Formulating a comprehensive model for the Indonesian National Standard (SNI) awards: the higher education category

Purpose This paper aims to develop an Indonesian National Standard (SNI) Award model that follows university business operations while still considering the National Standard for Higher Education (NSHE) as mandatory standards and SNI standards based on the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as voluntary standards (SNI ISO). Design/methodology/approach We used the case study method to investigate the phenomenon of completing the SNI Award questionnaire, interviewing informants and conducting remote observations on a sample of the university that had completed the desk and remote evaluation stages. Findings The SNI Award questionnaire responses revealed that they satisfactorily addressed only a portion of the SNI ISO questions. However, they typically alluded to the NSHE, internal quality assurance systems and university accreditation in their responses to the standard inquiries. To address this, we suggest a concept in which the SNI Award for higher education incorporates statutory and optional standards. As a result, universities may now more readily comprehend the questionnaire and its completion correctly and precisely using the model’s results. Additionally, we supplement the proposed model with a quality roadmap that outlines how universities attain national and worldwide excellence through standardization. Research limitations/implications This study is limited to the higher education SNI award category, which has a different set of educational standards than other educational organizations like elementary schools, junior and senior high schools and non-educational categories. Practical implications The development of the SNI Award model offers leaders a pathway to enhance their organization’s SNI Award assessment score. This involves integrating mandatory standards and relevant SNI ISO standards, leveraging accreditation outcomes, international program accreditations and university rankings for the result criterion and, finally, utilizing a quality roadmap aligned with SNI ISO standards to attain organizational excellence and global competitiveness. Originality/value This paper’s findings bridge the existing research gap by offering empirical insights into assessing the SNI award model within the higher education framework.