Raporti vjetor 2013 annual report 2013 January 2014

2.Activities carried out in 2013

The main activities carried out in 2013 were mostly focused on the assessment processes in the framework of licensing and accreditation, on cooperation with institutions of higher education, training workshops and participation in national and international activities etc..

3.Accreditation Council

Accreditation Council is a collegial body that performs its activity at the Public Agency for Higher Education Accreditation and is organized as defined in the Law 9741, dated 21.05.2007, "On Higher Education in the Republic of Albania", amended.


Director: Prof.PhD. Avni Meshi
January 25, 2014

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  PAAHE
  

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  Mission
  

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  Objectives
  

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  Main functions
  

Public Agency for Accreditaion of Higher Education

The Public Agency for Accreditation of Higher Education (PAAHE) is a state and public institution , part of the Quality Assurance System in Higher Education in Albania, dependent administratively on the Ministry of Education and Sport, established by CoM decision No.303, datë 1.7.1999 “Për krijimin e sistemit të akreditimit në arsimin e lartë”. 303, dated 01.07.1999 "On establishment of the accreditation system in higher education." PAAHE has as its primary mission the promotion of quality and quality assurance in higher education.

Mbështetur në besimin kryesor se : “përgjegjësit kryesorë për sigurimin e cilësisë në arsimin e lartë janë vetë Institucionet e Arsimit të Lartë”, agjencia, për kryerjen në mënyrë cilësore misionin e saj, mbështetet në disa parime themelore si: respektimin e autonomisë institucionale dhe lirisë akademike të Institucioneve të Arsimit të Lartë, transparencën dhe informimin në çdo hap të procesit, mekanizmat e brendshëm të sigurimit të cilësisë në IAL, objektivizmin dhe profesionalizmin në të gjitha proceset e kryera prej saj si dhe në respektimin vetëm të kritereve dhe standardeve shtetërore të cilësisë, të standardeve evropiane të cilësisë dhe në standartet akademike në AL. Based on the principal belief that "the main responsible actors for quality assurance in higher education are the Higher Education Institutions themselves", the Agency bases its activity on some fundamental principles in order to accomplish its mission in a qualitative way: respect for institutional autonomy and academic freedom of Institutions of Higher Education, transparency and information in every step of the process, the internal mechanisms of quality assurance in higher education, objectivity and professionalism in all the processes performed , which are in compliance with the criteria and state quality standards, European quality standards and academic standards in higher education. Some of the main functions of PAAHE in higher education are :

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  Promotion and external quality assessment in public and private higher education institutions, autonomous conduction of quality assurance procedures, selection of assessment methods and instruments, setting up assessment expert groups, as well as writing the final reports and evaluation results in accordance with laws and regulations in force.
  
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  PAAHE is the institution that records HEIs requirements for evaluation and accreditation. ItPërgatit kalendarin vjetor të vlerësimeve dhe ja paraqet atë për miratim Ministrit të Arsimit dhe Shkencës. prepares the annual calendar of assessments and submits it for approval to the Minister of Education and Sport. Ky kalendar bëhet publik për të gjitha IAL publike dhe private. This calendar is made ​​public to all public and private HEIs. Gjithashtu, agjencia organizon vlerësimin e treguesve teknikë dhe në përmbajtje të sistemit të arsimit të lartë. In addition, the agency organizes the assessment of technical and content indicators of the higher education system
  
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  PAAHE conducts activities of external quality assessment in order to accredit the program / ​​s of study or (public and private) institutions and makes the reports and the results of performed assessments public. It establishes criteria and procedures for the selection of assessment experts or consultants, local or foreign ones, which are made public, after taking the approval of the Ministry of Education and Sports. Përzgjedhja e tyre bëhet përmes një konkurimi publik. Their selection is carried out through a public competition. Lista e ekspertëve përditësohet së paku çdo vit. The list of experts is updated annually.
  
