This week, the Aragon Agency for University Quality and Foresight (ACPUA) held, via videoconference, a new edition of our ACPUA seminars on university quality. Entitled ‘Would you like to improve your university? STUDENT PARTICIPATION IN QUALITY WITHIN THE ARAGON UNIVERSITY SYSTEM’, the seminar focused on the active participation of students in improving the functioning of universities in the region.
The event, aimed at stakeholders in university quality – such as students, teaching staff and agencies – brought together leading representatives from the Aragonese academic community alongside a large group of young university students from universities in Aragon as well as from outside the region.
Programme of presentations
The session began at 1.00 pm with a welcome address and institutional presentation by Cristina Rodríguez Coarasa, director of the ACPUA.
The seminar then addressed the following key topics:
- The University of Zaragoza’s perspective: Santiago Puyol, president of the University of Zaragoza’s Students’ Council, delivered the presentation “How (and why) to get involved in quality assurance at the University of Zaragoza”, in which he explained the quality improvement cycle, the process through which student feedback is channelled via surveys and committees, and its direct impact on real-world decisions such as the adaptation of study programmes.
- The perspective from San Jorge University: Under the title “Your voice counts! The role of students in quality at San Jorge University”, María Torres Enguita, student representative at San Jorge University, outlined the various channels for student participation (ranging from class representatives to committees and European forums) and encouraged students to get actively involved so that their voice is heard in decision-making.
- The student’s role as an evaluator: Ana Isabel Ortega, technical coordinator at ACPUA, focused her presentation on “ACPUA: Students as essential evaluators of universities”, highlighting the importance of complying with European standards and guidelines (ESG 2015) which position students as key members of external evaluation panels and in the co-creation of quality.
Conclusions and European commitment
The event concluded with a joint discussion amongst the attendees and officially closed at 2.30 pm. Through initiatives such as this, ACPUA promotes compliance with European standards for university quality and reinforces its commitment to the 2030 Agenda (SDG 4) to ensure inclusive, equitable and high-quality education.
We would like to thank the student representatives from the universities of Aragon and members of the ACPUA Governing Council, Santiago Puyol and María Torres, for their active participation in promoting the culture of quality that we have been fostering through our Agency.
