeadifference(bearinginmindextracostsofteachinginEnglishandprovidingPolishlanguageclasses).‘AllthegoodstudentsgototheUKorGermany’wasanoftheardlament.TheBRICsmarketis a possibility, but in these countries people tend not to have heard of Poland or Warsaw,andsomeprofilebuildingneedstobe done. Europe and North Africa are the easiestlocationsforrecruitmentatpresent.

VistulaUniversityhashadsomesuccess:in the last three years they have increased theirinternationalnumbersfromzeroto2000+,roughly30%oftotalnumbers.Theyareaimingfor50%.Themajorsource of students was Ukraine, followed byAzerbaijan.‘WearethewindowtoEurope’. In order to support this, they areadaptingtheircurriculatomakethemmoreinternational(e.g.coveringEUpolicyandeconomics,butalsoEasternEurope).VistuladescribedtheirintensivemarketingcampaigninEasternEurope,AsiaandAfrica.Theyarticulatedthebenefitstostudents of studying in an intercultural environmentthatbroadenstheirperspective and develops their skills.

Most of the HEIs we visited were not seeking to aggressively increase their numbersforfinancialreasons(itwasnot seen as a quick nor easy solution to thedemographiccliff).Thisbringsusto a clear difference in the approach to internationalisation.Thoughthemoneyinternational students would bring in is welcomed,thatisnotthedriver(evenforthemoreheavilyinternationalisedHEIs). The driver was, in various ways, to improvethestandingandcapacityoftheuniversities.

The public universities would like to attract morenon-Polishacademics,e.g.visitingprofessors. The Ministry will pay towards this if visiting faculty undertake at least 60 hours of lectures. Research collaborations and high quality research are the strategic priority.Thatsaid,theyhaveembracedstudentprogrammessuchasERASMUS(seeHEIProfilesandGoodPractice:Student Mobility).

The private universities also see international links and collaborations as a waytobuildthequalityoftheiracademicoffer in order to build their reputation and standinginacrowdedmarket.

Figure2:StudentNumberTrendsinPoland2009-2014

Staff Development and Professionalisation

Interestingly professionalisation of administrativestaffisanissueasthedemandsuponthemincrease;currentlynoequivalent of the AUA exists to support this ortodisseminatepractice.Inthisrespect,the private HEIs appear to have developed further,giventheircommercialfocusandmoremanagerialstyle.Consequently,infunctionssuchasfinance,planningandmarketing,weobservedalevelofmaturitycomparabletoUKHEIs.

Intheprivatesector,administrativestaffcanbefurtherinfluentialthanthefacultybecausetheyweremorefrequentlyemployedonafull-timebasisandremainedat institutions for longer durations. Back in the 1990s there was a shortage of wellqualifiedfaculty,whichgavethembargaining power; this is less the case now.

Thedevelopmentoftheacademicbaseisalsoimportant.Researchiscoveredlater,but Polish HEIs now have centres set up to train faculty and PhD students and spread goodteachingpractice(e.g.JagiellionianinOctober2014).AnewlawsaysthatPhDstudentsmusttakeatleast30hoursofteaching skills training.

The classes are popular with the students. Engagementfromestablishedfacultyvaries. A cross-faculty advisory board sets theprogrammeofworkshops.

Teaching observations are conducted across the sector. In the case of WSB for example,teachersareobservedinclassonceayearbyamemberoftheirTeachingMethodologiesdepartment,andalsobyaprogrammemanagerordean.Newteachers are always observed. They receive face-to-facefeedbackontheirperformanceand will be offered support on how to improve.Datafromtheirstudents’examperformanceisalsoanalysed.Everytwoyearsacomprehensivereportismadeonall staff, covering research, teaching and adminperformance.WSBsayitis“usefultodiscusswithsomeone,nottojudgeyoubutto help you”.

