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Autumn semester 2023 results

We would like to thank all the students who took the time to respond to the course evaluations questionnaires.

We especially thank those who offered insights by adding comments, thus providing substantive feedback on both development areas and successes. The students’ feedback was shared with EBS management, Heads of the study levels and Heads of the programmes. Your input is invaluable as we continue to develop our courses and study programmes.

In case you have any questions regarding the course evaluations and feedback please contact Head of Student Experience Liina Reimann (liina.reimann@ebs.ee)

Autumn 2023 general results

The EBS course evaluations score over all programmes is 6.16 out of 7.0.

The average response rate from last academic year has increased to 37,13%. We are happy to see that the average response rate of course evaluations has increased by almost 10%. However, we hope to see an increase of response rate over all study levels in the future.

Focus groups

To gather additional feedback on the study programmes, learning experience and organisation of studies, we organised focus groups amongst bachelor’s and master’s students. As focus groups meetings were organised for each programme cohort, it allowed us to take more in-depth look to each study group and their experience at EBS.

Many important insights and ideas were gathered for programme development. Focus groups were organised in cooperation with the Head of the Programme and Head of Study Level. Feedback shared by students is taken into account while planning for your study activities in the following semesters.

A total of 90 students participated in bachelor level and master level focus groups, 11 focus groups in total.

Main points of general feedback from focus groups 

Achievements and positive feedback:

  • EBS building and study environment: modern and inspiring study environment (EBS house, room booking system, Canvas)​
  • Expert faculty: students highly appreciate faculty members, and feel that faculty consists of people, who are experts in their field
  • Courses and grading: like that grade doesn’t only depend on exams, but also course work groupworks, presentations, individual assignments etc.
  • Learning from peers: during studies a lot of groupworks, which allows to learn from others and their experiences
  • Small study groups: personal approach, more engaging way of studies, open atmosphere to ask questions.
  • Real-life examples: Students highly appreciate guest lecturers, company visits, experts/mentors from their field
  • EBS showing that they care: the study department reaching out, asking for constant feedback, and improving things based on the feedback)
  • Student life: Events organised by EBS Sports Club/Student Council​

Areas of improvement:

  • More information about elective courses: for electives some reviews/feedback from previous students, so it would be easier to choose​ or better course descriptions (concrete course outlines like in Canvas)
  • Construction-related issues: problems with construction noise – not able to focus​, temperature regulation, providing alternative options for parking (some people are commuting from outside of Tallinn and provided discounts are small)
  • Issues with cafeteria: Food options (cafeteria opening hours are until 15.00, high prices, low quality of food)  why not set “daily meal options for affordable price”​
  • Vending & coffee machines: often empty/broken, not enough options or alternatives​
  • Campus-related: no paper towels in the bathrooms​, creating leisure-time spaces and spaces where you can rest & recover around campus
  • Student Life: Better communication about the organised events from Student Council & Sports Club
  • Networking and events: more networking opportunities/events outside courses​, have information sessions about studies abroad, specialisations and development opportunities​
  • International students: would appreciate course of Estonian language or about Estonian culture​, elective course about Estonian business culture can be interesting and useful!

Implemented changes:

  • Vending & coffee machines and cafeteria: Finding an additional partner to offer food/coffee in case the cafeteria is closed​
  • Campus-related: paper-towels are back in bathrooms
  • Student Life: better information sharing through Social Media, canvas Good To Know course and also Student Council information board by the stairs, additionally working on “course representatives” system with Student Council​
  • Networking and other events: during spring semester EBS has organised few open lectures & seminars, organised International Day and information sessions about specialisations

Future developments based on proposals:

  • Leisure areas and calm spaces: add some activities that can be done around campus (similar to golf), add “green area”  space to calm down and de-stress​
  • Alumni sharing experiences: Bring alumni in-house to share their stories, how about “Company workshops week every once in a while”​

Overview of bachelor programmes

The average response rate on bachelor’s level was 34%. We are happy to see that the average response rate has increased by 9%.

Below you can find the scores for each bachelor’s programme together with the response from Head of the Programme and Head of Study level.

