The quality of teaching staff: higher education institutions’ compliance with the European Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance—the case of Portugal

In recent years, initiatives for the improvement of teaching quality have been pursued both at European and national levels. Such is the case of the European Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance (ESG) and of legislation passed by several European countries, including Portugal, in response to European policy developments driven by the Lisbon Strategy and the Bologna Process. This paper is concerned with the institutional level implementation of European and national policies which target the quality of teaching staff. It reports on the findings of a study conducted in order to analyse if Portuguese higher education institutions are taking measures to improve and assure the quality of teaching staff in compliance particularly with the ESG. Findings suggest that this compliance is only partial. Although mechanisms exist for the selection, recruitment and appraisal of academics, other instruments and measures meant to continuously improve teaching staff quality, such as institutional support for skills development, pedagogic training, material infrastructure and motivation strategies, such as awards and recognition, are still incipient.     

Who is responsible for employability? Student perceptions and practices

The paper examines to whom Portuguese students attribute responsibility for the development of employability, and what extra-curricular activities they undertake to improve their employability. Particular focus lies upon how far students internalise responsibility for employability and if/how they seek to position themselves in the job market. The data was obtained through a survey of 828 Portuguese students. The analysis explored differences among student groups (higher education sector, gender, age and discipline). The attribution of responsibility was primarily to students themselves and to higher education institutions as key vehicles for employability development, echoing the theoretical conceptualisation which sees employability as an individual ability/responsibility. Yet, the observed variations provide empirical support for the conceptualisation of employability as complex and multi-dimensional. The study also revealed relatively high engagement with extra-curricular activities, evidencing that students not only assume responsibility for employability, but are proactively seeking to gain positional advantage in the job market.