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ITALIAN NATIONAL AGENCY
FOR THE EVALUATION OF UNIVERSITIES AND RESEARCH INSTITUTES

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ENQA/EQAR Membership

ENQA membership and EQAR registration

Logo enqa ENQA (European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education) is the international body established in 2000, following the Recommendation of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 February 2006 on further European cooperation in quality assurance in higher education. Its task is to accredit evaluation and quality assurance agencies operating in the countries that adhere to the Bologna process in accordance with European guidelines (Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area, ESG 2015).

ANVUR was formally accredited as an ENQA member on June 20, 2019, for a duration of five years (Letter ENQA to ANVUR). ANVUR’s registration in ENQA is an international recognition of fundamental importance for the Agency’s activities, as an independent institution for evaluating the quality of teaching and research.

On September 13, 2021, the Agency voluntarily underwent a Progress visit (an intermediate evaluation between obtaining membership and the start of the procedures for renewing the accreditation at the end of the 5 years). This visit aimed to monitor the effectiveness of the actions taken since the first external review of ANVUR by ENQA in 2018, in order to ensure full and continuous consistency with European principles on quality assurance. The Commission of International Experts appointed by ENQA recognized and appreciated the efforts made by the Agency and the progress achieved since 2019 to significantly increase adherence to European principles on quality assurance. In their statement, the experts encouraged the Agency to continue the initiatives undertaken and to follow up on those planned, summarized in the Follow-up report ratified with an official communication from the ENQA Board at the end of December 2021.

Having successfully completed the intermediate phase of ENQA accreditation, ANVUR has initiated the preparation phase for the renewal accreditation procedure (whose conclusion is expected in 2024), as well as for the application for registration in the EQAR register.

 

Stages of the ENQA accreditation process:

  • January 27, 2023: Initiation of talks for ANVUR’s application for renewal of the ENQA membership and inclusion in the EQAR Register.
  • July 2023: Signing of the tripartite contract “Terms of Reference” (ToR).
  • End of September 2023: Designation of the “review panel”.
  • October 20, 2023: Sending of the Self-Assessment Report (and related documents) to ENQA and its transmission to the ENQA Expert Commission.
  • End of January 2024: On-site visit by the ENQA Expert Commission.
  • Spring 2024: Finalization of the External Review Report (ERR) by the ENQA Expert Commission.
  • June 2024: Approval of the ERR by the ENQA Board.
  • July 2024: Sending of the EER to EQAR by ANVUR.
  • Autumn 2024: Decision by EQAR regarding inclusion in the EQAR Register (and subsequent automatic confirmation of the ENQA membership).

 

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