Special Supplement _ Volume 03 _ Issue 01 2009

www.efmd.org Special supplement | Volume 03 | Issue 01 2009

“Scale Up” achieves a European-wide presence and critical mass in key business school markets

EFMD Programme Accreditation – Impact and Development of EPAS

EFMD

Special supplement

1 www.efmd.org/globalfocus

Special supplement | Global Focus Vol 03 | Issue 01 2009

The role of EPAS

EFMD launched EPAS (EFMD Programme Accreditation System) in 2005 to reinforce its contribution to the enhancement of management education in fulfilment of its stated mission. At the time, EQUIS (European Quality

Improvement System), the leading international accreditation for business schools launched in 1998, was already well established in the global community of management education and undoubtedly perceived to be a catalyst for continuous quality improvement. What, then, was the reason for launching EPAS, an international accreditation of programmes?

EQUIS was and is targeted at those business schools around the world that show outstanding performance on the basis of the EQUIS framework of quality dimensions and standards. Schools that have gone through the EQUIS process have clearly acknowledged the improvements created by it. This has been signalled not only by schools when they receive EQUIS for the first time but also when they go through the process for a second and a third time in renewing their accreditation. The EQUIS contribution has been acknowledged too by those schools that failed to gain the accreditation, some succeeding a few years later, to a large extent because of the guidance and challenge provided by the EQUIS process.

The EQUIS contribution is not limited to the 115 schools that are currently accredited or to the more than 160 that have gone through the EQUIS process since its creation. There is a ripple effect. The close competitors of these schools feel challenged to try to get EQUIS too, and sooner or later they learn that the only way to achieve this goal is to improve in substance and put themselves to the task.

If each of the 115 schools has three of these “close competitors” we can assume that EQUIS contributes indirectly to the improvement of an additional group of some 350 schools. Of course, this contribution, being indirect, is necessarily less complete.

Finally, a third group of schools have found inspiration and guidance for analysing their performance from the EQUIS criteria and standards. They download the “EQUIS Standards and Criteria” document from the EFMD website and use it as a kind of self-help manual.

The number of schools that are influenced by EFMD accreditations, directly, indirectly or broadly can probably be estimated at around 1, 000. According to some estimates this is less than 5% of the business schools in the world. However, if we consider the 160 schools that have directly benefited from EQUIS, the EFMD effective contribution is limited to somewhat less than 1% of the business schools around the world.

Eric Cornuel, Director General, EFMD, and Julio Urgel, Director, Quality Services, EFMD, analyse the rationale behind EPAS 1000

...the estimated number of schools that are influenced by EFMD accreditations, directly, indirectly or broadly

� EFMD Global Focus | Volume 03 | Issue 01 2009

In 2004, EFMD considered that this direct contribution needed to be supplemented in some way. At the same time, EFMD did not want to achieve this objective by softening the EQUIS standards and thus diluting their value. EPAS, launched in 2005, was the answer. EPAS provides a direct contribution to quality improvement not in an entire school but in the more focused area of one or two of its degree programmes. This broadens the direct impact to schools that for some reason cannot benefit directly from EQUIS.

For example, there are a number of excellent schools that have chosen strategies that while being sometimes ideal for their environment are not compatible with the EQUIS framework. They may have decided not to have a permanent core faculty but to “fly-in” professors from the best schools. There are also many schools that are doing a very good job in most areas under very good leadership but still working in further developing a few other areas. For example, some schools may be at an early stage of internationalisation overall but perhaps one of their programmes is significantly international. Development takes time and resources that a school may have not yet been able to gather to the required extent.

When the focus is narrowed down from the school to the programme, these schools can benefit directly from the EFMD accreditation process through EPAS. Even though a school is getting some of the indirect effects of EQUIS mentioned above, EPAS will provide it with direct and specific contributions to improvement in the targeted programme.

EPAS standards are not less demanding than those of EQUIS; they are just narrower in focus. As a consequence the direct contributions of EPAS are significant. The number of schools that can show one or two programmes of outstanding quality

is surely a very significant percentage of those close to 1,000 schools that were only indirectly and thus more lightly benefitting from EQUIS. These schools can now experience the direct benefits of international accreditation too.

As with EQUIS, EPAS also has ripple effects. One takes place across schools around the globe and is similar to that described for EQUIS. The other takes place inside the school itself. This internal ripple effect is caused by the learning process that EPAS provides for the school. A school that has taken one or two of its programmes through EPAS can then apply the same process internally to its remaining programmes. This will provide an excellent way to detect areas of specific improvement in all its programmes that will end up improving the entire school.

