Courses in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education
The Division of Research and Educational Support offers courses in teaching and learning in higher education. If you are employed and teach at Mid Sweden University you are welcome to apply. Registration opens Tuesday week 9 for courses in the fall, and Tuesday week 40 for courses in the spring.
Courses
To become qualified as a university teacher, the following five courses are compulsory:
- The teacher and the teaching process (fall term)
- The student and the learning process (fall term)
- Higher education and its context (fall term)
- Educational development work (spring term)
- Technology enhanced learning (spring term)
Before taking the course Educational development work, at least two other of the courses above have to be completed.
The following courses are eligible:
- Akademisk litteracitet (spring term, in Swedish only)
- Writing a teaching portfolio (spring term)
- Learning for sustainable development (spring term)
- Norm critical approaches to higher education (spring term of 2023)
Each course comprises two weeks of full-time studies, corresponding to 3 course credits. Most courses are given at quarter speed. The courses are given online. Course descriptions are available via the links above.
Application
The courses are free of charge and target employees with teaching duties at Mid Sweden University. Entry requirements are a higher education exam.
Application forms will be available from Tuesday week 9 for courses starting in the fall, and from Tuesday week 40 for courses starting in the spring. Course registration normally closes one month before the start of the course. You will find the application forms on the course web sites (click the links above). Each course is applied for separately. By applying, you confirm that your application is approved by your head of department.
About
The courses
- are regularly offered in both Swedish and English. You can always complete assignments in the language you prefer and the study groups are formed based on wishes about language.
- are in different ways connected to the Mid Sweden University strategy 2019-2023, especially as regards to lifelong learning, digitalization, technology enhanced learning, sustainable development, internationalization and equal opportunities. In one of the compulsory courses, you will be given the opportunity to carry out an educational development work linked to your own field of activities.
- follow the national recommendation for qualifying teacher education in teaching and learning in higher education formulated by The Association of Swedish Higher Education Institutions (SUHF). According to the recommendation, the scope is a total of 10 weeks of full-time studies, corresponding to 15 course credits at the advanced level.
- are given by the Division of Research and Educational Support (FUS) as determined by the Vice-Chancellor (Dnr MIUN 2020/94).
Questions?
For more information, see the FAQ on teaching and learning in higher education.
Application and prerequisites
What are the prerequisites?
You should have a university degree. The courses in teaching and learning in higher education correspond to advanced level, which means that at least a bachelor's degree is recommended. You do not need any credits in pedagogy or teaching experience to register for the first three courses or the eligable courses, even though it might be good to have some teaching experience.
The course Educational development project is the only one that has prerequisites. To register, you need to have taken at least two of the other courses or other courses in teaching and learning in higher education corresponding to 6 credits.
How do I apply?
You will find the application forms for each course respectively on the web course pages. There will be up to twenty-five participants in each course. First come, first served. Registration is done no later than one month before the course starts. If the course is fully booked, you will be placed in queue for the next round. Your registration will be confirmed by an automatic e-mail, and later on you will receive an e-mail from the course coordinator about whether you have received a place or not. The registration opens on Tuesday week 9 for courses in the fall and on Tuesday week 40 for courses in the spring.
Do I need to talk to the Head of my department in case I want to apply to one of your courses?
Yes, you should talk to your manager before you register. This is important in order for you to plan the time required for participation.
Can I use my working hours to study?
Yes, at least to a certain degree. As a full-time employee, five percent of your working hours are set aside for skill enhancement. Talk to your manager about how to solve the time aspect.
General course information
How much time do I need in order to complete a course?
Each course comprises two weeks of full-time studies, equivalent to three course credits. Most courses run at quarter speed, which means that the courses usually run for a period of eight weeks. You need to set aside about ten hours a week. The course Educational Development Project, however, has a slower pace of study (see course description).
Should I take the courses in a specific order?
