Internationalization and Sustainability of Higher Education Through Education Quality Assurance Mechanisms in Georgia

Georgia, a former Soviet Republic, claimed independence back in 1991 and since then has made endeavors to build its statehood. Being a relatively younger democracy, Georgia has shown its strong European aspiration and committed itself to European values. Education has had to play a pivotal role in this endeavor, as research and worldwide experience have shown a strong system of education to be the key to building a strong national identity and a successful state. Accordingly, the state has declared education as one of the priorities in its fulcrum of reform initiatives. The Georgian government and academia are well aware of current trends in higher education, as its system of higher education joined the Bologna process in 2005 to closely follow the developments in the European Higher Education Area (EHEA). The system also follows developments in the global context so that the Georgian higher educational institutions’ education and qualification issues are compatible with and recognized by official bodies of education worldwide. Accordingly, the concept of education quality assurance is proactively approached in the Georgian higher education context to support system development. One of the ways to ensure institutional development is to receive expert advice on educational procedures at the institutional level. To achieve this goal, institutional authorization and educational program accreditation bear the function of providing higher educational institutions with expert support and advice to better cater to institutional needs, ensure the sustainability of educational processes, and introduce the best practices through internationalization strategies. This chapter discusses these vital issues in the Georgian context and provides a historic retrospective on reform initiatives in higher education.