ЗАБЕЗПЕЧЕННЯ ЯКОСТІ ВИЩОЇ ОСВІТИ: ДОСВІД ФІНЛЯНДІЇ

Purpose This paper aims to investigate how global university rankings interact with quality and quality assurance in higher education along the two lines of investigation, that is, from the perspective of their relationship with the concept of quality (assurance) and the development of quality assurance policies in higher education, with particular emphasis on accreditation as the prevalent quality assurance approach. Design/methodology/approach The paper firstly conceptualises quality and quality assurance in higher education and critically examines the methodological construction of the four selected world university rankings and their references to “quality”. On this basis, it answers the two “how” questions: How is the concept of quality (assurance) in higher education perceived by world university rankings and how do they interact with quality assurance and accreditation policies in higher education? Answers are provided through the analysis of different documentary sources, such as academic literature, glossaries, international studies, institutional strategies and other documents, with particular focus on official websites of international ranking systems and individual higher education institutions, media announcements, and so on. Findings The paper argues that given their quantitative orientation, it is quite problematic to perceive world university rankings as a means of assessing or assuring the institutional quality. Like (international) accreditations, they may foster vertical differentiation of higher education systems and institutions. Because of their predominant accountability purpose, they cannot encourage improvements in the quality of higher education institutions. Practical implications Research results are beneficial to different higher education stakeholders (e.g. policymakers, institutional leadership, academics and students), as they offer them a comprehensive view on rankings’ ability to assess, assure or improve the quality in higher education. Originality/value The existing research focuses principally either on interactions of global university rankings with the concept of quality or with processes of quality assurance in higher education. The comprehensive and detailed analysis of their relationship with both concepts thus adds value to the prevailing scholarly debates.

The article is devoted to the study of the features of the quality assurance system in education for future specialists in special education at the first (bachelor’s) and second (master’s) levels of higher education in Ukraine. Based on the analysis of modern Ukrainian research, it was determined that theoretical methodological and conceptual approaches to the study and development of this problem are still leading in Ukraine. To date, no comprehensive, practice-oriented research has been presented that would illustrate or analyse specific ways to ensure/improve the quality of training for special education professionals. Unlike Ukrainian studies, foreign studies offer specific, practice-oriented approaches to the quality assurance system in education for future specialists in special/inclusive education. Two criteria were used to conduct the study: the availability of accreditation from the National Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (evidence of the quality of educational and methodological support, staffing, etc. in accordance with the criteria of the accreditation examination) and the attractiveness of the educational program (volume of applications submitted, number of enrolled applicants, etc. according to the data of the 2023 admission campaign, compared to the same indicators in 2024 in Ukraine). It was established that at the first (bachelor’s) level of higher education, 18 (33 %) of 54 educational programs have accreditation from the National Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education, 1 of them has accreditation with the definition of “exemplary”, 26 educational programs (48 % ) have accreditation from the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, 6 have the status of “conditional (delayed) accreditation” and 8 (14 %) educational programs have the status of “not accredited”. As for the second (master’s) level of higher education, out of 55 educational programs, 26 (47 %) are accredited by National Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education, 2 are accredited by the definition of “exemplary”, 20 educational programs (36 %) are accredited by the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, 6 educational programs (10 %) have conditional (delayed) accreditation and 4 educational programs (7 %) are not accredited. According to the second criterion, it was established: applicants gave preference when submitting applications to the leading institutions of Ukraine in Lviv and Kyiv. Also, preference for submitting applications was given to universities of Ukraine located in the west of the country, which is natural within the framework of security conditions. In 2024, applicants mainly chose accredited educational programs, but not all universities have it from National Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education — 4 HEIs have educational programs accredited by National Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education, 2 are accredited by the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, 3 are conditional (delayed) accreditations, 1 is not accredited. At the second (master’s) level of higher education in the specialty 016 Special Education, the choice of HEIs is mainly regional, in addition, most educational programs are accredited by National Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education. A sharp increase in applicants was established in 2024. In general, the number of applications submitted in Ukraine increased by 34 % compared to 2023, and the number of applicants who entered the second (master’s) level of higher education also increased by 18 %

