Optimizing quality assurance practices: exploring the Saudi Arabian perspective and their influence on international accreditation and rankings

This paper identifies the influence of quality assurance practices on institutional ranking and international accreditation status, and develops a comprehensive quality assurance framework that meets the needs of both national and international accreditation bodies to enhance the global standing of higher education institutions. To meet the research objective a thematic analysis was conducted at a Saudi Higher education institution, involving sixteen semi-structured interviews with an expert sample comprising of quality practitioners, deans, and department heads. The findings confirmed that quality assurance directly affects ranking criteria, enhances education quality, graduate attributes, and employability, thereby improving the university's reputation. Thus, establishing a direct link between quality assurance practices and ranking improvement, highlighting their role in institutional innovation and responsiveness to labor market needs. It also confirms that quality assurance practices positively impact international accreditation, ensuring compliance with standards across teaching, research, community service, and institutional services. Furthermore, the study emphasizes the importance of documentation, consistency, and resource allocation for effective implementation. Recommendations include systemizing and digitalizing quality assurance processes for better efficiency and transparency, and centralizing quality assurance-related policies to maintain consistency across departments. This analysis is crucial for understanding the relationship between local and international quality standards and their impact on global competitiveness and higher education quality.