Quality assurance
At the University of Antwerp and YUFE we ensure the quality of our degree programmes. Every programme follows a six-year quality assurance cycle, combining continuous internal monitoring with periodic external review.
The Bachelor of Urban Sustainability Studies is a new programme and has received initial accreditation under the European Approach for Quality Assurance of Joint Programmes in January 2025. This means the programme has been assessed and approved to start, based on its curriculum, intended learning outcomes, staffing, and quality assurance framework. The programme is currently in its first phase of delivery and continuous development.
In the coming years, the programme will be closely followed through internal monitoring and control processes. These processes focus on the ongoing quality of teaching and learning, student experience, assessment practices, and programme organisation, and allow for timely improvements as the programme develops.
A peer review in the final year of the cycle will conclude the first full quality assurance cycle. At that time, the programme will prepare a self-reflection report and engage in discussions with internal and external experts, including an independent student
Conclusions of the initial accreditation
On 20 and 21 November 2024, the initial accreditation peer review team visited the Bachelor in Urban Sustainability Studies and confirmed its confidence in the programme.
Based on the self‑assessment report, extensive programme documentation, and discussions during the site visit, the panel gained a comprehensive understanding of the programme. Using the European Approach for Quality Assurance of Joint Programmes, the panel concludes that the programme meets all standards.
All partner universities have clearly contributed to the programme’s development and demonstrate strong commitment to its implementation. The Cooperation Agreement adequately covers the structures and processes required to set up, govern, and deliver the joint programme.
The intended learning outcomes reflect the breadth of knowledge and skills needed to address complex urban sustainability challenges. They integrate perspectives from social, natural, and technical sciences as well as the humanities, and are organised into subject‑specific competences, research skills, and transferable skills. The panel finds the learning outcomes clearly formulated, coherent, and appropriately focused on learner autonomy. It also recognises the careful design enabling students to make interdisciplinary connections, which is essential to ensuring alignment with the disciplinary field of urban sustainability. The academic advisor plays a key role in guiding students’ curricular choices.
The curriculum is designed to integrate diverse expertise across the YUFE Alliance. It offers a progressive learning path, beginning with foundational courses, followed by three YUFE Minors and electives, and culminating in a bachelor dissertation. The panel values this combination of open curriculum design, multilateral mobility, and challenge‑based learning in multicultural teams.
Admissions procedures are adequate. Non‑binding interviews help ensure students understand the programme’s demands, including its high level of autonomy and required mobility. The panel notes the need to remain attentive to inclusivity. It is confident, however, in the commitment of the team and the robustness of student support services, including guidance on finances, healthcare, accommodation, and community‑building.
The panel is convinced of the alliance’s capacity to deliver the programme at the appropriate level, supported by strong joint resources, competent staff, clear governance structures, and an improvement‑oriented quality assurance system.
It recommends clarifying the degree award (BSc or BA), strengthening the overview of learning‑outcome achievement, ensuring continued alignment with the disciplinary field, further specifying the academic advisor’s role, and clarifying student involvement in quality assurance.
Overall, the panel is highly positive about the quality and added value of the joint bachelor programme.
Facts and figures
The website ‘ gives you more detailed information about all programmes in Flemish university colleges and universities. Numbers for the Bachelor in Urban Sustainability Studies will be available from 2025-2026 onwards