1Initiatives for Promoting
the Internationalizationof Universities‐ From the Perspective ofQuality Assurance Agency ‐Dr. Kazuo Okamoto
National Institution for Academic Degrees andUniversity Evaluation (NIAD‐UE), JapanPurpose of Promoting
Internationalization
To assure and enhance the quality ofuniversity education and research as well asinternational collaborative activities tomaintain their value and credibility atinternational standards
How can NIAD‐UE contributeas a quality assurance agency?

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3Role of NIAD‐UE
9 To contribute to the assurance and enhancement ofquality in university education and research bydeveloping evaluation and quality assurance schemes
9 To ensure the value and credibility of evaluation andquality assurance systems in line with international
standards
9 To share information so as to deepen theunderstanding and respect for the existing frameworksof other countries and their various backgrounds

4NIAD‐UE Initiatives• Conducting evaluations and ensuring quality• Encouraging quality‐assured inter‐university
exchange• Supporting dissemination of university
information worldwide

Conducting Evaluations andEnsuring Quality• NIAD‐UE intends not only to review the systems orstate of international collaborations, but also tofacilitate the visualization and enhancement of theeducational and research quality required by theinternational arena
Ex: Effectiveness of institutional performance and outcomes‐ through the Certified Evaluation and Accreditation
Good practices in international collaborations ‐ throughthe National University Corporation Evaluation

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Encouraging quality‐assured
inter‐university exchange
Significant challenges
9 Visualizing the key elements of inter‐university
exchange programs ‐ mode of educational provisions,credit transfers, awarding of degrees, etc.
9 Building internal and external quality assurance
systems which serve as foundations of high‐quality
university exchange programs

67NIAD‐UE’s ongoing activities1) The trilateral collaboration among Japan‐China‐
Korea quality assurance agencies
Purpose: To promote mutual understanding of quality
assurance system, and to encourage quality‐assured inter‐
university exchanges among three countries
Activities: joint projects on quality assurance, holding
international symposiums, etc.
Member agencies: NIAD‐UE, Higher
Education Evaluation Center of the
Ministry of Education (HEEC) of China,and Korean Council for University
Education (KCUE)

The Inaugural Meeting for Japan‐China‐Korea
Quality Assurance Council (4 March 2010)

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NIAD‐UE’s ongoing activities
2) Study on the quality assurance mechanism forinternational collaborative programs
Collecting various practices taken by universities and external
QA bodies, including QA systems for double degree programs3) Cooperation with overseas quality
assurance/qualifications recognition agencies¾Collaborations with the MoU partner agencies ‐ QAA (UK),
NVAO, Nuffic, HEEC (China), HKCAAVQ (Hong Kong)¾ Contributions to international QA agencies networks‐ APQN and INQAAHE9Supporting dissemination ofuniversity information worldwideDeveloping the NIAD‐UE ‘Information Package’
Providing basic terms and an overview of the QA
systems of Japanese higher education, as well as
information on NIAD‐UE’s certified evaluation
and accreditation in Japanese and English
Introduced the ideas of Information Package
at NIAD‐UE‐hosted International Workshop(March 2010)… Contributing to the promotion of greater
understanding of how the quality is evaluated andassured in Japanese higher education

Conclusion ‐ NIAD‐UE’s Policy• Enhancing university education andresearch activities• Assuring the quality of academic degrees

Evaluation and quality assuranceImproving the value andinternational credibility

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