By David Matthews. The Quality Assurance Agency will be bailed out by the taxpayer if it is sued by a private college that fails an inspection, it has emerged.
The UK Border Agency and the QAA signed a deed of indemnity in August 2011 that covers legal costs of up to £1 million a year.
Responsibility for carrying out "educational oversight" inspections, which colleges must pass if they wish to sponsor international students, has been given to the QAA and a number of other bodies.
The deed covers any legal action taken either by institutions or by students as a result of "decisions, actions or omissions" by the QAA - a charity funded by subscription fees from institutions and contracts from funding councils - as part of its educational oversight role.
Failing such an inspection could severely damage a college's business model as it would be prevented from accepting overseas students. Read more...

EMQA: Erasmus Mundus Quality Assurance for International Higher Education Master and Doctoral programmes
Self assess your performance with Erasmus Mundus masters and doctorates. Look at the EMQA  tool "Erasmus Mundus Quality Assessment" and improve your Excellence.
 EMQA is a participatory approach to quality assurance that has been built since 2008 for the European Commission DG Education and Culture Erasmus Mundus Master and Doctoral Joint Programmes. EMQA is not a standard QA process of judging or ranking courses against a fixed set of ‘standards’. The underlying principle is that international programmes are innovating constantly and that this innovation needs to be communicated directly back to the HE sector. EMQA is a strongly participatory approach to excellence. The resources on this Web site can be used by any international programme – Master, Doctoral, Professional, or Commercial – to help you to review your own quality against a structured set of quality components drawn from Higher Education across the European Union. On this site you can:
1- Understand the 'landscape' of quality challenges that international programmes encounter;
2- Self-assess your own courses or programmes against a series of structured questions;
3- See in detail examples of excellent practice from programmes studied in depth since 2008;
4- Read online, and download, a Handbook of Excellence that guides you through the issues you need to consider when creating Master and Doctoral Programmes;
5- Contribute your own excellent practice and add to the body of evidence that will continue to develop the 'components of excellence'.
Please enter your login details or Register here.
For guidance, please refer to the User Guide which can be downloaded here.

17 January 2013 - 18 January 2013, Brussels. In 2010, the EACEA issued a call for proposals “to support national projects for the development of a national approach to improve the quality assurance of vocational education and training systems by promoting and developing the use of the European quality assurance reference framework in vocational education and training (EACEA/09/2010). ”Five pilot projects were selected. These projects tested EQAVET as an instrument to promote a shared culture of quality assurance.

