INQAAHE Conference 2025 – Tokyo (Japan)

The INQAAHE Board sought expressions of interest from member agencies to host INQAAHE Conference 2025 in October of 2022. Considering the venues for the INQAAHE annual events for the last ten years, preferences for hosting the INQAAHE Conference 2025 were given to East and Southeast Asia; South America and the Caribbean; North America; and Francophone Africa. 

During the 2023 General Assembly Meeting held in Astana (Kazakhstan) under the frame of INQAAHE Conference 2023, proposals to host this event were formally presented by the different applying agencies. The INQAAHE members later on electronically voted for Conference 2025 to take place in Tokyo (Japan), hosted by the Japan University Accreditation Association (JUAA).

Conference materials of all sessions, including access to the official photos, are available below:

Official Photos

May 13, 2025 (Tue)

Pre-Conference workshops

• Workshop 2: The Use of AI in Quality Assurance. Creating New Learning Platforms Using AI: A Look Inside the Box, facilitated by Dr. Paul LeBlanc (Co-Founder and Board Chair at Matter and Space, Former President of Southern New Hampshire University, United States of America), Rachel Koblic MSEd (Chief Learning Officer at Matter and Space, United States of America) and Prof. Rie Mori (Professor at the National Institution for Academic Degrees and Quality Enhancement of Higher Education, NIAD-QE, Japan).

• Workshop 3: QA Training (morning session). Comprehensive QA Workshop: Mastering Principles and Techniques of QA in HE – A Practical Workshop: The Context of QA, facilitated by Prof. Dr. Olgun Çiçek (International Advisor, Turkey) and Dr. Mary Catharine Lennon (Head of Research, International and Special Projects, Postsecondary Education Quality Assessment Board, PEQAB, Canada).

• Workshop 3: QA Training (afternoon session). Comprehensive QA Workshop: Mastering Principles and Techniques of QA in HE – A Practical Workshop: Practical Applications in QA, facilitated by Prof. Dr. Olgun Çiçek (International Advisor, Turkey) and Dr. Mary Catharine Lennon (Head of Research, International and Special Projects, Postsecondary Education Quality Assessment Board, PEQAB, Canada).

• Workshop 4: Stakeholder Engagement. What is the Best Approach(es) to Engage Various Stakeholders for External Evaluation in the Era of QA Paradigm Shift?, facilitated by Dr. Taiji Hotta (Collaborator at NIAD-QE, Japan) and Prof. Dr. Simona Lache (Vice-Rector for Internationalization and Quality Evaluation at Transilvania University of Brasov, Romania, and member of the Institutional Commission of the Romanian Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education, ARACIS).

• Workshop 5: Indicators to Measure Sustainability and Compliance with SDGs. Quality Assurance Standards, Processes, and Oversight – Accelerating Towards the 2030 Agenda of Sustainability, facilitated by Dr. Scott Blair (Content Development Editor at Sulitest Impact, France).

Regional Networks Meeting

• Strengthening Global Quality Assurance through Regional and International Cooperation

May 14, 2025 (Wed)

Keynote on sub-theme 1

Quality Assurance and the Sustainability Agenda, delivered by Prof. Kyosuke Nagata, President of University of Tsukuba, President of the Japan Association of National Universities and former President of the Japan University Accreditation Association (JUAA), Japan.

Check his presentation.

Parallel sessions

• A. Ideality Versus Reality: The Practices and Reflection of Inclusion and Equity in Higher Education and Quality Assurance in Taiwan and Japan, presented by Prof. Angela Yung-Chi Hou (Professor at Department of Education in National Chengchi University in Taiwan) and Dr. Arianna Fang-Yu Lin (Assistant Researcher Fellow at the Higher Education Evaluation and Accreditation Council of Taiwan, HEEACT).
• B. China Engineering Education Accreditation Implementing the SDGs, presented by Aijun Zhou (Deputy Director-General, Education Quality Evaluation Agency, EQEA, of the Ministry of Education, P.R. China).
• C. Keeping QA Processes in Step with Institutional Priorities around SDGs, presented by Dr. Kathy Siedlaczek (Dean of Academic Planning and Quality Assurance at the British Columbia Institute of Technology, BCIT, Canada).
• D. The Role of Quality Tertiary Education on Scholarship Recipients in Fostering Inclusivity and Generating Impact on Society, presented by Prof. Dr. Mazen Hasna (Professor of Telecommunications at Qatar University and chairman of the National Committee for Qualifications and Academic Accreditation, NCQAA, of Qatar) and Dr. Amir Dhia (Technical Manager of Higher Education at the Education Above All, EAA, Foundation in Qatar).
• E. Transnational Education 3.0: Assessing the Impact of Dubai’s International Economic Hub on Development and Sustainability, presented by Ishan Cader (Senior Director at Times Higher Education, THE) and Prof. Yusra Mouzughi (Provost at the University of Birmingham Dubai).