Finally, another important objective of EPAS is to accompany the Bologna accord. Indeed, the latter will generate potentially better visibility of diplomas and mobility of participants, far beyond Europe’s frontiers (to date, 46 countries have signed the agreement). In this context, EPAS could make a significant contribution to recognising the excellence of a selected pool of outstanding programmes all over the Bologna range (Bachelors, Masters, and eventually Doctorates), anchoring it even further in the academic landscape.

The pages that follow provide much more detail about all these benefits of EPAS by describing the substantial experience gathered up to now after two pilot phases and a consolidation phase nicknamed “Scale-Up”. They also convey some of the ways in which EPAS and its contributions are expected to evolve. We encourage you to read them through and contact the Quality Services department at EFMD with any questions or for any suggestions for improvement that you may have.

‘EPAS standards are not less demanding than those of EQUIS; they are just narrower in focus. As a consequence the direct contributions of EPAS are significant’

� www.efmd.org/globalfocus


EPAS after “Scale Up”

So far 24 programmes have been accredited and a total of 44 programmes have been awarded eligibility status and these are expected to complete the accreditation process within the next 18 months.

The success of Scale-Up has considerably exceeded EFMD’s original expectations. Considering the portfolio of accredited programmes as well as those in the pipeline, EPAS has so far attracted 50 institutions from 26 (mostly European) countries but has also achieved representation on all continents around the globe.

Putting non-Bologna-type programmes aside, EPAS coverage is spread fairly evenly across Bachelor, Master and (E)MBA programmes and has therefore made significant inroads in markets which have already been covered by other accreditation services with an international focus.

Interest in EPAS is expected to remain strong in the years to come. The EPAS Committee is projected to consider five to ten new applications in each of its three meetings in 2009. While most institutions have submitted only one programme for review during the pilot phases, applying with two programmes or programme suites has become the more typical case in recent months. With most pilot-phase programmes coming up for re-accreditation in 2009, up to 60 programme review reports will be put to the EPAS Accreditation Board over the next 15 months.

In sum, EPAS has developed into a valuable accreditation service for the EFMD membership. It adds immediate brand value by recognising the achievement of educational excellence and successful internationalisation at the programme level.

Some institutions with programmes in the EPAS pipeline are aiming for EQUIS accreditation as their ultimate ambition. In this context, EPAS also provides a benchmark for the school’s general EQUIS readiness and frequently acts as a catalyst for institutional change, in particular in the areas of internationalisation, quality assurance and academic rigour.

EPAS development is, however, not at all about numbers. In line with the general EFMD mission, EPAS has been designed to award accreditation to academic programmes that are internationally recognised as being positioned in the premium segment of their respective markets. It has also been set up as a framework in support of the school’s efforts of continuous quality improvement.

With the conclusion of the EPAS Scale-Up initiative (“Reaching out globally”, Global Focus 3/2007), EPAS has achieved a European-wide presence as well as a critical mass in key business school markets across Europe writes Ulrich Hommel, EPAS Director, EFMD

50...institutes from 26 countries have joined EPAS and it has also achieved representation on all continents

60...programmes will be put in front of the EPAS Accreditation Board over the next 15 months

25%...increase by 2011 in the share of EPAS non-European accredited programmes


‘By widening EPAS’ geographical base, business schools within the EPAS system will be able to expand their international reach and benefit from greater networking opportunities’

In line with these aspirations, EFMD Quality Services will maintain its focus on further strengthening the EPAS Standards & Criteria as well as the supporting processes. As a consequence, rising application numbers are expected to be accompanied by greater selectivity at all stages of the accreditation process.

Just as EFMD is rapidly expanding into the rest of the world, EPAS can be expected to attract rising interest from non-European business schools. This is already reflected in the geographical mix of programmes applying for eligibility in 2009. The non-European share of newly accredited programmes is likely to rise to at least 25% by 2011 and will certainly continue to grow thereafter.

By widening EPAS’ geographical base, business schools within the EPAS system will be able to expand their international reach and to benefit from greater networking opportunities with institutions of similar standing.

Providing network value to EFMD members in support of institutional internationalisation efforts was one of the motives for setting up the EPAS system. Tangible benefits already realised by institutions with accredited or eligible programmes clearly document the relevance of this aspect.