On December 12, the Committee of Ministers adopted Recommendation Rec(2012)13 on ensuring quality education. The Recommendation and its Explanatory Memorandum outline the Council of Europe’s understanding of quality education, link the concept to the multiple purposes of education and consider the roles and responsibilities of public authorities for ensuring quality education at various levels of education. The texts were prepared by the Steering Committee for Educational Policy and Practice (CDPPE).
Recommendation Rec(2012)13 on ensuring quality education
Higher education
18. Students should be granted effective and equitable access to higher education institutions and programmes on the basis of their aspirations and abilities. Their qualifications should be suited to address the major objectives of higher education as defined in paragraph 6. Moreover, students should be entitled to contribute fully to and participate in the governance of the institution as responsible members of an academic community.
19. Public authorities have a leading responsibility for establishing a coherent framework which ensures equal opportunities of access to and in higher education for all citizens and which is based on the principle of institutional autonomy. The development of quality-assurance criteria, while based on the Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area, should take account of the concept of quality education as defined above.
Explanatory Memorandum
7.2 Steering Committee for Educational Policy and Practice (CDPPE)
Recommendation CM/Rec(2012)13 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on ensuring quality education – Explanatory Memorandum
Preamble
The Preamble places the present recommendation in its proper context by recalling the relevant Council of Europe Conventions and recommendations with particular relevance to the topic of the present Recommendation as well as the fundamental agreed principles on which it builds.
The action foreseen in the recommendation is that which is typically included in recommendations concerning States party to the European Cultural Convention, whereas the subject matter of the recommendation is described in the appendix. It recognises that member States are responsible for the organisation and content of their educational systems.
The Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms as well as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights establishes the right to education. The preamble recognises that this right can only be fully exercised in practice if the education is of sufficient quality and if it pursues a variety of purposes. This view of education is consistent with that expressed in Recommendation CM/Rec(2007)6 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on the public responsibility for higher education and research.
The recommendation to member States (1.a – f) allows for the fact that competence in education is located at different levels in different member States and that while the public authorities at central level in some cases have direct authority in all or some education matters (1.a), in other cases they do not (1.b). Hence, public authorities at central level may need to take action of different kinds according to the degree of their competence in education matters, as reflected in the text of the Recommendation...
Scope and definitions (paragraphs 1-9)
Public responsibility is understood as exercised through public authorities. These terms are defined as in Recommendation CM/Rec(2007)6 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on the public responsibility for higher education and research. The competent public authorities may, according to the level and strand of education concerned and the constitutional arrangements of various countries, be located at national, regional, local or other levels but the principles for the exercise of public responsibility remain the same.
Higher education (paragraphs 18-19)
Measures to ensure quality higher education are articulated somewhat differently than measures concerning other kinds of non-compulsory education in view of the highly specialised nature of higher education, the increasing maturity of students and, in some cases, of the considerable financial needs involved. Access to higher education should be effective and equitable and commensurate with students’ abilities and aspirations.
Public authorities, then, have the obligation to ensure that access to higher education is given on an equitable basis. However, selectivity is a much more prominent feature of higher education than of education at other levels. Rather than universal access, the goal for higher education should therefore reasonably be that public authorities should provide all those qualified for higher education with access to a study programme which is compatible with their aspirations and qualifications. As stated in the Preamble to this recommendation, public authorities should ensure that all persons should enjoy quality of education, commensurate with their aspirations, abilities and circumstances and for some persons, their aspirations, abilities and circumstances will take them along learning paths which do not include higher education.
The recommendation underlines that the qualifications which students will earn should fulfil the full range of purposes for higher education. These are defined in Recommendation CM/Rec(2007)6 by the Committee of Ministers to member States on the public responsibility for higher education and research:

- Preparation for sustainable employment;
- Preparation for life as active citizens in democratic societies;
- Personal development
- The development and maintenance, through teaching, learning and research, of a broad, advanced knowledge base.

The first sentence of paragraph 19 follows the wording of Recommendation CM/Rec(2007)6. The paragraph further underlines the importance of observing the principle of institutional autonomy. Unlike all pupils in pre-primary and the majority of pupils in compulsory education as well as non-compulsory secondary education – unless they are older learners enrolled in lifelong learning programmes – the vast majority of higher education students will be legally adult and hence competent to make their own decisions, even if in many cases, parents or legal guardians will have an important role in advising students about their choice of whether or not to seek access to higher education as well as about which study programmes to apply for...
Private education provision (paragraphs 20-22)
A quality assessment will be an important part of these criteria and for the areas of education for which a formal quality assessment procedure has been established, such as higher education and in many countries also vocations education and training, the outcomes of these procedures will be the basis of the decision. The commitment of institutions and programmes to providing equal opportunities to quality education should also be given consideration, either as a part of the quality assessment or as a separate consideration...
Learning paths and qualifications frameworks (paragraph 25).
Qualifications frameworks are a new way of describing the full body of qualifications of a given education system. They describe not only individual qualifications but also the way in which these qualifications interlink and the learning paths that pupils and students as well as those engaged in informal and non-formal education may follow in order to obtain a given qualification. Qualifications frameworks are therefore, among other things, instruments which make it easier for students to obtain quality education and to help them identify the learning paths which suit them the best. They should help education institutions as well as public authorities identify ways in which they may ensure that courses and programmes best lead to qualifications which are a part of the national framework and hence of the national education system. By emphasising learning outcomes – what pupils and students know, understand and are able to do – on the basis of a given qualification, they should, in the words of the Council of Europe/UNESCO Recognition Convention (ETS No. 165) on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher Education in the European Region, further the fair recognition of qualifications.
It should be noted that all 47 countries party to the European Higher Education Area have committed to developing national qualifications framework for higher education – an effort coordinated by the Council of Europe - and that 32 countries are engaged in the European Qualifications Framework for lifelong learning, supported by the European Commission and covering all areas and levels of education. Qualifications frameworks are therefore a key instrument of European education policies and competent public authorities as well as institutions and pupils and students should see qualifications frameworks not merely as technical instruments but as instruments helping fulfil the main goals of education...
Measures for vulnerable groups and/or groups with special needs (paragraphs 26-29)
The recommendation recognises that some individuals are unable to benefit mainstream education provision and that the reasons for this may be highly diverse. Public authorities have responsibility for providing individuals concerned with suitable education offers adapted to their needs and circumstances...
It is understood that the obligation to provide training in the language(s) of instruction for those lacking the required proficiency may be articulated differently at different levels of education, so that such training will, for example, be different for those in primary education and for those in higher education. It may also be articulated differently for pupils in compulsory education that for higher education students engaging in academic mobility.
Combating corruption in education (paragraph 31)
The extent of corruption in education varies from country to country and with the kind of education. In particular, access to and qualifications from higher education seem to be areas in which corruption is the most widespread. Nevertheless, corruption is a real or potential issue in all countries and for all kinds and levels of education.
Public authorities have the responsibility to take measures against corruption in education. These should involve all stakeholders as well as the general public and in addition to providing adequate legal regulation measures should aim to develop attitudes so that corruption is widely condemned and those engaging in it run a strong risk of exposure and denunciation.