Keynote on sub-theme 2

Quality Assurance and Innovative Learning Pathways. The AI Tsunami: The Reinvention of Higher Education and Implications for Quality Assurance – A Fireside Chat with Paul LeBlanc, delivered by Dr. Paul LeBlanc, Co-Founder and Board Chair, Matter and Space, Former President of Southern New Hampshire University, United States of America.

Parallel sessions

• A. Innovative Quality Assurance for Lifelong Learning: Institutional Certification and Micro-credentials, presented by Dr. Stefanie Kröner (Responsible for the continuing education program at EVALAG, Germany).
• B. Non-University Education – Specific Pathway, Specific EQA? The Examples of “Grandes Écoles/Daigakko” in France and Japan, presented by Amélie Bensimon (European and International Affairs Department of the High Council for the Evaluation of Research and Higher Education, Hcéres, France) and Prof. Kazuhisa Todayama (Professor and Dean of the Research Department of the National Institution for Academic Degrees and Quality Enhancement of Higher Education, NIAD-QE, Japan).
• C. Quality Assurance of Micro-credentials: A Comparative Perspective, presented by Dr. Ariana de Vincenzi (Academic Vice-Rector of the Universidad Abierta Interamericana in Argentina, and Senior Quality Assurance Advisor at the President’s Council of Private Universities), Dr. Susanna Karakhanyan (Higher Education Policy and Regulation Director at the Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge, ADEK, in the United Arab Emirates) and Dr. Anna Prades (Head of Internationalisation and Knowledge Generation Department of AQU Catalunya, Spain).
• D. Negotiating Binaries in Modes of Provision: A Higher Education Practice Standard for Blended and Online Learning, presented by Dr. Rob Stegmann (Academic Head at Boston City Campus and Research Fellow at Stellenbosch University, South Africa) and Dr. Siyanda Makaula (Director: Quality Management at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, South Africa).
• E. “Common Quality Assurance Standards” for Inter-University Exchange with Quality Assurance within the Broader Asian Region, presented by Dr. Taiji Hotta (Collaborator at NIAD-QE, Japan), Dongseok Seo (Senior Director, Office of University Innovation Support at the Korean Council for University Education, KCUE, South Korea) and Shuo Wang (Deputy Director of the Quality Monitoring and Research Division at the Education Quality Evaluation Agency, EQEA, of the Ministry of Education, P.R. China).
• F. Trends and Challenges in Designing Flexible and Qualitative Work-Based Learning: The Role of QA Agencies, presented by Horia-Serban Onita (Head of the European Higher Education Area Secretariat, EHEA Secretariat).

Panel discussion on micro-credentials

The Fast Expansion of Micro-credentials across the Global Tertiary Education Landscape and its Impact on Quality Assurance, chaired by Prof. Dr. Olgun Çiçek (International Advisor, Turkey) and with Dr. Ariana de Vincenzi (Academic Vice-Rector of the Universidad Abierta Interamericana, in Argentina, and Senior Quality Assurance Advisor at the President’s Council of Private Universities), Prof. Kyosuke Nagata (President of University of Tsukuba, President of the Japan Association of National Universities and former President of the Japan University Accreditation Association (JUAA), Japan), Dr. Leah Matthews (Executive Director of the Distance Education Accrediting Commission, DEAC, United States of America), Dr. Mary Catharine Lennon (Head of Research, International and Special Projects, Postsecondary Education Quality Assessment Board, PEQAB, Canada), Dr. Sylvia Demas (Deputy Executive Director of the National Council for Higher Education, NCHE, Namibia) and Noah Sobe (Chief of Section for Higher Education, UNESCO) as speakers.

May 15, 2025 (Thu)

Keynote on sub-theme 3

Quality Assurance and Artificial Intelligence, delivered by Prof. Peter A. Okebukola, Distinguished Professor of Science and Computer Education at Lagos State University, Nigeria, and global quality assurance and AI specialist.

Parallel sessions

• A. Exploring GenAI – The Next Frontier in External Quality Assurance, presented by Marie Gould (Head of Tertiary Education Monitoring and Review at Quality and Qualifications Ireland, QQI). The main outcomes of the session are also available here.
• B. Evaluation in the Era of Artificial Intelligence: The Roles of AI and Human Evaluators, presented by Akinori Matsuzaka (Associate Director, Institutional Accreditation Division, Japan University Accreditation Association, JUAA, Japan).
• C. Development of Rule-Based AI Framework for Programme Accreditation Assessment Based on Code of Practice for Programme Accreditation (COPPA), presented by Prof. M. Iqbal Saripan (Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Quality Assurance, at the Malaysian Qualifications Agency, MQA).
• D. Using AI to Assist Audit Panel Members during Institutional Audits, presented by Dr. Karen Belfer (Executive Director of the Ontario College Quality Assurance Service, OCQAS, Canada) and Sylvie Mainville (Quality Assurance Manager at the Ontario College Quality Assurance Service, OCQAS, Canada).

Keynote on sub-theme 4

Quality Assurance and Recognition of Qualifications and Credentials, delivered by Prof. Ellen Hazelkorn, Joint Managing Partner, BH Associates education consultants, Professor Emeritus, TU Dublin, Ireland, and Joint Editor, Policy Reviews in Higher Education.

Check her presentation.

Parallel sessions

• A. Exploring Micro-Credentials in Taiwan’s Higher Education Institutions: Objectives, Regulations, and Practices, presented by Prof. Angela Yung-Chi Hou (Professor at Department of Education in National Chengchi University in Taiwan), Edward Hung Cheng Su (Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Education at the National Chengchi University, Taiwan), Dr. Tao Christopher Hong-Yi (dual doctoral student co-supervised by Lingnan University and the National Chengchi University) and Kyle Ziwei Zhou (Ph.D. candidate from the School of Graduate Studies at Lingnan University, Hong Kong and the College of Education at the National Chengchi University, Taiwan).
• B. Developing Open and Quality Micro-Credential Systems: Case Studies of Japanese Initiatives, presented by Prof. Shingo Ashizawa (Professor at the Center for Learning and Teaching Innovation of Kanda University of International Studies in Chiba, Japan), Prof. Dr. Akiyoshi Yonezawa (Professor of the Global Strategy Office and Special Advisor to the President of Tohoku University, Japan), Prof. Dr. Masahiro Inoue (Professor at Taishou University, and Former Vice-President, Professor Emeritus at the Shibaura Institute of Technology, Japan) and Prof. Dr. Hiroshi Ota (Professor of the Center for Global Education at Hitotsubahi University and Director of the Hitotsubashi University Global Education Program, Japan).
• C. Joint Accreditation: A New Frontier for Quality Assurance, presented by Dr. Galina Motova (Deputy Director of the National Centre for Public Accreditation, NCPA, Russia and President of the Asia-Pacific Quality Network, APQN) and Oksana Tanikova (National Centre for Public Accreditation, NCPA, Russia).
• D. Bi-Regional Trust Building: Comparison of the Quality Assurance Reference Frameworks of the European Higher Education Area and the Ibero-American Knowledge Area, presented by Dr. José M. Nyssen (Internationalisation and Studies at the Spanish National Agency for Quality Assessment and Accreditation, ANECA, Spain) and Amélie Bensimon (European and International Affairs Department of the High Council for the Evaluation of Research and Higher Education, Hcéres, France).

