Warsaw - On April 18, 2008, the International Ranking Expert Group (IREG) created the IREG-International Observatory on Academic Ranking and Excellence.
The idea to continue the work of IREG in a more structured format was initially discussed at the IREG meeting at the Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China, in October 2007, and it received general support of participants representing major national and international academic rankings and leading analysts. IREG was first formed in 2004 in Washington D.C., USA. In May 2006, it adopted the Berlin Principles on Ranking of Higher Education Institutions which has articulated and adopted 16 standards of good practice.
The Observatory represents a formula for a strategic re-orientation that will become a vector in establishing academic ranking as a credible instrument of qualitative performance for higher education at the institutional and program levels.
The Observatory will review the conduct of "academic ranking" and expressions of "academic excellence" for the benefit of higher education, its stake-holders and the general public. This objective will be achieved by way of:
- improving the standards, theory and practice in line with recommendations formulated in the Berlin Principles on Ranking of Higher Education Institutions;
- initiating research and training related to ranking excellence;
- analyzing the impact of ranking on access, recruitment trends and practices;
- analyzing the role of ranking on institutional behavior;
- enhancing public awareness and understanding of academic work.
Answering the explicit request of ranking bodies, the Observatory will review and assess selected rankings, based on methodological criteria and deontological standards of the Berlin Principles on Ranking of Higher Education Institutions. Successful ranking will be entities to declare they are "IREG Recognized".
Academic ranking and various forms of "expressing and acknowledging academic excellence" sit, foremost, at the intersection of three sets of issues:
- accountability and transparency (what gets measured);
- quality measurement issues (how to measure it); and
- universities, competitiveness and the market (how data gets portrayed and used).
The Observatory includes, foremost, rankers and analysts. In addition, some topics will require participation of policy-makers and other stake-holders.
The legal location of the IREG-Observatory is Warsaw, Poland, and temporary secretarial assistance will be provided by the Perspektywy Education Foundation.
The next meeting (IREG-4) will take place from the 15-17 June 2009 in Astana, Kazakhstan, upon invitation of the Independent Kazakhstan Quality Assurance Agency in Education.
Executive Committee
Chairman: Jan Sadlak, Director UNESCO-CEPES, Bucharest, Romania
Vice-chairmen:
- Gero Federkeil, Manager in Charge of Rankings, CHE-Centre for Educational Development, Gütersloh, Germany
- Liu Nian Cai, Director, Center for World-Class Universities and Dean of Graduate School of Education, Jiao Tong University in Shanghai, China
- Waldemar Siwiński, President, Perspektywy Education Foundation, Warsaw, Poland
- Alex Usher, Vice-President, Educational Policy Institute, Toronto, Canada.
Members:
- Tom Parker, Acting President, Institute for Higher Education Policy
Washington, DC, USA, ex-officio Member of the Executive Committee - Sholpan Kalanova, President, Euroasian Quality Assurance Network and Director of the Independent Kazakhstan Quality Assurance Agency in Education, Astana , Kazakhstan
- Paul Serban Agachi, President of the Academic Council, Babes-Bolyai University of Cluj, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
- Ferdinand Devinsky, member of the governing board, Slovak Academic Ranking and Rating Agency (ARRA), Bratislava, Slovak Republic
- David Jobbins, Head of Education Unit, Candlestar Ltd. London, United Kingdom
- Marko Marhl, Vice-Rector for International Affairs, University of Maribor
Maribor, Slovenia - Robert J. Morse, Director of Data Research, U.S. News & World Report, Washington, DC, USA
- Mihailo Zgurovsky, Rector, National Technical University of Ukraine
"Kyiv Polytechnic Institute", Kiev, Ukraine
In addition, representitives from Latin America, Middle East and Africa will be invited.
Standing, left to right:
- Marko Marhl
- Paul Serban Agachi
- Tom Parker
- Igor Ostrovski (on behalf of Ferdinand Devinsky)
- Sholpan Kalanova
- Mihailo Zgurovsky
Sitting, left to right:
- Alex Usher
- Gero Federkeil
- Jan Sadlak
- Liu Nian Cai
- Waldemar Siwiński