Improving the evaluation of the education–employment relationship in France

In 2005–2006, all universities were entered in the Reform Act of April 2002 (reform of higher education degrees) and the first balance sheets became possible. In March 2006, a new Evaluation Agency for Research and Higher Education (AERES) was set up by the law entitled ‘Programme Planning Law of Research’. AERES is an independent administrative authority in charge of evaluating higher education and research institutions with regard to their missions and activities, research activities of research centres and higher education degrees. Those events questioned the evaluation processes in France: which are the most important evaluations with regard to the higher education system? Usually, the evaluation of activities, the evaluation of resources and the evaluation of results, or, in other words, the evaluation of the efficiency and the effectiveness of the system, are distinguished. It is uncertain whether the new national agency will be able to evaluate the results of higher education degrees (see below). The access to the labour market becomes a field of evaluation. I will also look at national and local survey results, showing the increasing difficulties for new higher education graduates seeking a job, and at explanations of that (changes in the labour market and in the number of graduates and postgraduates). In that context, how do we develop not only the evaluation of higher education activities and resources, but also, above all, the evaluation of higher education results? How can we be sure of the quality of higher education degrees, especially of Higher Vocational Education (HVE) degrees? Particularly, how do we develop and improve the education– employment relationship? Are employers satisfied with higher education graduates’ skills? Are the new graduates satisfied with their first jobs? Do they find a job related to their skills? Our analyses show that external evaluations are not enough; they fail to measure and to prove the actual quality of HVE degrees (see below). Self-evaluations are needed and they can be used to build precise quality charts; when the majority of quality indicators are good, it becomes possible to look for an external accreditation by independent evaluation bodies, if possible at the European level (see below). However, external accreditations are not enough. The conclusion examines the problem of governance at the university level: why governing bodies are not able to abolish degrees that are not relevant for the labour market, i.e. those which give poor job opportunities to their graduates? The conclusion deals with that question.