Posters

Sub-theme 1: Quality Assurance and the Sustainability Agenda

• Assessing and Validating Key Competencies for Sustainability – Designing Quality Assurance Processes for the New Paradigm, by Dr. Scott Blair (Content Development Editor at Sulitest Impact, France).
• Challenges of Evaluating HEIs’ “Green Initiatives”, by Andrea Zacharova (Head, Accreditation Department, Slovak Accreditation Agency for Higher Education, Slovakia) and Dagmar Blight (coordinator, Slovak Accreditation Agency for Higher Education, Slovakia).
• Quality Assurance as a Catalyst for Achieving SDGs in Higher Education, by Veronica Y. C. Huang (Manager, Taiwan Assessment and Evaluation Association, TWAEA, Taiwan).
• Quality Assurance in English-Medium Education, by Anna Kristina Hultgren (The Open University, United Kingdom).
• Re-engineering General Foundation Programme Quality Audit in Oman: Insights and Implications for the Evolving Higher Education Landscape, by Dr. Khadija Al Balushi (Oman Authority for Academic Accreditation and Quality Assurance of Education, OAAAQA, Oman).
• The Impact of the iJAS Plus Implementation in Thailand: Nakhon Si Thammarat Rajabhat University, by Nualsupak Phunsap (Unit Chief of International Affairs, Office for National Education Standards and Quality Assessment, ONESQA, Thailand) and Kittiya Evans (Office for National Education Standards and Quality Assessment, ONESQA, Thailand).

Sub-theme 2: Quality Assurance and Innovative Learning Pathways

• Innovative Learning Pathways and Quality Assurance in Sultan Qaboos Naval Academy in Oman, by Hamed Salim Al Maqbali (Sultan Qaboos Naval Academy, Royal Navy of Oman, Ministry of Defense, Oman).
• Professionalization of Academic Continuing Education Teaching to Promote Innovative Learning Pathways in Academic Continuing Education: Impulses from a Survey of Lecturers in HEIs in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, by Dr. Stefanie Kröner (Responsible for the continuing education program at EVALAG, Germany).
• Promoting Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) in Japan: Conditions and Future Directions, by Miharu Kato (Japan University Accreditation Association, JUAA, Japan).
• Sharing the Experience of INQAAHE ISG Application, by Jan Fell (Assistant Research Fellow, Taiwan Assessment and Evaluation Association, TWAEA, Taiwan).
• Validating a multidimensional instrument for Student evaluation of teaching: Insights into instructional quality and feedback optimization, by Prof. Dr. Simona Lache (Vice-Rector for Internationalization and Quality Evaluation at Transilvania University of Brasov, Romania, and member of the Institutional Commission of the Romanian Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education, ARACIS).

Sub-theme 3: Quality Assurance and Artificial Intelligence

• Leveraging NLP and AI to Enhance Quality Assurance in Education: A Case Study from Thailand, by Punyisa Phumiphol (Office for National Education Standards and Quality Assessment, ONESQA, Thailand).
• QA and AI: Between Gatekeeping and Guidance (Comparative case study of practices used by higher educational institutions (HEIs) in Azerbaijan, Indonesia, Germany, Kazakhstan and Pakistan addressing AI associated issues in dialog with internal stakeholders), by Sofia Treskova (Head of Data and Process Management, Accreditation, Certification and Quality Assurance Institute, ACQUIN, Germany), Robert Raback (Deputy Head of International Department, Accreditation, Certification and Quality Assurance Institute, ACQUIN, Germany) and Dr. Asiyah Bukhari (PNQAHE, Khyber Medical University, Pakistan).

Sub-theme 4: Quality Assurance and Recognition of Qualifications and Credentials

• Proposal for a Quality Assurance Metrics Tool: Shifting Convention in QA assessment reports (Self-Study Reports and External Program Review Reports), by Mohamed El-Mokhtar Abdellahi (Quality Assurance Officer Head of Technical Unit SEESP, Mauritanian Authority for Quality Assurance in Higher Education, Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Mauritania.
• Quality Assurance Systems in a Global Context to be Accepted by Society and Academia, by Toru Hayashi (Kanazawa University, Japan), Satoshi Ozeki (University of Miyazaki, Japan) and Patrick Shorb (Kansai University of International Studies, Japan).

The compilation of all sessions presented during the Conference is available here.