The article reports on a case study of impact evaluation of external quality assurance, i.e. institutional evaluation including programme accreditation, which was carried out by the Romanian Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education at Technical University of Civil Engineering Bucharest in the form of a methodological before-after…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to present observations of a EUR-ACE accreditation process in a Finnish university. The study demonstrates the effects (benefits, effort and resources required) of accreditation as seen by the university management and teaching staff. Design/methodology/approach: The material of the study was gathered by…

Smaller universities may produce research which is on a par with larger, elite establishments. This is confirmed by a recently developed mathematical model, supported by data from British and French higher education research-evaluation exercises. The detailed nature of the UK system, in particular, allows quantification of the notion of critical…

Over the past few decades, deterioration in student achievement has provoked a pervasive public sentiment that American institutions are failing to meet the needs and expectations of society. The growing public demand for transparency and accountability has fueled the integration of state-mandated learning outcomes assessment into the standards…

Strategic planning is complex (Dodd, 2004), and when managed well, it requires deliberate incorporation of evidenced-based data and the collaboration of key stakeholders. Thus, it is essential that the planning process includes the integration of data that are collected regularly and that both internal and external professional partners have the…

Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) worldwide are investing significant resources in strategic planning and self-evaluation programs to improve institutional performance and to meet external stakeholder demands. Little empirical evidence exists however which demonstrates that these programs are effective in leading to improvements in institutional…

Describes the assessment process of the University of Virginia's Office of Financial Aid under the Standards of Excellence Peer Review Program of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. Discusses the rationale for the review, preparation for it, and the actual review visit and ensuing reports. Offers five recommendations…

Truckee Meadows Community College's (TMCC) (Nevada) Interim Report covers activities from October 1995 through August 2000. Part A addresses the institution's responses to the five general recommendations from the 1995 Northwest Accreditation site visit: (1) that the college incorporates missing components into one of its degree programs and…

The importance of evaluation for institutional development is discussed from the perspective of the manager. It is suggested that the higher education manager can use evaluation to obtain feedback about program effort, performance, and effects that will aid in the decision-making process. (Author/SF)

A discussion of institutional and program evaluation in higher education focuses on the need for congruence between the purposes of the assessment and the procedures used to accomplish it. The factors relating to success in evaluation are examined, with special attention given to those that promote improvement. (Author/MSE)

The proposed use of performance indicators for evaluating higher education institutions in a number of countries is critically analyzed, particularly regarding their use for institutional and program rankings and comparisons. A more developmental system retaining positive aspects of performance indicators and encouraging program improvement is…

The characteristics of an effective program review, and the different ways in which a program review can go wrong, are discussed. The three characteristics of an effective program review are that it is systematic, regular, and comprehensive. The dimensions of each of these characteristics are discussed, as is the "art" of program review, a process…

Guidelines are provided for higher education institutions that are developing or evaluating academic review activities for their graduate programs. The guide presents the critical components of a graduate program review, focusing on the philosophy, principles, practices, and policies entailed, and discusses the advantages and disadvantages of…

Institutional self-study is an appropriate method for determining quality and demonstrating accountability which can lead to academic and administrative excellence. With a trend toward state and federal government involvement in higher education, colleges will do well to conduct internal program assessments in order to maintain control. A…

First, the role of the association of universities in the Netherlands in external institutional evaluation is examined. Then, three basic tenets of program assessment are discussed: (1) university programs must be of academic quality; (2) program content must not be too compressed; and (3) programs should be challenging for students. (MSE)