Conference at Aydin University, 12/4/2016, Istanbul

1. European Quality Assurance
Register for Higher Education
New Trends in Higher Education
Quality Assurance in Europe
New Trends in Higher Education: Keeping Up With the Change
Istanbul, 12 April 2016
Colin Tück

2. Vision
The European Higher Education Area's (EHEA) vision to
respond to the current societal challenges:
 Higher education contributing to inclusive societies
 Providing opportunities and perspectives to
students
 Promoting democracy and human rights
 Safeguarding academic freedom
 Mobility and cooperation as key to understanding

3. EHEA Priorities
 Enhancing the quality and relevance of learning
and teaching
 Fostering the employability of graduates
 Making our systems more inclusive
 Implementing agreed structural reforms
(see Yerevan Ministerial Communiqué 2015)

4. EHEA framework for
quality assurance
 European Standards and
Guidelines (ESG)
 Modernised and improved 2015
version
 Common ground for QA in
Europe
 European Quality Assurance
Register (EQAR)
 Agencies that comply
substantially with the ESG – at
home and abroad
 Processes for substantive
changes and complaints
 42 registered QAAs
 Governmental members
without registered agency

5. Standards and Guidelines for
QA in the EHEA (ESG)
 Common standards for internal and external QA
 Developed jointly by the main stakeholders
 Agreed by ministers in 2005, revised in 2015
 Purposes:
 Set a common framework for quality assurance
systems at European, national and institutional level;
 Enable the assurance and improvement of quality;
 Support mutual trust, thus facilitating recognition and
mobility within and across national borders;
 Provide information on quality assurance in the EHEA.

6. ESG – principles for QA
 Higher education institutions have primary
responsibility for quality
 Responds to the diversity of systems, institutions,
programmes and students
 Support the development of a quality culture;
 Take into account the needs and expectations of
students, all other stakeholders and society
 Transparency and publication of results
 Independence of external QA agencies

7. European Quality Assurance Register
for Higher Education (EQAR)
 Established by E4 at Ministers'
request, jointly governed by
stakeholders and governments
 Non-profit and independent, acting in
the public interest
 Mission: enhancing trust and
confidence in EHEA
 Main role: to manage a register of
QAAs that comply substantially with
the ESG
Stakeholder
organisations
Governments
Observers
Register Committee
Independent QA experts,
nominated by stakeholders
approves

8. Challenges in Quality
Assurance
 Diversity of higher education institutions
 New modes of educational provision and cooperation
 Growth of internationalisation, TNE
 More student-centred approach to learning and teaching
 Flexible learning paths
 Recognising prior learning
 Demonstrate quality, increase transparency and build
mutual trust

9. New in QA after Yerevan
1. ESG 2015 adopted
2. Cross-border external quality assurance
“enable our higher education institutions to use a suitable
EQAR registered agency for their external quality assurance
process [...]”
3. European Approach for QA of Joint Programmes
4. Automatic recognition
“By 2020 we are determined to achieve an EHEA […] where
automatic recognition of qualifications has become a reality so
that students and graduates can move easily throughout it”

10. 1. ESG 2015 – what's
new?
 Clarified that ESG are applicable to non-
traditional HE, new modes of delivery,
transnational provision, etc.
 Better integrated in overall EHEA framework
 References to qualifications frameworks, other tools
 Underline institutional responsibility for quality
 Stronger focus on whole student experience
 E.g. admission, progression, student-centred learning

11. 1. ESG 2015 – what's
new?
 Take account of changed context
 Cross-border QA
 HEIs work with changing QAAs
 Stakeholder model consolidated
 Many principles more clear now, e.g.
 Publication of full reports
 Students on review panels
 Appeals
 Professional conduct of QAAs
➔ Reflecting EHEA's progress over last 10 years

12. 2. Quality assurance
crossing borders
9
4
1
1
2
4
3
6
1
2
1
1
6 1 1 1
1
4
63
36 26
15 16 8
2 6 3 17 3 7 2
26
1
5 110 81 11
119 6 136 67
71 112 97 702 271 55 278 739 1097
Total Home Inst CBEQA Prog CBEQA

13. 2. Cross-border QA
Opportunities Challenges
Higher
Education
Institutions
●
International visibility
●
Valuable feedback
●
Increased commitment
●
Different approaches
●
Suit their own mission
●
Identify suitable agency
●
Workload and costs
●
Unknown expectations
●
Language
Quality
Assurance
Agencies
●
International profile
●
Experience relevant for
work at home
●
Diversification
●
Unfamiliar context
●
Adapting standards
●
Language

14. 2. But: national legal
frameworks lag behind
 Despite the robust
European framework in
place …
 Cross-border
accreditation/ evaluation
not fully recognised
 In addition/parallel to
obligatory national
external QA
 Duplication of efforts for
institutions  Recognising EQAR-registered agencies as part of the national
requirements for external QA
 Recognising foreign agencies with own/specific framework
 Discussions ongoing
 Countries not recognising external QA by foreign agency

15. 3. European Approach for
QA of Joint Programmes
Before After
Multiple, fragmented reviews Single review
Combining various national rules
and criteria
Agreed Standards, based on ESG &
QF-EHEA
Complex procedures, ad hoc
design
Agreed Procedure
 Adopted by ministers in Yerevan to lift obstacles to the
QA of joint programmes

16. 4. Automatic recognition
 Part of the ministers' vision for the EHEA 2020
 Important topic for quality assurance:
 Need for QA and qualifications framework to work
hand-in-hand to make AR work
 See also ESG standard 1.2
 Need to analyse recognition practices in QA
 See ESG standard 1.4
 Brings new expectations for Bologna tools

17. Conclusions
 Important decisions for European QA at Yerevan
 Expectations – not only – from QA are rising
 ESG 2015: more coherent, robust framework
 EQAR working with stakeholders and governments
 Cross-border QA: practical guidance for QAAs/HEIs,
national legal frameworks
 European Approach for QA of JP: national implementation
 Automatic recognition: support from side of QA

18. Thank you for your attention!
Contact:
colin.tueck@eqar.eu
+32 2 234 39 11
@ColinTueck / @EQAR_he