Paper long abstract:

Important trends in the development of modern society are digitalization and the acceleration of technological changes that lead to the emergence of new fields of activity and new professions. The above trends and changes pose serious challenges for modern higher education. In response to these new challenges, higher education institutions in Kazakhstan continue to integrate into the global educational space, develop information technologies and e-education ("smart-learning"), attract foreign top managers to implement best practices, and develop partnerships with leading universities in the world. With this international integration, the role of international accreditation as an essential tool of quality assurance of education is growing dramatically. International accreditation provides assurance of the competitiveness of Kazakh universities in the national and international educational services market. A university that has passed the international accreditation receives a significant competitive advantage in the educational services market. International recognition, comparability and convertibility of qualifications of a university, confirmation of the high quality of education and services, and their compliance with international requirements; expands the potential and possibilities of international cooperation with leading universities of the world. Through these accreditation processes universities have the opportunity to assess the quality of activities and competing educational programs at a fundamentally new level and strengthens their competitive positions. This paper analyzes the issues of quality assurance in higher education of the universities that have been accredited by Independent Agency of Accreditation and Ratings.