Abstract:

An important factor in quality assurance in procedures of accreditation and licensing of higher education study programmes is the implementation of recommendations developed by experts. On 1 January 2019, new regulations of the Cabinet of Ministers (CM) entered into force in the Republic of Latvia, which provide for a new procedure for licensing and accrediting higher education.

All these procedures are arranged by the Quality Agency for Higher Education (AIKA) established by the Academic Information Centre (AIC). An e-platform has been set up for the submission of accreditation materials, while licensing materials are still being submitted manually - as a package of scanned documents. The procedure for licensing study programmes and accreditation of study directions provides for the elaboration of short-term and long-term recommendations by experts. After getting acquainted with them, receiving the evaluation provided by the council of the study direction and study quality assurance structural units, the programme implementer prepares a plan of implementation of each recommendation, which includes the following sections: university/college activity, result to be achieved, expected implementation deadline, the result achieved on the day of the report submission, further action for implementation of recommendations.

Currently, the e-database for the implementation of recommendations is being developed in the procedure of accreditation of study directions. Based on the recommendations received in the previous accreditation procedure, the management of the study direction can provide an overview of the implementation of the recommendations in the part of the self-evaluation report “Description of the Study Direction”, section “Implementation of the Recommendations Received During the Previous Assessment Procedures”, which is structured in two directions:
(i) Assessment of the fulfilment of the plan regarding the implementation of the recommendations provided by the experts during the previous accreditation of the study direction, as well as the assessment of the impact of the given recommendations on the study quality or the improvement of the study process within the study direction and the relevant study programmes;
(ii) Implementation of the recommendations given by the experts during the evaluation of the changes to the relevant study programmes in the respective study direction or licensed study programmes over the reporting period or recommendations received during the procedure for the inclusion of the study programme in the accreditation form of the study direction.

The study will focus on recommendations regarding the study programmes in social sciences, because the study programmes within the study direction of social sciences are in priority to be accredited according to the schedule of accreditation of study directions stipulated by the law on higher education. It stipulates that the study directions “Psychology”, “Law”, “Economics”, “Information and Communication Sciences” and “Management, Administration and Real Estate Management” shall be accredited by 30 June 2021. Based on the recommendations of experts regarding improvements to be made in these directions and the content, quality and other aspects of the programmes included, I will systematize the typology and specificity of the recommendations, their correlation with the innovative, qualitative and dynamic teaching for dynamic times.

Keywords:

Higher education, study programme, study direction, licensing, accreditation, short-term and long-term recommendations.