The Entrepreneurship & Business Administration programme received the highest score in Autumn semester 2023 6.26 out of 7 (response rate 32%)

The International Business Admistration programme received the score of 5.88 out of 7 (response rate 22%)

The Impactful Entrepreneurship programme (IntBEB) scored 6.14 out of 7 (response rate 63%)

Ettevõtlus ja ärijuhtimine

Head Ettevõtluse ja ärijuhtimise õppekava üliõpilased!

Mis on hästi, mis on edusammud

BEB õppekava keskmine tagasiside on püsinud stabiilselt 6.3 punkti juures (7 punkti skaalal) viimase kuue semestri vältel ja see tulemus on pisut EBSi keskmisest kõrgem.

Küsitluse ja fookusgruppide andmed näitavad, et BEB õppekava praegune versioon on enamasti vastanud tudengite ootustele ja õpetatavad ained aitavad õppekava eesmärkide täitmisele kaasa. Tudengite tagasiside andmise tase BEB õppekavas on sarnane EBSi keskmisele, kuid kvaliteetsete ja tulemuslike muudatuste tegemiseks on vajalik kõrgema osalusmääraga ja detailsem tagasiside. Madala hinnangu saanud kursuste puhul on antud vähe avatud vastuseid, mis raskendab probleemide täpsemat mõistmist ja takistab õppekava juhil efektiivsete paranduste tegemist.

Tegemist on püsiva probleemiga ja kahjuks ei ole viimastel semestritel näha, et olukord oleks muutunud. Panen tudengitele südamele, et keskmise ja madala hinnangu andmisel on teie tagasisidest ainult siis kasu, kui täpsustate, mis kursuse puhul ei toiminud. Loomulikult rõõmustavad õppejõud ka sõnalise positiivse tagasiside üle.

Mida tuleks parandada

Tudengite tagasiside ja vestlused õppejõududega näitavad, et paljusid probleemseid olukordi saaks ennetada senisest parema ootuste juhtimisega. See tähendab, et soovitame õppejõul võtta esimeses loengus aega, et teha tudengitega kokkulepped selles osas, mis hakkab edaspidi toimuma ja millised on ootused mõlemale poolele. Kahjuks on käesoleval õppeaastal eriti teravalt esile tõusnud asjaolu, et päevaõppe rühmade puhul peavad kokkulepped edaspidi hõlmama ka elementaarsete viisakusreeglite järgimist, kuna erinevates gruppides on sellega viimasel ajal probleeme olnud. Paremat kommunikeerimist vajavad ka üleülikoolilised reeglid, näiteks see, et bakalaureuseõppe loengutest ei tehta Canvase ülekandeid ega salvestusi.  See otsus põhineb EBSi filosoofial, mille kohaselt väärtustame eelkõige vahetut suhtlust ja interaktiivsust, mida pakub traditsiooniline õppevorm. Ootame kõigilt tudengitelt aktiivset osavõttu loengutest, sest kohapealne osalus soodustab õppeainete sügavamat mõistmist ja paremaid õpitulemusi. Koroonaaja ja sellele järgneva perioodi kogemused näitasid et videoülekannete pakkumine vähendas oluliselt motivatsiooni loengutes osaleda, mis omakorda mõjutas õppimise kvaliteeti ja distsipliini.

EBSi tagasiside taseme eesmärgist (5.6 punkti 7st) madalama tagasiside saanud kursuste tagasisidega on õppekava juht põhjalikult tutvunud. Kõik õppejõud saavad oma tagasiside kohta jooksvalt teavet ja nõrgema tagasiside saanud õppejõududega on koos arutatud võimalusi kursuste ja õpikogemuse parandamiseks. Üldiselt on madalama tagasiside probleemid semestrite lõikes püsivad: kursuste ebaselge struktuur, iseseisvate tööde süsteemi ja nõuete ebaselgus, materjalide puudulikkus ja mõnikord ka õppejõudude suhtlemisoskuste või nende suhtlemisstiili eripärad. Osade ainete puhul oleme ka vahetanud õppejõude, et tagada rühmale sobivam õpetamisstiil.

