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European Network for Accreditation of Engineering Education

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The European Network for Accreditation of Engineering Education (ENAEE) authorises quality assurance and accreditation (educational) agencies within the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) and awards the EUR-ACE label to accredited engineering degree programmes.

Contents

The EUR-ACE label is a certificate awarded by an authorised accreditation agency to an engineering degree programme which has reached certain educational standards.

ENAEE is an International Association. It is registered as not-for-profit organisation with the number 882.389.895 as governed by the measures of Title III of the Belgian Law of 27 June 1921 on non-profit making associations, non-profit making foundations and international associations.

History of ENAEE

The European Standing Observatory for the Engineering Profession and Education (ESOEPE) was established in September 2000. Its aim was to improve systems of accreditation of engineering degree programmes in Europe.

In 2004 ESOEPE submitted a proposal to the European Commission. This proposal envisaged the establishment of a quality label (the EUR-ACE Label) which could be awarded to engineering degree programmes which had reached certain educational standards, as defined by their learning outcomes. The proposal was accepted by the EU Commission and funding provided for the project.

ESOEPE was dissolved; ENAEE was established and implemented the EUR-ACE Project. The EUR-ACE Project concluded on 31/03/2006 with the presentation of the results in a public workshop in which the EUR-ACE label was listed among the six EC-sponsored “European quality labels in higher education”.

As of 19 June 2014 ENAEE had authorised thirteen agencies to award the EUR-ACE label to more than 1600 engineering degree programmes in 300 universities and other higher education institutions in 21 countries both within and outside of Europe

The approach to using learning outcomes in the ENAEE European Framework Standards has been corroborated in a number of publications and projects since the establishment of ENAEE.

On 19 November 2014, the thirteen authorised agencies signed a Mutual Recognition Agreement whereby they accept each other's accreditation decisions in respect of Bachelor and Master engineering degree programmes which they accredit.

Agencies authorised to award the EUR-ACE label

To be authorised to award the EUR-ACE label, (which is a certificate that states that an engineering degree programme has reached certain educational standards) an accreditation agency has to meet quality requirements and accredit in accordance with the EUR-ACE Framework Standards of ENAEE.

Both HEIs and accreditation agencies must comply with the Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance for the Higher Education Area, as adopted by Bologna Ministers in Bergen in May 2005.

Each of these agencies in turn then accredits the engineering degree courses that have reached the required standards. So if a Higher Education Institution (HEI) wishes to apply for a EUR-ACE label for its engineering degree courses, it must apply to one of the authorised agencies below. If the HEI is not in one of the countries below, it must then contact ENAEE directly.

The thirteen currently EUR-ACE-authorized agencies are as follows:

  1. ASIIN–Fachakkreditierungsagentur für Studiengänge der Ingenieurwissenschaften, der Informatik, der Naturwissenschaften, und der Mathematik e.V. Germany
  2. CTI – Commission des titres d'ingénieur, FRANCE
  3. Engineering Council UK
  4. Engineers Ireland
  5. Ordem dos Engenheiros, Portugal
  6. AEER – Association for Engineering Education in Russia.
  7. MÜDEK – Association for Evaluation and Accreditation of Engineering Programmes,Turkey.
  8. ARACIS – The Romanian Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education, Romania
  9. QUACING – Agenzia per la Certificazione di Qualità e l’Accreditamento EUR-ACE dei Corsi di Studio in Ingegneria, Italy
  10. KAUT - Accreditation Commission of Universities of Technology, Poland
  11. OAQ - Organ für Akkreditierung und Qualitätssicherung der Schweizerischen Hochschulen, Switzerland
  12. ANECA - National Agency for Quality Assessment and Accreditation of Spain, in conjunction with IIE – Instituto de la Ingeniería de España, Spain
  13. FINEEC - Korkeakoulujen arviointineuvosto KKA, Finland

References

European Network for Accreditation of Engineering Education Wikipedia