Assessment of tertiary education in Finland

• Pekka Stenqvist opetusministeriö

DOI: https://doi.org/10.33336/aik.96906

Abstract

Tertiary education in Finland has traditionally included the assessment of individual (student) achievements. When seen more widely, the assessment of tertiary education is based on the demand for results on the part of tuition and research in relation to the use of public funds and the subsequent matter of the relationship between results and quality. The article presents a review of the background to quality assessment in Finnish universities since 1984. The author examines three centrally important concepts: quality assessment, quality assurance and quality control as subsidiary tasks of quality regulation at universities. The different assessment methods are also described: self-evaluation, peer review, overall assessment, and assessment of the study line and study programme, plus which of these and how they can be applied in the assessment of Finnish tertiary education in this decade. Finally, the author examines experiences gained from assessment work.