The quality of economics education in Portuguese universities: how academics’ characteristics fit with teaching accreditation standards

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to examine how the characteristics of academics in Portugal (regarding sex, professional category, contract type and tenure, degrees awarded and institutions that awarded each of them, age, research and professional experience) fit with the new teaching accreditation standards currently in use. An empirical quantitative study supported by data collected from the first and only national census of Portuguese course accreditation, comprising 972 academics in 14 institutions, was conducted. The profile that emerges of academic staff shows that there are significant areas for improvement to meet the quality of the accreditation standards. Also, our work has the advantage to be part of a scholarly reference that can be used (in a comparative perspective) for upcoming studies.