As in the UK, Polish HEIs reported that faculty are often reluctant to change their teachingstylesandmayresistthepressuretoupdatetheirmethods,ordescribetheLTAworkshopsas‘trivial’.Butthehopeisthatattendanceatleastprovokesthemtothinkalittlebitmoreaboutwhattheydoandreflect.Ofcourse,engagementinsuchactivitiesismorechallengingforpart-timestaffwhomayhavemultiplejobs(inPEIsthis could be over half their teaching staff).

Employability and professional vs academic degrees

TheministryidentifiedemployabilityasathemeandthisisevidentinthereadyresponsesfromHEIswhenaskedabouttheuseofemployerrepresentativesinprogrammedesignetc.Obviouslytheprivate providers were particularly focused on this as they use career prospects as a selling point.

ThislinksinwithrecentdevelopmentssuchastheNQFandrequirementtointroducesystemsforRPL.NoneofthepeoplewespoketowereconfidentthatRPLsystemswere understood or felt that they knew howtomapnon-standardqualificationstotheframework.

AsintheUK,employerswerenotalways clear as to what intellectual and transferable skills and attributes graduates couldofferbeyondtheirsubjectspecificknowledge; often relying on stereotypes. Oneexamplecitedwasthedifficultyinsecuring public acceptance of a relatively new discipline such as International Relationsbecauseemployersdidnotunderstandhowitwasapplicabletothem,thoughcogentargumentscanbemadeforthe skills acquired to be very relevant in a business context.

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Other emerging issues

This section examines the number of issues that arose during the study tour including: management of research, professionalisation of administrative roles, finance and infrastructure and employability.

Thereisafamiliartensionrelatedto‘vocational’qualifications.Aphenomenonknownas‘academicdrift’wasidentifiedwithprogrammestendingtobecomemoreacademic/theoreticalinordertoachievepubliccredibility.Thegovernmentistryingtointroduceaframeworkforprofessional,degreelevelqualifications.Inordertobeconsidered‘practical’,50%ofcontacttimemustrelatetopracticalskillsandthereareminimumnumbersofweeksofplacement

thatmustbeundertaken.Thiscreatesalogisticaldifficultyforpart-timestudentsiftheycannotcompletetheplacementintheirnormalworkplace,astheymaybeunabletotakethenecessaryleavefromworktofulfiltheserequirements.

ThePolishsystemdoesnotincludesub-degreequalifications(equivalenttoHNDsorBTECdiplomas).Therearepost-secondaryqualificationsknownas‘Technik’

thattake1-2yearsandareprimarilypracticalinnature.Approximately20%of young people take these. There is no directroutefromaTechniktoadegree:no articulation or entry with advanced standing. At present, there are no sector skills councils in Poland who could work to vertically integrate educational provision by industry sector.

Funding, Finance and Infrastructure

Fundingunderpinsmuchofthebehaviourin higher education: the OECD Education at aGlance2014reportisinformative.Polandranksfairlylowintermspublicandprivateexpenditure on HE as proportion of GDP at 1.3%(c.f.OECDAverage1.59%)thoughthisiscomparabletobothGermanyat1.31%andtheUKat1.23%.

If international rankings and other policy drivers are to be considered, then the balance between funding of research and teaching is clearly of interest. The OECD data on the research spend in HE indicates that Poland is spending less on research (Germany0.52%,Poland0.22%,UK0.31%,OECDAverage0.46%).Ofcourse,thisisexpectedinasystemthathasbeenfocusedonservicingaboominstudentnumbersandgrowingapost-communisteconomy.

Poland is investing in upgrading its legacy infrastructurewithassistancefromtheEuropeanSocialFund.Apartfromitsobviousimpactontransportinfrastructure,therewasalsoclearevidenceofinvestmentinPolishpublichighereducationintermsof new teaching and research facilities.

