Open Access Journal of
eISSN: 2575-9086
Submit manuscript...
Review Article Volume 9 Issue 1
Beyond compliance: accreditation as a driver of institutional improvement
Ricardo Germán Rincón
Received: May 21, 2026 | Published: September 11, 2026
Citation: Rincón RG. Beyond compliance: accreditation as a driver of institutional improvement. Open Access J Sci. 2026;9(1):440-443. DOI: 10.15406/oajs.2026.09.00328
Abstract
In 2017, Law degrees in Argentina were incorporated into the national accreditation regime established under Article 43 of the Higher Education Law. This article examines the accreditation process experienced by the Faculty of Law and Social Sciences of Universidad del Este (UDE) between 2017 and 2022. Rather than presenting the process as an institutional chronicle, the study approaches it as an instrumental case through which to analyze how an externally required accreditation process can become an opportunity for institutional learning and improvement. The analysis is based primarily on documentary evidence generated during the process, including the institutional self-assessment, peerreview observations, the institutional response, improvement plans, reconsideration documentation, and institutional resolutions. The case is interpreted through a highereducation quality perspective and Burton R. Clark’s (1991) analysis of the differentiated and loosely articulated organization of academic work. The findings suggest that accreditation functioned not only as an external verification mechanism but also as a device for identifying organizational weaknesses, coordinating dispersed academic actors, formalizing practices, allocating resources, and strengthening links among teaching, research, outreach, student support, and institutional management. The study does not claim a measurable causal effect on student achievement or graduate quality, since the institutional record available for the case does not contain longitudinal outcome data sufficient for such a conclusion. Instead, its contribution lies in identifying institutional learning and organizational change as relevant analytical dimensions of accreditation. The case also supports a distinction between minimum quality assurance and institutional uniformity: common standards can establish a quality floor while leaving room for institutional missions, trajectories, and organizational identities.
Keywords: accreditation, higher education quality, institutional evaluation, institutional learning, academic organization, Law education, Argentina
©2026 Rincón. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and build upon your work non-commercially.