Thematic Reports on Quality Improvement in Support of the Goals of Higher Education

Higher education plays an essential role in the development of more just, cohesive, and sustainable societies. Since the late 20th century, major international and European consensus documents have consistently emphasized that universities must not only train qualified professionals but also contribute to students’ personal development, foster active and responsible citizenship, promote equity, and generate knowledge in the service of the public interest.

The thematic reports on the quality of the university system were created precisely with the aim of contributing to this shared framework of principles and commitments. Through a systematic analysis of various key aspects of university activity, these reports seek to identify the extent to which existing quality assurance mechanisms effectively support the overarching objectives of higher education and meet the expectations of society, students, and the various stakeholders involved.

Far from viewing quality as an end in itself, the thematic reports approach it as a tool for continuous improvement, university autonomy, and excellence in diversity. Their purpose is to provide a comprehensive overview that fosters a better understanding of how quality assessment and assurance processes can guide, support, and strengthen the development of university functions in areas such as inclusion, equity, internationalization, sustainability, employability, and educational innovation.

In this way, the thematic reports aim to serve as a useful tool for analysis, reflection, and decision-making, fostering dialogue among universities, public officials, and society, and contributing to the strengthening of a university system committed to its present and future responsibilities.

The primary rationale for these thematic reports on quality improvement in support of the objectives of higher education rests on the consensus derived from the statements of leading international forums regarding the definition of the main goals of higher education. Thus, among others, it is worth highlighting here leading forums such as UNESCO, the European Higher Education Area, the Council of Europe, the European Union, and the Ibero-American Knowledge Area: 

  • He emphasized that institutions of higher education should provide students with the opportunity to fully develop their own abilities with a sense of social responsibility, educating them to participate actively in a democratic society and promote changes that will foster equality and justice.

    Higher education must reinforce the fundamental values of democratic citizenship and foster critical and independent perspectives. Institutions of higher education must contribute to the dissemination of universally accepted values, such as peace, justice, freedom, equality, and solidarity.

  • A document that promotes higher education and research as a driving force for eradicating poverty and fostering sustainable development.

    Higher education must not only provide solid skills for the world of today and tomorrow, but also contribute to the development of citizens who are guided by ethical principles and committed to building peace, defending human rights, and upholding democratic values.

    Higher education plays a central role in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

  • Founding Charter of the European Higher Education Area (EHEA). It introduces the concept of a “Europe of knowledge” and links higher education to employability, social cohesion, and the development of European citizenship based on shared values, laying the groundwork for the subsequent development of quality assurance systems in Europe.

    “A Europe capable of providing its citizens with the skills necessary to meet the challenges of the new millennium, along with an awareness of shared values and a sense of belonging to a common social and cultural space.”

  • Common EHEA Regulatory Framework for Internal and External Quality Assurance. It explicitly recognizes the multiple purposes of higher education (employment, personal development, citizenship, research, innovation) and reinforces the idea of quality as a tool for continuous improvement, respect for institutional diversity, and university autonomy.

    Quality assurance plays a fundamental role in supporting systems and institutions as they respond to these changes, ensuring that the qualifications students earn and their educational experience remain at the heart of the institutional mission.

  • It establishes that higher education fulfills key functions for democracy, human rights, and social development, and that public authorities must ensure its quality, accessibility, and alignment with the public interest. It reinforces the approach to university quality as a public good and as a strategic element for addressing complex social challenges.

    Higher education serves multiple purposes, including preparing students for active citizenship and their future professions, supporting their personal development, creating a broad base of advanced knowledge, and fostering research and innovation.

Thematic reports on quality improvement to support university education objectives

The World Declaration on Higher Education for the 21st Century promoted by UNESCO highlighted, among other issues, that higher education institutions should provide students with the possibility to fully develop their own capacities with a sense of social responsibility, educating them for active participation in democratic society and promoting changes that will bring about equality and justice (UNESCO, 1998).

In the European framework, the Bologna Declaration itself speaks of a Europe of knowledge "capable of giving its citizens the necessary competences to meet the challenges of the new millennium, together with an awareness of shared values and belonging to a common social and cultural space" (European Ministers of Education, 1999).

And, in line with the above, the ESGs endorse the Council of Europe's conclusions on the orientation of higher education which state that "higher education has multiple purposes, including preparing students for active citizenship, for their future professions, assisting in their personal development, building a broad base of advanced knowledge and fostering research and innovation" (CoE, 2007).

It has been pointed out in relevant international forums that " Higher education must not only give solid skills for the present and future world but must also contribute to the education of ethical citizens committed to the construction of peace, the defence of human rights and the values of democracy." (UNESCO, 2009); and, therefore, the important role that higher education is called upon to play in many different facets when it comes to facing challenges, including the inclusion of groups with difficulties, equity in access to quality education, internationalisation, sustainability, etc., is evident. Furthermore, the priorities highlighted in the latest ministerial communiqués of the EHEA member countries (Ministers of Higher Education, 2015 and 2018) include the interest in improving the quality and relevance of learning and teaching, strengthening the employability of graduates and their participatory citizenship in democratic societies, and making education systems increasingly inclusive.

In short, given that quality assurance processes are already a reality with significant scope, care should be taken to ensure that the effects they produce - by virtue of their configuration and operation - are, as far as possible, clearly at the service of the fundamental objectives of university education and, therefore, of the demands of students and society.

Understanding the university system to be diverse would mean that the main objectives and challenges of the universities, addressed by universities through their functions, are progressively and systematically supported in an explicit and direct way by quality assurance processes; this will make it easier for such processes to guide, accompany and encourage the achievement of these objectives and challenges in a decisive way.

By identifying of a set of key aspects to be addressed by universities, this line of action aims to progressively facilitate (from a quality assurance perspective that promotes university autonomy and excellence in diversity) guidelines for the implementation and comprehensive review of university mechanisms that explicitly contribute to the improvement in the fulfilment of the different higher education objectives agreed by countries in supranational forums, and also to advance towards a meeting of perspectives between universities and the rest of the agents involved. In this way, and by complementing other initiatives, the focus here is directly on the fulfilment of several of the fundamental objectives of higher education.

Fundamental objectives

The first stage of this initiative aims to address, in terms of their relevance, four fundamental objectives of higher education: