Accreditation is an essential element in the standardization of global engineering education and is a means of quality assurance for engineering programs and their graduates. For developing countries, this is especially important if they are to play a significant role in the development of global engineers who can be strong contributors to the world economy. The Latin American and Caribbean Consortium of Engineering Institutions (LACCEI), in collaboration with the Organization of American States (OAS) and Engineering for the Americas (EftA), has developed and presented accreditation workshops at its annual conference for the last five years. The accreditation workshops have included efforts from several institutions and sponsors. These workshops provide a framework to help institutions of higher education prepare for accreditation, select an accreditation model, and implement procedures to meet accreditation requirements. This work describes the evolution of the OAS-EftA/LACCEI accreditation workshops and their impact in Latin America and the Caribbean. The key components of the workshops applicable to institutions throughout the world are highlighted. The program under development to assist institutions to prepare for accreditation, select the best accreditation method, identify and select peer-evaluators and peer-assistants, and implement accreditation procedures that integrate accreditation requirements with cultural considerations is described. These workshops provide an infrastructure to promote accreditation that is transferable worldwide and serves to enhance capacity building, economic development and to promote global engineering education and quality assurance in engineering programs.
Gisela Coto Quintana earned her Bachelor degree in Industrial Engineering at the University of Costa Rica and a Master's degree in "Prevención de Riesgos Laborales" (in English: Prevention of Occupational Risks) and a Ph degree from the department of Industrial Engineering in Universidad da Coruña. She is presently the "Coordinadora de Calidad Interna" (in English: Head of quality system) at SINAES (Sistema Nacional de Acreditación de la Educación Superior-in English: National System of the Accreditation of Higher Education) and Head of the Accreditation Taskforce of LACCEI. She also represents the SINAES in the technical committee for the development of procedures and criteria for the accreditation of Engineering degrees and has experience in researching on Accreditation for higher education in engineering degrees. She has also developed professional activities in project management for environmental and renewable energy sources projects, and she participated in implementation processes for system integration (quality, environment and occupational risks). Jaime Salazar Contreras, Ibero-American Association of Engineering Education (ASIBEI) Jaime Salazar Contreras is Executive Secretary of ASIBEI (the Iberoamerican Society of Engineering Institutions) and is on the faculty of the Universidad Nacional de Colombia in Bogota, Colombia. He has authored several pedagogical books published by ASIBEI dealing with Iberoamerican engineering education and faculty development.
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