Quality Board for Higher Education in Iceland

Subject-Level Reviews

Subject-Level Reviews (SLRs) are one of the most important elements of the Icelandic Quality Enhancement Framework.

They are conceived as the primary responsibility of the universities themselves within the following guidelines. Within a cycle, all subject areas should be reviewed at least once, and at all levels (postgraduate and undergraduate) in which awards are made.

The process should include students and external stakeholders. An independent external expert must be involved in SLR to provide commentaries the robustness of the SLR process and on how the unit secures standards, enhances teaching and learning, and manages research. Finally, SLRs should include explicit action plans for enhancement.

The Quality Board monitors whether SLRs are carried out, if they are robust (i.e. use an evidence-based methodology that stands up to scrutiny), constructive, in line with the HEI’s strategy and lead to enhancement. There are no judgments in SLRs, but they form part of the evidence base of Institution-Wide Reviews.

Universities publish summaries of Subject-Level Reviews on their website. Links to those summaries are found below:

Bifröst University

Icelandic University of the Arts

Reykjavík University

University of Akureyri

University of Iceland

Agricultural University of Iceland