Academic Development Council

According to French legislation, all higher education institutions are required to have a University Development Council. This body ensures that bachelor’s and master’s programs evolve in line with changes in social, professional, and economic environments. As one of UFAZ’s main partners, the University of Strasbourg (UNISTRA) also complies with this law, and therefore, since 2023, the University Development Council has been operating at the French-Azerbaijani University (UFAZ).

In practice, such councils provide guidance on the following matters:

Objectives for developing programs in terms of scientific knowledge, skills, and professional integration;
Alignment of current and planned courses, as needed;
Development directions based on the needs of students and professional partners;
Coordination of the program with other upper, lower, and intermediate-level programs;
Adaptation of teaching methods to the diversity of the audience;
Sequencing and organization of courses;
Measures taken in previous years to improve educational programs.

The Development Council may have access to the following data:

Application statistics over the past five years;
Exam participation rates;
Success rates by year;
Annual graduation rates;
Number of international students;
Number of students continuing education at foreign universities;
Graduate employment or further study rates;
Course evaluation results;
Implementation of student assessment in courses;
Alumni tracking data (6, 18, and 30 months after graduation).

Reports from Development Council meetings are submitted to both the UFAZ Academic Committee and the corresponding Development Councils at UNISTRA for each relevant program.

Composition

The Development Councils for UFAZ’s educational programs are formed with the following members:

Program managers for each field (bachelor’s and master’s programs);
Local coordinators for each field;
Three faculty representatives;
A representative from the UFAZ Teaching Department;
Student representatives (a total of 4, including bachelor’s and master’s students);
Two alumni;
3-4 industry representatives;
A UFAZ Operations Manager from an external field to align recommendations with UNISTRA requirements;
One representative from ASOIU.

Meeting Frequency

The Development Councils meet once a year to discuss the matters on their agenda.

Development Council for Computer Science: The meeting included 21 participants, comprising invited professors, local faculty, program coordinators, representatives from Azercell and Azercosmos, as well as one representative from ASOIU.
Development Council for Chemical Engineering: The meeting included 23 participants, comprising invited professors, local faculty, program coordinators, and representatives from SOCAR Downstream and SOCAR Polymer.
Development Council for Earth Sciences: The meeting included 15 participants, comprising invited professors, local faculty, program coordinators, and representatives from Azercosmos and EiLink.