Quality Assurance Fit for the Future (QA-FIT)

One of the main questions that will be addressed during the QA-FIT project is whether the ESG are ready for the future, and if not, how to make sure they are.

Various stakeholders had appealed to make further revisions to the ESG in order to reflect recent developments in higher education, allow more room for innovation in quality assurance in the future and facilitate a more flexible application of common standards as well as room for development of alternative approaches.

To this end, the QA-FIT project aims to gather comprehensive evidence and reflect if and how the current EHEA framework of the ESG is perceived to limit the responsiveness of quality assurance to trends and innovations in higher education.

EQAR will be responsible for preparing, analysing and disseminating (via webinar and other means) the surveys for, and handling the consultation with, ministries of higher education. EQAR will additionally organise the final policy event that will disseminate the key policy messages, also considering the outcomes of the Bologna Process Ministerial Conference.

The future of the ESG: reflections based on findings from the QA-FIT project

This paper draws on the data collected with the objective of identifying and analysing commonalities and divergences in the perception of the ESG by different stakeholder groups,

and the key messages that can inform the future revision of the ESG.

High-quality higher education provision has been one of the key aims of the Bologna Process since its start in 1999, and in 2020, the Ministers responsible for higher education in the countries of the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) confirmed their commitment to quality assurance (QA) and the implementation of the European quality assurance framework, including the Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area (ESG). Today, cooperation in quality assurance within the EHEA has significantly increased, becoming one of the most successful outcomes of the Bologna Process, and the ESG are widely recognised as a valuable and indispensable common framework for developing shared criteria and methodologies.

The QA-FIT project has looked at how the ESG have been adapted to different (national and institutional) contexts, and explored how quality assurance activities are addressing recent and emerging issues, including those beyond the current scope of the ESG. A survey to gather quantitative and qualitative data was designed for each stakeholder group (institutions, QA agencies, students, and national authorities).

Read and download the paper

Quality assurance and internationalisation: state of play and perspectives for the future

This paper explores the state of implementation of the various quality assurance tools that support internationalisation,

discuss how current quality assurance arrangements both support and inhibit international activities of higher education institutions, and reflect on how these challenges might be addressed, including through the upcoming revision of the ESG.

As such, the paper provides input for further discussion. The material for the paper draws on the results of recent surveys to map activities and perceptions in the field of quality assurance across national authorities, quality assurance agencies, higher education institutions and students.

The research was conducted as part of the project and is supplemented by other information and data held by the contributing organisations. The paper focuses on internationalisation in the sense of cross-border activities of institutions and agencies within the EHEA, rather than other approaches, such as internationalisation at home, inclusion of foreign experts in internal and external quality assurance processes, and participation in international networks, projects and partnerships.

Internationalisation of higher education is at the heart of the history and development of the European Higher Education Area (EHEA). The common tools and frameworks, to be implemented in all signatory countries, aim to support mobility, recognition and cross-border cooperation. The European quality assurance framework is key to facilitating internationalisation as a basis for trust and transparency in higher education institutions, their learning and teaching activities, and the resulting qualifications awarded to students.

Read and download the paper

Analysis of Ministry Survey Responses

The paper is part of a comprehensive exercise to collect concrete evidence on the scope and implementation of internal and external quality assurance policies and practices, addressing emerging issues beyond the current scope of the ESG.

The analysis of Ministry survey responses offers valuable insights into the state of quality assurance in European Higher Education Area (EHEA) and perceptions of its future.

Download the the analysis here

Presentations & webinar on survey results

The presentations below on the preliminary survey results were given at the EQAR General Assembly in front of a live audience and recorded as a webinar (also below).

• Ministry survey results (Melinda Szabo, EQAR)
• Stakeholders view (Maria Kelo, EUA)

The webinar recording below “A Future-Proof Quality Assurance Framework for the EHEA” captures the first presentation as well as the stakeholder discussion that followed.

Webinar "A Future-Proof Quality Assurance Framework for the EHEA”

In the following recording, Melinda Szabo, Deputy Director of EQAR, presents an overview of the key findings from the QA-FIT surveys, followed by questions and a discussion. This webinar was given before a live audience of stakeholders of national ministries in Stockholm at the EQAR General Assembly on 10 May 2023.

Having problems accessing the video? Please try this link (presentation of Ministry Survey Results) and this link (stakeholder responses and discussion) directly via YouTube.

Project objectives

Conduct a comprehensive mapping exercise of the state of play of internal and external quality assurance in the EHEA.
Take a critical look at the ESG and see how they have been adapted to different contexts.
Explore how quality assurance activities are addressing recent and emerging developments in higher education including activities that go beyond the focus of the ESG and that use innovative approaches.
Gather perspectives on the future of quality assurance in the EHEA.

Main activities of the project

Surveys to the main quality assurance stakeholders, namely higher education institutions, students, quality assurance agencies, and ministries.
Papers to present findings from the surveys.
Webinars, organised in conjunction with the publication of the papers.
Focus groups to discuss in detail some of the matters arising from the surveys.
Final publication and policy recommendations.
Final conference in Brussels.

Project partners

ENQA – European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education, Belgium
ESU – European Students’ Union, Belgium
EUA – European University Association, Belgium
EURASHE – European Association of Institutions in Higher Education, Belgium
EQAR – European Quality Assurance Register for Higher Education, Belgium
ANOSR – National Alliance of Student Organisations in Romania, Romania
FINEEC – Finnish Education Evaluation Centre, Finland
IUA – Irish Universities Association, Ireland
MOESGE (associate partner) – Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia, Georgia

Click here for more info on the project (on webpage of project coordinator ENQA)