The EPAS Portfolio (December 2008)

Eligible Programmes

Bachelor

Master

(E)MBA

Other

Accredited Programmes

Bachelor

Master

(E)MBA

Other

All Programmes

Bachelor

Master

(E)MBA

Other

29%

30%

9%

32%

16%

25%

16% 12%

41%

25%

34%

29%

29%

30%

9%

32%

16%

25%

16% 12%

41%

25%

34%

29%

29%

30%

9%

32%

16%

25%

16% 12%

41%

25%

34%

29%



On EPAS learning points and rising EPAS standards

Another 69 programmes have been assessed for eligibility. A considerable body of experience has therefore been gathered in this time in terms of the validity of the process and of the issues that can arise within programmes.

As a result of experience, the process was modified in the early months but now appears to have achieved widespread recognition and to add value to partaking institutions.

Relating to programme issues, it should be noted that not all applicant programmes have been declared eligible and not all eligible programmes have been accredited. Additionally 20 out of the 24 accredited programmes have been accredited for three years rather than the maximum possible five years, which means that even these potentially good programmes have areas that need to be improved.

A number of common problem areas have been identified and these have increasingly become the focus for the review process.

Rising standards

EPAS is designed primarily as a programme-improvement system although it also offers a quality label that increasingly has international recognition. It is based on an agreed set of criteria that are deliberately broadly specified so as to be applicable to all levels of degree programmes. These are then interpreted as standards by the peer review teams and the Accreditation Board with respect to the particular programmes under review.

For example, there is an expectation that faculty delivering a specialist Masters programme will be more highly qualified and research-active than faculty delivering the early years of a Bachelors programme.

In the early years of EPAS, the standards were perhaps applied somewhat liberally as part of the learning process for the EPAS system. This should not be understood to mean that the quality label was lightly awarded but three-year accreditation was the norm with clear statements made as to the areas requiring improvement.

However, now that the system has matured the application of the standards, both for eligibility and for accreditation, is becoming more demanding. This means that programmes coming up for re-accreditation will have to demonstrate significant improvement in the areas specified in the original award letter. New applicant programmes are already being assessed more rigorously by the appropriate committees. Inevitably, standards in an improvement system rise over time.

EPAS has now been in existence for three-and-a-half years and it has accredited 24 programmes, ranging from Bachelors through Masters to MBA, from 18 peer reviews reports Professor Chris Greensted, EPAS Director, EFMD

90...the total number of

programmes assessed for

EPAS eligibility so far


Problem areas

The EPAS criteria encompass the institutional support for the applicant programme, the programme design and review process, the programme content, the quality of incoming students, the quality of faculty and their teaching, the quality of students’ work and hence of graduate quality, and finally the supporting quality assurance framework.

All of this is assessed in the context of the requirement that programmes have an international perspective, are academically rigorous and also provide the skills necessary to develop practising managers.

Given this framework, what areas are generally satisfactory and in which areas have issues most frequently arisen? Many of these have been discussed in previous articles in Global Focus and so only a summary is given here. It should be noted that the following comments are generalisations and sometimes satisfactory areas have problems and vice versa.

Least problematic areas:

– institutional support for the applicant programmes but sometimes programme initiation and management lies with one person

– programme design but too often it is designed only by academics and not involving a wider range of stakeholders

– academic quality of incoming students but selection criteria and processes are often not very rigorous

– high teaching quality but often relying on traditional methods with limited pedagogical innovation

– good placement of graduates in the job market

– high reputation with employers

More problematic areas:

– programme management not overseen by a programme committee or board

– Bologna transfer from five-year to 3+2-year Bachelor/Master programmes often cosmetic with the perceived objective of limiting rather than extending student mobility

– academic faculty not always sufficiently qualified or intellectually active for delivery of the applicant programme

– academic rigour in programme design and delivery usually weak for programmes with a professional orientation, even though offered as university degrees

– programme aims and intended learning outcomes not clearly specified

– standards of student work often do not sufficiently match the level of the degree offered, ie assessment is not rigorous

– international mix of students usually weak at Bachelor level

– students’ international learning experience weak at all levels, in terms of student mix, international faculty mix, study or work abroad

– students’ corporate learning experience weak, especially limited opportunities for industrial projects or placements/internships

– limited oversight of quality of teaching and examinations or assessment

– formal quality assurance systems often non-existent or only operated cosmetically

Conclusion

EPAS can only accredit what is presented and not what will be. For example, many institutions have aspirations to be recognised as international but currently their programmes have a national focus, often for historical reasons. No doubt EPAS accreditation would help to promote the programme internationally but to be accredited it must already have a significant international perspective (a chicken and egg situation!).

