La acreditación de la calidad educativa y la percepción de su impacto en la gestión académica: el caso de una institución del sector no universirario en México

Abstract

This article analyzes the perceptions about the impact of educational program accreditation in the institutional management. As lines of analysis, we use system and institutional quality, infrastructure improvement, curriculum development and academic administration. The methodology consists in a case study using the qualitative perspective. Relevant actors were interviewed in order to identify similarities and differences in perceptions about the impact of accreditation in their daily practice. Our main finding shows that the inclusion of external accreditation organizations has positively transformed teaching and administrative practice in the institution analyzed. It highlights the use of planning and management tools to systematize the educative processes. Also, indicators seem to have a direct effect on decision making processes. As a negative effect, quality is misunderstood just as the fulfillment of institutional goals and indicators.