EQAR's role in the EHEA and cross-border recognition of ......

European Quality Assurance Register for Higher Education

EQAR's role in the EHEA and cross-border

recognition of quality assurance

Supporting the Belarus Roadmap for Higher Education ReformMinsk, 19 May 2017

Colin Tück

History

1999 2003 2005 2007 2012 2015

First intentions:

“Promotion of European co-operation in quality

assurance”

(Bologna Communiqué)

Initial commitment:

Key elements of quality assurance

systems

(Berlin)

Common principles:

Standards and Guidelines for Quality

Assurance in the EHEA

(Bergen)

European organisation:

European Quality Assurance Register

(EQAR)

(London)

Closer integration:

“allow EQAR-registered agencies to perform their

activities across the EHEA”

(Bucharest)

Further consolidation:

ESG revised, European Approach for QA of Joint Programmes

(Yerevan)

European Framework for Quality Assurance in HE

Standards and Guidelinesfor Quality Assurance

in the EHEA (ESG)

Common frameworkEnable assurance and improvement

Support mutual trust

European Quality AssuranceRegister for HE (EQAR)

Transparency of QAInformation on bona fide agencies

Mutual trust and recognition

Qualifications Frameworkof the EHEA (QF EHEA)

Three levels (Ba, Ma, PhD)Learning outcomes

ECTS ranges

European Approach forQA of Joint Programmes

Agreed standards and procedurefor joint programmes

Criteria forregistration

Based onESG & QF

Applied byEQAR-reg. Agencies

Referred instandard 1.2

European Quality AssuranceRegister (EQAR)

Mission:

Enhance trust and confidence in HE

Role:

EHEA’s official register of quality assurance agencies that comply substantially with the ESG

Established by E4 (ENQA, ESU, EUA, ERUASHE) at request of ministers

Non-profit and independent

Acting in the public interest

Stakeholder organisations

Governments

Observers

Register CommitteeIndependent QA experts,

nominated by stakeholders

Governance of the organisation

Decisions on registration of agencies

EQAR Objectives

Enhance trust in registered agencies

Prevent „accreditation mills“ from gaining credibility

Recognition of QA decisions and results

Support recognition of qualifications

Allow registered QAAs to operate across the entire EHEA(see Yerevan Communiqué 2015)

Enable HEIs to choose suitable QAA

Impact of EQAR registration

Other (please include your motivation below):

Enhance possibilities to accredit/evaluate/audit HEIs abroad

Improve reputation nationally

Facilitate (international) recognition of reviewed HEIS and programmes

Fulfill expectations of government(s) and/or stakeholders

Improve reputation internationally

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

54%

5%

16%

7%

3%

5%

0%

13%

7%

7%

5%

2%

4%

28%

20%

25%

25%

23%

38%

44%

52%

54%

60%

69%

What were/are the main motivations for your QAA to join EQAR ?

relevant somewhat relevant rather irrelevant irrelevant not applicable

(EQAR Self-Evaluation 2015, Survey of Quality Assurance Agencies, n=61)

EQAR-registered agencies

44 registered QAAs

Governmental members without registered agency

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EQAR in practice

Registration based on external review of agency

Annual updates on reviews and countries

Substantive change reports

Third-party complaints

Periodic renewal every 5 years

Icons: Mozilla Public License, v. 2.0

Planned: database ofexternal QA results

How Things Works Together

QA NQF A

QF- EHEA

NQF B

ESG & EQAR self-certification

Qualification in country A

Level in country Bmap & recognise

EHEA Key Commitments

1) A Three-Cycle System compatible with the QF-EHEA and scaled by ECTS2) Compliance with the Lisbon Recognition Convention (LRC)3) Quality Assurance in conformity with European Standards and

Guidelines (ESG)Institutions granting degrees assure the quality of their programmes leading to degrees within the three-cycle system following the European Standards and Guidelines (ESG 2015).External quality assurance (be it at programme or institutional level) is performed by Agencies that have demonstrably complied with the standards and guidelines stipulated in the current ESG. This is best ensured where only those agencies registered on the European Quality Assurance Register for Higher Education (EQAR) are allowed to operate in the country.

Implementation Report 2015

Source: European Commission/EACEA/Eurydice, 2015. The European Higher Education Area in 2015: Bologna Process Implementation Report. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union(Reproduction is authorized provided the source is acknowledged.)

Key Commitment on External Quality Assurance

External QA performed by agencies that demonstrably comply with the ESG, registered on EQAR

For some, but not all higher education institutions

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External quality assurance across borders

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5 110 81 11119 6 136 67

71 112 97 702 271 55 278 739 1097

Total Home Inst CBEQA Prog CBEQA

CBQA: opportunities & challenges

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

CBQA: 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

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E4/EQAR: Key Considerations for CBQA

E4 Group and EQAR ad-hoc group, following up recommendation from RIQAA project (2012)

Reaffirm ESG as the basis for CB QA

Key issues that should be taken into consideration by HEIs and QAAs:

A. Engaging in cross-border QA

Rationale, suitable agency, legal framework, internal and external stakeholders

B. Carrying out cross-border QA

Procedures, preparation, expert selection/training, practical specificities

C. Addressing the results of cross-border QA

Recognition, complaints, appeals, follow-up

Thank you for your attention!

Contact:colin.tueck@eqar.eu

+32 2 234 39 11

@ColinTueck @EQAR_he