ENQA initiates and coordinates transnational quality assurance projects, which aim to disseminate information at the European level and promote the establishment of the quality assurance framework of the European Higher Education Area.

Transparency of European higher education through public quality assurance reports - EQArep

ENQA has recently obtained funding for a LLP/Erasmus proposal. The two-year project started on 1 October and will end on 30 September 2014. The project, entitled “Transparency of European higher education through public quality assurance reports” (EQArep), aims at developing European standards for quality assurance reports.

Enhancement of Quality Assurance Management in Jordanian Universities - EQuAM

The University of Barcelona is launching a new project entitled "Enhancement of Quality Assurance Management in Jordanian Universities" (EQuAM), in partnership with ENQA and 15 other higher education bodies.

Promoting Quality Culture in Higher Education Institutions - PQC

In the autumn of 2012, EUA is launching a new project entitled ‘Promoting quality culture in higher education institutions’ (PQC), in partnership with ENQA, the University of Duisburg-Essen, the University of Lisbon and the University of Zagreb.

Joint capacity building project in Southeast Asia

The DIES ASEAN-QA Project which promotes regional quality assurance in Southeast Asia has been sealed by signing a Memorandum of Understanding on the 4th July, 2011 in Bonn.

The ENQA Workshop to agencies undergoing an external review will take place in Paris, France, on 21-22 January. The event is co-hosted by the Commission des Titres d'Ingenieur (CTI).
The purpose of this workshop, targeted specifically to agencies undergoing a second external review, is to focus on the whole process of external reviews of agencies, from the preparation to the follow-up. Participants will be given information and insight into the purpose and objectives of the second round of reviews and the role of reviewers. They will share best practice on the self-evaluation process and discuss the impact of the external review on future planning and development of the agency.
Programme The programme for the event can be found here (pdf).
The registration for this event has reached capacity and is now closed. If you want to enter our waiting list please send an e-mail to secretariat@enqa.eu.
Monday 21 January - Day 1
15.00 Registrations and coffee
15.30 Welcome: Achim Hopbach, President of ENQA, Philippe Massé, President of CTI
16.00 The difficult art of self-reflection for constant enhancement: the purpose and objectives of the second round of reviews. Achim Hopbach.
16.45 The process of external review and the task of the reviewers Maria Kelo, ENQA Secretariat.
Tuesday 22 January - Day 2
9.00 How to prepare for external evaluation and the rationale of the self-evaluation report in the second round of reviews. Rafael Llavori, ANECA, ENQA Board.
9.45 How did we do it? – Case examples of the self evaluation process and involvement of stakeholders from AQU Catalunya and EVA, Denmark. Josep Grifoll, AQU, ENQA Board and Christian Moldt, EVA.
11.30 Split up-groups – work in three small groups on analysis of self-evaluation report models and identifying good practice. Chairs: Rafael Llavori, Josep Grifoll, Padraig Walsh, QQI, ENQA Board.
14.00 Good practice in self-evaluation – feedback from split-up groups. Chair: Maria Kelo
14.45 Impact of the external review on future planning and development. Padraig Walsh.

