By quality assurance, we refer to all measures that the institution systematically applies to define, monitor and further improve the quality of our education and of the organisation as a whole.
The Royal Academy of Art, The Hague (KABK) is continuously striving to warrant and improve the quality of its education in the broadest sense of the term. Students, teachers, supporting staff and management are expected to get the best out of themselves, in order to create an optimal environment for higher art education.
The KABK is characterised by a quality culture: we aim for excellence in every aspect of learning. We participate in an international peer group of like-minded art academies, to share experiences with quality enhancement policies and procedures.
Internal quality assurance at the KABK
Staff, students, alumni and professionals of the different departments are actively involved in internal quality assurance at the KABK. Great importance is attached to having high-quality policies, both throughout the KABK and within the departments.
The Academy gathers opinions on the programmes and the programme results. Opinions are gathered internally, with students and staff members, as well as externally, with alumni, committee members, key figures in the art and design worlds, internship companies and professional art institutions. These opinions are voiced through dialogue, discussions and surveys.
The Examination Board is legally required (Article 7.12 Dutch Law on Higher Education and Scientific Research) and is the independent and competent body to certify that students fulfil all final qualifications required to obtain the diploma. It is responsible for the quality of the assessments and examinations, and it appoints the assessors/examiners. It is also responsible for decisions on requests for exemptions.
All bachelor and master programmes share one Examination Board, which consists of teaching staff and at least one member external to the programmes concerned.
Written and digital surveys are used to ask students about their level of satisfaction with the educational programme in general, as well as with regard to specific parts of the programme. Aspects addressed in the surveys include the level of the course, assessment and the study load.
The Royal Academy of Art, The Hague (KABK) regularly participates in national satisfaction surveys concerning students’ evaluation of content and organisational practice in institutes of higher education in the arts.
Within each programme, regular meetings are scheduled between the head of department and class representatives, thus functioning as student panels. The class representatives also meet at least once a year with the director.
Teachers and heads of departments meet regularly to discuss how the courses are run and the quality of the education. This information is then used to develop the programmes.
The director, heads of departments and other staff members participate in study days several times a year, in order to discuss current developments within the academy, the professional field and society.
Each year, renowned experts, artists and designers with an international practice are involved in the final examinations as external assessors. They are asked about their experiences and findings in relation to the department. The departments use this information to develop their programmes and assessment procedure.
A professional advisory committee (in Dutch, werkveldcommissie) has been established within each department to ensure compatibility with the professional field. There is also a professional advisory committee for the academy as a whole. These committees consist of respected individuals from the professional field who advise us and comment on the content of the programmes, the final objectives and the final level, as well as on developments in the field and what these mean for the Academy and its education.
The companies at which students complete their internships are asked about their findings regarding the level of the students and their needs in the professional field.
For the past few years, alumni have been invited to complete a digital questionnaire or to talk to the alumni coordinator and/or the quality assurance department about their experiences and recommendations.
Students leaving the Royal Academy of Art, The Hague without a diploma are interviewed intensively and are asked to complete a questionnaire. The information obtained from these surveys can prove useful for the development of the Academy’s education.