Students of universities, business schools, and other institutions of higher learning are the potential managers and professional experts of the future.

Whether they become engineers, economists, lawyers, business managers, or administrators within central or local government, they will be the ones to gain the most advantage from standards – and the ones to decide the future role and features of standardization.

Despite the broad scope and the vast impact of standards in today’s society, standardization is still not yet a well-defined or established discipline from a theoretical or academic perspective. There are various approaches and characterizations proposed by researchers in different disciplines and by experts and practitioners from different countries and organizations. 

Why is teaching standardization important?

BSI and other National Standard Bodies firmly believe that teaching what is and what can be achieved through standardization is extremely important because: 

• Knowledge, skills, attitudes, and experience in standardization add value to professions and roles in a large variety of fields.

• Teaching standardization increases students’ awareness of the nature, impact, and benefits of standards to markets and society, improving their ability to contribute to company performance and public welfare. In turn, this contributes to strengthening standards development, dissemination, and use.

Academics are part of our standards-makers community, either as individual experts or representing higher education institutions. Several universities and other institutions of higher learning have already embraced this concept and understand those teaching standards and standardization add value to the qualification of students in various disciplines – contributing to improving the university’s performance in meeting private and public sector needs.

However, there are many more institutions that are not yet aware of the potential of teaching standardization, or of the broad set of issues addressed by standardization and of their relevance to a number of mainstream disciplines. 

To help get your education organization started, BS 0 is the free standard for standards. Download the supplementary brochure The BSI Guide to Standardization today.

The importance of standards in different disciplines

Technical Subjects

The link between standards and scientific and technical disciplines, notably engineering, is evident. 

From the design of screw threads (BS 3643-1:2007) and fasteners (BS EN ISO 3506-1:2020) to technical drawings (BS 8888:2020) and the operation of machines (BS EN 60204-1:2018), technical standards are omnipresent. In each of these areas, standards not only provide the basis of good practices for designing and manufacturing good quality and safe products, they also give an important contribution to technical evolution by applying critical design constraints. That is, they allow to save vital design time and effort, simply by providing a stable foundation of already defined (and proven) properties, capabilities, and processes.

Entrepreneurship & Innovation

Innovation is widely recognized as one of the essential drivers of successful business and a key contributor to a nation’s productivity and economic growth. Finding ways of fostering innovation is a central concern for both forward-thinking companies and governments. Standards play a crucial role in de-risking investment and accelerating the adoption of new technologies, from the blockchain (BS ISO 22739:2020) to automated vehicles (PAS 1880:2020) through confidence in performance. 

At the heart of entrepreneurship is quality management and so educational organizations should implement standard BS EN ISO 9001, which sets out what’s needed to implement a quality management system. This, ultimately, helps educational organizations of every kind improve customer satisfaction and build a sustainable future.

To read more on the topic of innovation within the education sector, click here.

Sustainability

Standards can be an essential component of the emerging infrastructure of a new, sustainable world. 

In both academic and policy circles, there is now broad agreement that promoting sustainable development requires a systemic perspective on the long-term consequences of present policies for tomorrow’s environment, economy, and society. Standards, such as BS EN ISO 14001 Environmental management system (EMS) provide guidance on how every sector can reduce its impact on the environment. 

How Can Educational Organizations Teach Standardization?

Standardization can be taught in the framework of undergraduate, master's, or doctoral programs, as:

• A particular topic embedded in courses dealing with specific disciplines (such as electrical, mechanical, or civil engineering; economics or business strategy, etc.)

• A topic addressed through a dedicated lecture, workshop, or student assignment, linked to one or more course

• A specific subject matter, e.g. through a standardization course that can fit into several curricula (as a mandatory or elective course)

• A significant part of an academic curriculum (comprising a certain number of courses focused on or dealing extensively with standards-related matters)

• A specialized academic curriculum (i.e. a bachelor’s or Master’s degree in standardization, metrology, or quality, where standardization is among the core matters of the curriculum; or as a doctoral specialization)

All these approaches are valid; one size does not fit all. Depending on the specific objectives and local conditions, any of these approaches can generate significant added value for the concerned parties.

Standards for education organizations

There is also a range of standards that educational institutions can apply to their own operations from BS EN ISO 9001 (the internationally recognized Quality Management System (QMS) standard) to BS EN ISO/IEC 27001 (Information Security Management standard). 

Among their many benefits, they can help education businesses to:

• improve performance

• cut costs

• manage and reduce risk

• increase international trade

• speed up innovation

• increase sustainability

• demonstrate quality

• build customer trust

Add these key standards to your collection today to experience the benefits of standardization for both educators and students.

Discover BSI Knowledge

Our standards enable everything. However, knowing where to start when it comes to implementing them, or sharing their guidance with your staff and students can seem like a daunting challenge. With a BSI Knowledge subscription, you will have the flexibility and visibility to manage the key standards you need in order to enhance your education processes with confidence. Request to learn more.