B&B Higher education institution Kranj

The College of Sustainable Development, an independent higher education institution, is clearly positioned in the Slovenian higher education sector with its vision and strategy, and at the same time has set clear medium-term development goals. The institution is characterised by a well-organised system that makes it possible to identify potential discrimination and a great openness to informal communication regarding challenges, opportunities and suggestions for further development of the college. Compared to the results of the last accreditation, significant progress was noted in the area of research and professional activity, which provides a good basis for a breakthrough in this area as well. A high level of proactivity of the higher education institution in communicating with companies regarding knowledge and employment needs in the surrounding area was noted as well. Motivated and qualified professional and administrative support contributes significantly to the successful operation of the institution. The expert group also formulated several suggestions for improvement that the college should take into account when planning the quality development of the institution and the study programme. The university should further strengthen its research activities, also internationally. It should increase stakeholder involvement in strategic planning and consider reducing the number of strategic objectives. Students should be more actively involved in the management of the faculty, not only through the discussion and approval of documents, but also in their design. The visibility of the Alumni Club should be increased. The evaluation process identified that the 17th standard was not achieved: the library of the higher education institution does not have at least one copy of the mandatory literature written in the curricula. The expert group also carried out an evaluation of the first-cycle Environmental protection programme run by the college. In doing so, it identified non-compliance with quality standards in the same areas as in the analysis of college operations. As areas for improvement, the expert group suggested a more appropriate presentation of the results of the programme evaluation to the students, a more active role of the different stakeholders in defining measures resulting from the self-evaluation report and a strengthening of the international mobility of students and lecturers. When analysing the implementation of the study programme, the expert group emphasised the comprehensive renewal of the study programme, which was greatly helped by the variety of information gathered from students, staff and external stakeholders. The implementation of the study programme with afternoon lectures and a hybrid working method meets the needs of the students, most of whom are full-time employees, in an appropriate manner. The implementation of internship is systematically organised and also includes appropriate assessment by students and work mentors. As the lecturers mainly come from various professional organizations, they are professionally well qualified. Their teaching skills are also supported by the college through the organisation of various training events. The spatial conditions for studying are favourable. The teaching work is supported by appropriate technical support for remote working and the recording of lectures. The facilities also make it possible for people with limited mobility to study at the college.