Quality Assurance and assessment
Quality assurance and assessment are at the core of building trust between sectors, countries, institutions, employers and learners. Education and training institutions rely on robust internal and external quality assurance for institutional coherence, transparent learner progression, and recognition. Still, more can be done across all the missions of higher education institutions.
This is a strategic priority for EURASHE because many of the international frameworks for assessing higher education do not consider the strengths of applied universities, such as work based learning, high levels of employability, solutions to industrial and societal challenges, and regional impact.
Significant issues in quality assurance
Revision of the European Standards and Guidelines (ESG)
Following the mandate given by Ministers in the Tirana Communiqué (May 2024), the authors of the Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance (ESG) in the European Higher Education Area have formally launched the revision process. The updated ESG 2027 will reflect the evolving landscape of European higher education, ensuring that quality assurance frameworks remain coherent, future-oriented, and fit for purpose.
Timeline of the revision:
- (Nov 2025) Steering Committee publishes first draft of the revised text
- (Dec 2025) Public consultation with stakeholders launched
- (Autumn 2026) Bologna Follow-Up Group approves revised text
- (May 2027) EHEA Ministers adopt the text at the 2027 Ministerial Conference
Role of EURASHE
EURASHE being one of the original co-authors of the ESG, we are actively involved in their current revision together with our partners in the E4-Group. The association is represented in both the Drafting Group and Steering Committee, ensuring that the applied sciences perspective is fully embedded into the renewed ESG principles.
The ESG revision is coordinated by a Steering Committee composed of representatives from each of the seven primary and cooperating authors. The process draws heavily on the results of the QA-FIT project, which collected evidence on how the ESG are implemented across Europe and identified areas for improvement.
Our goal is to act as a knowledge hub for assessment of applied higher education, working closely with quality assurance agencies and governments.
