The quality assurance (hereafter: QA) system in Montenegro aims to enhance the quality of higher education institutions (hereafter: HEIs) and their study programmes, while ensuring compliance with minimum standards required for public recognition. The system follows the European Standards and Guidelines (ESG) and combines a supervisory orientation, granting permission for HEIs and programmes to operate based on threshold quality standards, with an advisory orientation, promoting continuous improvement and a culture of quality assurance across institutions.

Montenegro has implemented several major reforms in QA over the past two decades. The country joined the Bologna Process in 2003, with independent membership in the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) confirmed at the 2007 London Ministerial Conference. At the 2015 Ministerial Conference in Yerevan, Montenegro committed to implementing ESG, which led to significant reforms and the establishment of the Agency for Control and Quality Assurance of Higher Education (hereafter: Agency) in 2017. These reforms aimed to create an independent supervisory body responsible for external evaluation of HEIs and study programmes, safeguard minimum quality standards, support continuous improvement, and align Montenegro’s QA system with ESG and the broader EHEA framework.

Responsible bodies

The Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education is the main body responsible for external quality assurance. Its key tasks include accreditiation of study programmes and lifelong learning programmes, re-acreditation of HEIs, conducting research and proposing measures to improve higher education quality. The Agency also maintains a register of accredited programmes and re-accredited institutions, coordinates EU-funded projects, collaborates with international quality assurance organisations and EHEA agencies, and participates in Bologna structures.

The Agency is legally and operationally independent from the Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation (hereafter: Ministry), although the Ministry supervises its work under the Law on Higher Education. Since 2019, the Agency has been an affiliate member of the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA), with the goal of achieving full membership, and is not yet registered in the European Quality Assurance Register for Higher Education (EQAR). Higher education institutions are responsible for establishing their own internal QA systems. The Agency provides central guidelines for self-evaluation reports, but does not prescribe detailed internal procedures, leaving operational autonomy to institutions.

The Agency’s governance structure consists of a Council, an Accreditation Board, a Director, and a Secretariat. The Council comprises of seven (7) members representing HEIs, the Ministry, the Chamber of Economy, and students, appointed by the Government for four-year terms. The Accreditation Board includes thirteen (13) members, such as academics from public and private universities, student representatives, and experts from relevant fields, appointed by the Council for four-year terms, with student members serving for two years. The Director manages the day-to-day operations, provides operational leadership, and is appointed by the Council through a public competition for a five-year term. The Secretariat, together with the Department for Quality Control and the Department for Quality Assurance and Research, provides administrative, financial, operational, and research support. The Department for Quality Control conducts and oversees accreditation, re-accreditation, and follow-up evaluations, while the Department for Quality Assurance and Research ensures compliance with ESG, manages QA databases, coordinates international cooperation, and conducts research on QA policies.

Through these functions, the Agency contributes to improving higher education quality in Montenegro by implementing ESG, fostering continuous improvement, safeguarding minimum standards, and supporting transparency, accountability, and internationalization.

Approaches and methods for quality assurance

Quality assurance (QA) in higher education is carried out through internal and external evaluation, in accordance with the European Standards and Guidelines (ESG). These processes ensure the quality of study programmes, teaching, research, student services, governance, and institutional management.

Internal Quality Assurance

The institution monitors and evaluates its activities through self-assessment and surveys, covering teaching, learning, governance, research, student services, financial management, and internal QA systems.

Key elements include:
• Annual student surveys: Students at all levels provide feedback on programmes, teaching quality, learning conditions, and staff performance. Surveys include questions about educational conditions for students with disabilities, including teaching organization and assessment procedures. Participation is mandatory, and results are published by programme and year of study.
• Self-evaluation reports and action plans: The institution prepares annual reports covering all aspects of its activities. Reports are adopted by the academic body and submitted to the national QA Agency.
• Labour market research: At least once per accreditation cycle, graduates, employers, and business entities are surveyed to assess the relevance of acquired skills. Results are incorporated into self-evaluation and re-accreditation reports and published online.

Internal QA supports continuous improvement and informs external evaluation, ensuring ESG compliance.

External Quality Assurance

External QA is conducted through accreditation of study programmes, special programmes and re-accreditation of higher education institutions. All procedures are transparent and publicly reported.

Accreditation of Study Programmes

• Timing: Institutions submit requests at least six months before programme commencement.
• Evaluation teams: Commissions of independent domestic and international experts are appointed from a public list, which may include student representatives and academic staff.
• Focus areas: Teaching and learning, research, student services, governance, financial management, and internal QA systems.
• Criteria and procedures: Standard criteria are publicly available. Accreditation involves document review, site visits, and interviews.
• Outcomes: Certificates are valid for the programme duration plus two years. All reports and decisions are published online.

Re-accreditation of Higher Education Institutions

• Frequency: Every seven years.
• Process: Institutions prepare a self-evaluation report covering the last accreditation period. An external commission evaluates the institution and submits a report to the Accreditation Board.
• Consequences: Institutions failing re-accreditation may operate for one additional year without enrolling students; otherwise, the license is revoked.
• Transparency and objections: Reports, decisions, and complaints are publicly accessible. Institutions can submit objections within 30 days to a seven (7) member Commission for Objections appointed by the Agency, which includes at least one (1) member from the legal field. Decisions can be challenged in administrative court.

Special Programmes and Periodic Assessments

• Accreditation of special higher education programmes follows the same procedure as regular accreditation, with requests submitted at least three months before programme start.
• Periodic quality assessments can be carried out at the request of the Ministry or the institution.

Licensing of Higher Education Institutions

Licensing of higher education institutions is governed by the Law on Higher Education and ensures that institutions comply with legal and quality standards. A licence, issued by the competent Ministry and published in the Official Gazette, allows an institution to commence operations and enroll students.

Each licence specifies:
• The type of institution and the study programmes offered
• The maximum number of students per programme
• The levels of education and the degrees that may be awarded

Accredited institutions may implement minor modifications to their study programmes - up to 20% of the total ECTS, without needing to repeat the accreditation or licensing process.