QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AND MODELS ADAPTED TO HIGHER EDUCATION: THE CASE OF ETHIOPIAN UNIVERSITIES

Higher education is essential to shape the human resource, build up the opportunity to improve the standard of living and raise the economic growth of the nation. Initially quality management in higher education was not taken as a matter of concern but with the evolution of concept, government regarded quality based education as a means to eradicate poverty and have contributed a lot to the development endeavor of any country. Considering the growing relevance of quality management, this study focused on examining the status of higher education in Ethiopia and identifying the quality management practices implemented by Ethiopian universities. However, With the low enrollment rate, poor infrastructure, lack of funding, and few public and private institutions, the education sector of Ethiopia was not much developed as expected. Though with the establishment of agencies like HERQA and having establishment of institutions, the enrollment rate for the universities is improving but sill lack of centralized administration, poor infrastructure, and non-availability of sufficient funds hampers the quality of education. Hence, it is essential that institutions should implement effective quality management model like ISO9000 and adapt the smart learning mechanism for overcoming the challenges and improving the learning experience of students.