Weaskediftheremightbeacaseforthepublic HEIs to charge student fees, to put moremoneyinthesystem.Theconcernwasraisedinsomequartersthatifanymorefeemoneycamein,thegovernmentcouldsimplysubtractthefeesfromtheirowncontribution,asHEhastocompeteagainst other spending priorities. So it wouldappearthatitiswidereconomicgrowth, rather than the share of the pie, thatistheissueinfinancingthefutureambitionsofPolishhighereducation.

It is worth considering the student viewpoint. The OECD has also calculated the Internal Rate of Return for degree studyinvariouscountriesfromthepointof view of the private individual. For a mantakingabachelor’sdegree,itwouldbe:Germany13.4%Poland24.6%,UK14.3%againstanOECDaverageof13.9%.(Thepatternissimilarforwomen,withtheexceptionofamuchlowerreturnforwomeninGermany).Assuch,thefinancialincentives for Poles to engage in HE are strong.

Soalthoughthesystemisperceivedtobeunder-funded,itmaybeconsideredtobeefficientinthatretentionratesaregood, standards are generally good, Polish graduatescompetewellinthewiderEuropeanemploymentmarket,andfeesare low.

Therelatedsubjectofhowfinanceismanagedshowedsomedifferencesinmaturityofpracticebetweentheprivateand public HEIs. As the private HEIs werenotundersuchdirectfinancialmanagementfromthestate,theydescribedgenerallymorematurepractices.ThepublicHEIshavemorerecentlybeenimplementingpracticesthatwereintroduced to UK universities over the last10-20years.Forexample,theyaredecentralising budgets so that individual faculties have to pay for the central resource and estate that they use. As was the case in the UK, this has sharpened their thinking considerably regarding the actual costs of their activities and what they should be doing. It was evident thattherewasanemergingneedforspecialistadministrativesupportintheareasoffinance,planningandbusinesssystemsdevelopment.

Salariesaccountformostofthecostinthesystem;therearenationallyagreedminimumsalarylevelsforacademicsatdifferent grades in the public universities. Thatsaid,itisverydifficulttolosepermanentacademicstaffastheyhavespecial legal protections; though it is easier tomakeadministrativestaffredundant.Emeritusprofessorsarestartingtoleavetheworkforceasthehighdemandforteaching is quieting down.

Ofcoursethedecliningstudentnumberswilladdtothepressureonfinances.Therefore the public universities are adopting practices and disciplines that havebeencommoninwell-runUKandprivate Polish HEIs, and the private sector is consolidating.

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Research Management

WewereoftheimpressionthatPolishuniversities do not feel they are in a positiontocompeteglobally–bothintermsofthemoneynorthereputation.ThegovernmentwantstoseemorePolish universities appearing on world rankinglists;facultytendtobemoreinterested in how they are ranked within Poland. (See http://www.ranking.perspektywy.org/2015/ for Polish league tables.)

Similarly,muchoftheprivatesectorhasa reputation as teaching only; though the better quality PEIs are actively building research and seeking PhD awardingpowersasamarkerofquality.

AsystemofmetricsbasedlooselyontheUK REF has been adopted. Needless to say,ithasitslimitations.Researchhasbecomeespeciallyimportantinpublicuniversities given the expected decline of students, in contrast to the last 25 years whenthefocuswasmoreonhandlingasurge of students and thus on teaching delivery.

Research has been conducted on the managementofresearchassessmentandhowthisaffectsacademics’behaviour.Ingeneral,thesciencesaremoreresearch-focusedthanhumanities.Theyoungergenerationofacademicsare,however,

being forced to be research active; for exampleresearchstudentshavetopublish during their PhD to get their full stipend.

Another area of tension/insecurity relates to language. The research assessmentsystem(anduniversityrankingsystems)accordmoreesteemto teaching and research in English. Publication in international journals ismoreprestigious.Conductingresearch in Polish about Polish issues is downgraded at the expense of internationalimpact.Thesystemalsodoesnotcapthenumberofpapersthat are scored, as the UK REF does, sotherearethesameconcernsaboutquantity over quality that have arisen in other countries.