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  PAAHE is responsible for carrying out the processes of ranking and rating of programs, fields of study and institutions of higher education. APAAL në bashkëpunim me KA, kryen dhe shpall renditjen (ranking) e IAL ose diplomave të ngjashme në përputhje me këto rezultate. PAAHE in cooperation with AC carries out and publicizes the ranking of the HEIs or similar degrees in accordance with these results. Shpeshtësia e kryerjes së ranking-ut dhe kriteret e tij miratohen nga Ministri i Arsimit dhe Shkencës. The frequency of ranking processes and its criteria are approved by the Minister of Education and Sport.
  
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  The agency is responsible for the implementation of the indicators for measuring quality. Në këtë drejtim, APAAL bashkëpunon me grupe ekspertësh dhe me institucione të arsimit të lartë. In this regard, PAAHE cooperates with expert groups and institutions of higher education.
  
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  In function of higher education policy, the agency conducts analytical and / or comparative evaluations of institutions , programs and areas of higher education, according to certain indicators and in relation to existing standards, both national and international ones.
  
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  Based on clear criteria, accurate and reliable data and evaluation results, PAAHE writes analytical reports on higher education system according to one or more aspects or indicators.
  
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  The Në shërbim të politikave të arsimit të lartë, agjencia kryen vlerësime analitike dhe/ose krahasuese të institucioneve dhe të programeve të fushave të arsimit të lartë, sipas treguesve të caktuar dhe në raport me standardet ekzistuese, vendase apo ndërkombëtare.Mbështetur në kritere të qarta, mbi të dhëna të sakta e të besueshme dhe në rezultatet e vlerësimit, APAAL harton raporte analitike të sistemit të arsimit të lartë sipas një ose disa aspekteve apo treguesve.Agjencia bashkëpunon me institucionet publike dhe private të arsimit të lartë për ngritjen dhe funksionimin e sistemit të sigurimit të brendshëm të cilësisë, duke rekomanduar kriteret, metodat dhe indikatorët e përgjithshëm, si dhe kriteret e metodat e përshtatshme për vetëvlerësimin periodik të sistemitAgency cooperates with public and private institutions of higher education for the establishment and functioning of the internal quality assurance by recommending criteria, methods and general indicators as well as criteria and appropriate methods for periodic self-assessment of the system. Ajo udhëzon dhe trajnon njësitë e sigurimit të brendshëm të cilësisë dhe mban marrëdhënie të vazhdueshme me këto njësi. It instructs and trains the units of internal quality assurance and maintains continuous contacts with these units
  
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  TheAgjencia Publike e Akreditimit të Arsimit të Lartë, bashkëpunon me rrjetet e agjencive për sigurimin e cilësisë në Hapësirën Evropiane të Arsimit të Lartë dhe ato që operojnë në rang ndërkombëtar. Public Agency for Accreditation of Higher Education cooperates with networks of quality assurance agencies across the European Higher Education Area and those that operate internationally. APAAL bashkëpunon me institucionet e arsimit të lartë në vend dhe institucione që lidhen me to, organizata profesionale, institucione që lidhen me tregun e punës, për shkëmbim informacioni dhe ekspertizë duke i përfshirë aktivisht në procesin e vlerësimit të jashtëm.
  
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  TheAgjencia Publike e Akreditimit të Arsimit të Lartë, bashkëpunon me rrjetet e agjencive për sigurimin e cilësisë në Hapësirën Evropiane të Arsimit të Lartë dhe ato që operojnë në rang ndërkombëtar. Public Agency for Accreditation of Higher Education collaborates with higher education institutions at home and institutions related to them, professional organizations, institutions related to labor market in order to exchange information and expertise actively involving them in the process of external evaluation.
  
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  PAAHE also cooperates with student councils including these actors both in the process of external evaluation and in information and data collection , which serve the evaluation and quality assurance in HE in general.
  