This national two year project is now available

Reminder: Call for participation in workshops for quality managers in spring 2013 (deadline 8 January)
As part of the project ‘Promoting quality culture in higher education institutions’ (PQC), EUA and project partners will hold three training workshops that are designed specifically for those responsible for quality processes within universities. The workshops will take place next spring in Croatia, Germany and Portugal.
Recent research (EQC project, 2009-2012) has shown that those in charge of managing quality processes at universities feel the need for capacity building in how to incentivise all stakeholders (students, academic and administrative staff) to take on the responsibility for quality, i.e. how to foster quality cultures. The PQC project will fulfil this need by developing and implementing three training workshops with a practical approach to strengthening quality cultures and providing quality managers with the opportunity to exchange experiences and build connections for future cooperation at European level. In addition, the workshops will be used to collect feedback on how QA agencies can support HEIs in fostering quality cultures, which will be communicated to the agencies at a later stage in the project.
The workshops will explore questions such as: How to build effective communication structures for engaging staff and students in quality culture? How to use staff development as a means for enhancing quality? How to connect QA to the decision-making processes at all levels? How to avoid hindering creativity at the university through bureaucratic QA processes?
The workshops will take place in Lisbon, Portugal (8-10 April 2013), Zagreb, Croatia (22-24 May 2013), and Essen, Germany (26-28 June 2013). Meals during the workshop (lunches, coffee breaks, dinners) will be organised and covered by the project; however, participants will be expected to finance their own travel and accommodation costs. Participation is open to EUA member universities from those countries eligible to take part in the Lifelong Learning Programme.
Individuals interested in participating in one of the training workshops are invited to read the full call for participation here and fill in the online application form here by 8 January 2013 at the latest.
More information on the project can be found on the project website. Questions on the project or the application process can be addressed to pqc@eua.be.
The PQC project is carried out in partnership with the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA), the University of Duisburg-Essen, the University of Lisbon and the University of Zagreb. It is supported by funding from the Lifelong Learning Programme of the European Commission.

By Fabrice Hénard and Deborah Roseveare. Fostering Quality Teaching in Higher Education: Policies and Practices - An IMHE Guide for Higher Education Institutions - 54 pages.
Foreword
Quality teaching in higher education matters for student learning outcomes. But fostering quality teaching presents higher education institutions with a range of challenges at a time when the higher education sector is coming under pressure from many different directions. Institutions need to ensure that the education they offer meets the expectations of students and the requirements of employers, both today and for the future. Yet higher education institutions are complex organisations where the institution-wide vision and strategy needs to be well-aligned with bottom-up practices and innovations in teaching and learning. Developing institutions as effective learning communities where excellent pedagogical practices are developed and shared also requires leadership, collaboration and ways to address tensions between innovators and those reluctant to change.
This Guide has been developed by the OECD’s Programme on Institutional Management of Higher Education (IMHE) to assist higher education institutions, university leaders and practitioners in fostering quality teaching. Provosts, vice-rectors of academic affairs, heads of teaching and learning improvement centres, deans and programme leaders, supporting staff, members of internal and external quality assurance bodies, and researchers may find inspirational content in this report. Drawing upon case studies of institution-wide quality teaching policies conducted by the OECD, this Guide provides exposure to new approaches and practices and the corresponding policy levers likely to help improvement happen. Illustrations offer a unique opportunity for learning through international experiences and sharing insights with institutional leaders involved in quality teaching...
Self-assessment and questions for further reflection
This section has been designed for you, the reader, to use as a self-assessment and reflection tool as an aid to deciding what your priorities should be for fostering quality teaching and what actions you might take. There are no right or wrong answers and it is intended to be adapted to take account of your institution’s mission, strategic objectives and context.
It is intended for use by anyone within the institution (or its stakeholders) with a role to play in fostering quality teaching, including institution leaders, deans and heads of programmes or individual teachers and researchers. It can be used by an individual or as part of a collaborative reflection and dialogue. It’s up to you.
The self-assessment scale invites you to evaluate the current situation on a scale of 1-5, where 1 is very poor and 5 is very good. However, you may consider that in your particular circumstances some aspects are very important while others are not at all. This is important to bear in mind when considering priorities for action – a dimension that is poor, but also not important, does not need to be addressed.
The self-assessment and questions for further reflection for each policy lever is self-contained, so you may choose to work through all seven policy levers, or simply use the individual policy lever that most directly relates to your current challenges and priorities... Download Fostering Quality Teaching in Higher Education: Policies and Practices - An IMHE Guide for Higher Education Institutions.