Problem setting. Higher education is the most important component of national capital. It helps to overcome social conflicts that exist in modern society. In this regard, the priority development of higher education is considered in the countries of the world as a driving force of social progress.
 Recent research and publications analysis. The study of the problem of ensuring the quality of higher education belongs to the sphere of scientific interests of both Ukrainian and foreign scientists. Among modern domestic researchers dealing with theoretical and methodological issues of higher quality assurance, such scientists as N. Batechko, O. Zhornova, S. Karpenchuk, T. Krystopchuk, V. Moroz, T. Dobko, I. Zolotaryova, S. Kalashnikova, V. Kovtunets, S. Kurbatov, I. Linyova, V. Lugovoi, I. Prokhor, N. Sydorenko, I. Stankevich, I. Sikorska, Zh. Talanova, M. Trebin, T. Finikov, S. Sharov and others. A significant contribution to the theoretical development of higher quality assurance problems was also made by foreign scientists ‑ K. Argyris, G. Becker, J. Brennan, R. Brown, L. Brockerhoff, R. Williams, A. Helmke, G. Papadopoulos, E. Sallis, R. Harris, S. Harris-Hemmert, D. Schön, and others. Despite the fact that the understanding of various problems of ensuring higher quality has been widely reflected in the scientific literature, a number of issues that need to be constantly considered remain debatable.
 Paper objective. The purpose of the article is to study the essence of the concept of “higher education quality” in the modern socio-philosophical discourse; consideration of methodological approaches to the analysis of this phenomenon; identification of the main factors that determine the effectiveness of the higher education quality assurance system.
 Paper main body. Ensuring the quality of higher education is currently an extremely acute issue for many countries. This is primarily related to the transition from elite to mass higher education, the active introduction of modern distance learning information technologies into the educational process, the need to ensure the competitiveness of graduates of higher education institutions in the conditions of a globalized labor market and academic mobility, etc. In Ukraine, the problem of ensuring the quality of higher education is gaining particular importance. This is evidenced by state programs for the development of higher education, including the Law “On Higher Education”, in which for the first time a separate section dedicated to the problems of ensuring the quality of higher education appears.
 Three quality models of higher education are known in the world, namely: 1. “English”, based on the internal self-assessment of the academic community. The formation of such a mechanism for assessing the quality of education is connected with the significant autonomy of educational institutions in Great Britain and the decentralization of education management. In this country, there is a multi-level system of accreditation of universities and educational programs. This model of education quality assessment also prevails in Australia, and a new approach to the accreditation of educational programs has been introduced. The accreditation procedure includes, along with internal evaluations and quality guarantees, external criteria and recommendations from industrial enterprises; 2. The “French” model provides for an external evaluation of higher education institutions to determine their responsibility to society; 3. The “American” model, which is actually being implemented in Ukraine today, is an organic combination of the two mentioned, which gives it significant advantages and wide opportunities in its application, as it provides for both public and state forms of control of the achieved results.
 The implementation of European standards and recommendations for ensuring the quality of higher education is implemented in the activities of higher education institutions of Ukraine. Art. 16 Chap. V of the Law of Ukraine “On Higher Education” defines the structure of the higher education quality assurance system. It is noted that the quality assurance system of higher education in Ukraine consists of: 1) systems of ensuring the quality of educational activities and the quality of higher education by institutions of higher education (system of internal quality assurance); 2) systems of external assurance of the quality of educational activities of institutions of higher education and the quality of higher education; 3) systems of quality assurance of activities of the National Agency for Quality Assurance of Higher Education and independent institutions of assessment and quality assurance of higher education.
 Conclusions of the research. The system of higher education of Ukraine must follow the path of mutual approximation of its own achievements and the latest European experience in the issue of ensuring the quality of higher education in modern conditions of social development. This will contribute to the growth of the competitiveness of graduates of Ukrainian higher education institutions, the full entry of higher education institutions of Ukraine into the European area of higher education.

This paper aims to identify existing frameworks for monitoring Quality Assurance in Higher Education Institutions. A literature review has been conducted in order to identify the components covered by existing frameworks as well as the deficiencies they share. Firstly, a literature review was conducted to identify previous frameworks that discussed Quality Assurance (QA) or Performance Monitoring in Higher Education (HE). The second stage was to filter these frameworks into those that provided means for monitoring outputs of performance using Business Intelligence (BI) tools using data visualization and reporting. The findings from the research work identified five frameworks which use BI in the monitoring of Quality Assurance in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). The frameworks have different orientations and focus but all support the use of data to measure performance in Higher Education Institutions and there is a consensus that BI tools, such as dashboards, may be useful in providing real-time feedback about QA performance in Higher Education Institutions

This paper examines quality assurance as an effective tool for organizational development, reviewing the theories and history of quality management. After describing the theoretical foundations used in the USA, focusing on heavy industries, it discusses European models such as TQM, ISO and EFQM systems in more detail, then moves on to critical approaches, especially with regard to the applicability and effectiveness of quality assurance in education and higher education. The second half of this paper focuses specifically on quality assurance in higher education, in particular European standards, approaching it from the perspective of internationalisation. In this context, this paper addresses the issues of brain drain, digital campus, stakeholder involvement and student-centredness. Finally, the paper concludes that quality assurance in higher education is not only an essential but a necessary process as well, which can also be the most effective tool for organizational development.