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  In collaboration with CA, PAAHE writes a report of its activities at the end of each year, which is sent to the Minister of Education and Sport and later it is made ​​public within the first four months of the following year.
  
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  PAAHE provides, through its official website, updated public information on the status of the HEI / programs regarding assessment and accreditation, results of ranking and of the analyses in HE.
  
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  PAAHE issues the final Certificate of accreditation on HEI receiving accreditation.
  

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    Accreditation Council
    
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    Mission
    
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    Objektives
    
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    Main functions
    
  Accreditation Council
  

The Accreditation Council is a collegial body that carries out its activity at the Public Agency for Higher Education Accreditation and is organised according to the definitions in the law no 9741, dated 21.5.2007, "On higher education in the Republic of Albania", as amended. The Council of Accreditation is made up of 11 (eleven) members, five of whom are nominated by institutions of higher education, 3 (​​three) are field experts, two of whom are foreigners, proposed by international accreditation agencies, an expert, representative of the private sector, a representative from the Ministry of Education and Sport, a representative from the Council of Higher Education and Sport, and a student proposed by the National Council of students. The Minister of Education and Sport appoints the members of the Accreditation Council from the candidates proposed by the parties represented. The chairman of the Accreditation Council is selected from the candidates proposed by this council. He is appointed and dismissed by the Prime Minister on the proposal of the Minister of Education and Sport. The Council carries out its activities independently and in accordance with its regulation, which is approved by the Minister of Education and Sport. When there are issues that are not covered by the expertise of the members of the council or when deemed necessary, the Council may ask experts or external consultants to assist in formulating decisions. The Council meet no more than 9 (nine) times a year. The AC member who is absent in 1/3 of the meetings is substituted.

The Accreditation Council carries out its activity near PAAHE.

The Accreditation Council's main activities are defined in the regulation of external quality assurance system. Its main activities are numerous and the most important ones are:

Approves evaluation procedures and methodology, as well as the main general and specific documents for external evaluation and accreditation of study programs and higher education institutions, proposed by the Public Agency for Accreditation of Higher Education, based on legal acts in force, and taking into consideration the guidelines and the relevant European models.

Writes the reports of activities conducted at the end of each year in collaboration with the Public Agency for Accreditation of Higher Education, which is sent to the Minister of Education and Sport and made public.

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  Reviews and approves the composition of expert groups for each external evaluation proposed by the agency, after the experts selection from the general list of experts according to their field expertise.
  
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  Based on the the legislation in force it reviews the evaluations carried out by PAAHE and recommends or does not recommend to the Minister the opening of new programs of study in the public and private higher education institutions.
  
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  Reviews the final report of an external evaluation and provides the proper recommendations for accreditation, which are submitted to the Minister of Education and Sport
  
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  Reviews complaints or claims about the external evaluation report of the institution concerned. The Council evaluates the materials submitted as well as the party claims and decides to take them or not into consideration, or decides to send another group of assessors for assessment in the institution. In all cases, the conclusions of experts / council members are expressed in the assessment minutes and the final decision must be substantiated. The opinions against the decision are attached to the recommendation decision. In the course of decision-making process, the Accreditation Council may require additional information or corrections from the agency or the institutions under review.
  
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  The director of Public Agency for Accreditation of Higher Education attends the meetings of Accreditation Council without the right to vote.
  
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  AC formulates its judgement , based on the results of the evaluation carried out by other agencies part of ENQA.
  
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  Defines principles, criteria and procedures, for mutual recognition of accreditation given by other agencies, and accreditation procedures of joint programs between two or more Albanian institutions of higher education, or in cooperation with a foreign institution of higher education. This is done in support by the Public Agency for Accreditation of Higher Education and on the basis of relevant European recommendations .
  

