University attitude to the applicability and solution of the society-wide problem of water management

Abstract

Management of each university is currently dealing with qualitative parameters to withstand high national or international competition. Various university evaluation metrics – such as international ranking (QS World University Rankings, U – Multirank, etc.), as well as national indicators – often linked to the financing of individual universities – have been developed to monitor it. Significant indicators include, among other things, image of the university perceived by its stakeholders, built on communication of the educational process quality, scientific and creative activities, as well as the readiness of the graduates to practice. At present, qualitative indicators are more often related with society-wide overlap of activities where universities build image on the basis of activities resembling CSR in companies. Universities become places for discussion, prevention, but also for conceptual or realizable solutions to social problems and issues. Therefore the presented paper deals not only with the analysis of secondary data, but particularly with the results of primary surveys analyzing the impact of graduates’ applicability on the perceived image in two periods and in a subsequent project “Water for All” of the Faculty of Multimedia Communications. The project reflected needs of practice and the whole society and at the same time analyzed the perception of university students of the problem of water management in a pilot survey at Tomas Bata University. The focus of interest was to find out whether young people are aware of the problem of water management rather in a local or global context.