The article analyzes the higher education institutions activities of the Republic of Poland in order to identify the perspective directions of the use of Polish experience in quality assurance in Ukraine. In particular, the activities of Maria Curie-Skłodowska University, Lublin University of Technology, University of Warmia and Mazury and the University of Rzeszow concerning the quality of education have been analyzed. The main methodological issue of the research is in what extent and in what forms it is possible and appropriate to use in the domestic educational system the achievements of modern Polish experience in creating internal quality assurance system of higher education. It is concluded, that perspective directions of the use of Polish experience in Ukraine are: conceptual (defining goals and strategies for quality assurance in higher education, taking into account best educational practices, as well as Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area); normative-legal (creation of internal normative-legal documents concerning quality assurance in higher education); organizational (creation of a procedure for quality assurance at the university, the mandatory components of which are: reporting, control and monitoring). Quality assurance in higher education is a continuous, systematic and multifaceted process. For Ukraine, at this stage, it is fundamentally important that the National Agency for the Quality Assurance in Higher Education commenced its activity, since the formal existence of this Agency makes it impossible to certify the systems of internal quality assurance of higher education institutions, as well as the introduction of institutional accreditation and self-accreditation of programs. The ultimate goal is to create conditions for building a quality culture, which consists of cultural and psychological aspects, and management structures.

The purpose of the article is to allocate and substantiate the stages of development of the higher education quality assurance system in Ukraine, and to determine the characteristic features of each stage.To achieve this goal, the following general scientific methods were used: analysis, synthesis, comparison and generalization.The article identifies and substantiates the stages of development of the system of quality assurance in higher education in Ukraine. The characteristic features of the initial stage (1991‒1999) were the institutional structuring of the national system of quality assurance in higher education. The peculiarities of the adaptation stage (2000‒2010) are the declaration and alignment with the principles and fundamental ideas of the Bologna Process of the regulatory and legal framework for quality assurance in higher education in Ukraine. At the formative stage (2011‒2014), the regulatory and legislative framework for Ukraine’s accession to the Bologna Process was approved. The characteristic features of the modernization stage (2015‒2019) are the establishment and launch of the National Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education, the launch of accreditation of educational programmers; and the establishment of internal quality assurance systems in higher education institutions. In 2020, the modern stage of development of the higher education quality assurance system in Ukraine began.The practical significance of the results obtained is that they can be used in further scientific research on the mechanisms of quality assurance in higher education in Ukraine.

Quality Assurance in Bachelor and Master Programmes in Public Administration. A Comparative Study

The article interprets a particular set of debates on whether quality assurance in South African higher education widens democracy or not. The interpretation explores the extent to which higher education quality assurance fulfils three conditions posited for democracy (inclusion, participation and enhancement), drawing in as points of reference goals for quality in higher education as articulated by the Higher Education Quality Committee (fitness of purpose, fitness for purpose, value for money and transformation) and principles for higher education set out in the Constitution and national higher education policy (academic freedom, institutional autonomy and public accountability). Its findings include, firstly, that if quality assurance in higher education is to serve the public good, then an inclusive, as well as a socially accountable, understanding of such concepts as 'fitness of purpose' and 'value for money' must be achieved and implemented. Secondly, quality assurance can be fully compatible with democratisation, as well as with the goals and purposes of autonomous academic institutions, where stakeholder involvement in the co-production of quality proceeds from the bottom up on the basis of inclusive understandings of intellectual freedom and accountability. Thirdly, quality assurance supports the development of critical citizens where it aligns with this traditional role of higher education through an empowering approach of its own. The work of achieving outcomes such as these three is of necessity ongoing and is moreover located within unresolved issues in higher education quality assurance generally.