Thereisalsoacapabilitydevelopmentchallenge.Academicstaffhadmadea living through teaching in the 1990s and2000s.Manynowfinditdifficulttoadapttoamoreresearch-ledsetof expectations. On the other hand, thereissomeconcernthattheoldergeneration will not retire as they need themoney,andthattherearefewopportunitiesfornewacademics.Inthis context, there was a feeling that capacity needs to be developed to supportresearcherstoimprove,suchas

help with grant writing or proof reading in English.

Itwouldappearthatcomparativelylittle research takes place outside of universities, e.g. in industry or charity-funded.PhDholdershavetoremainwithacademia,andoftenwithonlyasingleinstitution,astheroutefromPhD to habilitation to a professorship issimplerifyoustayinthesameplace.Lackofmobilitymaybeaproblemintermsofexchangeofideas,competition,etc.ThiscontraststothepolicyinGermanuniversitieswheretobeappointedprofessor,academicsmustmovefromtheHEIwheretheytooktheir habilitation.

The sector would like to recruit non-Polish staff and bring their ideas withthem.Academicstaffturnoverisgenerallylowwithmaybe10newpeople a year in a faculty of 200. But obviouslyjobsecurityisimportantcomparedtolifeonfixed-termcontracts, so there is a trade-off. Academicsalariesarestillcomparativelylow,apointmadeinthe2007OECDreport. Of course there is a question whetherthismayhindertheretentionandattractionofacademicstaffinthePolishsystem(notingthatofcoursethecostoflivinginPolandismuchlower).

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Theteamwereimpressedbythehospitalityshown by our hosts. They were open, welcomingandansweredourquestionswithcandourandhumour,thoughtherewas an undercurrent of self-deprecation and a fear that while Poland, and Polish highereducation,mighthavemuchtooffer,theywerenotinapositiontocompetewiththebigfish.

The institutions we visited were very cognisant of the challenges they face and what they need to do. Though there maybestructuralandinternalbarrierstochange,onecouldjustaseasilyfindthisintheUKsystem.Allhighereducationsystemsareboundbytheirpreviouschallenges and the decisions taken then, and the trajectory of Polish HE should be considered in this context.

Infact,theteamreadilyfoundexamplesofgoodpracticethatcomparewellwiththe UK equivalent. Many of the basics are inplace.Academicstandardsaresound.PolishgraduatescompetewellontheEuropeanjobmarket.Infrastructurehasimproved.Newsystemsanddisciplinesarebeing put in place. New research active academicsareenteringthesystem.ItwilltaketimetoseethefullpayoffandasthePolisheconomygrowstherewillbemoretoinvest, but this is not unusual in any higher educationsystem.

It is clear that there has been considerable developmentinrecentyearsaroundkeyadministrativecompetencessuchasstudentrecruitmentandqualityassurance.Thenextstepmaybetoencouragemorequalityenhancementandsharingof practice across the sector. Greater

professionalisationofadministrativestaffwill be needed, and indeed, it can be seen that this is already happening.

Researchandglobalrankingswillremaina challenge, not helped by the US, UK and Germanypresentingattractiveopportunitiesforacademictalent.However,thefirstpriorityisofcourseasystemthatmeetsthe needs of its Polish stakeholders, internationalnormsnotwithstanding.

Giventhechallengesthatthesystemfacesinto the future, we wish the Polish HE communitywell.Theyhavewhattheyneed(orcanacquireit);buttheymustbelievethat they can to develop their future.