Some institutions offer professional Masters programmes designed to develop competence in students ready for the job market. Unfortunately, too many of these concentrate on skills-development based on current business problems but do not sufficiently provide the underpinning academic theory that would enable graduates to solve wider and more complex problems later in their careers, ie they provide training but not education (see EFMD position paper on professional degrees).

Furthermore, even some degree programmes are insufficiently academically rigorous for the award of university qualifications.

Finally, quality assurance has proved to be a misunderstood concept in many institutions. Having a programme approved by the national Ministry of Education on a five-year cycle is often thought to be enough but, too often, this is an exercise in reaching threshold standards rather than a means of developing excellence.

Well-established quality assurance systems should be designed to ensure high-quality design, delivery and outputs.

In summary, recent EPAS experience has led to reviews focusing on:

– International perspective

– Academic rigour

– Quality assurance systems

Over the coming months the EPAS criteria will be applied more rigorously, thereby raising the EPAS standards further but at the same time establishing EPAS even more as the premier global programme-accreditation system.

20 / 24...of the accredited programmes have been accredited for three years rather than the maximum possible five years, which means that even these potentially good programmes have areas that need to be improved



Using EPAS to drive internationalisation

In our times of rapidly increasing globalisation and dynamic competition, any strategic project of developing a recognised business

school implies its systemic internationalisation. This is especially challenging for a new business school from a country such as Russia with no serious traditions of both professional management education and internationalisation of the national university system in general.

In such cases it might be essential to start with international compatibility prior to building international competitiveness (not to say that such efforts would be considered in the school’s local environment as innovation).

This logic has been followed at St Petersburg University since 1993 when it was decided to create an in-house School of Management (SOM) of international calibre. After growing in 15 years from 33 Bachelor students and four faculty to 1,300 students (now in Bachelor, Master, EMBA and doctoral programmes)and 65 full-time faculty, and after several successful project-based developments in various aspects of internationalisation, the school prepared for and was awarded several high-level international recognitions for its core degree programmes.

The accreditation process and quality improvements required (especially in the case of EPAS for the Bachelor in Management programme) a major additional effort in internationalising all activities of the school.

In the remaining part of this article, first, a short

retrospective of the school’s evolution as an international player will be given, and, second, the systemic effects of the EPAS process will be discussed.

The creation of SOM has been supported through alliances with key institutional partners of St Petersburg University in America and Europe. In the early 1990s Haas Business School at the University of California, Berkeley, became our founding partner with the focus on assistance in developing the Bachelor in Management programme as well as joint research and fundraising projects. This and other partnerships were essential for focusing our institution-building and faculty development on international standards.

The second stage of internationalising SOM started in 1999 in the framework of the NEBSEN consortium, which was formed with four leading North European Business Schools (CBS, SSE, HSE and NHH) as a pioneering initiative to increase international students’ mobility. All five schools had already had a very positive experience of working together (in 1996-1998) on NORLET project (co-ordinated by ABB Co and focused on advance training of about 400 Russian managers.

Stage three began in the mid-2000s with the top priority of joining global associations of top business schools. This meant systemic internationalisation of all programmes, all units and all activities of the school, and this move has been reinforced by the major decision by the

leaders of the country to build one of the world-class Russian business schools on the platform of the SOM, renamed the Graduate School of Management (GSOM). GSOM became the Russian associate member of CEMS in December 2006 and the Russian candidate member of PIM in October 2007.

The EPAS accreditation process has been the most challenging one not only because at that time the Bachelor in Management programme (the programme in question) was the largest in terms of number of students but also because the EPAS model has the strongest requirement for strategic internationalisation of a school.

Learning from EPAS – both in preparing for accreditation and as a follow-up on recommendations from the peer review group – resulted in systemic internationalisation (and quality improvements) in the Bachelor in Management programme’s design, delivery and outcomes.

From EPAS experience it became clear that project-based and/or partial solutions do not suffice to become a top internationally recognised school.

Three major changes deserve special mention.

In curriculum design and delivery several new elements were introduced that built on the earlier development of the school but now came in a much more intense and consistent way

– The International Management concentration

Professor Valery S Katkalo, Dean, Graduate School of Management St Petersburg State University, explains how lessons learned from EPAS have led to systemic internationalisation at the school


‘From EPAS experience it became clear that project -based and/or partial solutions do not suffice to become a top internationally recognised school’

has been given top strategic priority for the programme and international aspects have been incorporated in all courses of the programme

– An obligatory semester abroad (for minimum 30 ECTS) has been introduced in the curriculum for all students of the programme – an innovation in itself for Russian business education

– The number of courses taught in English has been dramatically increased (up to 22 in 2008/09 academic year) thus supporting the move towards fully internationalised third and fourth years of the programme

One more area where EPAS has had clear effects is the rapid growth of corporate interactions, both in scale and scope. To mention just a few of 2007 developments here:

– The successful launch of the CITI Academy in Finance and Management and IBM Guest Lectures Series (both with good prospects for turning into electives)

– Continuous expansion of Bachelor students’ participation in L’Oreal business games (E-Strat Challenge and Brandstorm) and other simulations

– Increased case-based teaching using research cases written by GSOM professors (about 50 of their cases now registered at ECCH) on Russian and international businesses.

