TEMPUS CORINTHIAM

Part I : Quality of Internationalisation 47MotivationChapter 3Quality Assessment in internationalcooperation under the scope of theBologna ProcessNils GiesenJorge Marx GómezAndreas SolsbachSince the 1980s quality and standardisation has been a common research field, andseveral steps in quality assurance in higher education have been conducted in Europeancountries (e.g. in Harvey and Green (Harvey & Green, 1993), Barnett (Barnett,1987), Green (Green, 1994), van Vught and Westerheijden (van Vught & Westerheijden,1994).Quality in the scope of international cooperation requires indicators, processes, andmethods on how to measure, evaluate and select the partners who should be participatingin an international cooperation. Standardisation enables the usage of products orany other form which requires an exchange of information via communication. Theresult could be a specification or definition of how to share information with stakeholders(e.g. researchers) or a guideline to establish curricula.As Harvey and Green state, “Quality can be viewed as exceptional, as perfection (orconsistency), as fitness for purpose, as value for money and as transformative” (Harvey& Green, 1993, p. 11).The situation of research departments has changed due to the technical developmentswhich allow an increased exchange of information and personal. The decreased lengthof technology cycles demand an increased adoption of universities to handle currentideas and problems occurring due to changed situations. Universities and research departmentsare forced to cooperate to be able to handle current requests from industryto decrease costs and development cycles (which are a main constraint when workingwith companies). Today, international co-operations between companies, research departmentsand other NGOs are common (and necessary) for success in the creation of