Our Evaluation Framework

Four Key Questions

All evaluations carried out by the Institutional Evaluation Programme (IEP) are guided by four key questions, which are based on a 'fitness for (and of) purpose' approach:

Mission and Objectives

What is the institution trying to do?

Policies and Processes

How is the institution trying to do it?

Monitoring and Evaluation

How does the institution know it works?

Capacity for Change

How does the institution change in order to improve?

These simple but crucial questions provide a framework for a critical self-analysis during the self-evaluation phase and guide the evaluation team during the online meetings and the site visit. They are important throughout all stages of the evaluation process, which usually takes one academic year.

Find out more through our webinars

Every year we run a webinar to provide an overview of our programme. The recording of the 2025 webinar is available here. During this webinar, a member of the IEP Steering Commitee explained the main characteristics and added value of the programme, representatives from two recently evaluated institutions discussed their experience, and the IEP secretariat provided some practical information.

The recording of last year's webinar is available here.

Watch 2025 Webinar View Previous Webinar

Evaluation Process

Our comprehensive evaluation process spans approximately 18 months, ensuring thorough assessment and continuous improvement.

The timeline presented below is for illustrative purposes only. Evaluations can be initiated at any time throughout the year, and we are happy to accommodate your specific scheduling needs.

01

a. Completion and submission of the Registration Form
The institution must complete and submit a registration form to indicate the selected type of evaluation and to provide essential information about the institution's identity, leadership, structure, motivations for undergoing evaluation, and contact details.

b. Initial Assessment and Eligibility Verification
Upon receipt of the application and documents, the EUA-IEP Secretariat conducts a preliminary review to verify the institution's eligibility. This involves assessing the completeness of the submission, the authenticity of credentials, and alignment with minimum criteria for participation.

02

a. Sign Formal Agreement Documents
A contract is signed by both parties, outlining the terms of engagement, mutual expectations, and commitments. This includes the issuance of an invoice with a specified deadline for receipt of payment, thereby officially confirming the institution's participation in the review.

b. Define Roles and Responsibilities
Both parties clarify their respective roles in the process, including the responsibilities of institutional staff, leadership, and the evaluation team, to ensure efficient coordination and smooth communication. As part of this, the secretariat assembles a qualified evaluation team and proposes it to the institution for approval.

c. Establish the Evaluation Framework and Timeline
The institution and the EUA-IEP Secretariat agree on the timeline of the review process, including key milestones such as submission deadlines, online meetings, site visits, and report delivery.

03

The self-evaluation phase involves the institution's internal review through data collection, stakeholder consultation, and analysis, culminating in the preparation and submission of a comprehensive Self-Evaluation Report. The report must be submitted at least 4 weeks before the start of the next phase of online meetings for the team to have enough time to analyse it.

Proposed structure and content for the self-evaluation report

04

a. Prior to the site visit
The evaluation team conducts a series of online meetings with institutional leadership and selected stakeholders to clarify preliminary questions and ensure logistical readiness.

b. During the site visit
The evaluation team carries out a range of activities including interviews with institutional and external stakeholders, tours of key facilities such as classrooms and laboratories, and review of supplementary documentation.

05

Approximately 9 weeks after the site visit, the institution receives the evaluation report, which outlines the team's findings and provides actionable recommendations for institutional improvement.

Proposed structure and content for the self-evaluation report

06

Approximately three months after the evaluation is finalised, the EUA-IEP Secretariat holds a follow-up videoconference with the institution's liaison person to discuss the reception of the evaluation report and the institution's perspective on the recommendations, including their perceived usefulness and plans for implementation.

07

Approximately one year after the evaluation, the institution submits a brief progress report outlining the steps taken to implement the recommendations and any significant developments since the evaluation. The evaluation team reviews this report and offers feedback and additional input to support continued progress.

At the end of the evaluation process, the report by the evaluation team is published on our website and institutions are asked to submit a progress report after one year, to support follow-up actions.

A more detailed description of each of the steps in the evaluation process is available in the Guidelines for Institutions (see under types of evaluations). If you require an evaluation with a different timeline, please contact us.

Types of Evaluations

We offer different types of evaluations to suit your needs. All evaluations examine the institution as a whole (not individual study programmes or units) and are carried out on a voluntary basis. Each type of evaluation has its own set of Guidelines, which describe the evaluation process in detail and provide guidance for both the institution and the evaluation team.

This is a comprehensive evaluation for individual institutions who have not had an EUA-IEP evaluation before, or had one over three years ago. Choose this type of evaluation as your starting point for the IEP process.

You also have the option of selecting a special focus for the evaluation. The focus is approached within the context of a full institutional evaluation, but will be given extra attention throughout the evaluation processes, with more in-depth analysis and recommendations. The topics of focus currently offered are internationalisation; and management of research and use of research results. Choose this type of evaluation if your institution has a special interest in one of the two areas of focus.

Your institution may register for an initial evaluation on its own, or for a combined package, in which you already commit to a follow-up evaluation between one and three years later. There is a reduced fee for the two evaluations when registering for a combined package. Choose this type of evaluation if your institution wants to ensure continuity and maximise the impact of the IEP evaluation cycle.

Guidelines for institutions:

This is an evaluation to support institutions that had an initial evaluation between one and three years ago. Choose this type of evaluation if your institution wants to identify the impact of the initial evaluation, investigate the changes in the intervening period and provide further impetus for change.

The evaluation will involve one site visit and the evaluation team will be formed form a mixture of new members and members who conducted the initial evaluation.

Guidelines for institutions:

Coordinated evaluations are initiated at the joint request of institutions and public authorities, and usually involve all or most higher education institutions in the respective country. As a result of a coordinated exercise, each institution receives its own IEP evaluation report and, if requested, we provide a sector report that highlights shared issues and challenges and facilitates a dialogue among key stakeholders, including governments.

We have conducted coordinated evaluations in a range of countries including Ireland, Portugal, Slovakia, Romania and, most recently, Montenegro. You can view the sectoral reports from all coordinated evaluations here.

Guidelines for institutions:

This evaluation is intended to strengthen alliances strategic leadership, change management capacity, internal quality culture, cooperation mechanisms and joint educational offerings. This evaluation is focused on each evaluated alliance as a whole, rather than its individual member institutions, operational units or study programmes, and the final recommendations are aligned with each alliance's specific goals and objectives. This evaluation is comprehensive and considers the alliance's unique profile, encouraging inclusive self-evaluation and institutional self-awareness, and assessing strategic leadership, governance, and the effectiveness of alliance-wide quality assurance processes, including how these are used in decision-making.

This evaluation encompasses all elements of the methodology and criteria developed by the Erasmus+ EuniQ project, which have been approved by the European Commission.

Guidelines for alliances:

Types of Evaluations

A quality assurance agency

The Institutional Evaluation Programme (EUA-IEP) is listed on the European Quality Assurance Register for Higher Education and is a member of the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education.