Ontario moves to allow indigenous institutes to award own degrees Provincial government has also announced funding for aboriginal institutions to expand their capacity By Ellie Bothwell 5 December
Self-reflection is the key to improvement for Indian universities Focus on rankings risks neglecting the genuine quality improvements that could propel Indian institutions into the global league, says Amarnath Bose By Amarnath Bose 30 November
Does the TEF spell the end for quality assurance? The TEF’s new name may be less misleading, but its incentives remain just as perverse, says Roger Brown By Roger Brown 23 November
One-size-fits-all quality system ‘forces private colleges to lie’ Senior QAA reviewer claims it is unfair to compare alternative providers to universities when they charge different fees By Jack Grove 1 November
EAIE 2017: Europe ‘must improve’ credential recognition for refugees Quality assurance professionals call for system to verify refugees’ education credentials before ‘next crisis’ By Ellie Bothwell 14 September
Malawi government proposes new body to weed out fake degrees Former education minister says government will table bill for creation of new degree standardising body By John Elmes 26 July
Quality assurance in US higher education: one size does not fit all Martin Kurzweil and Wendell Pritchett cast their eye over the possible future direction of quality assurance under Trump By Martin Kurzweil 10 June
Plymouth QAA review kept secret after successful appeal Challenge means that institution’s entry into teaching excellence framework based on 2009 report By John Morgan 3 April
Global HE ‘faces anarchy’ after unchecked expansion Leading scholar says many countries have ‘neither the will nor the capacity’ to manage growth By Ellie Bothwell 24 March
Minister calls for tougher penalties to combat essay mills UK government asks for new guidance to help universities tackle custom essay writing services By John Elmes 21 February
Transnational education guidelines: there is work to be done Fabrizio Trifirò explores the difficulties of quality assurance across borders By Fabrizio Trifirò 29 November
Tanzania government threatens to close more universities Education ministry is analysing a report into the quality of higher education and may close down substandard institutions By John Elmes 22 November
Global guidelines for TNE 'may be too challenging' Author of paper into the issue says international higher education is a ‘long way off’ clear principles By John Elmes 22 November
Higher Education Bill: ministers must address key concerns Despite having some questions about how the bill will be implemented, Douglas Blackstock believes it is a force for good By Douglas Blackstock 15 November
Consumerist students complaining more, says ombudsman Judy Clements warns English and Welsh universities may have to contribute more towards adjudicator to meet demand By Chris Havergal 9 November
Peter Wright, 1941-2016 A sociologist who helped to forge new qualifications and quality assurance regimes has died By Matthew Reisz 13 October
Make trouble for the essay mills Banning ghostwriting services from advertising won’t stop students cheating, but four simple steps could hobble them, says Geoffrey Alderman By Geoffrey Alderman 1 September
Standards fall when satisfaction is the name of the game Treating students as consumers has precipitated a rush to the bottom to give them exactly what they want, says John Warren By John Warren 25 August
Is it time we ditched honorary degrees? They can cause confusion about qualifications and embarrassment for institutions, so why are they awarded? Malcolm Gillies investigates By Malcolm Gillies 11 August
QAA reviews raise questions over sector expansion plans Smaller, newer alternative providers are less likely to pass higher education review, analysis says By Chris Havergal 28 July
Universities don’t fear the OIA. It would better if they did Beefing up the independent adjudicator’s role would benefit the sector and students alike, says Matthew Wyard By Matthew Wyard 28 July
CMA tells universities to improve treatment of students Three institutions agree to changes over fees, course costs and progression By Chris Havergal 22 July
Graduation selfies ‘aiding degree certificate conmen’ BIS-appointed anti-fraud agency says criminals could use photos to access latest designs By Chris Havergal 5 July
Latin American ‘privatisation’ and research performance under fire Progress needed on equity, quality assurance and research, says University of Chile academic By Matthew Reisz 3 July
Dozens of QAA jobs ‘at risk’ Consultation on ‘smaller’ watchdog comes after Hefce took quality assessment work in-house By Chris Havergal 16 June
Oxford told to address fears over ‘excessive’ student workloads Quality Assurance Agency says university should even out disparity in number of tutorials and essays set by colleges By Chris Havergal 14 June
Universities told to pay record compensation to students OIA says recommended payouts topped ?485,000 in 2015 despite reduction in the number of cases By Chris Havergal 9 June
Private college ‘took public money but failed on quality’ QAA finds lax entry standards at Cardiff college formerly led by principal with ‘falsified’ PhD By Chris Havergal 9 June
The HE bill will sweep away self-regulation of standards. Whose fault is that? The Office for Students will kill off institutional autonomy, says Geoffrey Alderman, and the sector has only itself to blame By Geoffrey Alderman 9 June
Cardiff University v-c issues warning over Wales quality plans As funding council plans to keep independent reviews, Colin Riordan says UK-wide system must be protected By Chris Havergal 19 May