Appendices

Itinerary

Monday 11th May (Warsaw)• KozminskiUniversity• Warsaw University of Technology• PKA

Tuesday 12th May (Warsaw)• Ministry of Science and Higher Education• Vistula University

Wednesday 13th May (Poznan)• TEBAkademiaandWSBPoznanCampus

Thursday 14th May (Poznan)• AdamMickiewiczUniversity• CollegiumDaVinci

Friday 15th May (Krakow)• JagiellionanUniversity

Further Reading on Polish Higher Education

AlotofcontextcanbefoundfromtheOECD report published in 2007.http://www.oecd.org/poland/publicationsdocuments/reports/

Prof.MarekKwiekfromAdamMickiewiczUniversity has also published a wide range ofacademicpapersonPolishHE.http://www.cpp.amu.edu.pl/kwiek/publications.html

Further links can be found on the AUA Poland Study Tour blog at:http://auapoland2015.blogspot.co.uk/

Reflections and Further Reading

The Polish people we met were generally proud of what their country had achieved in the last 25 years, and optimistic about the future.

The Study Tour Team

• SheilaAdamson,PartnershipDevelopmentManager,QueenMargaret University in Edinburgh

• MarieHolmes,QualitySecretary,Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences, University of Hull

• Angela Pater, Head of Secretariat, University of Bath

• DrNirmala(Mala)Arunasalam,Senior Lecturer in Nursing, School of Health and Social Work, University of Hertfordshire

• Dr Andrew Tuson, Study Tour Coordinator, independent consultant andinterimmanager.

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• TEBAcademiaisafoundingcompanyfor the WSB Universities. Established in1994,itisPoland’slargestsystemofprivate Higher Education Institutions. With locations in 9 cities in Poland (HeadquartersinPoznanandmajorcampusesinWroclaw,GdanskandTorun), WSB Universities enrol approximately50,000students.Focusedoriginally on Business Studies, WSB UniversitiesrunprogrammesinLaw,IT,Finance,TourismandHospitality,National Security and Educational Studies. Since 2015, doctoral programmesareoffered.TheWSBUniversities are considered a practically-orientated, high-quality choice for working adults.

• KozminskiUniversity(KU)foundedin1993, is a private institution of higher education. The university has obtained Polish and international accreditations, as well as excellent results in global and national educational rankings. The university offers various Bachelor, Master’s, MBA’s as well as Ph.D. programsinmanagement,economics,finance,sociologyandlaw.Itislistedbythe‘FinancialTimes’–BusinessSchool Rankings, which include the bestuniversitiesfromaroundtheworld.Forthepast15yearsitholdsfirstplace throughout private universities in national educational rankings. KU holds three international accreditations: EQUIS, AMBA and AACSB. It is the only private institution in Poland with the power to award a habilitation degree in managementandeconomics.ItboaststhehighestfirstcategoryrankingforEconomics.

• TheJagiellonianUniversity(JU)istheoldest higher education institution in Poland and one of the oldest in Europe. Itwasfoundedon12May1364bythePolishKingCasimirtheGreat.TheJubileeyear2014markedits650thanniversary. It was positioned on the QS World University Rankings as the best Polishuniversityamongtheworld’stop500 and the ARWU as the best Polish higher-levelinstitution.Someofthe

JagiellonianUniversitystudentsandacademicshavebeenmajorhistoricalfigures,includingworldfamousscholars,such as Nicolaus Copernicus or Karol Olszewski,aswellasKarolWojtyła,thefuturePopeJohnPaulII.

• VistulaUniversity(VU)(AkademiaFinansów i Biznesu Vistula) was founded in1996andisoneofthefirstprivateuniversities of Poland. The university isamongthetop10topprivateuniversities in Poland – 5th place in the 2014rankingdevelopedbyPerspektywyand Rzeczpospolit. Vistula University is alsothemostinternationaluniversityin Poland according to the ranking of universities prepared by Perspektywy andDziennikGazetyPrawnain2014.Vistula is highly regarded in the business environment:itwasawardedthe“BestPartner in Business” title by the editors ofHome&MarketandtheEuropeanMedal by the Business Center Club for the best internship and internship programforstudents.

