QUESTE-SI Quality System of Science and Technology Universities for Sustainable Industry

 

Rationale for the project
Cooperation is a key element, a catalyst in the triangle of Universities, Industry, and Knowledge. Industry is at a key-point regarding environmental issues and sustainable development within the EU and Russia. In business education, EFMD has developed a strong quality system for improving the quality of cooperation between business education and the corporate world. EFMD has a strong commitment on developing effective and socially responsible leaders and managers. In science-technology-engineering education, there have been efforts to assure quality mainly within the Bologna context. A quality charter has been adopted among universities and stakeholders and since 2006 the QUESTE quality system has been implemented in a number of European S&T universities.

The QUESTE-SI project will develop along three axes:
1. Share best practice between Business and S&T education

Using the example of EQUIS for improving the QUESTE quality system
Training for corporate responsibility and sustainability in industry
Exchanges with ENQA (the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education), quality assurance agencies in the EU, and ABET (the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, USA).

2. Set up referentials in S&T higher education for sustainable industry in:

Resources (human and material)
Energy
Information and Communication Technology

The development of referentials should take into account the main initiatives of EUA (European University Association), OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) and EIT (European Institute of Innovation and Technology).

3. Develop, implement, and evaluate a quality improvement system

Draft referentials
Incorporate revisions and circulate to key stakeholders
Finalize in online and print formats, and disseminate
Develop and implement online support activities

Objectives
The project seeks to:

• Enhance the quality management culture of S&T institutions through progressive referentials, self-evaluation and external audit methodologies.
• Initiate a parallel change of paradigm in science-technology-engineering education through awareness building of corporate responsibility for sustainability.
• Enrich the referentials for basic quality assessment and criteria for excellence with societal concern, ethics and sustainability.
• Enhance the confidence in universities held by stakeholders from industry and society and thus improve careers of engineers and researchers
• Establish a platform for dialog between universities and stakeholders from industry and society with a focus on aspects of sustainability.
• Measure the impact on employment and careers for engineering graduates.
• Establish referentials to improve the preparation of engineering graduates and researchers for work in sustainable industry

For more information about QUESTE-SI, please contact Julia Falkerby  or Ronald Wennersten

  QUESTE-SI website