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  Organigram
  

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  PAAHE sectors
  

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  Duties
  

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  Staff
  

PAAHE Organisation

Based on the decision of CoMNë bazë të vendimit të KM, Nr., No. 424, datë 02.06.2010 "Për miratimin e strukturës së Agjencisë Publike të Akreditimit të Arsimit të Lartë” , APAAL është riorganizuar në tre sektorë dhe numri i punonjësve aktualisht është 15. 424, dated 02.06.2010 "On the approval of the structure of the Public Agency for Higher Education Accreditation," PAAHE is reorganized into three sectors currently consisting of 15 employees.

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  Sector of Promotion and Quality Assessment , SPQA
  

SPQA consists of the head of the sector and five specialists who are graduates in certain fields of study. Mbështetje në këtë sektor japin ekspertët e fushave të ndryshme akademike, të cilët angazhohen për të kryer vlerësimet e jashtme. One of the main duties of this sector is the organization and monitoring of the process of the accreditation of the institutions and programs of study offered by these (public and private) institutions. It is also in charge of drafting technical reports of new programs of study, as part of the evaluation report written by the external experts( in the process of licensing ). Besides, it conducts training of internal assessment groups , set up by HEIs involved in the accreditation process; it provides templates of the internal assessment reports , external evaluation reports , technical reports within licensing , etc. , for all programs of study , in all cycles ( Bsc , Msc , PM , PhD , 2-year long non - university programs ) . Based on PAAHE procedures for the assessment in the framework of licensing and accreditation , this sector engages external experts from various academic fields, who compile evaluation reports , which go to the Accreditation Council where the proper decisions are taken . The training of these external experts is done by the specialists of the sector. Given that foreign members participate in AC the sector translates SWOT analyses and External Evaluation Reports.

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  Sector of Statistics and Analyses, SSA
  

SSA is a new structure created in 2010, with the approval of the new regulation of the system of accreditation and quality assurance. Ky sektor ka një rol të veçantë dhe mjaft të rëndësishëm në strukturën e APAAL dhe sistemin e arsimit të lartë në tërësi. Detyrat themelore të këtij sektori janë: rankimi/renditja e institucioneve të arsimit të lartë dhe e programeve të studimit, analiza cilësore e krahasuese në arsimin e lartë për institucionet, programet apo aspekte të veçanta të tyre si stafet akademike, kërkimi shkencor, facilitetet etj, mbledhjen e të dhënave për të gjitha institucionet e arsimit të lartë dhe krijimin e databazës kombëtare për IAL-të në tërësi. Këto të dhëna shfytëzohen nga institucionet e tjera vendimmarrëse e politikëbërëse për hartimin e politikave në arsimin e lartë me qëllim përmirësimin e cilësisë në arsimin e lartë në vend. This sector has a special and very important role in the structure of PAAHE and higher education system in general. The fundamental tasks of this sector are: ranking of higher education institutions and study programs; qualitative and comparative analyses in higher education on institutions, programs or specific aspects of theirs as academic staff, research, facilities, etc.; collecting data for all institutions of higher education and the creation of national database for all HEIs. These data are used by other decision and policy making institutions in designing the policy in higher education in order to improve the quality of higher education in the country. Një rol të rëndësishëm në aktivitetin e këtij sektori zë përgatitja e materialeve, raporteve dhe të dhënave për publikim dhe informim. An important part in the activity of this sector is drawing up materials, reports and data for publication and information. Stafi i këtij sektori angazhohet gjithashtu në të gjitha aktivitetet dhe proceset që APAAL zhvillon në fushën e arsimit të lartë. The sector staff also participate in all activities and working processes that PAAHE conducts in the field of higher education.

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  Sector of Services and Publications, SSP
  

This sector is composed of three employees and the head of the sector. Pjesë e këtij sektori janë financa dhe protokoll/arshiva e APAAL.Finance and record / archives of PAAHE are part of this sector. Aktiviteti i tij kryesor është fokusuar në mbështetjen financiare dhe logjistike të APAAL, KA dhe ekspertëve vendas dhe të huaj. Its main activity is focused on financial and logistical support of PAAHE, AC and local and foreign experts. Ky sektor kryen gjithashtu publikimin e materialeve dhe botimeve të APAAL/KA në kuadër të informimit të publikut. This sector also performs the publication of materials and editions of PAAHE/CA in the context of public information.

