2004:13 R

Evaluation of undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in earth sciences at higher education institutions in Sweden

The report consists of two sections: one containing the National Agency’s decisions and reflections, the other the report of the panel of external assessors. The panel’s report contains an account of the premises on which its appraisals were based, an overall analysis of the undergraduate and postgraduate programmes and an evaluation of each higher education institution together with its recommendations. The panel of assessors is responsible for the content of its report. The decisions and reflections of the National Agency are based on this report.

The National Agency is able to determine on the basis of the panel’s report that undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in earth sciences attain the standards required in higher education at the universities of Göteborg, Lund, Stockholm, Umeå and Uppsala. This also applies to the undergraduate programmes in geography at the universities of Göteborg, Karlstad, Linköping, Lund, Stockholm, Umeå and Uppsala. The National Agency queries the entitlement to award a bachelor’s degree in earth sciences at Karlstad University because of shortcomings in the extent of the subject and the lack of breadth in the qualifications of the teaching staff, and also to award a bachelor’s degree in natural geography at the Mid-Sweden University College because of the shortcomings in the qualifications of the teaching staff and lack of continuity in the courses offered. The panel’s report contains a discussion of these deficiencies.

The panel’s report shows that even though the standard of many of the programmes offered is high, there has been a radical decline in enrolment in recent years. Valuable measures currently being adopted to improve recruitment include initiatives focusing on the upper-secondary schools and the development activities being undertaken in most programmes.

The panel is critical of the continued narrow focus in most programmes on preparation for postgraduate study and recommends a general increase in the teaching of applied earth sciences. The panel considers that the teachers of earth sciences are subject to a great deal of pressure and also states clearly that dealing with the problems is an administrative responsibility. In many programmes, declining student numbers have led to courses being offered with fewer resources than previously and the panel points out that it may be necessary to reduce the number of taught hours as a result.

The panel also points out that measures are required to raise the proportion of women teachers.
Postgraduate programmes maintain high standards, but they could be improved, mainly by reviewing the contents of the programmes and by cooperating on the postgraduate courses offered. The panel also recommends guidelines for the way in which financial support for postgraduate study is advertised to extend recruitment and increase mobility between institutions.