All these developments are focused on continuous quality improvement (the key task of EPAS), which in GSOM’s case could be termed “modernisation through internationalisation”.

1,300The School of Management grew in 15 years from 33 Bachelor students and four faculty to 1,300 students and 65 full-time faculty

22The number of courses taught in English has been dramatically increased up to 22 in the 2008/09 academic year



On leveraging improvements to teaching, learning and assessment

Alan Blackburn, Associate Dean, Planning and Resources, Oxford Brookes University Business School, illustrates how the EPAS accreditation system enables improvements to the teaching, learning and assessment of students

Reflections are drawn from first-hand experience of peer review at Oxford Brookes Business School and participation in peer reviews of other business schools in Europe. The following aspects are considered: EPAS

standards, peer review, and outcomes and action planning.

The EPAS quality standards concentrate on programme-level outcomes within which the value chain model is embedded. EPAS standards focus attention on the quality of incoming students, the quality of outgoing graduates and the jobs they obtain. This enables judgements to be made about the value added to students through teaching, learning and assessment during their educational journey.

Generally, educational programmes are approved at institutional level to ensure that a set of established learning outcomes are achieved. However, once designed, programmes can drift from what was originally intended and value added may be diminished. Quality assurance mechanisms should be designed to identify and correct any such drift. EPAS standards therefore also have a strong focus on quality assurance.

Preparation of an EPAS Self-Assessment document requires careful thought to justify why an educational experience is designed in a particular way. The intention is for programme teams to look critically at the value added by the teaching, learning and assessment strategy of a programme.

Too often other self-assessment documents only describe “the way things are done around here”, providing little insight into the student experience and the pedagogical thinking upon which it is based.

Peer review

Over time, people in any organisation become embedded in the peculiarities of practice within specific (in our case educational) contexts, meaning that it can be difficult to stand back from day-to-day practice and make objective sense of achievements and shortcomings.

Members of EPAS peer review panels (normally four) are also steeped in the traditions of their individual experiences of academic and corporate learning within particular national contexts. This combined experience generates a rich variety of questions during the peer review process, which in turn causes the home team to re-evaluate what they do and why.

10 EFMD Global Focus | Volume 03 | Issue 01 2009

‘Fresh thinking generates action plans to enhance the value added from teaching, learning and assessment processes’

The base room also provides rich pickings for peer review panels to test out the effectiveness of student learning as judged though copies of assignments, dissertations and the feedback of tutorial staff.

For example, peer review panels will judge the extent to which the design of an assignment helps support student learning and therefore the achievement of intended learning outcomes of a programme.

Panel meetings with programme leaders and teachers check out the extent to which teaching, learning and assessment processes are thought through and the learning materials and methods of delivery are appropriate. Included here are considerations of group and individual tuition and the extent to which learning, where appropriate, is supported by technology.

Outcomes

A process of change begins by unfreezing the status quo of a given situation.

Interaction between the peer review team and programme staff during panel meetings challenges conventional thinking and kick starts the process of reflection on practice at both institutional and programme levels.

This stimulates fresh thinking, which generates action plans to enhance the value added from teaching, learning and assessment processes.

Of key importance is for institutions to enter the EPAS process in a spirit of open co-operation because only then will benefits from the process be maximised.

‘Interaction between the peer review team and programme staff during panel meetings challenges conventional thinking and kick starts the process of reflection on practice’



Using EPAS to foster corporate links

Niclas Adler of Jönköping International Business School (JIBS) explains how the EPAS framework and accreditation process have been useful aids in consolidating diverse corporate links

JIBS was founded in 1994 as a private business school with the full rights of a Swedish university. It is operated as a limited company outside the traditional university system, with the chamber of commerce having acted as the prime

venture capitalist.JIBS’ key USPs since its inception have been an international focus and strong corporate links.

Starting with the first student intake in 1994 the school has operated a “host-company” programme, providing access for every student to an individual company he or she uses for workplace learning.

