How were you chosen?

The unit under evaluation proposes potential experts based on a predetermined set of criteria. The Evaluation Office checks and prioritizes the proposals (e.g., to minimize the potential of biases); finally, the invitees are selected by the Faculty Council or/and the Executive Board of the University.
Both the experts and the staff of the unit under evaluation disclose any potential grounds of bias or conflicts of interests.

Preparing for the Site Visit
Approximately six weeks before the start of the site visit, you will be sent documentation about the unit under evaluation and the University in general, as well as information about the evaluation process and your stay in Zurich. Please go through the received documents to prepare for the site visit.
You are asked to arrange your trip to and from Zurich yourself. Your travel expenses will of course be reimbursed. Payment forms for travel expense reimbursement and other expense compensation will be mailed to you along with the information documents. Lodging and board during your stay will be organized by the Evaluation Office.

During the Site Visit

At the start of the site visit, the Faculty Council and/or a member of the UZH Executive Board as well as potentially the Director Research and Education USZ presents the unit under evaluation and its context. The head of the Evaluation Office briefly covers the evaluation procedure. In the following days, you hold a number of discussions with the head, staff and potentially other stakeholders of the unit you were invited to evaluate. How the discussions are designed and conducted is up to you. At the end of the site visit, you orally present the key findings of your assessment to the members of the unit under evaluation. You subsequently inform the Evaluation Office and the corresponding governing body in a separate discussion.

After the Site Visit
You are asked to outline you recommendations, findings, and comments in the experts’ report, which —as a rule— should be sent to the Evaluation Office within three weeks after the site visit. In the interest of continually improving and further refining our process, we then ask you to give us feedback on the evaluation process via an online questionnaire.