Gjithashtu, mbështetja për organizimin e aktiviteteve trajnuese dhe promovuese të cilësisë në Arsimin e Lartë, në bashkëpunim me të gjithë faktorët e interesuar është një nga detyrat e rëndësishme të këtij sektori.In addition, an important duty of the sector is the support for the organization of training and promotional activities for the quality in Higher Education, in collaboration with all stakeholders .

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  Composition of the Accreditation Council
  

The Accreditation Council currently is made up of 11 members, known personalities in the field of higher education. Two of its members are foreign experts, well known in the field of higher eduacation and quality assurance.

AC cooperates with the Council of Higher Education and Sport in order to formulate recommendations to the Minister of Education and Sport on quality assurance in the field of higher education and scientific research. All AC activity, including the financial one, is supported and managed by PAAHE staff

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  Evaluation Experts
  

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  Selection Procedures
  

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  On line application
  

External Evaluation Experts
In the process of conducting evaluations, the Public Agency for Accreditation of Higher Education and Accreditation Council cooperate with external evaluation experts and / or consultants, who must have the appropriate qualifications for the type of evaluation to perform and must be independent to give a fair and impartial judgement, avoiding any potential conflict of interest.

PAAHE and AC update the database of foreign and local external evaluation experts and consultants. The main eligibility criteria that local or foreign experts should meet to participate in the evaluation and accreditation processes are: the relevant qualifications for the type of assessment they will perform; independence to give a fair and objective judgement, avoiding any potential conflict of interest; to be a known figure in the relevant field of science; to have at least 5 (five) years experience in teaching and research in the corresponding field of study; to hold at least the PhD scientific degree ; previous experience in the field of quality assurance in higher education institutions ; high personal and professional integrity; international experience acquired through postgraduate studies, or scientific qualification in Western universities or research centers. The external expert should sign a statement guaranteeing the independence in his operations and the absence of conflicts of interest and treat all materials and assessment results as strictly confidential.

After being accepted as external experts , the experts are provided with the necessary legal and academic documents of the relevant institutions they are chosen to assess. The experts draw up the external quality assessment report on the entire procedure, the activity shown in the self-assessment report, and on-site visits, which is submitted for further proceedings to the Public Agency for Accreditation of Higher Education.

Foreign experts take part in the evaluation groups, too. PAAHE and AC may invite external experts / consultants to help with ideas and proposals for evaluation criteria and methods, ways and forms to improve the quality of higher education, as well as with the drafting of documents to assist the process as a whole. The expertise given in the process of ranking is one of their contributions.

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  Informations
  

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  HEI
  

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  Programs in the Public HEI
  

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  Programs in the Private HEI
  

Licensing of institutions and programs
Up to now there are 59 licensed Higher Education Institutions in our country that offer programs in many fields of study. In detail, in the following table is included information for the HEI, their programs and status:

HEI and their actual status
	Public HEI	Private HEI
Universities	12	7
Higher Schools	0	26
Akademy	2	6
Professional Colleges	0	5
University Centers	1	0
Total	15	44

Programs offered in public and private institutions
	Public HEI	Private HEI	TOTAL
2 year Diploma	9	4	13
BSc	240	317	557
MP	128	145	273
MSc	174	196	370
SPA	23	2	25
DR	96	20	116

Public HEI licensed in 2010 -2013
2010	2011	2012	2013	TOTAL
0	0	1	1	2

Private HEI licensed in 2010 -2013
2010	2011	2012	2013	TOTAL
4	7	2	0	13

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  General information
  

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  Evaluations 2010 - 2013
  

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  Licensing application
  

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  Evaluation
  

The number of evaluations in HEI licensing/New Programs, is relatively smaller compared to the previous years (look at the following tables).