• AdamMickiewiczUniversity(AMU)inPoznańisthemajoracademicinstitutioninPoznańandoneofthetopPolishuniversities. Its reputation is founded on tradition,theoutstandingachievementsof the faculty and the attractive curriculumofferedtostudents.InadditiontoitsfacilitiesinPoznań,ithascampusesinGniezno,Kalisz,PiłaandSłubice/Franfurt-Oder.TheUniversitycurrentlyemploysnearly3,000teachingstaff,including264tenuredprofessors,439associateprofessorsand1617adjunct professors and senior lecturers. The University was founded in 1919 and currently its student population isnearly49000students(over1000are international students). Students maychoosebetween180possibleprofessional specialisations. In recent yearstheeducationalofferhasbecomeincreasingly diverse. New educational projects include: integrated studies in humanities,naturalsciences,socialsciences,andprogrammescarriedoutincooperation with other institutions both in Poland and abroad.

• TheCollegiumDaVinciinPoznań,Poland (CDV) is the oldest private universityinPoznań.Throughoutitsfirst18yearsofexistenceontheHigherEducationmapofPoland,itwasattractingsome1,500studentseach year. Now, as it has undergone arebrandingprocesstobetterfilltheneedsofthedynamicallychangingjobmarket,CollegiumDaVincihasproudlyestablished its position in the university sector with a unique range of study at B.A,MA.PostgraduateDiplomalevel.The CDV offer is closely interconnected withrelevantinstitutionsandcompaniesin Poland and abroad (such as IBM and Microsoft), to create a practical curriculum,basedoneconomicforecastsandthedevelopmentofthejobmarketintheworld,whichiswhyCDVplacessuchanemphasisonpracticalclasses led by valued professionals andpotentialfutureemployers.CDVFlexible Study Paths provide students withopportunitiestocombinetheirprofessionalandfamilycommitments.

• Warsaw University of Technology (WUT) is a technical research university with traditions dating back to the nineteenth century (1826). It is a forward-thinking institution where high-qualityeducationmeetsworld-class research and innovation. The WUT priority is an interdisciplinary studyprogrammesupportedbyadvancedscientificresearch.Inresponsetomarketdemands,abroadrange of professional and technological programmesareofferedwhichpreparestudents for their future careers. The Universityauthoritiesandtheacademicstaff do their best to acquaint students with the up-to-date knowledge and skills useful in today’s world.

Acknowledgements

Theteamareindebtedtothehospitality of our hosts at all the institutions visited. Many gave generouslyoftheirtimedeliveringpresentations,answeringour(many)questions and introducing their campusestous.Inparticular,theteamwould like to thank Professor Marek Kwiek,AdamMickiewiczUniversityandMrMaciejKolasiński,TEBAkademiafortheir advice and help in establishing contact with the institutions and organisations that hosted our visits. We are also indebted to colleagues in the AUA for their assistance.

We would also like to thank the following institutional contacts:

• Marcin Witkowski, AdamMickiewiczUniversityandCollegiumDaVinci,Poznan

• Dorota Maciejowska, JagiellonianUniversity,Krakow

• Maciej Markowski, PKA

• Marta Szajnowska-Ksit, Warsaw University of Technology

• Leonid Markusyk, Vistula University, Warsaw

• Svetland Gudkova, PhD, KozmisnkiUniversity,Warsaw

• BartłomiejBanaszak and Robert Grabel, Ministry of Science and Higher Education

We would also like to express our gratitude to Santander for their supportofSheliaAdamsonaswellastheuniversitiesofthetourmembers.

Finally, we are indebted to the Leadership Foundation for Higher Education for their sponsorship of this report.

Good Practice: MarketingEfficientmarketingiskeytosuccessasaprivateproviderandTEBAkademiaandWSBSchoolsofBankinghaveamarketingofficethatcollectshugeamountsofdata,andutilisesit to good effect. Marketing tactics including adverts(internet,out-of-home,radio),directemails,educationconsultantstosellCPD,and a central call-centre for all the partner institutions. They collect contact details of high school students through school visits. They use cookies to generate pop-up ads to people who’ve looked for higher education on the web.Thishasprovidedamassiveincreaseinthenumberofpeoplevisitingtheirwebsites.