The challenges facing our corporate partners are related to their internationalisation and expansion strategies and JIBS provides systematic support for the improvement of internal management capabilities in the areas of product profitability, organisational redesign and the improvement of general support systems.

From 2007 the school has also added a formalised opportunity for faculty and students to participate in task forces that address issues faced by partner companies in a project-based learning environment. Doing so has helped to strengthen JIBS’ role as an academic partner of choice for Swedish small and medium-sized companies.

JIBS’ strategic and organisational development plan emphasises the strengthening of its corporate links and underlines its mission “to have real impact, to take an active role in society and to develop into a truly international business school with a global reach”.

Although JIBS’ corporate partnership portfolio is dominated by Swedish companies, the school’s objective is to increase the number of its co-operation agreements with international companies in order to match its growing international student population.

One of JIBS’ key challenges in the future will be to improve the effectiveness of managing a diverse set of corporate links and to strengthen the input from corporate partners in our continuous effort to improve the quality of education offerings.

The EPAS framework and the accreditation process have been useful aids in consolidating diverse corporate links and strengthening the management of corporate relations activities.

– First, the accreditation process has facilitated a recent review of the host-company programme based on sharing experiences of staff and faculty members. This has led to a number of improvements.

1� EFMD Global Focus | Volume 03 | Issue 01 2009

‘We consider EPAS as an important stepping-stone in JIBS’ effort to achieve institutional accreditation’

– Second, the accreditation process and the peer-review feedback helped to trigger important internal discussions on the future development of JIBS. They have compelled us to synchronise our mind-sets and our approaches on how best to leverage student and faculty task forces to address corporate challenges for our various programmes.

– Third, our corporate partners clearly share our interest in achieving international accreditations and cross-border recognition in the marketplace. The EPAS process has been a very effective tool in facilitating the development of a coherent and integrated framework for collaboration, not least by clarifying the expectations of the parties involved.

Although EPAS accreditation has focused on just one of our programmes, the peer-review visit and the rest of the accreditation process have had a wide impact on the school’s operations and have generated valuable input for the future revision of other programmes and activities in our portfolio.

In addition, we also consider EPAS as an important stepping-stone in JIBS’ effort to achieve institutional accreditation.

1994Starting with the first student intake in 1994 the school has operated a “host-company” programme

1� www.efmd.org/globalfocus


Using EPAS for enhancing quality assurance

Olivier Aptel of ESC Rennes School of Business explains how the school uses EPAS for enhancing quality assurance

Eighty per cent of our permanent faculty and 30% of our students are born outside France. This variety of cultures and managerial practices benefits all students, French and international alike.

As a higher institution of management, ESC Rennes has gained an international reputation and recognition for its expertise in management sectors closely related to the local economy.

For example, our research centres specialising in luxury goods and services, high-technology and corporate social responsibility provide a platform for continuous knowledge transfer between business partners, researchers and students.

Already accredited by the French Ministry of Higher Education and Research, ESC Rennes considers EPAS accreditation as an important element in its long-term development strategy and as a stepping stone towards the successful pursuit of EQUIS accreditation.

One of the key benefits of the EPAS accreditation process was the opportunity to enhance our internal quality assurance system. The EPAS value model has provided the school with an excellent framework for reviewing and clarifying programme management procedures, the consistency of programme content with stakeholder preferences and the quality management responsibilities of academic departments.

Above all, the accreditation process has helped us to redefine the role and composition of key management committees involved in keeping our academic programmes on a path of continuous quality improvement.

The EPAS process also served as an encouragement to take a more systematic approach to the internal review of student performance with more extensive surveys of student views on their educational experience at different stages of their studies.

This is complemented by a formal process of collecting feedback from alumni immediately following graduation as well as in mid-career.

The responses have not only enabled us to strengthen programme content and delivery, they have also served us well in the redesign of processes ensuring the consistent delivery of high-quality education to our students.

Three additional changes triggered by EPAS are of particular note.


80% ...of ESC Rennes School of Business’ permanent faculty and 30% of its students are born outside France

First, the school had to adapt its internal processes to reflect the new mission and strategic outlook, in particular the already quite successful efforts to enhance the school’s research profile.

Second, the recommendations and experiences of the EPAS accreditation peer review team had an immediate impact on our programme portfolio, in particular on the set-up of the Grande Ecole programme.

Third, EPAS has provided us with an excellent guideline for the review of our portfolio of corporate connections and for strengthening the match between the design of our academic programmes and the needs of corporate partners.

