Quality, Accountability and Autonomy

Quality emerged slowly as an important factor for the success of the Bologna process and received only cursory mention in the original Bologna Declaration. However, as ministers met every two years to take stock of progress and define mid-term objectives (Prague in 2001, Berlin in 2003 and Bergen in 2005), the issue of quality kept growing in importance, until it rose to the fore of the ministerial agenda. The Berlin Communiqué marked a major turning point by stating that “consistent with the principle of institutional autonomy, the primary responsibility for quality assurance in higher education lies with each institution itself”.
Quality assurance in European higher education comprises three levels:

1. Institutional level: Enhancing quality
EUA has taken the lead in developing the capacity of higher education institutions to create internal quality processes through the Institutional Evaluation Programme and various projects such as Quality Culture and Creativity in Higher Education. In 2006, EUA published Guidelines for Quality Enhancement in European Joint Master Programmes, the result of the European Masters New Evaluation Methodology project (EMNEM).

EUA is currently coordinating a project called Quality Assurance for the Higher Education Change Agenda (QAHECA), which offers HEIs and agencies the opportunity for active involvement in developing collectively and testing institutional quality mechanisms for teaching and learning. QAHECA seeks to devise a methodology which is geared towards enhancement and will strengthen creativity and innovation in higher education.


2. National level: Enhancing external accountability procedures
Many countries that have signed the Bologna Declaration have at least one quality assurance or accreditation agency. Forty-two of these agencies, as well as EUA, are members of the European Association for Quality Assurance (ENQA).


3. European level: Promoting the development of a European dimension for quality assurance
Since September 2001, EUA has been meeting regularly with ENQA, ESIB and EURASHE (E4 Group) to discuss how to develop a European dimension for quality assurance. This partnership resulted in the European Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance (ESG) which were adopted by the European Ministers for Education in Bergen in 2005.

At EUA’s initiative, the E4 has organised an annual European Quality Assurance Forum since 2006. The QA Forum gathers together QA agencies and higher education institutions at European level in order to bring forward a European QA agenda based on a broad understanding of what constitutes best QA practices in the context of European higher education trends. Following the success of the QAF in 2006 and 2007, the third QA Forum was organised in 2008 in Budapest. The fourth QA Forum will be held on 19-21 November 2009 at the Copenhagen Business School. The call for paper is now open: the deadline for submitting proposals or papers or workshops is 20 August 2009. EUA is also currently looking for member institutions willing to host the fifth Forum, which will take place in November 2010, and would like to encourage institutions to submit a declaration of interest.

EUA is one of the founding members, along with other E4 Group members, of the European Quality Assurance Register for Higher Education (EQAR). EQAR publishes and manages a register of quality assurance agencies that substantially comply with the European Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance (ESG) to provide the public with clear and reliable information on quality assurance agencies operating in Europe. In February 2006 European Parliament and Council adopted a Recommendation (2006/143/EC) which includes the recommendation to Member States that higher education institutions can turn to any agency listed in the European Register, provided it is allowed by their governmental authorities.
International level

Alongside its involvement in European policy development, EUA is also active internationally to ensure the visibility of European higher education on the world stage. Through its membership in INQAAHE, the CHEA International Commission, the UNESCO Global Forum and lending its QA expertise to such multinational organisations as OECD, EUA strives to shape the international QA discussions as well.