Julgustame tudengeid koheselt õppejõule märku andma, kui midagi on kursusel ebaselge või saaks näiteks kursuse Canvase materjale paremini struktureerida. Jooksev tagasiside võimaldab kõige kiiremat olukorra parandamist.

Tudengite fookusgrupiintervjuud näitavad, et erinevused tudengite õpistiilides ja huvides ainevaldkondade vastu toovad kaasa olukorra, kus sama õppejõu kohta võib laekuda nii negatiivset kui ka väga positiivset tagasisidet. See tähendab, et erinevate tudengite kogemused ja vajadused võivad oluliselt erineda. Katsume siiski leida parimad lahendused kõigi tudengite toetamiseks, arvestades nende mitmekesiseid õpistiile ja huvisid.

Mis meil töös on, mida edasi teeme

Lõppenud on BEB/KBE õppekava uuendamine ja alanud on vastuvõtt õppekava uuele versioonile. Aitäh kõigile praegustele tudengitele, kelle sisend on uuenduste sisseviimisel olnud oluliseks infoallikaks. Mõnda uuendatud õppekava ainet saavad ka praegused tudengid juba algaval õppeaastal testida, näiteks pakume Investeerimise kursust valikainena.

Põhjalike kaalutluste ja analüüside tulemusel jätkame õppekavas kahe spetsialiseerumisega: iduettevõtluse ja äriarendus. Mõlemat suunda pakume nii päeva- kui ka sessioonõppes.


Anto Liivat
Bakalaureuseõppe juht

Katri Kerem
Ettevõtluse ja ärijuhtimise bakalaureuseōppekava kuraator

International Business Administration

Dear International Business Administration programme students,

The average course feedback score in the intBBA programme rose from 5.67 to 5.88 in Autumn 2023 compared to Autumn 2022, bring down on spring 2023 when it reached 6.11.

  1. Achievements and positive feedback:

Students’ feedback shows that several former issues of concern have been solved in the new version of the programme (starting from cohort 2022). The following examples of courses that received very good feedback are based not only on their high score but also on valuable feedback comments as well as focus group interviews with the group representatives.

First-year students pointed out ‘Management and Organisational Behaviour’ and ‘Principles of Marketing’ as interactive and interesting courses with positive atmosphere, good communication in class and interesting examples or case studies. ‘Business and Economic Environment’ and ‘Understanding Financial Statements’ were considered well-taught and interesting and/or useful, albeit challenging and using complicated terminology. ‘Learning to Learn Professionally’ that got the highest response rate was seen as useful and informative.

Second-year students highlighted good cohesion between courses, especially in the specialisation of Finance and Accounting. ‘Corporate Finance’, ‘Finance Ethics and Law’ and ‘Financial Communication’ were considered favourites. ‘Investment Management’ and ‘Financial Reporting’ were brought out as useful and well-structured, but also very difficult (either in terms of content or assignments). In the Marketing and Communication specialisation ‘Public Relations and Media Communication’ as well as ‘Individual and Society’ scored high, while questioning whether the latter should be a specialisation course only. ‘Data Analysis for Business Decisions’ was considered useful by many students.

Third-year students valued ‘Philosophy’ and ‘Business Law’ the most.

Students of all years appreciate interactive classes, practice exercises, real-life examples, company visits and guest lecturers.

  • Areas of improvement:

Students would often prefer quicker feedback on their submitted assignments. For some courses the instructions for assignments were not clear enough or students felt they did not know what to expect at the exam. Different workload for the same number of ECTS has been an issue too. Occasionally, feedback on the same course by the same lecturer(s) given by parallel groups (e.g. intBBA-23A vs intBBA-23B, etc.) was different, even contradictory. Judging from students’ comments, a group’s average feedback tends to be affected by scheduling (afternoon classes are more tiring); different prior knowledge or experience within the group (e.g. Personal Finance, Business Mathematics, Academic Writing).

