Karlstad Business School has qualified for a final review by AACSB, a non-profit organisation that works with quality enhancement and accreditation of business schools around the world. The review will be performed in connection with a site visit late 2020 or early 2021.
“I am incredibly proud of the quality development towards accreditation that we have achieved together over the last few years,” says Martin Löfgren, Head of Department at Karlstad Business School. “What remains is to compile a final report and prepare for the site visit in such a way that we can explain in the best possible way who we are, what we do, and what we have accomplished in terms of quality work since 2015 when the effort was launched in accordance with AACSB standards.”
During the three-day site visit, an international AACSB team will evaluate Karlstad Business School in relation to the accreditation requirements.
“In the spring, we will receive material which specifies in more detail what the assessment panel will examine,” says Marie-Therese Christiansson, Deputy Head of Department and coordinator of the quality effort. “But we know already that their focus will be on our quality management abilities, our staff, Assurance of Learning (AoL), and the impact and influence of Karlstad Business School in society at large. In addition, they will be interested in meeting with people in different roles and all kinds of stakeholders with a relation to Karlstad Business School.”
A stamp of quality and coherent management
The AACSB accreditation is important in several ways. Apart from the fact that it enhances internal processes, it is greatly significant for internationalisation efforts and for strategic collaboration with other accredited business schools. The AACSB accreditation is a stamp of quality which strengthens the brand and enhances the attraction of Karlstad Business School, which in the long term brings us closer to its vision of being the first choice for students, colleagues, and partners. For Karlstad Business School, the work towards accreditation has also contributed to a form of management which allows different development initiatives to be handled synergistically and integrated coherently in daily operations.
15 standards
The work towards AACSB accreditation involves 15 standards that encompass all activities at Karlstad Business School, for instance staff, economy, internationalisation, the use of research results in education, student-oriented learning, student influence, and the support services of the University.
“One of the foregrounded processes over the years has been our work with Assurance of Learning (AoL), that is to say continuous learning,” says Marie-Therese Christiansson. “Among other things, programme and course coordinators have worked to define what skills will be subject to follow-up measures to ensure that students reach our shared learning objectives and expected skills. Efforts in the area of teaching effectiveness have also been made with good results, and positive examples have been shared on our AoL days over the past few years.”
On AACSB
AACSB (The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business) was founded in the US already in 1916 and has since developed into an organisation accrediting business schools around the world. AACSB offers internationally recognised accreditation, conferences, seminars, courses, publications, access to extensive global data and reports, networks, and research on challenges and trends related to business and economics education. Five percent of business schools globally have so far been accredited by AACSB.
Read more about the accreditation on the AACSB website.
