From the state of the art: An approach to quality in Higher Education

Abstract

This article describes the state of the art of concept of quality in higher education, worked through the method: literature review, based on the grounded theory according to Wolfswinkel et al. (2013). Eligibility criteria were defined through previously defined keywords and the period 2004 – 2024 was established. Searches were also conducted based on scientific data: Web of Science, Scholar Google, web pages such as: Education Resources Information Center: ERIC, Redylac, Scielo, Dialnet and data from University Research Institutes. In retrieving articles, the filtering was carried out according to each publication's title, abstract and full text.

The state of the art seeks to answer the question: What is the historical evolution of the concept of quality? in the business and education context, particularly in the Latin American and Bolivian context. The results indicate that the definitions and conceptualizations of quality are multiple and polysemic, not only because they vary among themselves, but because they reflect different appreciations or perspectives, which must respond to specific needs in products or services. In higher education it has not been possible to reach a consensus on the definitions of quality, but it is known that quality must be linked to the educational project that is dynamic and changing. Therefore, for the context of Latin America, it is necessary to work in terms of “Quality Assurance”, in compliance with minimum requirements that guarantee that institutions have the conditions required to carry out their essential academic functions.