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  In Public HEI ther are evaluated altogether 50 programs, the first, second and third cycle of studies; more precisely: 20 Bachelor (Bsc), 15 Professional Master (Mp), 11 Master of Science (Msc) and 4 (Doctorates) Dr.
  
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  In Private HEI there are evaluated in total 71 programs, of the first, second and third cycle of studies; more precisely: 17 Bsc. 18Mp, 33 Msc and 3 Dr
  
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  There have been 14 reports of institutional organization of private and public HEI.
  

For the year 2013, with the decision No. 48, date 23.1.2013, of the Council of Ministers, “For the creation of the Medical University of Tirana, Tirana (UMT), two faculties of the University of Tirana were riorganized in the Medical University of Tirana that at present has five faculties. PAAHE has reviewed the institutional riorganization documents and has prepared dhe report for the Accreditation Council.

The number of evaluations reviewed by the Accreditation Council is given in a comparative way for the last three years in the tables and graphs below.

This number of evaluation reviewed by AC is smaller than the evaluations carried out by the PAAHE because some of these evaluations did not pass for review in the AC.

There are realized 121 reviews of technical evaluation for the first, second and third cycle of study.

For the year 2013, the number of applications reviewed in the context of evaluation was:

Evaluations held out in Public HEI
	2010	2011	2012	2013	Total
2 year Diploma	0	0	0	1	1
Bsc	15	1	4	8	28
MP	8	8	9	2	27
MSc	17	8	0	1	26
PhD	17	4	0	0	21
SPA	-	-	-	-	-

	Evaluations held out in Private HEI
2 year Diploma	2010	2011	2012	2013	Total
Bsc	2	2	0	0	4
MP	29	65	43	8	145
MSc	11	30	29	13	83
PhD	28	33	36	20	117
SPA	0	3	12	4	19
2 year Diploma	0	0	0	2	2

Detailed Evaluations in 2010 - 2013

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  Evaluations 2010 - 2013
  

The Evaluation Procedures are reviewed in the meeting of the AC and are posted in the official PAAHE web page (go to www.aaal.edu.al). Meanwhile a part of the evaluations will be reviewed by the AC during 2014.

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    Informtions
    
  
  
  
  
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    Application for Accreditation
    
  
  
  
  
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    HEI and Accreditation status
    
  
  
  
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    Accreditations2010 - 2013
    
  Program and Institution Accreditation
  

In 2013, PAAHE conducted the Accreditation process in 18 Private HEI, for the accreditation of different programs of the three study cycles and the institutional accreditation or their units.

This year, PAAHE continued the institutional evaluation with foreign experts, a process that began in 2011, when PAAHE and MES, gave an official announcement for foreign experts application . Each study program is evaluated by at least two field experts. Also, the Minister of Education , ordered the accreditation of the third cycle programs or Doctoral schools offered in public institutions but that hasn’t been followed by the application for the initiation of the accreditation process. From the public HEI there was no new initiative (except for UPT and The Defense Academy) for the beginning of the process of institutional accreditation or study programs. Meanwhile, the Polytechnic University of Tirana and the Defense Academy “Spiro Moisiu” are in the process of institutional accreditation and of the study programs accreditation.
In a comparative we present the period 2010-2013:

Public Institutions Accredited 0, in process 2

Privat Institutions Accredited 34, in process 3

Number of Accredited Programs 320 out of 1300 in total

In details, in a comparative way, the number of accreditation in public-private institutions for the years 2010-2013 was:

Programs accredited by PAAHE in 2010 - 2013
Public HEI						Private HEI
	2010	2011	2012	2013	Total	2010	2011	2012	2013	Total
2 year Diplom	-	-	-	-		0	0	0	2	2
Bsc						7	33	24	57	121
MP	2	-	-	-	2	7	10	20	27	64
MSc	-	-	-	-	-	6	17	23	36	82
PhD	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
SPA	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-