A Comparative Analysis of Quality Assessment Mechanisms in Higher Education between China and Foreign Countries

Abstract

This paper employs literature analysis and comparative research methods, based on the institutionalism and multicultural governance theoretical framework of comparative education, to systematically compare the similarities and differences between the higher education quality assessment mechanisms in China and those in selected foreign countries (the UK, the US, Australia, and representative European countries). The study finds that China has established a distinctive mechanism characterized by “government leadership, periodic assessment, and outcome orientation,” achieving a significant transformation from input-oriented to output-oriented, and from compliance supervision to quality improvement. Foreign assessment mechanisms are mostly characterized by “third-party institutional leadership, multi-party governance, and quality improvement as the core,” emphasizing formative assessment and the cultivation of a quality culture. These differences stem from variations in educational management systems, cultural traditions, and stages of development. China should strengthen the role of third-party institutions and the construction of a quality culture, while other countries can learn from China’s systematic planning and dynamic adjustment mechanisms, providing a reference for optimizing global higher education quality assessment mechanisms.