Comparing universities and courses is of interest to a variety of stakeholders including potential students, policy makers, news and media organisations, ranking providers, and universities themselves. There are a range of existing university ranking schemes that provide comparisons (e.g. Academic Ranking of World Universities) but typically these…

Global university rankings are a worldwide trend that emerged in times of the globalisation and internationalisation of higher education. Universities worldwide are now striving to become "world-class" institutions and are constantly aiming to improve their ranking position. Global rankings of universities are thus perceived by many as…

The growing interest for measurement of learning outcomes relates to long lines of development in higher education, the request for accountability, intensified through international reforms and movements such as the development and implementation of qualifications frameworks. In this article, we discuss relevant literature on different approaches…

In this article, global and other university rankings are critically assessed with regard to their unintended side effects and their impacts on the European and national landscape of universities, as well as on individual institutions. An emphasis is put on the effects of ranking logics rather than on criticising their methodology. Nevertheless,…

This article is based on the analysis of the changes in global university rankings and the new "products" based on rankings data in the period since mid-2011. It is a summary and continuation of the European University Association (EUA)-commissioned report "Global University Rankings Their Impact, Report II" which was launched…

Ten years after the first global rankings appeared, it is clear that they have had an extraordinary impact on higher education. While there are fundamental questions about whether rankings measure either quality or what's meaningful, they have succeeded in exposing higher education to international comparison. More so, because of the…

Global university rankings have portrayed European higher education institutions in varying lights, leading to intense reflection on the figures on the EU and national levels alike. The rankings have helped to construct a policy problem of "European higher education", framing higher education as an element of competitiveness in a global…

The main objective of this article is to analyse the importance given to student guidance and diversity in the standards and criteria used in the quality accreditation and evaluation processes in Europe and the US. Agencies selected in this study are the members of ENQA (European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education), EQAR…

Rankings and online comparison sites have both facilitated and shaped the marketisation of higher education in England, the UK as a whole and elsewhere. They have facilitated marketisation by introducing greater competition between and within higher education institutions. Ultimately, they accomplish the transformation of qualities into…

The emergence of the European Standards and Guidelines (ESG) for Quality Assurance has been seen as an important step towards realising the European Higher Education Area by creating more transparency and accountability in the area of quality assurance. The ESG also include standards as to how quality assurance agencies should be reviewed. In a…

Reviews development of evaluation studies together with key epistemological and conceptual issues. Uses identified concepts to analyze peer review, the traditional mode of evaluation in higher education institutions in the United Kingdom and other European countries. Lists criteria for improvement, including: range of knowledge; critical analysis…

A study of the current program evaluation system in Dutch higher education consisted of a survey of institutions concerning their quality control and enhancement activities and 12 case studies of the experiences of universities and vocational institutions while conducting required self-evaluations and undergoing external evaluation. (MSE)

Assesses the "evaluative state"--the historic background, the process and procedures used to evaluate institutions of public higher education in European Union countries. Reviews various types of evaluation used, changes in the concept and purpose of evaluation, and looks at some of the basic and long-term issues for the future, from its…

European higher education policies that were first developed as an empirical, short-term response to financial difficulties at the start of the decade have now assumed a long-term strategic character that affects the relationships between government and higher education and between society and higher education. (MSE)

The trend toward increased institutional evaluation in Swedish higher education is examined from several viewpoints: as part of a broad system of policy formation, as a phase in an active process of change, and as an interactive process within a complex institution. (MSE)