The International Tuning Academy has been established with the aim of making the results of all Tuning and Tuning-related projects accessible to the academic community and stipulating research on Tuning-related topics. The present call is launched by the Deusto headquarters of the Tuning Academy: Deusto International Tuning Academy (DITA).
In the framework of the different TUNING projects a methodology has been developed for (re-) designing, developing, and implementing first-, second- and third-cycle university degree programmes, as well as for evaluating and enhancing the quality of programmes of higher education. The TUNING methodology helps all the stakeholders understand higher education curricula and make them comparable. The five focus lines of the Tuning educational projects have been as follows:
- - Generic competences,
- - Subject-specific competences,
- - The role of ECTS as an accumulation system and measuring students’ workload
- - Approaches to learning, teaching, and assessment appropriate for competence-based learning
- - The role of quality enhancement in the educational process (emphasizing systems based on internal institutional quality culture).
The research projects we are looking for will focus on one of these topics:
-
analysing and evaluating the impact produced by the Tuning projects at the level of particular higher education programmes/institutions/countries/regions;
-
approaches to learning, teaching and assessment of generic competences – concrete examples of what is done within higher education degrees accompanied by enhancement proposals based on both theoretical and empirical data;
-
staff development initiatives that facilitate implementation of competence-based approach – critical evaluation of their effectiveness and how well they meet the needs;
-
curriculum reform and incorporation of Tuning approach in institutional and national policies.
The Short-Term Visits Scholarship Scheme has been established in order to bring together academics who have already been exploring Tuning-related topics, and PhD students/junior academics interested in researching one of the four topics (1-4), thus further consolidating Tuning-related research as a distinct domain within the general area of higher education studies.
Eligibility Criteria
The Short-Term Visits Scholarships can be granted to:
- young researcher enrolled in doctoral programmes elsewhere and focusing on a topic related to DITA’s current priority research lines (see above);
- scholars holding a PhD and currently actively engaged in post-doctoral research on a topic related to DITA’s current priority research lines (see above), and
- university staff interested in comparative case-studies of the implementation and impact of the Tuning approach in at least two higher education institutions.
There are no limitations as to country of residence, nationality, age.
Offered Benefits
6 scholarships for 1-month research visits are offered for those already pursuing research or interested in undertaking studies in any of the four research topics* and interested in spending one month at DITA between October 2015 and June 2016. The aim is to facilitate access to information about the different Tuning projects’ outcomes and to initiate or consolidate international collaborations.
* If you believe that your research project is closely related to the TUNING lines but is not included in any of the four broad research topics indicated above, you may still apply and your application will be considered. However, research projects within the three research topics will be prioritized.
What is provided (apart from the funding)?
- On-site access to DITA databases and library (project data; survey data, including data with restricted access; library specialized on Tuning-related topics);
- Methodological advice on research topic; and
- Practical and logistic support while in Bilbao.
The Short-Term Visits Scholarships consist of health insurance for the 4 weeks, full or partial reimbursement of the travel costs for a return ticket (up to 500 euros), and free-of-charge accommodation. No additional money for travel or congress participation will be made available to visiting researchers.
The health insurance is issued and paid for by the University of Deusto.
The return ticket is purchased by the visiting researcher and is then reimbursed (if the total cost does not exceed 500 euros) or partly reimbursed (up to the sum of 500 euros) by DITA. Any changes the researcher needs to make after the ticket has been purchased are to be covered by the researcher.
The cost of accommodation is transferred to the grantee upon his/her arrival to Bilbao and the grantee is then responsible for paying the accommodation fee to the accommodation provider directly.
If the visiting researcher does not comply with the Study Visit Plan and requirements as stipulated in “Visiting Researcher Agreement” (to be signed upon arrival in Bilbao) the scholarship may be cancelled and the visiting researcher will be obliged to reimburse the cost of both monthly allowance and travel.
