Alternativas en la evaluación universitaria: entre la crítica y la creatividad

The issue of university evaluation and accreditation continues to be of significance in the field of relationships between University, Society and the State. The present article aims to contribute some considerations that allow the devising of alternatives in university evaluation. In the first part, some debates about the purpose of university evaluation are reviewed, as well as some repercussions perceived from the inside of universities. From the methodological point of view, the limitations of indicator-based evaluation are analysed, in particular those of institutional evaluation determined by university regulations and those of international university rankings. In the second part, the reflection about possible alternatives for university evaluation is addressed. A specific curricular evaluation experience in the context of non-university higher education is described and two of its characteristics are pointed out: the role played by metaevaluation and the search for democratising strategies in evaluative processes. Finally, some opportunities and new questions are formulated emphasising the political dimension inherent to all evaluation methodologies and the need for rescuing it as an area of pedagogical development.