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A takeaway from the KAA 2023 International Conference on Quality Assurance in Higher Education Collected and written by Klemen Miklavič, Aqim Emurli and Arta Basha-Jakupi Pristina, 26.09.2023 Introduction Kosovo is a sui generis European young country. The surveys and general atmosphere among its population clearly shows the affinity for European values and norms. A strong European identity makes the inhabitants and society of Kosovo among the most pro EU oriented communities in the whole Europe. Hence, there is strong legitimacy for adopting European normative solutions in all sectors, including higher education. Quality assurance (QA) in higher education is one of the [...]

The European Commission report for Kosovo, published in Brussels on 08.11.2023, praises the work of the Kosovo Accreditation Agency (KAA) as an institution that has implemented the recommendations for institutional and financial independence as well as for increasing capacities regarding human resources. "In September 2022, the Kosovo Accreditation Agency (KAA) was granted the status of affiliated member of the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA). The agency is currently in the process of applying for membership in the ENQA and the European Quality Assurance Register. Kosovo adopted the Law on KAA, which aims to increase the agency’s operational [...]

Kosovo Accreditation Agency (KAA) has very successfully completed the declaration process of 2700  staff members of all higher education institutions in the Republic of Kosovo. Based on the applicable  legislation, the time frame for declaration of academic staff for the new academic year is from October 1 to October 31 and this process has been completed successfully. As a result of the advancement of the system and the increase of human resources, KAA confirms that the electronic platform 'E-Akreditimi' has been active and there has been no technical problem in its operation. In order to successfully complete this process, AKA has [...]

Kosovo Accreditation Agency, with the support from HEI25 project, has signed a contract with the economic operator for the digitization of internal processes. The project aims to digitize the internal processes and services of KAA, including the application for accreditation, monitoring processes, declaration of academic staff, academic information, generation of confirmations, etc. The software for accreditation, which will be developed on this occasion, will have 6 different types of users such: SCQ members, KAA staff, international experts, management and staff of HEIs, students. This software will enable interaction between different actors, in compliance with their duties and responsibilities, thus promoting the [...]

During the 117th meeting held on October 20, 2023, the State Council of Quality (SCQ) at the Kosovo Accreditation Agency (KAA) established a Working Group for the development of regulations in accordance with the new KAA Law. This group will comprise representatives from the SCQ, KAA, Appeals Commission, Ministry of Education, Science, Technology, and Innovation, Ministry of Finance, Labor, and Transfers, Conference of Rectors, UPCO Institute, as well as members from civil society. During the SCQ meeting, several monitoring reports were reviewed, and requests and appeals were also addressed. The Council discussed the list of international accreditation experts and offered suggestions [...]

The Kosovo Accreditation Agency (KAA) has distributed certificates to the three student volunteers who contributed to the organization of the KAA International Conference, which was held in Pristina on September 26, 2023. The General Director of KAA, Naim Gashi, has awarded certificates for voluntary work to three students of the University of Pristina: Taulant Gashi, Zanë Rexha and Albnor Sejdiu. The international conference was an event of great importance for the KAA and for the entire higher education community in Kosovo, and the contribution of student volunteers has been very important. They showed commitment towards the development of higher [...]

The Kosovo Accreditation Agency and Higher Education Intervention 2025 project signed a Memorandum of Understanding, with the aim of further concretizing the cooperation and coordination of the activities supported by the project. The HEI'25 project aims to support key processes in higher education that are related to quality improvement. The support for KAA will be focused on the digitization of work processes and the further development of institutional capacity for more transparency and efficiency of work and higher credibility. The HEI'25 project is financed by the Austrian Development Agency (ADA), with the contribution of the Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and [...]

A team of experts from the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA) conducted a progress visit to the Kosovo Accreditation Agency (KAA) on October 11th, 2023, in Pristina. International evaluators: Ms. Maria Weber (AQ Austria) and Mr. Klemen Subic (Slovenian Quality Assurance Agency) addressed all ESG chapter 3 standards, while discussing the progress made by KAA in its mission towards ENQA membership and registration in EQAR. During the progress visit, ENQA experts met with the State Council of Quality (SCQ), the staff of KAA, with representatives of higher education institutions, representatives of the Ministry of Education, Science, Technology [...]

The Kosovo Accreditation Agency has held an information session with all HEIs on the process of application for accreditation and re-accreditation of institutions and study programs, as provided by the Law on Higher Education No. 04/L-037 and Administrative Instruction 15/2018 for the Accreditation of Higher Education Institutions. During this meeting, the application forms were presented as well as the data that must be uploaded to the e-accreditation platform. In this meeting, all questions from HEI representatives were addressed and further clarification was given by the staff of the Accreditation Agency. Additional information about the application process can be obtained at this [...]

The State Council of Quality (SCQ) of the Kosovo Accreditation Agency (KAA), in its 116th meeting held on September 25, 2023, has approved the standards for accreditation/reaccreditation of higher education institutions at the institutional level and for bachelor and master programs. According to the KAA Law, these standards will come into effect after one year and will be applicable for all new applications submitted for accreditation/reaccreditation during the year 2024. For applications submitted to KAA from October 1 to October 31, 2023, the new standards will not be applicable, and the evaluation process will be conducted using the existing standards. KAA [...]