Barcelona: Only One in Ten New Degree Proposals Survive the Quality Filter

From the moment a university decides to launch a new degree program until the first students graduate, approximately seven years typically elapse. This includes the four standard years of a degree program, but also the roughly three years spent developing the project and completing the process that determines which degrees are offered at Catalan universities. Within this process, one of the key and mandatory steps is that the degree proposal receives a favorable evaluation from the Catalan University quality Agency (AQU). Only one in ten projects passes this filter. This information comes from data compiled by AQU, which ARA has consulted, regarding the number of proposals for new degrees, master’s programs, or doctoral programs that the agency has evaluated in the last five years to issue a report certifying the quality of these future programs.

Between 2020 and 2024, AQU received 348 proposals for new degree programs, the majority of which (303) received a favorable report from the agency. However, 45 proposals did not meet this essential requirement to begin offering programs. Of these 45, representing 13% of the total proposals received, half (24) received an unfavorable report from AQU, while 21 projects were withdrawn during the evaluation process because the universities that had submitted them withdrew.

“The data shows that the Catalan university system is committed to quality and to the design of these degree proposals. We may have some degrees that don’t pass the first verification, but this is also good from a quality standpoint because it means the processes are working,” argues the head of the Quality Assessment Area.

Detailed reports, but not impossible

However, a proposal receiving an unfavorable report from AQU doesn’t mean that the idea for new studies has to be shelved. “When a degree program doesn’t receive a favorable evaluation,it can be for several reasons,such as a lack of coherence between the name and the academic level of the qualification; a poor definition of the learning outcomes; inadequate implementation of the curriculum; or the faculty lacking the necessary qualifications to teach the program,” explains Huertas. He also emphasizes: “You have to submit well-prepared and justified reports demonstrating the university’s capacity to offer the degree program, but it’s not impossible. The figures show that if a proposal is well-developed, it eventually receives the necessary report.” Actually, AQU explains that before issuing the official report, the agency sends an initial document of recommendations to the university, outlining what needs to be improved for the degree program to ultimately receive approval.After submitting these recommendations-almost all proposals received by the AQU require some modification-the university has fifteen days to revise its initial proposal as needed. This revised document will then be analyzed by the University Quality Agency to determine whether to issue a favorable report. Therefore, if the proposal does not pass the initi

How a New University Degree Program Gets Approved in Catalonia

If a university in Catalonia wants to start a new degree program (like a Bachelor’s, Master’s, or Doctorate), it follows a specific process to get approval. Here’s a breakdown of the steps:

Once the Directorate approves everything, the program is published in the DOGC (the official journal of Catalonia). After this publication, the university can officially start offering the new degree, master’s, or doctoral program.