European University of Tirana secures global quality accreditation

The European University of Tirana (EUT) has become the first institution in Albania to achieve global accreditation from the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA) - the UK’s independent quality body and a global leader in quality assurance for higher education.

The global accreditation is awarded to international institutions who have passed QAA’s rigorous International Quality Review (IQR), which measures global institutions against international quality assurance standards set out in Part 1 of the Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area (ESG).

The review took place virtually between 24 and 27 May 2022, and was completed by a team of three independent reviewers. In making their conclusions, the review team confirmed that EUT meets all 10 of the internal quality assurance standards in the ESG.

The review team also identified a number of features of good practice including:

• the robust quality assurance framework, systems and processes, their effective implementation and the engagement of staff at all levels
• the active engagement of, and extensive contribution made by, external stakeholders to the design, delivery and monitoring of academic programmes, principally but not exclusively through the Labour Market Boards
• and the provision of individualised advice and guidance to prospective students that informs their decision making.

Professor Dr Tonin Gjuraj, Rector of EUT said: 'The award of international accreditation from the UK Quality Assurance Agency is the fulfillment of an aspiration dated 10 years ago, when the European University of Tirana confirmed its ambition to undergo an international review process for its second institutional accreditation. I am pleased to see that our efforts in enhancing quality assurance and building a quality culture in our institution received an excellent review from one of the most reputable agencies. We are thankful to the QAA team for making this the most valuable and worthwhile experience, and we are excited to be part of the QAA Membership network, which provides robust support for our further quality enhancement endeavors.'

Vicki Stott, QAA’s Chief Executive said: 'This is an excellent achievement by the European University of Tirana that demonstrates their commitment to following international best practice standards in quality assurance. The IQR process has supported EUT to reflect on its approach to managing the quality of the student experience and provides confidence to prospective international partners in the robustness of the University’s quality assurance processes.'

The University has obtained QAA institutional accreditation for a period of five years, subject to a satisfactory mid-cycle review. This allows them to display QAA’s IQR Accreditation Badge, demonstrating that their quality assurance procedures are comparable with international best practice. Through achieving QAA global accreditation, EUT is also eligible to become a QAA International Member. International Quality Review is carried out in QAA’s capacity supporting the development of higher education quality internationally, including activity to support QAA Members and collaboration with international partners.

By securing global accreditation from QAA, international institutions can clearly spotlight their quality standards internationally, and more easily open dialogue with institutions outside their own country.

You can read European University of Tirana’s full IQR report on our website. You can also find out more about the IQR process.and QAA International Membership. If you are interested in your institution signing up and wish to discuss this further, contact a member of the QAA Global team at accreditation@qaa.ac.uk