Search

Using the example of the University Library in Magdeburg-Stendal, the article offers an outline of what a targeted transformation to Open Access could look like to be successful. Specific contexts and challenges are described, and practical approaches and related issues and development steps are explained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The question of how to promote co-creation and collaboration among universities and companies in research and developing operations lies in the background of this study. The focus of this exploratory case study is on knowledge-creating patterns in an online dissemination platform. The research question was expressed as follows: How to develop and maintain a context supporting collaboration and creative common activities by academic online publishing. Online publishing environments are in continuous turbulence. Thus, we have to develop platforms for the dissemination of knowledge systematically. This means, for instance, evidence-based analyses, assessing, and brainstorming. In this case study, we describe one development process by focusing on an online journal and the multiple future scenarios (possibilities) for the journal. In addition, some visions and thoughts about the role of OA journals and possibilities in implementing and publishing the activities and performances of higher education institutions are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Higher educational institutions, such as universities of applied sciences, have a significant role in promoting progress towards a sustainable future as defined by the United Nations (UN) sustainable development goals (SDGs). This paper aims to identify how the UN SDGs are featured in master's theses set in work–life contexts. Design/methodology/approach: Using a descriptive review and content analysis, this study identified the number of SDGs appearing in 31 master's theses. Sustainable development (SD) and corporate social responsibility were reflected using the approaches and models in the literature. Finland's eight objectives for committing to SD were used to examine the commitments made by the business school of the university of applied sciences to achieve Agenda 2030. Findings: Emphasising the value of higher education for SD, this study found that SDGs three, eight and 12 appeared most frequently in the theses. Sustainable and responsible dimensions reflected several issues concerning both the worlds of business and industry among the firms and organisations investigated by the master's degree students in the business school at the Jyväskylä University of Applied Sciences. Practical implications: This research holds practical and pedagogical value, serving to encourage master's and PhD students to further explore research on SDGs and to shape public policy. Originality/value: Sustainability was looked at in a new way as investigated by the theses. Ways to integrate the SDGs into management degree programmes and conduct research in the fields of business administration, tourism and hospitality management were identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The universities of applied sciences (UASs) in Finland play a significant role in providing skilled professionals with higher education degrees to meet the needs of the labor market and society as a whole. The purpose of this study is to determine what the staff in these universities consider the role of UASs in promoting sustainable development (SD) to be. Design/methodology/approach: The qualitative research data were collected from a survey distributed among UAS staff in the spring of 2021. The data consisted of 831 responses to an open-ended question on how UASs could promote SD and a sense of responsibility for it. The method used for the data analysis was theory-led content analysis. Findings: Staff at UASs are actively promoting SD in higher education and have many ideas on how to do this, which is encouraging. With further processing of these ideas and support from management, UASs can play a more important role in sustainability work and set an example for how to build a sustainable future. Originality/value: The promotion of SD is a timely topic, and examples of SD implementation and good practices can promote discussion of the role of higher education institutions in SD promotion and highlight collective ways to promote it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The contribution at hand sheds light on dramatically mounting tensions that academic tourism education in Germany is facing within the context of applied science universities. Drawing on the concept of organizational hybridity, we distil two dilemmas resulting from respectively incongruent expectation sets. Firstly, a spatial hybridity dilemma results from opposing missions of regional development and embeddedness versus internationalization prescriptions and efforts. Secondly, there is an ideational hybridity dilemma resulting from imperatives to serve employment markets versus academic purposes of serving social and scientific ideals. Based on a tourism program case from Northern Germany we highlight how a mélange of diverse, partly obscure and increasingly conflicting missions as well as largely inflated and for the most part incongruent stakeholder expectations threaten to tear the institution apart and to lead tourism education onto pathways where it could lose its bearings. We summarize our three major concerns of academics drifting off the course of integrity out of desperation resulting from overwhelming pressures, impoverished learning experience for our student constituencies and impoverishment of research in an era where we need meaningful research more than ever in tourism and beyond. We thus contribute to the debate about the future of tourism education in academia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The structural changes in the pharmaceutical industry have implications on the qualification profile of university graduates. In this paper, the authors share their experiences with and insights into this topic both from the perspective of a university of applied sciences and the industry. They question the current emphasis on competencies and their implementation in university teaching. They believe that module descriptions and learning objectives fall short with respect to the necessary expert knowledge required in industry. They describe the educational philosophy of Carl Remigius Fresenius (1818–1897) with its focus both on knowledge acquisition and application as a counterexample. With the practical case of the M.Sc. Executive Initiative, both the necessity as well as the implementation of practice‐oriented university teaching in the context of the pharmaceutical industry 4.0 is illustrated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study gender differences in the selection of traditional universities versus universities of applied sciences in Germany. Do women, due to life and job goals, less often enrol than men in traditional universities and more often enrol at the more practice- and profession-oriented universities of applied sciences? Or are women overrepresented at traditional universities due to prior educational choices and outcomes such as higher school grades and more frequent choice of non-technical fields of study? Our analyses on a national sample of 1st-year students report a 14-percentage point higher likelihood of women than men to enter traditional universities. This gender gap can almost entirely be attributed to educational factors, specifically women's less frequent choice of engineering majors, and hardly by job goal preferences. That, net of these factors, no gender difference exists indicates that women in Germany do not aim lower or higher than men as to the