Brussels, 24/09/2009 (Agence Europe) - Over the last few years, significant progress has been made in quality assurance in higher education both internally (within higher education establishments) and externally (evaluation and accreditation of establishments and curricula), according to the first triennial report from the European Commission. Many new agencies and networks have been established; “European Standards and Guidelines on Quality Assurance” are becoming ever better known, and a growing number of agencies are preparing to take on quality assurance outside their own countries. “Quality assurance is vital for making European higher education attractive and trustworthy. Globalisation, economic integration and increased academic and professional mobility are making mutual recognition and cross-border quality assurance increasingly important,” says European Commissioner for Education, Training, Culture and Youth Ján Figel' in a press release.
At national level, many new quality assurance agencies have been created. There are now agencies in almost all of the 46 countries of the European Higher Education Area (EHEA). They are rather heterogeneous in terms of size, scope, statute, focus and international capacity. At the same time, quality assurance is receiving a more and more solid foundation at the European level. There is an increased awareness of the European Standards and Guidelines on Quality Assurance, also thanks to the work of the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA). These agencies operate mainly within their own countries and only a few are active in other countries. The report notes, however, a growing number of agencies engaging in quality assurance outside their national context. The European Quality Assurance Register (EQAR), set up in 2008, with support from the European Commission, is a major new body in European quality assurance. The Register is open to agencies operating both in the European Higher Education Area and worldwide which can demonstrate that they meet European Standards and Guidelines. To respond fully to the arrangements of the 2006 recommendation, the report proposes improvements: 1) consideration should be given to certain alterations to the quality assurance infrastructure in order to increase the level of trust between the agencies and greater transparency for users; the agencies, which are perhaps too numerous and too small, could merge to become more efficient and to extend their scope; 2) make a clear distinction between the respective roles of the ENQA, EQAR and the ECA (European Consortium for Accreditation): bringing together fifteen organisations in ten member state. It seeks to obtain mutual recognition for accreditation decisions between its members) and more emphasis on their advantages for users; 3) further perfect, “European references and guidelines” to help ensure quality is more coherent with EEES developments; 4) expand the choice of higher education establishments by proposing more quality European labels; 5) encourage national agencies to work beyond their borders and obtain recognition of their decisions in other countries. In 2012, the Commission will publish a new report on progress accomplished in this area. (I.L./trans/rt/rh)