The only requirement is that you must have read at least two of the other compulsory courses before you take the course Educational development work, as a certain theoretical knowledge is required for that course. Otherwise, FUS's recommendation is that you start with the Teacher and the teaching process and read the compulsory courses in the order in which they are given, but this is not a requirement. The eligible courses are completely independent and can be read in any order.
Are the courses campus or distance learning courses?
The courses are given online.
What tools are used in the courses?
The courses will be given via the learning management system Moodle. Zoom will be used as e-meeting tool. When joining Zoom meetings, you need a headset. Other tools may also be used in the different courses. Information is provided at the latest at the start of each course.
Why should I take courses in teaching and learning in higher education?
You should take the courses in order to gain the teaching qualifications for higher education and to be able to gain a post with conditional tenure as a university teacher at Mid Sweden University. There are national regulations through the recommendations of SUHF (the Association of Swedish Higher Education Institutions) that the qualifying education comprises 10 weeks (equivalent to 15 credits). If you are interested in further development and in teacher accreditation, you can take several eligible advanced courses in teaching and learning in higher education.
I have worked as a university teacher for several years. Do I need to study teaching and learning in higher education?
Yes, you need to have completed at least 15 course credits in teaching and learning in higher education even if you have experience from teaching in higher education. This is regulated by the SUHF recommendations for professional training for academic teaching and in the rules of procedure for teachers at Mid Sweden University.
You will find the SUHF recommendations (Rek 2016:1) here.
See rules of procedure for teachers at Mid Sweden University here.
Where can I find information concerning the course content and the learning outcomes?
The Department of Education also offers a course in teaching and learning, Högskolepedagogik och flexibelt lärande, 15 credits. Shall I choose that course or courses offered by the Division of Research and Educational Support?
Both courses follow the recommendations of SUHF and are at advanced level, so it does not matter which one you choose. Both courses are qualifying for employment as a university teacher.
However, there are some differences in layout and admissions. The course offered by the Department of Education runs at quarter speed during one academic year, giving you 15 course credits. The course has national admission and you apply in competition with others. The students come from different parts of Sweden and have different backgrounds.
Most courses offered by the Division of Research and Educational Support also run at quarter speed, but you do not need to study the equivalent of 15 course credits all at once. The training consists of five shorter courses where you can to some extent influence the order of the courses. All participants are employed at Mid Sweden University and right now there are no other admission rules than "first come, first served". The courses do not result in any course credits, but the course certificates show the extent and how many course credits they correspond to. See also the question Do I get any credits for taking these courses? in this FAQ.
Results and course certificate
Do I get any credits for taking these courses?
No, not automatically, but the courses correspond to a certain amount of course credits. According to SUHF (the Association of Swedish Higher Education Institutions), professional training for academic teaching comprises a total of at least ten weeks' full-time studies (15 ECTS). The training at Mid Sweden University is divided into two-weeks-courses, so you should take five courses in order to receive a certificate of higher education teaching qualifications.
What is required for a course certificate?
You need to pass all the assessments within a course. The certificate will be sent to you automatically after a completed course.
Credit transfer
I have studied teaching and learning in higher education abroad. Can I be given credit for such courses?
It depends on the content of the courses. You need to show your course certificates and descriptions of course content and learning outcomes in order to start a validation process. Please, send an e-mail to PUkontakt@miun.se for more information.
I have already 7,5 course credits in teaching and learning in higher education. What courses should I take in order to reach 15 course credits?
It depends on the content of the courses. You need to show your course certificates and descriptions of course content and learning outcomes in order to start a validation process. Please, send an e-mail to PUkontakt@miun.se for more information.
I have 15 course credits in teaching and learning in higher education from another Swedish university, but will soon start working at Mid Sweden University. Do I need to take any more courses?
According to the recommendations from SUHF (The Association of Swedish Higher Education Institutions; Rek 2016:1), courses in teaching and learning in higher education from any Swedish university should be acknowledged by all other Swedish higher education institutions. This means that you are authorized to teach at all Swedish universities, regardless of whether the courses were given credits or if they were given as staff training courses.
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