Good Practice: Quality AssuranceEvaluationoflearningoutcomesonthecourselevelisoneofthetoolsemployedinthequalityassurancesystemofKoźmińskiUniversity.Ithasbeendesignedtomonitortheprocessofachievingthecourselearningoutcomesbythe students, and to encourage the faculty todesignandintroducequalityimprovementactivitiessystematically.

The instructors use dedicated software to assess the extent to which course participants haveachievedthedefinedlearningoutcomesaftercoursecompletion.Basedonthisassessment,theinstructors,ifnecessary,maysuggestthecorrectiveandimprovementmeasurestobeimplementedinthenextacademicyear.Thesearethesubjectofthediscussionatthechairsmeeting,whichprovidesaflowforexchangingthegoodpractice and effective corrective actions betweenthefacultymembers.Theinstructorsinthenextacademiccycleevaluatetheeffectivenessoftheagreedmeasures.

Good Practice: Student MobilityTheJagiellonianUniversityseesstudentandstaffmobilityasimportantfactorstofulfillingitsmission.TheInternationalRelationsOfficemanagesandcoordinatesbilateralagreementsandstaffexchangeintheframeofagreements,Erasmus+agreements(1209agreements)andstaffmobility,governmentalresearchprojectsofacademicstaff,coordinates contacts and participates in works of International Research Universities Network, participate in the Utrecht Network Research Mobility Task Force and coordinates SYLFF programme.

TheInternationalStudentsMobilityOffice(ISMO)managescomprehensiveservicesfor over 900 undergraduate and graduate students of foreign universities, including the Erasmus+programme(over700people)and

otherinternationalexchangeprogrammes.Furthermore,theISMOmanagesservicesfor over 350 students and doctoral students, studyingattheJagiellonianUniversitywithascholarship. International students can apply foraplaceinthestudentdormitorythroughthe ISMO.

Moreover,theunitmanagestheUSDepartmentofEducation’sDirectLoanProgram,U.S.DepartmentofVeteransAffairs-EducationalBenefitProgramsandCanada-Ontario Integrated Students Loans. The ISMO alsogivesopinionsonagreementsforjointinternational doctoral degrees.

Good Practice: InfrastructureConstructed over the last 20 years, the AMUMoraskoCampusisnowhometoseven out of 15 University Faculties and two largest research centers in the region: the Wielkopolska Center for Advanced TechnologiesandtheNano-bio-medicalCenter.Thecampuscovers100hectaresandliesadjacent to a forest preserve. There is a direct tramlineconnectingitwithcentralPoznanwithin15minutes.Moraskoisafavouritelocationformanystudenteventsandactivitiesduring the year, such as live concerts, picnics and sporting events. Each faculty building has its own cafeteria and its own library. All buildings are connected to the European universitywifiNetwork(Eduroam).SeveralthousandstudentscommutebackandforthtotheMoraskocampus,butwiththeconstructionofnewhallsmostofthemwillbestayingdirectlyoncampusinsteadofthedormscloserto the city.

Good Practice: Distinctiveness in MissionCollegiumDaVinciwascreatedinlinewiththerenaissancespiritcombiningrationalthought with passionate vision. Students engagedailyinprojectscoveringmodernengineering, IT, business and design. Da Vinci providesanartisticenvironment,anethosechoed by friends and colleagues to create afriendlyandinspiringatmosphere.Withinthe Da Vinci Network, there are college-level degreeprogrammesandotheropportunitiestobecomeinvolvedwithfromayoungage.Ithostsschoolsonuniversitypremisesandoffers an educational project for senior people, calledtheSilverAgeAcademy.Studentshavea chance to adopt a hands-on approach in connecting the best of two worlds; the very young and the senior students; who engage in various projects together with undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in full degree programs.

Good Practice HEI Profiles

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