  • Future developments

Reviewing certain groups of courses for better interdisciplinary links without too much overlapping, e.g. review of the specialisation courses in Marketing and Communication. Redesigning some courses or offering them as electives rather than mandatory (the latter concerns mainly the present third-year courses, e.g. International Business). For enhanced practical experience, the weight (and ECTS) of Internships will be increased.

We are grateful to all students who gave us feedback and comments. The higher the response rate, the more representative the feedback is to help us make improvements.

Anto Liivat

Head of Bachelor’s studies

Aet Toots

Head of International Business Administration programme

Impactful Entrepreneurship

Dear Entrepreneurship in the Digital Era students,

The average feedback score for all programme students was 6.14

Overall, you all seem to enjoy your studies and were generous providing us insightful and useful feedback, so we can keep improving our programme for all cohorts. 

First year students: 

You enjoyed teamwork and meeting new groupmates. Also, meeting entrepreneurs, doing project presentations and other learning activities that were planned for you. 

Average score you provided 6.05 and your response rate was 91% that must be acknowledged. Excellent, keep it up to set an example to all students. 

Areas of improvement: We will improve online test questions quality and will have different setting for the complex exam in the future to provide you with more time to fine-tune your individual and teamwork. 

We also had some last-minute changes in the schedule due to sicknesses of some lecturers. For that we apologise and hope that we can avoid these changes in the future. You also mentioned that you wish you had more discipline in the classroom: some students are late or absent and that affect your learning. I do hope that you have learned to respect and appreciate each other, so we all can benefit from during our learning sessions. 

Second year students:  

Most of second year students spent their semester in mobility and visited foreign universities. Your group set a record with over 60% of students being abroad enjoying international learning experiences. 

Being abroad meant being away, so we received very little qualitative information to understand the reasons behind the numbers that you provided as feedback. Hopefully, in spring, when you are back, we will receive a lot of comments what could be considered as an improvement and how we can improve your overall study experience. For autumn semester your average response rate was only 26%. 

Third year students:  

Average score you provided was 4.90 and your response rate was 70% that must be acknowledged. Keep providing us useful feedback so we can design better learning experiences.  

You provided us a lot of comments and ideas for improvement that will be all considered in the future. As you know, some of the ideas were already applied during the autumn semester.

 

You also asked for more cooperation with 1st and 2nd year students, and we hope that you will enjoy it during the spring semester. 

We also had some scheduling issues with third year students due to the sickness of teachers. Apologies for that and hopefully we will manage to accommodate this better in the future. 

Anto Liivat Marge Täks

Head of Bachelor’s studies Head of Impactful Entrepreneurship Programme

Overview of master programmes

The average response rate on master’s level was 47%. We are happy to see that the average response rate for master’s levels has increased as well. Response rates are highest amongst MBA groups.

The highest average scores over all the feedback questions received for MBA programme courses (MBA: 6.38 out of 7).

The average scores of all master’s programmes continue to stay on high level (MBA core → 6.38, Microdegrees → 6.22 , MA → 5.95, KK→ 6.17)

Course evaluation questionnaires

Course start

  • How would you rate your learning experience until now?
  • Open comment field

Course end

  • Q1 value: This course was valuable as it helps you achieve your professional goals
  • Q2 hours: “Course name” consisted of “hours Contact h” of lectures/seminars/webinars. Please estimate how many hours did you spend on this course in total?
  • Q3 course design: Please rate the quality of the course design
  • Q4 course delivery: The learning outcomes and the organisation of work: assignments, course materials and assessment criteria
  • Q5 atmosphere: Please rate the classroom atmosphere created by “lecturer”. How comfortable did you feel asking questions/making mistakes/ proposing changes, and disagreeing with the lecturer?
  • Q6 lecturer’s attitude: Please rate lecturer’s “lecturer’s” attitude towards teaching. Whether the lecturer was professional, easily accessible and committed to making sure the students achieve the learning outcomes of the course
  • Q7 feedback by lecturer:
  • Please rate the relevance of the feedback provided by “lecturer’s name”. Whether the feedback you received, either verbal or written, helps you improve your performance and inspires you to think further
  • Open comments field