Czech University of Life Sciences Prague

Due to the form of CZU, which is made up of 6 faculties, one university institute and other supporting workplaces (e.g. school farms), the form of the organizational securing of quality assurance and internal assessment systems consists of two types of structures: (1) the CZU structures for the issuing of management guidelines and obtaining information related to the quality assurance and internal assessment (including, in particular, the Rector, Deans and Director of the University Institute) and the (2) structures for determining requirements for educational, creative and related activities, and for discussing and approving matters relating to the quality assurance and internal assessment of the quality of activities (includes, in particular, the CZU Internal Evaluation Board, the Scientific Council of the university and its components, the CZU Management Board and Academic Senate). The guaranteeing and umbrella body that operates primarily in the quality securing and internal assessment at CZU is the Internal Evaluation Board. Its position connecting both structures is determined by its composition, in which are involved academics and students, who nominate parts of both structures for quality assurance and internal assessments. The activities of the Internal Evaluation Council are governed by the Rules of Procedure of the CZU Internal Evaluation Board, as an internal regulation of CZU. In addition to the Internal Evaluation Board, in terms of quality assurance and internal assessment, all of the key documents (in particular the annual evaluation in the pedagogical field, in the field of creative activities and in the field of international affairs) are discussed by the CZU Scientific Board. The CZU Academic Senate discusses documents that concern the institutional quality assurance and internal assessment at CZU, and which are also discussed by the CZU Internal Evaluation Board. Before being discussed in the Internal Evaluation Board, the CZU Academic Senate in the CZU Scientific Board, the Rector’s College makes a statement regarding all of the documents. The Rector’s College consists of the Rector, Vice-Rectors, Bursar, Chancellor, Faculty Deans/IEC Director, Chairman of the CZU Academic Senate, Director of the Marketing Department, and they regularly meet at least once a month. Records from these meetings are available after user authentication via their access name and password in the CZU Intranet section. On the level of CZU, activities in the area of securing and internally evaluating quality are coordinated by the relevant Vice-Rector (Vice-Rector for the Quality of Educational and Creative Activities), who, as part of the network of key employees involved in coordination of activities relating to securing quality, collaborates with employees entrusted with the coordination of activities relating to securing the quality of educational, creative and related activities, and internal evaluation of the quality of educational, creative and related activities on the level of the parts of CZU (faculties/IEC), by which academic staff are proposed by the Dean/Director of IEC who holds Vice Dean Posts. These employees are responsible for the coordination of activities related to the quality assurance of educational, creative and related activities and internal assessment of the quality of educational, creative and related activities at the faculty/IEC level – they mainly cooperate and communicate with the relevant Deans, Vice-Deans and guarantors of study programmes at individual faculties/IEC. They supervise the functionality of feedback mechanisms and evaluations, corrective and preventive measures and measures taken to improve the quality assurance and internal assessment at the faculty/IEC level. At the CZU level, they cooperate with the Vice-Rector for the Quality of Educational and Creative Activities. These academic employees are:

CZU Vice-Rector For the Quality of Educational and Creative Activities

FEM Vice-Dean For Science and Research

FAFNR Vice-Dean the Quality of Educational and Creative Activities

FE Vice-Dean for Study and Pedagogical Activities

FES Vice-Dean pro for Study and Pedagogical Activities

FFWS Vice-Dean for Study and Pedagogical Activities

FTA Vice-Dean for Pedagogical Activities

IEC Deputy Director for External Relations

An important entity from the viewpoint of quality assurance and internal assessment of educational activities is the relevant guarantor of the study programme as he/she prepares the documents for the evaluation of bachelor, master's and doctoral study programs in the form of a report assessing the study programme that he/she guarantees. This guarantor prepares such a report in cooperation with the relevant Vice-Dean or Deputy Director of the University Institute. Support for quality assurance and internal assessment is provided by the relevant and materially competent Rector's Offices (in particular The Department for Quality of Educational and Creative Activities) in co-operation with relevant support workplaces at faculties or the University Institute.
The content of internal quality assessment at CZU is given by the Strategic Plan for Educational, Scientific, Research, Innovation and Creative Activities of the Czech University off Life Sciences Prague for 2016-2020, including its annual Implementation Plans (in the original wording before the amendment to the Act on Higher Education Institutions came into force, this was the Long-term plan for Educational, Scientific, Research, Innovation and Creative Activities of the Czech University off Life Sciences Prague for 2016-2020), and its connection to the Annual Report on Activities and the Annual Economic Reports. The preparation of these three documents (Strategic Plan, Annual Report on Activities and the Annual Economic Report) requires the development of support materials (usually existing in the form of annual evaluation reports of predefined areas covering educational, creative and related activities). Specifically, annual evaluation reports (at the faculty and university institute level and at the CZU level) are prepared, which, in addition to a description and supporting data, also contain analyses of the monitored issues and recommendations for further development of the monitored issues in the field of educational, creative or related activities. These reports are discussed in the relevant committees described in the section on organizational securing of the quality assurance and internal assessment system. In the field of education, these are in particular the following evaluation reports (all of the reports are available after user authentication with their access name and password on the CZU intranet):

