We report the results of the self-evaluation of the Astronomy Bachelor Course of the Observatório do Valongo, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro. We have created data indicators capable of quantifying the impact of curriculum and institutional improvements on the student’s background and career development in the last 30 years. It is remarkable that the institution in study: i) has undergone appreciable recent development; ii) has its graduation course as a long term investment and an essentially complete database on past professors and students; iii) is inserted in a young scientific Society (Sociedade Astronômica Brasileira), which has shown marked recent maturation and a large rate of growth. This enabled us to diagnose the evolution of the institution and its suitability to the different requirements of the astronomical career. We show that, in the hard science field, the increase of the number of graduated students and the decrease of the time spent as an undergraduate student are not sufficient, or even adequate, to evaluate the efficiency of education in science.
