QUALITY POLICY
The Quality Assurance Policy of the School of Medicine is fully aligned with the quality policy of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTh), as approved by the University Senate, reflecting its core values.
The School of Medicine ensures the assurance and promotion of the quality of its teaching, research, and administrative work through the continuous improvement of all its functions and with the participation and contribution of all its members.
The School organizes and implements high-standard Postgraduate Programmes in the most important sectors and fields of its science, oriented toward modern trends and requirements, thereby strengthening its academic profile. Additionally, the School is committed to developing a creative research and working environment for all its staff—teaching, research, and administrative—as well as a creative academic environment for its students.
Quality is recognized as a fundamental element for the realization of the vision and the achievement of the School’s mission; therefore, the creation of a quality culture is considered essential.
Implementation of Quality Policy – Quality Assurance
The School of Medicine and the Postgraduate Programme “Fetal and Maternal Medicine” in particular are committed to implementing the quality policy, which strengthens the academic profile and orientation of the postgraduate programmes, promotes their scope and subject matter, implements their strategic goals (as set annually), and defines the means, actions, and ways to achieve them. It ensures the participation of stakeholders and applies the appropriate internal and external quality processes with the ultimate goal of continuous improvement. Beyond the above, the School is committed to cultivating a climate of communication and cooperation among all members (staff, students, and stakeholders) of the School.
The School of Medicine and the Postgraduate Programme “Fetal and Maternal Medicine” apply the established quality assurance procedures of the Quality Manual of the Internal Quality Assurance System (IQAS/ΕΣΔΠ) of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, with the required specialization at the Postgraduate Programme level. The implementation of IQAS procedures is carried out in collaboration with the University’s Quality Assurance Unit (MODIP). Quality assurance procedures are a valuable tool for the School and the individual Postgraduate Programmes to implement their teaching and research activities, ensure the achievement of their set goals, and upgrade academic work in general.
The School of Medicine and the Postgraduate Programme “Fetal and Maternal Medicine,” for the implementation of this policy, commit to applying quality procedures that will demonstrate:
- the suitability of the structure and organization of the Postgraduate Programmes
- that the intended learning outcomes and qualifications are in accordance with the European and National Higher Education Qualifications Framework
- the promotion of the quality and effectiveness of the teaching/research work of the Postgraduate Programmes
- the suitability of the qualifications of the teaching staff for the Postgraduate Programmes
- the drafting, implementation, and review of specific annual quality goals for the improvement of the Postgraduate Programmes
- the level of demand in the labor market for the qualifications acquired by graduates
- the quality of support services
- the efficient utilization of the Postgraduate Programmes’ resources, which may originate from tuition fees
- the conduct of the annual internal evaluation and review of the quality assurance system for the School’s Postgraduate Programmes, in collaboration with the Internal Evaluation Committee (OMEA) and the MODIP of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.
The procedures applied for monitoring and continuously improving the quality of the Postgraduate Programmes are analyzed as follows:
- Implementation of the quality assurance policy for Postgraduate Programmes, periodic review, and revision (when required).
- Design of Postgraduate Programmes in accordance with current Legislation and AUTh Regulations, taking into account—to the extent possible—the views of students, graduates of the School and the MSc programmes, and collaborating entities.
- Alignment with the current legislative framework and regulatory provisions.
- Implementation of the Postgraduate Programme Regulations and other Regulations and Regulatory Decisions of AUTh.
- Submission of the Individual Inventory Sheet and the Course Description Sheet to the MODIP information system by the instructors.
- Conducting evaluation of courses and instructors by the students.
- Diverse methods of student assessment.
- Efforts to monitor the progress and professional career paths of Postgraduate Programme graduates.
- Teaching staff (selection, regulations, performance, support).
- Provision and management of Postgraduate Programme resources (infrastructure, equipment, etc.).
- Collection and processing/analysis of quality data (complete, accurate, and updated data) to ensure the quality of the School’s Postgraduate Programmes with the aim of improvement.
- Monitoring, analysis, and comparison with national and international indicators.
- Publication of information regarding the Postgraduate Programmes.
- High-quality and systematic updating of the Postgraduate Programmes’ website (in Greek, English, and potentially other languages) for the publication of relevant Programme information.
- Feedback mechanisms for strategy and goal-setting, review, and taking actions and corrective measures (when required).
- Conducting an annual internal evaluation (monitoring, control, and revision of the Postgraduate Programmes) according to all the aforementioned, based on the instructions of the Hellenic Authority for Higher Education (HAHE/ΕΘΑΑΕ) and MODIP.
- Support for external evaluation and accreditation processes, in collaboration with MODIP.
Quality Goals
The quality goals on which the School of Medicine will focus its efforts for the Postgraduate Programme “Fetal and Maternal Medicine” may include the following:
- The high standard and quality of studies based on international criteria.
- The provision of knowledge with emphasis on both basic sciences and clinical work, through modern educational practices such as problem-based learning (PBL) and integrated teaching (integration in medical education), alongside the cultivation of critical, creative, and research-oriented thinking.
- The correct combination of depth and breadth of knowledge.
- Familiarization with cutting-edge sectors and the conduct of laboratory and clinical work, combined with international-level research.
- Continuous improvement of quality in education and research.
- Promotion to society, the state, and the international scientific community of the work being carried out at AUTh and in the MSc programme.
- Enhancement of Academic Advising/Counselling.
The achievement of the above goals is a core concern of the School and is made possible thanks to the high quality of the School’s members and the active participation of students in its activities.