On September 16, ANQA carried out monitoring of the internal quality assurance system at the National University of Architecture and Construction of Armenia (NUACA). The monitoring was dedicated to the observation of the ongoing developments of the internal quality assurance system at the NUACA and its affiliated college. As part of the process, meetings were held with the education institution’s management staff, heads of chairs, teachers, as well as students from both the NUACA and the affiliated college.
An importance was attached to the digitalization of educational processes, which has already started at the NUACA and has an ongoing nature. A reference was made to the academic programme enhancement, with an emphasis on the following issues:
- the academic programme enhancements based on employer requirements;
- the importance of formative assessment, considering the peculiarities of the feedback provided to the student;
- the clarification of assessment criteria, taking into account the education institution’s academic programme directions;
- the need to assess all outcomes for the preparation of competent specialists;
- the opportunities offered by using artificial intelligence in the development of student assignments and its possible challenges in terms of objective assessment and the individual works of students.
Quality assurance processes and their impact on the identification of needs and best practices were at the core of the monitoring. The discussions focused on the use of KPIs for the governance system and the resource planning processes supporting the NUACA’s development priorities.
The monitoring concluded with a discussion on the NUACA’s development prospects, highlighting the necessity of strengthening interdisciplinary cooperation for the optimal development of students' professional skills and the release of alumni ready to enter the labor market.