Brief description of the institution’s strategy, objectives and priorities of its Erasmus activities and any other actions in the context of the Lifelong Learning Programme (LLP) 2007-2013.
What specific actions are planned to give visibility to Erasmus activities and what type of publicity is given to the Erasmus University Charter and the EPS?
What kind of arrangements does the institution ensure to comply with non-discrimination objectives?
The strategic objectives of the Karol Adamiecki University of Economics in Katowice (hereinafter UEK) within the scope of Erasmus activities focus on the following:
1. Promoting excellence in teaching through curricula development toward joint degrees, teachers’ involvement in mobility activities, intensive programmes and multilateral projects, modernization of curricula to integrate new knowledge, innovative e-learning forms of study and multicultural issues.
2. Internationalization by means of increased student mobility involving the completion of a period of studies/placements abroad and students’ participation in intensive programmes, development of opportunities for experience sharing among staff of academic and non- academic profile.
3. Networking oriented towards sustainable international cooperation and its expansion to third countries trough Erasmus-Mundus.
4. Internationalization at home by extending international education to students and teachers not participating in mobility, providing them with access to curricula with international content, bringing them into academic and informal contact with a growing number of incoming students, returned study abroad students and teachers involved in international mobility.
5. Linking theoretical and practical aspects in all areas of study by means of work-based learning programmes for firms (continuing education), involvement of external institutions’ representatives in development and delivery of study programmes (entrepreneurship in curricula), further promotion and recognition of domestic and international placements for students.
6. Promoting language diversity starting with the provision of access to courses of less popular languages for outgoing students and extensive Polish course for incoming ones.
7. Disseminating newly generated knowledge and project results, development of graduates’ career monitoring programme with the aim to assess the effect of international studies and placements on the students’ career choices and the quality of their careers in the long run.
UEK attaches great importance to providing exposure to its progress in the implementation of Erasmus activities. This takes form of promotional materials, website, student forum, Erasmus Days and other events organized with/for Erasmus students, cooperation with Erasmus Student Network via the Katowice Section, Erasmus promotion in information meetings and presentations, active presence in local university press, public media and rankings. Both, the EPS and the Charter are to be given maximum visibility at UEK’s and International Relations’ websites and in display cases across the institution.
While aiming at internationalization, UEK observes the policy of opening opportunities to the less advantaged in accessing all forms of Erasmus activities: students with disabilities receive additional care and supplementary financing from Rector’s fund. Similar support is provided to students with social/economic barriers.
Specific measures implemented in the institution to ensure high quality in academic mobility activities.
UEK uses ECTS as the credit transfer and accumulation system for all groups of students: those taking all of their studies at home institution, those attending a part of them in partner institutions as well as the international incoming ones. Outgoing students, as a standard, receive automatic recognition of the period of studies done abroad upon successful completion of 30 ECTS/semester. However, they are obliged to pass the so-called programme minima in subsequent exam sessions, if not a part of their studies abroad, as these are enforced by the Polish higher education law.
As a rule, all students with sufficient language skills are given opportunity to pass the Central Erasmus selection procedure with only very weak grades being treated as exclusion criteria by the Deans. Each selected student receives full organizational/personal counseling from his/her International Relations officer with monitoring during and after the stay abroad, as well as individual academic counseling from his/her Faculty Dean.
UEK also provides full counseling to incoming students: updated English-taught course syllabi, accommodation offer at affordable prices and other introductory information on the website with Admissions officer contact from the time of applying; followed by full orientation and social integration programme throughout the whole stay as well as academic and personal tutoring (course coordinator, International Relations & Erasmus Student Network), and timely delivery of certificates. All incoming students are provided with free semester or year-long introductory Polish course taught by ESL teachers.
Academic teachers are given support in finding recipient institutions by International Relations staff and receive UEK’s financing on top of Erasmus grant to cover all of their mobility expenses. Their work performed within mobility activities receives full recognition and is regularly compensated as a part of their teaching workload at UEK.
Specific measures implemented to ensure high quality in student placements.
UEK has 7 years’ experience in organizing placements for students and graduates. Traditionally, the placements have been and are to be implemented in companies verified for a high-quality professional counseling to students. UEK has as many as 230 of such partners in its database. In case of the new firms, the decision to arrange a placement is preceded by careful examination of the partner’s references as well as the placement’s agenda and terms of its implementation.
Technically, the placements are carried out on the basis of trilateral agreements between UEK, the receiving institution and the student. These specify the mutual obligations of all parties, manner of payments and the rules for monitoring, evaluation and validation. A necessary part of the agreement is a detailed list of the tasks to be performed by the beneficiary, drawn up on the basis of his/her study programme and specialization.
The placement programme is administrated by a team within International Relations, responsible for agreement negotiation, accommodation arrangements and placements monitoring. In companies, on the other hand, the placements are the responsibility of nominated contact persons – placement supervisors. Student progress is monitored by means of regular contact with the home team, students’ interim and final reports, evaluation questionnaires and random monitoring visits.
Upon completion, all students receive certificates, reference letters and a Europass-Mobility presenting in a clear manner the status of its recipient, his/hers qualifications and the acquired profession. Moreover, as set in the UEK Study Regulations, placements coordinated by the University are to receive recognition as part of the beneficiary’s study programme at UEK, which is compatible with ECTS programmes at other HE institutions. Consequently, they are to be validated with an appropriate number of ECTS credits, the criteria of their evaluation in keeping with the study programme profile.