institution choice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A lot of what we read today in the media about coronavirus waves, school closings, and soon available vaccines reminds of the influenza pandemic 1918-1920. An essential difference is the electronic infrastructure that allows us to supply users with online library services. This paper illustrates how the library of the University of Applied Sciences Burgenland managed to compensate the sudden decrease of physical borrowing with already available digital tools (Alma-Summon, Microsoft Teams), and new ones like LibAnswers. Finally, it will be shown how by simple means (Microsoft Office) a library seats availability dashboard was realized and shared with other libraries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes the success factors that would ensure and support the future of professional higher education alongside (traditional) university education. The paradigm of the binary higher education system is changing, the key question is in which direction professional higher education should develop and who defines the needs of trends. The purpose of the current article is to describe the development of professional higher education in Estonia in general, and in this context, the recent trends in labour market, skills and new knowledge necessary for graduates of universities of applied sciences (UAS), are examined. The first part of the current article focuses on the general developments and trends of professional higher education in the 21st century, e.g. lifelong learning, more quick changes for professional requirements, and importance of access to education in regional centers. The second part describes the changes in the labour market, new skills and knowledge and emphasizes the close cooperation of universities of applied sciences and employers. The third part concentrates on the analysis of main factors influencing professional higher education in Estonia. It gives an overview of the legal environment, key performance indicators as the number of admissions, the number of students, the number of graduates as well as the dynamics of financial support for universities of applied sciences in 2014-2019 in the context of economical and legislation changes in Estonia. Presentation and understanding of current situation analysis of strengths and weaknesses is the foundation for the content and role of professional higher education in the future. In the end of the overview recommendations are given to guarantee the sustainable, competitive and high-quality professional higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Libraries of Austrian universities - federal universities, private universities and universities of applied sciences - as well as libraries of other research facilities cooperate in many fields. The article focuses on collaborations of facilities with a medical key aspect within the Austrian Library Network, the Austrian Academic Library Consortium and the Council of Austrian University Libraries. Furthermore infrastructure projects run by these libraries in the fields of online repositories, research data management and open access are portrayed. Finally the GMLA working group of Austrian medical librarians is introduced as an important forum for librarians of the spheres of medicine, pharmacy and public health to exchange their experiences and ideas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research focuses on the emergence, development and possible future trends of the binary education system in Europe, focusing on the experience of Estonian professional higher education institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China has recently launched a radical reform to transform over 600 regional universities into application and technology oriented institutions. The reform is a response to diverse labour market demands, regional economic development and the suboptimal structure of the higher education system, and uses international experiences as a reference. While China is still struggling to identify proper international models to follow, this article offers a potential candidate – Finland, with respect to Finnish experiences recommendations for the Chinese reform are discussed and elicited. The analysis flows from discussions in a series of seminars and workshops held in Finland and China in 2014. This article argues that the Finnish experience is of relevance to Chinese regional university transformation, notwithstanding the huge difference in scale. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to ascertain how the people who train Finnish teachers implement entrepreneurship education in the guidance they provide. The authors show how learning through, for and about entrepreneurship manifests in the self-evaluations of Finnish teacher educators. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected in spring 2012 with a quantitative survey questionnaire to 100 teacher educators and training teachers for vocational and general education, to rectors and managers. Findings – The teacher educators used a relatively large number of the pedagogical models and methods pursued in entrepreneurship education, such as problem based learning, experiential and practical descriptions of situations, and they also encouraged their students to take responsibility and to be self-directed. These can be seen to specifically support learning for entrepreneurship. On the other hand there would still be room for improvement as regards the teacher educators’ guidance through entrepreneurship. Practical implications – It would be appropriate in entrepreneurship education to take account of prospective teachers’ authentic experiences of entrepreneurship. For example, in teacher training greater use could be made of practice enterprises, co-operative operations, on-the-job learning and methods such as the Young Enterprise business incubator. Originality/value – The European Union places particular emphasis on the further development of entrepreneurship education in teacher training. The study opens up perspectives on what kinds of skills teacher educators impart to prospective teachers who will continue in working life until the 2070s. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this article is to investigate students' narratives about their professional development process. This research brings new kind of knowledge to continuing learning, developing education and planning the curriculum in physiotherapy education. The European Qualification Framework (EQF) defines learning competences in education; qualitative research has a narrative approach. The material consists of eight voluntarily participating physiotherapy students' portfolios written during their whole study time. The longitudinal data describes them as learners and their development process. The major findings are four main episodes in professional development: the previous studies, a new way of learning, understanding the physiotherapy and becoming professional in physiotherapy. Three story models were found: the story of the development of an autonomous learner, the story of the development in becoming a member of the physiotherapy community and the story of the development of a critical developer. In conclusion, four steps in the physiotherapy students' professional development were formed. The model helps understand the students' concepts about their professional development. Students need theoretical knowledge and practical skills to build their professional development. Reflecting learning and instructed practice are important for professional development in healthcare. Learning is connected to action, context and culture where information is collected and used. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]