Quality assurance in higher education in Croatia is conducted by and in line with the European standards and guidelines developed by the European umbrella organization for quality assurance in higher education, European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA). One of the standards for internal quality assurance directly relates to the information management stating that ”Institutions should ensure that they collect, analyse and use relevant information for the effective management of their programmes and other activities.” Internal quality assurance is, or should be, at the core of every higher education institution, influencing its performance and quality perceived by its users, but also external evaluators (e.g. government and professional bodies that regulate or influence the work of the institution). Higher education institutions can ensure the quality of their services only through a well-developed internal quality assurance system that can provide information for timely decisions. This paper will analyse the requirements and obligations that higher education institutions have regarding the collection, processing and analysis of data within the scope of their work. In addition, it will provide examples of existing and possible use of information systems that lead to improvement of internal quality assurance system of the higher education providers.

PurposeThis paper aims to analyze how the legitimacy of the policy of external quality assurance (EQA) in Colombian higher education has evolved over the past 30 years through an examination of its two main instruments: the compulsory control of minimum quality standards for academic programs and institutions (registro calificado) and accreditations of excellence for programs and institutions.Design/methodology/approachBased on the methodology of process-tracing, this paper offers a review of the main sequences of the policy of EQA in Colombian higher education: the origins (1990–1998), the expansion (1998–2011) and the contestation (2011–2021). In each sequence, the sources of the substantive and procedural legitimacy of the policy are analyzed. This analysis is based on qualitative data comprising semi-structured interviews with key informants, online information from the 2011 and 2018 student protests and official documentation.FindingsThe policy of EQA in Colombian higher education had relatively high levels of substantive and procedural legitimacy during the first two sequences. However, the situation has become more ambivalent since 2011. On the one hand, internal contradictions and student movements’ growing criticism of neoliberal policies have undermined some of the foundations of this policy. On the other hand, higher education institutions and the Colombian Government still have a positive perception of EQA and have recently revisited the policy to address some of its shortcomings.Originality/valueFrom a conceptual standpoint, this paper advances our understanding of how quality assurance in higher education gains, sustains or loses legitimacy by discussing and testing typologies of legitimacy in the analysis of a national system of EQA. From an empirical perspective, this paper provides a diachronic analysis of EQA in Colombian higher education, a case that has primarily been studied through a technical-rational perspective.

Australia has a robust system of quality assurance in higher education. There is a national regulator, the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA), that oversees quality assurance in Australian higher education, through registering higher education providers under a number of categories and accrediting courses delivered by institutions that do not have self-accrediting authority. This agency is established under an Act of the Australian Parliament. As well as having a regulatory responsibility TEQSA also provides a great deal of information to providers of higher education as well as informing the public, students and prospective students about the higher education system in Australia. Higher education providers are expected to have good quality assurance arrangements within each registered institution. The intention of the quality assurance systems in place is to enhance and protect Australia's reputation for excellence, diversity and innovation in higher education.

The quality assurance of higher education in Hong Kong, John C.Y. Leong and Wai Sum Wong quality assurance and evaluation of higher education in mainland China, Xu Demin towards a European dimension, Marie-Odile Ottenwaelter academic review in the United Kingdom, John Randall quality assurance of higher education in Denmark, Christian Thune accreditation and quality in the United States - practice and pressures, Judith S. Eaton Chile - quality assurance in a context of change, Maria Jose Lemaitre strengthening quality assurance in Australian higher education, Kwong Lee Dow external quality assurance in higher education in South Africa, Danie Jacobs.

Quality assurance in modern higher education is both an accountability-oriented ideology and a technological method. It has also evolved into a increasingly rationalist and professionalized power mechanism. Its advocacy of compliance, technological mythology, and imbalance between power and responsibility are inherent disadvantages of higher education quality assurance at present. To sustainably improve higher education quality, the current concern must change from quality assurance to quality culture. We should reflect on and innovate the traditional quality assurance in higher education. At the same time, it is necessary to build a holistic quality culture among various stakeholders based on mutual trust and a social contract.

:Quality assurance in modern higher education is both an accountability-oriented ideology and a technological method. It has also evolved into a increasingly rationalist and professionalized power mechanism. Its advocacy of compliance, technological mythology, and imbalance between power and responsibility are inherent disadvantages of higher education quality assurance at present. To sustainably improve higher education quality, the current concern must change from quality assurance to quality culture. We should reflect on and innovate the traditional quality assurance in higher education. At the same time, it is necessary to build a holistic quality culture among various stakeholders based on mutual trust and a social contract.