While our ultimate ambition is to move from EPAS to EQUIS, the impact of EPAS on school operations extends well beyond the programme submitted for review. The EPAS process has enabled us to co-operate more effectively with our stakeholders and has helped us to identify very effective means of raising the satisfaction of our overall student body.



EPAS as a stepping stone for EQUIS

Professor Bill Rees, Director, Amsterdam Business School, demonstrates the benefits of EPAS in gaining further accreditation

In 2005 the Masters in International Finance (MIF) programme at the University of Amsterdam was awarded EPAS accreditation in the first round of EPAS reviews. Two years later the University of Amsterdam Business School (ABS) was EQUIS accredited.

In 2004 the MIF had been established for ten years, had a high proportion of international staff and students, a good employment record, solid links with the finance world and demanding academic standards.

When EFMD asked for volunteers for the pilot EPAS reviews it therefore seemed a strong candidate. It was also hoped that the EPAS branding would help with student recruiting in terms of numbers and international mix.

Conversely, at that time ABS itself was only newly formed. Although business education had a long record within the university (the accounting programme had existed for 75 years), there remained much to do before the school could be benchmarked against international competition.

In particular, most courses were taught in Dutch and there were few international students. Thus at the time of the EPAS accreditation, ABS as a whole would have been stretched to meet EQUIS standards.

The MIF programme was put forward partly to support EFMD in its new venture and partly to strengthen the MIF brand.

The EPAS process turned out to be relatively comfortable. The programme had been nationally accredited the preceding summer and most of the documentation was available. As it was a strong programme, there was not much remedial work to be done but even so the EPAS process turned out to be immensely supportive and valuable.

A great deal was learned from the self-assessment and the very knowledgeable peer-review panel contributed enormously.

It is clear that the post-EPAS MIF was an improvement on its earlier version and more importantly it was possible to roll out the insights from the review across many other programmes in the school. Perhaps the only disappointment was that there was no clear and immediate impact on recruitment - although the intake gradually moved to almost 50.

The 2004 and 2006 data respectively outline the position when the EPAS and EQUIS accreditations were prepared. Core Academic Staff refers to those with more than 50%

Highlights of Structural Change at ABS between EPAS and EQUIS

2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Number Core Academic Staff

53 62 68 63 66

% of Core Holding a PhD

60 68 78 75 80

% of Core Non-Dutch

21 26 37 33 38

% of Core Female

11 13 20 19 20

International Refereed Publications

29 55 57 60 n/a

Other Academic Publications

85 116 130 165 n/a

Non-Dutch MSc Intake

0 0 92 110 140

Other Foreign Students

180 190 182 224 284

MIF/MBA Intake

24 30 61 60 106


‘Preparing documentation, taking remedial action, involving and motivating staff, and organising the whole process proved to be a huge task. Were it not for the EPAS visit, EQUIS might have proved overwhelming’

appointments. n/a indicates that publication records for 2008 are not yet available. Other Foreign Students refers to those joining BSc programmes run by the Faculty (joint business and economics).

In the period between the EPAS accreditation and the EQUIS panel visit ABS launched an MBA, switched the MSc courses to English, increased the international student body, further increased the percentage of international and female staff and expanded the previously somewhat localised research excellence to be much more generally effective.

In short, ABS could now be benchmarked against the top echelon in Europe. Even so, the EQUIS process was a shock. If EPAS can be seen as a distraction from normal activities, EQUIS is a complete takeover.

Preparing documentation, taking remedial action, involving and motivating staff, and organising the whole process proved to be a huge task. Were it not for the EPAS visit, EQUIS might have proved overwhelming.

As it was, an enormous amount was learned from the EQUIS process. There was an excellent visiting panel and feedback was both constructive and complimentary. There can be no doubt that the EPAS experience helped in the preparation for what is a demanding task.

To summarise:

– EPAS is a manageable process, whereas EQUIS can be all-consuming

– An EPAS programme can be chosen so as to come from those parts of the school that fit with the EFMD ethos but EQUIS reviews everything - warts and all

– EPAS will almost certainly improve the quality of the programme and the lessons can be rolled out to other programmes

– EQUIS has an all-pervading impact on quality and practices and a clear benefit to the school’s brand

– The EPAS experience will almost certainly help a school prepare for EQUIS

In conclusion, any school that feels its EQUIS application may be stronger after a period of development would be well advised to consider investing in EPAS in the meantime. The figures given emphasise the degree of change that can be engineered in just a couple of years.

There can be little doubt that EPAS is not only valuable in its own right but that it will inform and strengthen a subsequent EQUIS application.



