Quality Assurance of Doctoral Education: A Case Study of the Polish Approach. Reflections on the Past, Prospects for the Future, and the Internationalisation of Quality Assurance Processes
The quality assurance of doctoral education could be considered a hot potato of the Polish higher education system. Following the last reform in 2005, external quality assurance for doctoral studies was practically non-existent for several years.
It was not until 2012 that elements of quality assurance were introduced through a new type of evaluation conducted by the Polish QA agency, known as institutional evaluation. However, this evaluation was eradicated just four years later, only to reemerge in 2018 with the implementation of a new set of higher education reforms.
In 2018, a new system of doctoral education was introduced in the form of doctoral schools. External quality assurance was assigned to the Science Evaluation Committee as part of this new framework. Presently, Poland is on the cusp of initiating this new procedure. This paper aims to compare the two systems, particularly highlighting the advantages that external quality assurance can bring to the overall quality and effectiveness of doctoral education.
The new procedure must take place entirely in English, which will finally enable foreign experts to participate in accreditations. It must also take into account the needs of foreign doctoral candidates, mobility and innovation in international cooperation and how current approaches affect quality assurance. The paper will also consider what practises universities can use to integrate migrant doctoral candidates and how it can be incorporated into educational quality assurance procedures. Furthermore, we will address the question of whether it is possible to compare quality assurance procedures at the doctoral level given the significant differences in doctoral education across the European Higher Education Area (EHEA), and how this quality can be accounted for in joint doctoral programs. Finally, this paper suggests some recommendations for the areas and variables concerning doctoral education assessment, emphasising the necessity for accurate evaluation despite the pronounced national disparities in doctoral studies, with special emphasis on joint doctoral programs.
This paper was presented at EQAF and reflects the views of the named authors only.
ISSN: 1375-3797