on addressing study applicants (e.g. open houses, cooperation with middle schools),
on the conditions, preparation, course and results of the admission procedure for bachelor, master’s and doctoral study programmes,
on the number of students according to type, form, year of study and faculty/IEC, including data on permeability between years and student failures,
on the evaluation of teaching on the subject level,
on the analysis of study programmes,
on the evaluation of doctoral study programmes and on the development strategy of doctoral study programmes,
on the evaluation of so-called inter-faculty teaching,
on the evaluation of state exams,
on the collection of fees related to the study,
on the employment statistics of graduates,
on the results of the survey among graduates,
on the activities of the career centre for students,
on the job fair,
on the activities of the Alumni Club,
on the activities of the Councils for Cooperation with Practice.

In creative activities, these are in particular the following evaluation reports (all of the reports are available after user authentication with their access name and password on the CZU intranet):

on the evaluation of the fulfilment of the science and research strategy at faculties and at IEC,
on results in science and research,
on the activities of the CZU Scientia Agriculturae Bohemica journal,
on the results and the functioning of grant competitions at CZU and the results of applications for external grants and projects,
on conferences organized at CZU,
on the activities of the Department for Strategy, the Project Center and the Centre for Innovation and Technology Transfer,
on the activities of the business incubator,
on the activities of the Licensing Council and the Commercialization Center.

In related activities, these are in particular the following evaluation reports (all of the reports are available after user authentication with their access name and password on the CZU intranet):

on the evaluation of activities in international relations during the year (including teaching in a foreign language),
on short-term intensive courses for CZU students abroad and for foreign students at CZU (summer schools and other short-term courses),
on cooperation with external partners,
on the activities of Study and Information Center,
on the activities of the CZU Department of Information and Communication Technologies,
on the activities of the Audiovisual Support Centre,
on the internal audit at CZU,
on the evaluation of the construction, reconstruction, modernization and repairs plan,
on the accommodation of students,
on the activities of school enterprises,
on the presentation of CZU at exhibitions.

Educational, creative and related activities are also covered by evaluation reports on the implementation of the Centralized Development Projects of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports and on the fulfilment of the Institutional Plan at CZU, in the areas on which these projects and plans are focused.

In addition to internal evaluation mechanisms, CZU also utilizes external quality assessment. The last such quality assessment took place in the 2011/2012 academic year as part of the activities of CZU in the Euroleague For Life Sciences (an association of 7 universities in Europe active in the field of life sciences).

Other external CZU quality assessment methods include the results of international university rankings. These include rankings such as Times Higher Education – World University Rankings (in the order of the so-called The Times Higher Education BRICS & Emerging Economies University Ranking 2017, CZU is ranked 175th and 7th out of 12 evaluated universities in the Czech Republic), QS World University Rankings (in the order of the so-called QS World University Ranking EECA Emerging Europe and Central Asia Ranking, CZU is ranked 90th and 8th out of 18 evaluated universities in the Czech Republic), Best Global Universities Ranking US News & World Report – only evaluates creative activities (ranked 1051st in the world 8th out of 10 evaluated universities in the Czech Republic), similarly to how the Academic Ranking of World Universities only ranks creative activities (specifically Shanghai Ranking's Global Ranking of Academic Subjects 2017 – Agricultural Sciences, where CZU is ranked 201–300 in agricultural sciences).

(1) Key documents, regulations and other links from the viewpoint of the quality assurance and internal assessment system

3. Organization and staffing of the quality assurance and internal assessment system

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