How the EPAS accreditation process creates value for the institution

The implementation of the Bologna model in higher education in Europe radically sharpens the competition between academic institutions and their individual programmes reports Claes-R Julander, Stockholm School of Economics

It is of vital importance for deans to assess the competitiveness of their institution’s core programmes, their strengths and weaknesses, find avenues to remedy short-comings and competitive weaknesses, and to start processes of change in order

to enhance programme quality.

EPAS is perfectly suited, indeed designed, to address these vital issues. However, my experience as a peer reviewer and chair of the accreditation body clearly indicates that it is those institutions that have managed the accreditation process to a large extent in line with the following points that have derived really high value from the process.

Institutions that have received high value from EPAS:

– do not view the EPAS process only as a means of achieving the quality label but instead see it as part of a long-term effort to build a better and more competitive programme

– involve a broad spectrum of faculty, staff and students in the process from start to finish in order to create readiness for change and organisational knowledge of problems and strengths

– involve stakeholders in the process – alumni, sponsors and board members

– write a problem-oriented self-assessment report spelling out core problems and suggesting solutions. A sunny report, with no clouds in the sky for the institution, creates zero learning for the institution and the peer reviewers have to spend unnecessary time on uncovering the problems (which they always do) and less time on discussing solutions to problems with stakeholders and management

– use the experience of the reviewers in an open dialogue where discussions can be geared towards solutions rather than taking a defensive position trying to explain away shortcomings. Reviewers have a long experience of academic institutions and they visit the school with the intent of helping it

– use the peer report as an integral part of the quality work of the school and as a point of departure for discussions with the various stakeholders about the future plans of the programme that has been evaluated

– make EPAS an integrated and natural part of the ordinary quality enhancement process within the institution

– use the peer review report as a road map for change that management can use both internally when mobilising faculty and administration for change as well as externally when communicating with external interest groups


I am convinced that following this advice will not only increase the quality of the programme under evaluation but also that the institution will gain a new understanding of quality development. By going through the EPAS accreditation process an institution can integrate a systematic way of working with quality development into its operations, something that is absolutely necessary to do for programmes that want to play a significant role in the European arena for higher education in business.

‘EPAS is perfectly suited, indeed designed, to address the vital issues of an institution’s strengths and weaknesses’

EFMD

aisblR

ue Gachard 88 – B

ox 31050 B

russels Belgium

Phone: +32 2 629 08 10

Fax: +32 2 629 08 11

Email:

info@efm

d.org19 www.efmd.org/globalfocus


The value of EPAS from a corporate perspective

Dr Diem Ho, member of the IBM Academy of Technology, illustrates the value of EPAS from a corporate perspective and how this benefits partnerships and interactions

From the corporate perspective, the objective of EPAS is to ascertain how an academic institution utilises its corporate partnerships and interactions to enhance the practical relevance of its programme and so improve the employability of its graduates.

So from the corporate point of view, the value of EPAS is its role in helping to facilitate the alignment of academic programmes and skills-development with industry’s needs, encouraging and sustaining practical collaboration between institutions and business for research and education, and admitting students with the right profiles so that, when they graduate, they can hit the ground running once recruited.

To help achieve this, EPAS focuses on how an institution can acquire such industry and business links. Key areas for doing this include alumni associations, corporate advisory boards and academia-industry collaboration.

EPAS also examines the development of values through corporate participation in student recruitment, selection and/or enrolment, curriculum development, module design and programme review, relevance to industry’s needs, student teaching, mentoring, industry projects, internships and placement, faculty sabbatical or industry adjunct professorship, and industry-related or industry-funded research.

The value of EPAS is its capacity, among other things, to influence and help an institution to improve on its corporate interactions. This can be useful not only for the students, faculty members and the institution itself but also for industry.

For example, content collaboration on curricula can help to widen students’ horizons of practical interests and enhance their aptitude for real-life problem solving, thus helping them to improve their adaptability should the environment change.

With good corporate collaboration in recruitment, course design and review, teaching and practical research, the graduate profiles should match industry’s needs and thus enhance students’ employability and save industry from having to re-train new hires.

Industry can also take advantage of these close relationships to identify both high-calibre faculty for research collaboration as well as high-potential graduates.

‘The value of EPAS is its capacity to influence and help an institution to improve on its corporate interactions’

Special Supplement _ Volume 03 _ Issue 01 2009

Documents

business schools

equis contribution

equis process

equis standards

group of schools

equis criteria

estimated number of

efmd accreditations