Note: The documents linked in the text below are only available in Albanian.

Quality Assurance Agency in Higher Education (the Agency) operates in accordance with the Decision of Council of Ministers No. 109, dated on 15^th of February, 2017 (amended by Decision no. 825, dated 24.12.2021 and Decision no. 562, dated 31.07.2019) and in accordance with the Law No. 80/2015, on higher education and scientific research. The Agency has derived from the reorganization of the Public Accreditation Agency for Higher Education, established by the DCM No. 303, dated on 1^st of July, 1999.

The Agency is the only institution operating in the higher education area in the Republic of Albania, that monitors and evaluates the quality of higher education. This is achieved based on the State Standards on quality assurance and other standards and relevant guidelines on quality assurance in the international and European higher education area. The Agency is an independent body, impartial and transparent in carrying out its activity. ASCAL performs the prior assessment of quality for HEIs, their units, and study programs for the three cycles of study in the framework of their licensing procedure as well as external evaluation in the framework of institutional accreditation and study programs. Also, the Agency carries out analytical and comparative assessments of HEIs, programs, and areas of study.

The mission of the Agency

• Ensuring quality in higher education through external objective, and independent evaluation;
• Maintaining quality standards;
• Promoting and improving the quality of higher education institutions and study programs they offer.

The focus of the activity

External quality assessment for the first and periodic accreditation of higher education institutions and of the study programs they offer;

Monitoring, evaluating the academic quality and the compliance with the state quality standards of the institutions and programs offered by them, prior to the assessment for the first and the next accreditation;

Preliminary assessment in the framework of opening and/or reorganizing higher education institutions and study programs, following the request from the Ministry responsible for education;

Preliminary assessment and recognition of study programs provided by the accredited higher education institutions in Albania, by foreign higher education institutions of one of the European Union countries, the United States of America, Canada, and Australia;

Periodic assessment, every three years, of the quality of teaching in higher education institutions and its ongoing monitoring through the National Student Survey, in accordance with its guidelines;

Evaluation of internal quality systems (audit) in higher education institutions, in accordance with its guidelines and standards and guidelines for quality assurance in the European Higher Education Area;

Thematic, analytical and comparative assessments of institutions and/or study programs in the function of policies for higher education, autonomously or at the request of the ministry responsible for education.

To fulfill its mission, the Agency, in addition to the legal acts in force, is based on the Quality Code and its internal regulations.

ASCAL is part of the European Quality Assurance Area, collaborating with all stakeholders in this field and being an associate member of ENQA, a full member of CEENQA, a full member of INQAAHE. ASCAL also has successful collaborations with QAA and CHE.