Prof' dr' Bozin Donevski

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EVALUATION OF HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONSIN
THE REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA
University St. Kliment Ohridski 7000 Bitola,
Macedonia

• Prof. dr. Bozin Donevski
• University St. Kliment Ohridski 7000 Bitola,
  Macedonia

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1. PROJECT BACKGROUND

• The new Law on Higher Education caught the
  higher education institutions unprepared to cope
  with all of the novelties, especially with the
  part related to the quality assurance procedures.

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1. PROJECT BACKGROUND

• Higher education institutions in the Republic of
  Macedonia were facing evaluation processes for
  the first time
• There was no experience and expertise available
  from the field of quality assurance in HE in
  Macedonia, apart from the partial and incomplete
  knowledge acquired from the TEMPUS projects
• The Law on Higher Education does not provide for
  a precise definition of the status and role of
  the Evaluation Agency. as a newly formed expert
  body (established in accordance with Article 28
  as a body responsible for external evaluation and
  overall quality assessment of the faculty within
  the universities and other higher education
  institutions in the Republic of Macedonia)
• Article 184 lays down the deadline for evaluation
  and accreditation of study programs in higher
  education (and research) State institutions,
  which is 24 months from the date the Law entered
  into force (i.e. until 11th August 2002).
  Therefore, the universities in Macedonia must
  undergo evaluation processes if they want to meet
  the deadline and comply with the Law

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2. THE LAW OF HE-2000 NEW BODIES

• INTERUNIVERSITY CONFERENCE
• BOARD OF ACREDITATION
• AGENCY FOR EVALUATION

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INTERUNIVERSITY CONFERENCE

• repetition of University senate in situation when
  faculties function as universities

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BOARD OF ACREDITATION

• independent body, composed of 15 members (8
  elected by Inter-university Conference, 2 by
  Academy of Science and Art and 4 by the
  Government of RM).
• Competent for giving licenses for
• establishing a higher education institution
• organizing new study programs
• determining capacities for studying at the HE
  institution etc
• Administratively and financially connected with
  the Ministry of Education and Science.

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AGENCY FOR EVALUATION

• Composed of 9 members, proposed by the
  Inter-university Conference and elected by the
  Board for Accreditation.
• Responsible for
• External evaluation of HEI
• Overall quality assessment of the academic staff.
  
• Status of the Agency unclear

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3. COMPLETED ACTIVITIES

• National level
• Inter-university Conference

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National level

• Norms and Standards for establishing a Higher
  Education Institution and practicing education
  activities (recently adopted by Government of
  RM)
• Guidelines for Quality Assurance and Assessment
  of Higher Education Institutions and Academic
  Staff in the Republic of Macedonia (Published in
  Official Journal of RM).

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Inter-university Conference

• Guidelines for the unified basics of the
  evaluation and evaluation procedures of the
  universities
• Guidelines for evaluation of Faculty/Higher
  Education Institution/Research Institutes
• Two models of student questionnaire for
  evaluation of academic and assistant staff

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4. INFRASTRUCTURE NETWORK AND CAPACITY
BUILDING OF HEI FOR QUALITY ASSURANCE

• Infrastructure Network
• Capacity Building of HE Institutions
• Capacity Building of Agency for
• Evaluation of HE

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Infrastructure Network

• HE Institutions have established Self-evaluation
  Committees on the faculties and universities
  level (base for developing infrastructure bodies
  for quality assurance of HE)

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Capacity Building of HE Institutions

• Short workshops (3 in Skopje and 1 in Bitola)
  were organized for Self-evaluation training for
  the elected members of the Evaluation
  Commissions. Its topics were the use of the
  self-evaluation process implementation guidelines
  and the preparation of self-evaluation report.
  Two experts of the French National Agency and one
  from Dutch Agency for Quality Assurance (VSNU)
  conducted this training for Evaluation.

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Capacity Building of Agency for Evaluation of HE

• Members of the agency also participated in the
  same workshops

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5. PERFORMING THE INSTITUTIONAL
SELF-EVALUATION

• Goals of self-evaluation
• Self-evaluation segments

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Goals of self-evaluation

• Self-evaluation, as the first step in the
  evaluation process, has the following main goals
  
• to produce a brief overview of the teaching and
  learning process, bearing in mind the impact of
  the scientific and research activities in that
  process
• to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the
  higher education institution (by applying of a
  SWOT analysis)
• to lay down the basis for self-evaluation of the
  university
• to lay down the basis for self-evaluation of the
  Agency for evaluation of higher education of
  Republic of Macedonia.

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Self-evaluation segments

• Self-evaluation shall be directed towards
  monitoring and analysis in several segments,
  especially towards
• the mission and goals of the higher education
  institution
• strategy for achieving the mission
• description of the faculty/higher education
  institution/research institutes, accredited for
  undertaking higher education activity
• study program and subject courses
• teaching staff and assistants
• teaching and learning activity
• students
• facilities and material conditions (resources)
• logistics
• external co-operation
• scientific research activity
• financing.

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6. RESULTS

• Self-evaluation process
• Self-evaluation reports

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Self-evaluation process

• During the period of April to end of June 2002 a
  self-evaluation process was conducted in most of
  the HE and Research Institutions in Macedonia.
• In these process were also involved students,
  who have provide for the first time three types
  of student questionnaires.

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Self-evaluation reports

• 26 Institutional Self-evaluation reports were
  prepared at the University in Skopje

7 Institutional Self-evaluation reports were
prepared at the University in Bitola. The
University Self-evaluation Committee also
prepared a self-evaluation report for the
University level.
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7. STUDENT QUESTIONARES
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8. FURTHER CONTINUATION (INSTITUTIONAL
EXTENAL EVALUATION)
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University St. Kliment Ohridski 7000 Bitola,
Macedonia