The proposed project is designed as an answer to needs and strategies of Armenia and Georgia with regard to their
position in the Bologna Process in the EHEA.
Currently, the Armenian higher education system faces a strong pressure for reforms. Armenia joined the Bologna
Process in 2005. Since then, the government and the higher education institutions (HEIs) aim at establishing a national
quality assurance system that would be comparable in the Bologna area. Since 2004, by Armenian law, the shift towards
a “quality culture” in higher education is envisaged and accreditation is mandatory for the major part of HEIs. With the
establishment of the national center ANQA in 2008 the realization of the legal provisions in the HEI-system could be
started. The practice for external quality assurance such as accreditation is still to be developed.
At present, the Georgian higher education system is also undergoing a series of reforms aiming to improve the quality of
higher education in the country. A Georgian law of 2004 created the legal basis. With this law a three-cycle degree
system and accreditation on an institutional level were introduced. The law also required all HEIs to establish internal
quality assurance services. They focus on the organization of educational processes and on the preparation of selfassessment
reports for institutional accreditation. Since March 2006 an independent agency – NCEA - is responsible for
accreditation in Georgia. Part of its strategy is a stronger focus on the quality of study programmes besides and/or in
addition to the existing institutional focus and with this on the development of procedures and criteria for programme
accreditation.
The project aims at developing new and at adjusting existing models for external quality assurance systems in higher
education in the partner countries which are acceptable and comparable regionally and internationally. The
competences of HEIs in the partner countries in external and internal quality assurance will be developed in order to
prepare them for applying its methods and instruments. The project will also enable the relevant actors in both HEIs and
agencies in Armenia and Georgia to deal with cultural and behavioral parameters influencing the success of quality
assurance measures. The dialogue between relevant stakeholders of the HE systems on the national level and beyond
will be fostered. A strategy will be defined for countrywide and regional implementation of the project results. During
the project, feedback loops for the ongoing improvement of the system itself are foreseen to monitor its relevance and
applicability.
