University of Ss. Cyril & Methodius Skopje REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA

INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL QUALITY ASSURANCE MECHANISMS IN HIGHER EDUCATIONInternational seminarQuality assurance in Higher Education University of Ss. Cyril & Methodius Skopje REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA Prof. d-r Violeta Cepujnoska, Vice Rector Chisinau 21-22 May 2003

I. THE UNIVERSITY “Ss.CYRIL and METHODIUS” and BOLOGNA DECLARATION THESES ABOUT UNIVERSITY “SS CYRIL AND METHODIUS”-SKOPJE • Basic information • About the strategy • Bologna Declaration - a starting point II. QUALITY ASSURANCE AND THE ROLE OF MANAGEMENT QUALITY ASSURANCE ON A NATIONAL LEVEL • Starting point • Quality assurance by evaluation and accreditation • Infrastructure for the high education Quality assurance in the Republic of Macedonia

THESES QUALITY ASSURANCE ON A LEVEL OF AN INSTITUTION • Quality assurance system • Quality definition • Quality design • Quality accomplishment PARTICIPATION OF THE STUDENTS AT EVALUATION THE EDUCATION PROCESS • Student questioniares CORRECTIONS (TAKING MEASURES FOR CORRECTION) THE ROLE OF THE MANAGEMENT IN THE QUALITY ASSURANCE • The obligations of Management in the Quality assurance)

THESES RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE QUALITY CULTURE SWOT ANALYSE FOR A CURRENT SITUATION OF QUALITY ASSURANCE AND QUALITY MANAGEMENT III . APPENDICES–DOCUMENTS • Guidelines for quality assurance and assessment of higher education institutions and of the academic staff in the Republic of Macedonia • Guidelines for evaluation procedure at the level of faculty/high-education institutions/ research institutes

ABOUT UNIVERSITY”SS CYRIL AND METHODIUS”-SKOPJE Basic information and characteristics about the University The University “Ss.Cyril and Methodius” in Skopje represents the highest teaching-educational, scientific-researching and cultural institution in the Republic of Macedonia. The basic foundations of the university have been established in 1946,1947 and 1949 by forming the Faculty of Philosophy, Faculty of Philology, Faculty of Medicine, Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry, Faculty of Architecture and the Faculty of Civil-Engeneering and Construction. Today, the University consists of 22 faculties and 11 scientific institutes. There are 1348 persons employed at the University as academic staff, 996 experts associates, 316 scientific researchers, 36 897 students and 893 administrative-technical personnel.

ABOUT UNIVERSITY”SS CYRIL AND METHODIUS”-SKOPJE About the University mission and strategy The mission of the university is: “integration in the family of the European universities” The strategy of the University “Ss. Cyril and Methodius” represents a framework with defined which show how should the mission be accomplished.

BOLOGNA DECLARATION A STARTING POINT OF UNIVERSITY DEVELOPMENT The Bologna declaration is promoting the: • Universities’ autonomy • Quality Assurance • Compatibility of the studying programs • European credit transfer system • Arranging of the levels of education • Diploma supplement As a result of these academic activities it is expected: • For the studying efficiency to be increased • To assure students’ and academic staff mobility • To improve the quality of the teaching educational process • The students to be involved as active subjects in the curriculum quality assurance • To increase the possibility for employment of the graduated personnel on the European market of high educated personnel • To establish a contest at home and abroad

QUALITY ASSURANCE QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A NATIONAL LEVEL Starting point Law on High Education of the R of Macedonia enacted in August 2000, The quality assurance in the high educational institutions and of the studying programs by evaluation and accreditation has been introduced as a new approach in the education, with an aim for the quality to be improved.

QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A NATIONAL LEVEL Starting point “University Ss. Ciryl and Methodius on European roud” is published in May 2001 and consists important documents for European Higher Education: • Bologna, 1988- Magna carta of the European Universities • Conventions on the recognition of the Qualifications in the Higher Education in the Region of Europe, Lisabon, 1997 • European Higher Education area, Bologna, 1999 • The Salzburg Declaration for Social and civil Duties of the Universities, Salzburg, 2001 • Conventions of the European Higher Education, Salamanka, 2001 • Extracts from ESIB The project “Evaluation of the High Educational institutions in the Republic of Macedonia”, financed by the Ministry of education and science and the Open Society Institute (within the period from 22/11/2001 until 22/11/2002) Five scientific workshops have been organized for about 200 participants-members of the self-evaluation committees with an aim to explain the instructions and to make them convenient for a practical use.

QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A NATIONAL LEVEL Quality assurance by evaluation and accreditation President of the Republic Government of the Republic of Macedonia Ministry of Education and science External evaluation report Accreditation financing Æ OA External evaluation report Self-evaluation report S e l f e v a l u a t ion High educational institutions Universities/faculties/high vocational schools/institutes Schedule of the Quality assurancein the high education with evaluation and accreditation

QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A NATIONAL LEVEL INFRASTRUCTURE FOR THE HIGH EDUCATION QUALITY ASSURANCE IN THE REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA Two Governments organs have been formed on a national level: • Accreditation Board and • High Education Quality Evaluation Agency The High Education Evaluation Agency is responsible for the quality evaluation on a national level. Since 13 of October 2001, this Agency has become a member of the Quality Assurance Agencies Network in the High education in the countries of the Central and Eastern Europe. The Agency has: Book for regulations for its working and Professional code

QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A LEVEL OF AN INSTITUTION Quality assurance system Q = F 9 M factors Man (Academic staff, Students) Materials Mashines-Equipment Management Methods Measuring Motivation Money Markets

QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A LEVEL OF AN INSTITUTION The Management is the most responsible for building Quality system: In that system, it should be clearly defined: In creating the quality assurance system there are several steps: • Defined the mechanisms, processes and procedures and the documents • Organized all the resources: academic personnel, students, equipment and space • Created instruments for a quality control. • Who is doing? • What is he/she doing? • How is he/she doing that? • To whom is he/she responsible for that? • Quality definition (what is a quality?) • Quality planning (designing - documents) • Providing conditions for realization of the defined quality • Quality control (self evaluation and external evaluation) • Taking measures for correction of the defects

QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A LEVEL OF AN INSTITUTION The quality assurance system is following the DEMING’s circle of quality: PLAN-DO-CHECK-ACT Plan Act Internal Evaluation Check Internal control Self-Evaluation Do “As long as the circle is rolling, the quality is providing. Once the circle is interupted The quality fails.” (Deming)

QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A LEVEL OF AN INSTITUTION Quality definition The quality of the high educational institutions is a very complex category and depends upon several factors: • The staff, especially the academic one • Students • Management • Educational and researching methods • The content of the studying programs • Educational and researching equipment • Teaching aids (literature etc) • Motivation • Money, as a means for working and development • The Market The elections are made according to a certain procedure – by application of unique criteria for election of titles.

QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A LEVEL OF AN INSTITUTION The unique criteria are defined on a level of an Inter university conference as a “minimal quality threshold “.

QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A LEVEL OF AN INSTITUTION The minimal quality threshold on a national level is defined by many qualitative and quantitative indicators. Here we will emphasize only some of them which are more characteristic: Quality design (plan) Based upon the defined quality at any factor, documents have been elaborated in accordance with our abilities and conditions. The following documents have been elaborated at the level of the university: • Statute • Book of rules for the conditions and the criteria for enrolment at graduate studies • Book of rules for unique basics for organizing of post-graduate and doctorate studies • Book of rules for unique basics of credit system, transfer from one into another studying program and the transfer from one into another institution within the University • Book of rules for the unique studying regulations • Unique criteria for election in academic, teaching, teaching-experts and associate titles • Book of rules in academic, teaching, teaching-experts and associate titles • Book of rules of the students attorney

QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A LEVEL OF AN INSTITUTION Quality accomplishment (realization) The Faculty management is bound to provide all the necessary conditions and factors for quality assurance. But, the quality accomplishment usually lags behind what has been planned. The reasons for that are in several factors as for example: • not enough funds for equipment, literature • lower passing grades of the students at their enrolment in the next coming semester • not enough engagement of the academic staff in the transfer of the knowledge’s and the control of the knowledge’s

QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A LEVEL OF AN INSTITUTION Self-evaluation objectives: • Self-evaluation as a first step in the evaluation process consists of three objectives: • brief and relevant overview of the teaching process, having in consideration the impact of the research work on the teaching process; • analysis of the positive and negative elements of the higher education institutions (by means of SWOT analysis); • provision of basis which will serve as an external evaluation tool for the Agency for Evaluation of Higher Education in Republic of Macedonia.

QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A LEVEL OF AN INSTITUTION Quality control – Self-evaluation and External evaluation Guidelines for evaluation and evaluation procedure at the level of university/ faculty/high vocational school/scientific institution The guidelines foresee the following activities: • organization of activities of the Commission for evaluation at the University/faculty; • self-evaluation procedure; • members of the Self-evaluation Commission; • the rights and obligations of the performers of self-evaluation; • directions for preparations of self-evaluation report; • regulations for approval of self-evaluation report; • issuing of the report.

QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A LEVEL OF AN INSTITUTION Self-evaluation objectives Self-evaluation as a first step in the evaluation process consists of three objectives: • brief and relevant overview of the teaching process, having in consideration the impact of the research work on the teaching process; • analysis of the positive and negative elements of the higher education institutions (by means of SWOT analysis); • provision of basis which will serve as an external evaluation tool for the Agency for Evaluation of Higher Education in Republic of Macedonia.

QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A LEVEL OF AN INSTITUTION Self-evaluation bases Self-evaluation comprises of four key issues: a. What are the activities of the faculty accredited for higher education? b. In what way is the faculty performing its activity? c. How does the faculty accredited for higher education keep track of self-evaluation? d. What changes are undertaken in order for the faculty to improve?

PARTICIPATION OF THE STUDENTS IN EVALUATION OF EDUCATION PROCESS QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A LEVEL OF AN INSTITUTION New in the high educational institutions evaluation is the involvment of the students as a partner side in the high education. “The Students” opinion is important for the curriculum and examining quality as well as for the qualification of the teacher for a high education process in a given field.

CORRECTIONS ( TAKING MEASURES FOR CORRECTION) QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A LEVEL OF AN INSTITUTION Quality improvement Every next circle must be better quality

THE MANAGEMENT ROLE FOR QUALITY ASSURANCE QUALITY ASSURANCE AT A LEVEL OF AN INSTITUTION • Theobligations of Management in the Quality assurance • The management is the first and most responsible factor in the quality assurance because: • It defines and projects the quality in all segments of working of the institution • It provides the conditions for realization of the planned quality • Undertakes activities for correction of the defects and prevention of the defects • Introduces mechanisms for continued quality control • The management on a national level is responsible for involvement of the national high education in the European space. • For that purpose it: • Follows the changes and the processes in the high education in Europe and in the world • Provides knowledge transfer from experts through organizing seminars and scientific workshops • Provides moral, financial conditions and logistics for application of their knowledge.

THE MANAGEMENT ROLE FOR QUALITY ASSURANCE QC-CE MODEL IN THE QUALITY MANAGEMENT

Participants K - knowledg e IAC - Individuals’ a ttitude change IRC - Individuals’ relationship change URC - University relationship change URC IRC IAC K Time RECOMENDATIONS FOR QUALITY CULTURE DEVELOPMENT AND QUALITY ASSURANCE Pathway of the change of the quality culture

RECOMENDATIONS FOR QUALITY CULTURE DEVELOPMENT AND QUALITY ASSURANCE Team work and knowledge spreading Result 36 faculties made self-evaluation Macedonian Experience

SWOT ANALYSIS IN RELATION TO THE QUALITY ASSURANCE AND TO QUALITY MANAGEMENT S. Strong sides • academic staff, well educated at home and abroad • large number of the students are ready for university studies • the content of the studying programs is globally coordinated with the content of the European universities • readiness for acceptance of the new approaches • readiness for advanced training abroad • readiness for elaboration of teaching aids

SWOT ANALYSIS IN RELATION TO THE QUALITY ASSURANCE AND TO QUALITY MANAGEMENT W: weak sides • not enough elaborated management for quality assurance (there were not undertaken strict measures for eliminating of the weak professors and the weak students) • obsolete methods of education according to the model “ex cathedra” • insufficient equipment of the faculties for theoretical and practical curriculum • insufficient foreign literature for learning • weak motivation of the teachers, low salaries and inadequate conditions for working • weak motivation of the students for learning, due to the not having a possibility for employment • very poor financing • weak scientific cooperation of the university and the faculties with the European universities

SWOT ANALYSIS IN RELATION TO THE QUALITY ASSURANCE AND TO QUALITY MANAGEMENT O: Oportunities • PHARE-TEMPUS program for development of the education (1996-2006) • UNESCO-CEPES programme for development of strategic management, Financial management and Quality assurance and development of studying programs • Projects for introduction of new approaches financed by the Ministry of education and science, Open Society Institute and other donators

SWOT ANALYSIS IN RELATION TO THE QUALITY ASSURANCE AND TO QUALITY MANAGEMENT T : Threats • Low quality culture • Material crisis in the country, in the economy • Life Insecurity in the country

University of Ss. Cyril & Methodius Skopje REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA