Quality assurance of quality assurance agencies from an Asian perspective: regulation, autonomy and accountability

As quality guardians of higher education, quality assurance agencies are required to guarantee the credibility of the review process and to ensure the objectivity and transparency of their decisions and recommendations. These agencies are therefore expected to use a range of internal and external approaches to prove the quality of their review activities. Quality assurance agencies in Asia are attempting to enhance their quality capacity through several internal and external approaches. The purpose of this study is to explore internal and external quality assurance mechanisms used by quality assurance agencies in Asian nations, through an international survey of 17 APQN full members and their use of the International Network of Quality assurance Agencies in Higher Education and the Asia–Pacific Quality Network guidelines. The balance between external review and autonomy is discussed at the national and international levels. The challenges and strategies that Asian quality assurance agencies are facing and dealing with are presented as a conclusion at the end of the paper.