On December 19, ANQA carried out the monitoring of the Yerevan Branch of Plekhanov Russian University of Economics. The goal was to find out the extent of the introduction of the education institution’s internal quality assurance system, its effectiveness and contribution to the enhancement of educational processes.
It should be noted that the monitoring of foreign HEIs' branches in Armenia began with the visit to the Yerevan Branch of Plekhanov Russian University of Economics.
During the visit, the Branch’s director presented the education institution’s activities, its legal status and distinctive features, the peculiarities of the teaching staff’s involvement and recruitment possibilities. Meetings were also held with the heads of chairs, teaching staff and students.
The main topics of discussion were:
- the mechanisms for identification and response to the stakeholders’ needs;
- the policy for academic staff recruitment and training;
- the problems related to student admission and education organisation;
- the cooperation with employers and arrangement of internships in the employer's environment;
- the modernization of academic programmes and issues of producing specialists equipped for Armenian and Russian-speaking environments;
- the quality assurance KPIs of teaching effectiveness and achievement of outcomes.
At the end of the meeting, ANQA’s specialists presented the primary areas for enhancement to the education institution’s management staff. Importance was attached to the role of internal quality assurance system in the identification of problems and continuous enhancement of educational processes.