Academy of Fine Arts in Katowice ranked best in Poland
A for the Faculty of Art, A+ for the Faculty of Design. No other Polish art school has been ranked so high.
The Ministry of Science and Higher Education has announced the results of the evaluation performed by the Committee for Evaluation of Scientific Units, which assessed the scientific, research and development activities of academic units. In 2017, the parametrisation of academic units was carried out for 993 units. Both faculties of the Academy of Fine Arts in Katowice were awarded high scores. The Faculty of Design, along with 46 other units, received the best possible rating of A+. No other academy of fine arts in Poland was ranked so high. The Faculty of Art received the A rating, which was also awarded to 331 other entities. The largest number of units (467) received the B rating, while 147 units were ranked as C (previously: 77).
Four main criteria were taken into account during the evaluation:
- scientific and creative achievements,
- scientific potential,
- practical effects of scientific and artistic activities,
- other effects of scientific and artistic activities.
The evaluation was based on the information submitted by the scientific units in online questionnaires. Moreover, experts performed an additional assessment of the effects of academic units’ activities in order to identify the units which stand out for the quality of their research or development activities and their effects, which might allow them to be entered into the A+ category.
In mid-September, the Polish Accreditation Committee recognized the quality of education of the AFA study programmes in Painting and in Graphic Arts, Graphic Design specialisation. in In 2011, the same rating (still valid) was assigned to the programme in Graphic Arts, Printmaking specialisation.
In their report on the Painting study programme, the evaluation committee recognized especially:
- educational concept and its consistency with the school’s mission and strategy,
- curriculum and the possibility to achieve the assumed learning outcomes,
- teaching staff,
- infrastructure used in the educational process,
- cooperation with the social and economic environment in the educational process.
In case of Graphic Design, the following were recognized as outstanding:
- educational concept,
- number and quality of the teaching staff and the research carried out at the unit,
- cooperation with the social, economic or cultural environment in the educational process,
- educational and scientific infrastructure, which allows completing the study programme and conducting research,
- support for students’ learning, research and entering the labour market,
- effectiveness of the internal quality assurance system.
The next assessment of the Graphic Design programme is scheduled for 2023/24; Painting will be assessed in 2024/25, and Printmaking next academic year.
About AFA in Katowice
At the Academy of Fine Arts in Katowice recognized artists and designers share their knowledge on how to create images, prints, installations, objects, set decorations, public space projects, intermedia and computer games, products, websites, books, visual identity, multimedia projects. The average student-teacher ratio is 6:1. The school comprises two faculties, each offering two study programmes: Painting and Printmaking at The Faculty of Art, and Graphic Design and Design at the Faculty of Design.