World’s Leading Experts in Higher Education and Quality Assurance Gather in İstanbul

The 2nd THEQC International Conference on Quality Assurance and Accreditation to Be Held in İstanbul on 14–15 September 2026

Organised by the Turkish Higher Education Quality Council (THEQC), the 2nd THEQC International Conference on Quality Assurance and Accreditation will be hosted by Yıldız Technical University in İstanbul on 14-15 September 2026.

Organised under the theme “Quality Assurance Systems and Artificial Intelligence in the Digital Transformation Process,” the conference will address the future of quality assurance in higher education, the impacts of artificial intelligence and digital transformation on higher education, new quality assurance approaches, and international developments, together with higher education representatives from Türkiye and around the world.

The conference will bring together executives of the world’s leading organisations in the field of higher education quality assurance, academics, representatives of quality assurance agencies, university managers/directors, and experts in İstanbul.

Four Prominent International Figures in İstanbul as Keynote Speakers

One of the most significant indicators of the conference’s international prestige is the presence of four world-renowned keynote speakers in the fields of quality assurance and higher education policies.

Prof. Bjørn Stensaker, President of the European Quality Assurance Register for Higher Education (EQAR), Professor of Higher Education at the University of Oslo and Research Professor at NIFU, will take part in the conference.

Prof. Jamil Salmi, Emeritus Professor of Higher Education Policy at Diego Portales University and Research Fellow at the Boston College Centre for International Higher Education, will share his extensive knowledge of global higher education policies with the participants.

Prof. Daniela Cristina Ghițulică, President of the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA) and General Director of the Romanian Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ARACIS), will bring the perspective of European quality assurance systems to the conference.

Dr Nasser H. Paydar, President of the US-based Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA), will also be among the keynote speakers.

The gathering of these four distinguished speakers at the same conference will provide an opportunity to collectively discuss European and American quality assurance systems and the future of global higher education policies in Türkiye.

During the two-day conference, issues directly concerning the future of higher education will be discussed in various sessions and panels.

The main axis of the conference will be the relationship between digital transformation, artificial intelligence, and quality assurance. The transformation brought about by artificial intelligence in higher education—from learning and teaching processes to institutional decision-making mechanisms, and from data utilisation to evaluation and quality assurance methods—will be evaluated from both national and international perspectives.

The panel will feature Jakub Grodecki (EURASHE), Michael Stephan (FIBAA), Anna Prades (INQAAHE), and Asiyah Bukhari (PNQAHE) from international higher education and quality assurance organisations.

Best Practices of Universities to Be Shared

Beyond being a scientific meeting where current problems and future approaches are discussed, the conference will also enable higher education institutions to share the successful practices they have developed in the field of quality assurance.

Within this scope, 12 best practices developed by universities and selected following a thorough evaluation will be shared with the higher education community at the “Best Practices Panel.”

The panel will be moderated by Prof. Elif Çepni, THEQC Council Member. The objective is to increase the visibility of the successful practices of higher education institutions, enhance inter-institutional experience sharing, and disseminate best practices.

Intense Academic Interest

The conference has also attracted intense interest from academic circles. A total of 316 paper submissions were made; following scientific evaluation processes, 259 papers were accepted for oral presentation. Furthermore, over 600 registered participants from universities in Türkiye and abroad are expected to attend the conference.

In this respect, the conference serves as an international academic platform where, alongside keynote speeches and international panels, comprehensive scientific studies on quality assurance in higher education, accreditation, digitalisation, artificial intelligence, and innovative higher education practices will be shared.

National and International Stakeholders Come Together

Hosted by Yıldız Technical University, the conference is organised by the Turkish Higher Education Quality Council (THEQC) in collaboration with THEQC’s academic journal, the Journal of Accreditation and Quality Assurance in Higher Education (JAQAHE).

The stakeholder institutions of the conference include the Ministry of National Education (MoNE), the Vocational Qualifications Authority (VQA), the Turkish Accreditation Agency (TÜRKAK), TÜBİTAK, the Health Institutes of Türkiye (TÜSEB), and the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Türkiye (TOBB). Yıldız Technopark is supporting the event as a sponsor.

The Honorary Board of the conference includes Prof. Ümit Kocabıçak, THEQC President, and Prof. Eyüp Debik, Rector of Yıldız Technical University.

The Organising Committee is co-chaired by Prof. Ramazan Bayındır, THEQC Vice President; Prof. Vatan Karakaya, Vice Rector of Yıldız Technical University; and Prof. Sema Yılmaz, THEQC Council Member.

Türkiye to Host the Global Agenda of Quality Assurance

The conference is of great significance not only for evaluating the quality assurance efforts carried out in Türkiye but also for discussing new global higher education and quality assurance approaches on a national platform.

The meetings, which will feature the participation of high-level representatives from quality assurance agencies in Europe and different regions of the world, are taking place at a time when issues such as artificial intelligence, digital transformation, micro-credentials, data-driven quality assurance, institutional development, and international cooperation are becoming increasingly decisive in the future of higher education.

Through this conference, THEQC aims to connect higher education institutions in Türkiye more strongly with the international quality assurance ecosystem, bring national experiences to the international platform, and pave the way for discussing new global approaches within the Turkish higher education system.

The 2nd THEQC International Conference on Quality Assurance and Accreditation will be held on 14-15 September 2026, at the Yıldız Technical University Davutpaşa Congress and Culture Centre.