Masaryk University and its faculties passed the second National Evaluation of Higher Education Institutions, which took place last year, with flying colours. MU received an overall grade of A, i.e. excellent, thereby confirming its position among the best research universities in the Czech Republic.
“Across all assessed areas, the strategic work of the university’s management, the quality of the research environment, the ability to respond to previous recommendations, and systematic progress in key areas – particularly in internationalisation, support for excellent research, and the development of doctoral studies – have been recognised,” said Šárka Pospíšilová, Vice-Rector for Research and Doctoral Studies.
A twelve-member International Evaluation Panel assessed quantitative and qualitative indicators in the areas of the research environment, international and national cooperation, excellence and overall research performance, as well as the relevance of the research to society and its specific societal impacts. The panel commended the conceptual management of science and research at MU, its strong grant-funding base, and the significant progress made in doctoral studies.
Responding to the recommendations
Of the thirteen development recommendations made by the international panel following the first comprehensive evaluation in 2020, MU has successfully implemented improvements in most areas, achieving full or partial resolution in the majority of cases. In the area of internationalisation, MUNI has significantly strengthened its participation in international projects and its success rate in the European Horizon Europe programmes.
This is due in particular to strong central grant support and its successful transfer to the faculties – one of the key recommendations from the previous evaluation. MU has therefore introduced a support programme for project staff and now also offers tailored consultations on funding opportunities for individual research teams. This has been reflected in a high success rate in the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) programme, a growing number of ERC grants, and strong participation in the Widening programme.
Another recommendation focused on improving the management of research groups in terms of their formation and quality, for example through the establishment of international scientific boards. At the university-wide level, this board was expanded from four to five members. Several faculties, such as the Faculty of Science, the Faculty of Medicine, and the Faculty of Sports Studies, have also established such advisory bodies.
Several recommendations from international experts focused on doctoral studies, where significant progress has been made as well. The issue of academic inbreeding is being addressed partly through the activities of the internal Grant Agency of Masaryk University, most notably the prestigious MUNI Award in Science and Humanities (MASH) grants for promising early-career researchers, as well as initiatives such as the MUNI PhD Career Days, which help doctoral students explore career opportunities beyond the university. A significant improvement in the quality of doctoral studies has been achieved through a marked improvement in the financial situation of doctoral students. MU now guarantees all students a minimum income of 1.2 times the minimum salary for the standard duration of their studies, exceeding statutory requirements. The evaluators also commended the progress made in modernising study programmes, the stronger emphasis on interdisciplinarity, and the greater alignment with international standards.
Besides their motivational value, the evaluation results also serve a practical purpose: they form part of the basis on which the Ministry of Education determines the level of institutional support for the strategic development of research organisations over the next five years.
“The national evaluation addresses several objectives. On the one hand, the Ministry of Education needs to allocate financial support for research and thus make comparisons across the entire higher education sector. On the other hand, the evaluation is intended to serve as formative feedback. Despite this being a difficult and, to some extent, thankless task, the national methodology and its specific implementation by the Ministry constitute an excellently organised initiative that serves a meaningful purpose. Masaryk University is entirely honest and transparent in the evaluation process. We have followed the recommendations, and since the last national evaluation in 2020, we have achieved significant innovations and successes in research. The panel was able to reflect these positives, but also to meaningfully identify certain limitations. This is a sign that if we approach the evaluation responsibly and with a genuine willingness to work with the feedback, the progress can be enormous,” noted Michal Petr, Director of the Research Office.
Improvement among the faculties
“Masaryk University is a strong, competitive research institution with significant achievements and a well-developed infrastructure. It is involved in projects with clear practical significance, including the securing of patents, and has successfully transferred research results into practice,” states the evaluation report by an independent international team. The panel also commended the fact that most of the ten MU faculties and two university institutes have made significant progress compared to the previous international evaluation.
After five years of work, the Faculty of Social Studies and the Faculty of Education have even improved their ranking by two places and received the highest grade, an A.
“I see the Faculty of Education’s highly positive evaluation as confirmation of our long-term and systematic efforts to improve the quality of research and doctoral studies. In recent years, we have clearly defined strategic research areas, strengthened support for excellent research, developed interdisciplinary collaboration, and created conditions for more intensive international engagement by our academics and doctoral students. I am pleased that not only the results achieved have been recognised, but also the Faculty’s ability to build, over the long term, an environment that links research with social responsibility. In my view, it is precisely this combination that is key for an institution that prepares future generations of educators while actively contributing to the development of education in our society,” said Simona Koryčánková, Dean of the Faculty of Education.
Tomáš Řiháček, Vice-Dean for Research and Doctoral Studies at the Faculty of Social Studies, added: “We are delighted to see the progress the Faculty of Social Studies has made since the last evaluation. This is the result of a series of individual steps, including the formulation of a grant strategy, support for applied research – which has also manifested itself in the establishment of the first social science spin-off company – strong international cooperation, and a focus on gender-balanced career progression for female and male academics.”
The Faculty of Medicine and the Faculty of Arts, for example, have moved up a grade to an overall grade of A.
“We are pleased to have successfully integrated three processes – assessment by an international evaluation panel, the internal evaluation of research and doctoral studies, and the HR Award – into systematic changes to the research environment at the faculty. This is a comprehensive set of measures that includes both individual support for research areas in the form of the creation of research groups and competitions for funding postdocs or start-up projects, as well as faculty-wide services for individualised project support, scouting and the development of applied research, and steps to build a community of researchers at the Faculty of Medicine, such as Research Breakfasts and the Research Day,” explained Tomáš Kašpárek, Vice-Dean for Research, PhD Studies and Institutional Development at the Faculty of Medicine.
Pavel Caha, Vice-Dean for Research and Project Management at the Faculty of Arts, noted that during the five-year evaluation period, the faculty had strengthened its Project Support Office and revised its strategy for supporting project applications, which it continues to develop with a focus on international grants. “However, the result is above all a success for our academics, who make the best possible use of this support and successfully apply for prestigious grants. We are also delighted that the faculty has secured a new ERC project for the next evaluation period and is achieving excellent results in the MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships competitions. The ability to attract young and promising researchers from abroad is crucial in the long term, and it is also one of our main commitments under the contract we have concluded with Masaryk University,” added Vice-Dean Caha. He noted that the faculty greatly values the opinion of the evaluators, who have given a clear signal that it is on the right track.
Where MU has room for improvement
Despite this second excellent university-wide evaluation and the significant improvement in the results of individual faculties in the National Evaluation of Higher Education Institutions, the university cannot afford to rest on its laurels.
External evaluators recommended, for example, the creation of a unified university database of centrally managed research infrastructures together with a systematic approach to their long-term funding and renewal. In the area of doctoral studies, they advised further developing support mechanisms for doctoral students, including mentoring and co-supervision.
In the area of strategic management, the international experts recommend strengthening the alignment between the university-wide strategy and the strategies of individual faculties so that the implementation of Masaryk University’s common direction becomes even clearer and more effective.