University of Basel

Faculty of Humanities
and Social Sciences

One of the most important tasks of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences is to systematically ensure, continuously develop and improve quality in the areas of teaching, research, career advancement, administration and services. The structure, organization and regulations of the faculty's procedures and processes are designed in such a way that they support and promote quality assurance and quality development.

The faculty shares the university's commitment to a culture of quality and implements its guidelines. The university is carried by people who, although they can only fulfill the social mission together, teach and research independently. One of the most important building blocks of faculty quality assurance is therefore the appointment of professorships within the framework of professionally conducted appointment procedures. The appointment procedures aim to attract excellent academics for research, teaching, career advancement, services and academic self-government.

When developing, revising and approving regulations, the faculty ensures that its quality processes are guaranteed and further developed. The Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences is also actively involved in various quality development projects and programs at the University of Basel.

The Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences ensures the quality assurance and quality development of the courses and curricula through various processes and measures:

  • Approval of the courses offered: Each semester, the courses offered by the subject areas is reviewed and approved by the examination commission.
  • Course evaluation: The quality of the courses should be ensured through the exchange between the teacher and the students and colleagues. The various course formats are evaluated digitally every three semesters on a rotating basis. Lecturers receive PIN codes created specifically for their courses from the Office of the Dean of Studies, which allow access to the surveys for their courses via the evaluation system's entry portal. The exact procedure is regulated by the concept for ensuring and developing course quality.
  • Voluntary course evaluation: In addition to the regular course evaluation, lecturers have the opportunity to register for a voluntary evaluation each semester via the preliminary survey. The preliminary survey for FS 2024 can be found here (applications must be submitted by October 11, 2024): https://evasys.unibas.ch/evasys/online.php?p=Z95LD
  • Evaluation of the degree programs: Both the degree subjects and the degree programs are regularly evaluated in collaboration with the Quality Development Department of the Vice President's Office for Education. This is done annually on the basis of key figures. For in-depth analysis and further development, formative course evaluations of the individual curricula are also carried out at longer intervals. Processes, objectives and responsibilities are regulated by information sheets, which can be requested from the Office of the Dean of Studies.
  • Guideline on teaching authorization: The requirements for the qualification of teaching staff with regard to the respective type of course are defined uniformly and communicated transparently. The Faculty Board monitors compliance with the guideline on teaching authorization when issuing teaching assignments.

 

In the area of research, the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences has taken and introduced important measures and processes for quality assurance:

  • The Faculty and the departments are involved in the implementation of university-wide quality management in research. Key elements are the introduction of Scientific Advisory Boards and regular progress meetings with the Vice President's Office for Research.
  • The Faculty is involved in the implementation of the principles and funding of transparency in research.
  • As part of its annual reporting, the Faculty provides systematic information on publication achievements, external funding and prizes received by researchers.
  • The faculty is also responsible for quality assurance and quality development at doctoral level within the framework of the quality standards defined by the university in the doctoral area. The Faculty's doctoral study regulations form a central legal basis for this.
  • In February 2020, the Faculty founded the Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences (GS-HSS). As an umbrella structure for doctoral studies, the GS-HSS contributes to the consolidation of doctoral education. The faculty doctoral programs, which act as pillars of the GS-HSS, are regularly evaluated.

Important measures and processes of the faculty in this area are:

  • the establishment of a permanent faculty evaluation and promotion committee;
  • the evaluation of professors on promotion;
  • the evaluation of lecturers on appointment as adjunct professors;
  • the periodic evaluation of private lecturers and adjunct professors;
  • the periodic evaluation of university lecturers.

Quality assurance and quality development in administration and service provision is ensured at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences through various processes and measures. Particularly to be highlighted:

  • the enactment of rules of procedure that regulate the functioning of the Faculty's bodies;
  • the reorganization of administrative responsibilities and processes as part of the reform of organizational structures, with the aim of shortening processes and making them more transparent, defining responsibilities more clearly and improving information and communication;
  • the development of a process map with a uniform representation of the core, support and management processes for the entire faculty.
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