Principles, Implementation and Results of the New Assessment and Accreditation System “Engineering Education for Sustainable Industries” (QUESTE-SI)

Abstract

While the importance of evaluating the education of sustainable development programmes has been widely recognised, very limited information is available on the topic. QUESTE-SI project was funded by the European Commission under the Lifelong Learning programme ERASMUS (2010–2012). QUESTE-SI stands for “Quality system of European Scientific and Technical Education for Sustainable Industry”. The project was coordinated by EFMD, the Management Education Network, and ENQHEEI, the European Network for Quality of Higher Engineering Education for Industry. The QUESTE-SI evaluation and accreditation focuses on the institutional unit (department) that is responsible for one or more programmes. A key point is to ensure that each graduate learns the sustainability aspects related to the concerned education domain. A fair evaluation of social responsibility and sustainability education is not limited to teaching and learning methods or curricular content—it depends on parallel efforts in all dimensions. The main objective of the paper is to present, analyse and discuss principles, implementation and results of the original assessment and accreditation system for higher engineering education. The system comprises all five roles of the university: education, research, infrastructure and management, students’ involvement and society. More than 10 European science and technical universities have been accredited in accordance to the QUESTE-SI requirements. Kaunas University of Technology was represented by the Institute of Environmental Engineering with the M.Sc. Programme “Environmental Management and Cleaner Production” and the Ph.D. Programme “Environmental Engineering and Landscape Management”. The Institute of Environmental Engineering has been awarded the highest ranking and has become a fertile basis for a larger pilot project. The paper presents principles, methodology, results of QUESTE-SI evaluation and accreditation and the experience of pilot institution.