Implementing Quality Assurance in Saudi Arabia: A Comparison between the MESO and the MICRO Levels at PSU

Abstract

Quality assurance in higher education remains to be one of the most prominent fields of research at the present. In the Saudi Arabian higher education institutions (HEIs), quality assurance is a relatively new concept and Saudi universities seem not to effectively implement quality assurance caused by the certain obstacles. As such, there are two objectives to be addressed; first, to explore the current quality assurance mechanisms. Second, to identify factors that enhances or hinder the effectiveness of the internal quality assurance system in Saudi Arabian HEIs. A case study involving Prince Sultan University was used to examine these questions. Data was collected using semi-structured interviews with both meso and micro levels, as well as document analysis and observation. A grounded theory approach based on that advocated by Strauss and Corbin was taken to analysis the data. The findings of this study support the perceived use of many different standards based evaluative processes, which provide feedback from the various stakeholder perspectives. The findings also demonstrate perceived supportive factors of the commitment/support of leadership and management, awareness and orientation of employees/faculty. In addition, the findings also report that/faculty resistance and infrastructure limitations focused on financial and human capital constraints were perceived as inhibitive factors to QA.