QAA set to retain key role in monitoring university standards Agency is preferred bidder for four of six quality tenders offered by Hefce, alongside HEA and Leadership Foundation By Chris Havergal 13 May
Hefce quality plans ‘risk greater government control’ Contract terms bring criticism of funding council, but it defends ‘normal commercial practice’ By John Morgan 28 April
White Paper could kill off Hefce quality plans Theresa May said to want UK-wide quality system retained to protect overseas recruitment licence checks By John Morgan 19 April
Are governors ready to play their part in quality assessment? University boards need the right skills if they are to ask the right questions, says Gill Evans By Gill Evans 18 April
QAA and Hefce set out contrasting visions on quality A UK-wide, co-regulatory system is pitched by the QAA at its annual conference while Hefce focuses on changes needed for England's market regime By John Morgan 18 April
Our plans for quality assessment have been misunderstood Hefce's new standards regime will enable universities to focus on what matters to students, says Susan Lapworth By Susan Lapworth 12 April
Tribal: don’t fear private sector role in quality assurance Involving companies in quality assurance described as ‘logical next step’ By Chris Havergal 6 April
In defence of the QAA: the private sector view Breaking up the quality assurance system would ruin the global reputation of UK higher education, Aldwyn Cooper warns By Aldwyn Cooper 22 March
New quality assurance system questioned Revised proposals may not lighten the burden on institutions, warns vice-chancellor By Chris Havergal 22 March
Hefce fires starting gun on quality assurance bidding Funding council also plans to register itself as England’s official quality body By Chris Havergal 18 March
UK and China agree deal on 'high-quality' cross-border education Countries make a commitment to deepen partnership in quality assurance for transnational education By Ellie Bothwell 17 March
Rob Behrens: role of HE ombudsman ‘now accepted’ by universities The outgoing independent adjudicator talks to 色盒直播 about eight years at the OIA and the future of sector regulation By Chris Havergal 17 March
Hefce serving up 'dog's dinner' with quality tenders Critics warn against giving quality work to outsourcing companies By John Morgan 17 March
Hesa, Jisc and QAA to share costs as M5 Group Agencies could also be well placed to collaborate on monitoring higher education standards By Chris Havergal 11 March
Teesside University to withdraw FE validation at 10 colleges Decision has rekindled row over universities’ role in validating HE courses in FE By John Elmes 3 March
QAA to support Albanian university reviews Third of country’s higher education institutions were closed in 2014 after criticism of standards By Chris Havergal 29 February
The 25 most-read Times Higher Education articles of 2015 The most popular higher education articles of the year, based on website traffic By Chris Parr 21 December
Universities oppose external examining reforms Higher Education Funding Council for England says proposals will be reviewed but wins broad support for principles By Chris Havergal 30 November
Legal action warning over TEF and tuition fees link Durham pro vice-chancellor warns that institutions would be forced to challenge a worse-than-expected judgement By Chris Havergal 27 November
Risk-based quality assessment ‘cannot work’, study concludes King’s College London research finds that ability of metrics to predict problems in higher education providers is ‘extremely limited’ By Chris Havergal 26 November
Spending review: expansion of transnational education needs solid underpinning Involvement in global quality assurance is crucial to signing up more overseas students, says Fiona Crozier By Fiona Crozier 25 November
‘About time’ value of quality assurance is demonstrated European Quality Assurance Forum told ‘surprisingly little work’ conducted on value of members’ activities By Chris Havergal 24 November
Next universities ombudsman appointed Judy Clements to join Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education next April By Chris Havergal 5 November
How easy should it be to open a university? Mike Ratcliffe looks at why institutions have traditionally had to serve an ‘apprenticeship’, ahead of Green Paper set to change the rules By Mike Ratcliffe 4 November
QAA acts on concerns over college provision of Pearson programmes Fifteen per cent of recommendations issued to further education colleges by watchdog relate to courses leading to the FTSE 100 firm’s qualifications By Chris Havergal 29 October
Egypt and UK collaborate on higher education regulation Higher Education Regulatory Funding Authority set up with British support By Chris Havergal 27 October
Sixth-form colleges ‘prepare students for university better than FE’ University Campus Suffolk researchers find ‘natural progression’ into higher education is not found at every institution By Chris Havergal 24 October
QAA chief: end of current system could risk ‘Volkswagen-style’ crisis Move would jeopardise sector’s global brand, senior figures warn By John Morgan 16 October
TEF must include independent peer review, says new QAA chief Interim chief executive Douglas Blackstock warns teaching excellence framework will lack credibility without external assessment By Chris Havergal 8 October
Strengthening external examining ‘risks creating national inspectorate’ Increased role for governing bodies also questioned in responses to Hefce’s quality assessment consultation By Chris Havergal 1 October