Accreditation and Development of Organizational Capabilities in Chilean Universities

Abstract

This article investigates the relationship, in Chilean universities, between achievements in accreditation processes and the development of organizational capabilities. Two analysis procedures were used. First, a regression, from a set of independent variables (year of initiation of accreditation activity at the program and institutional level, and results obtained) and dependent variables (current achievements in institutional and undergraduate accreditation, and an aggregate index institutional academic development). This analysis was complemented with another study, which reviewed the location of the quality units in the organization charts, in two senses: an evolutionary one, focused on its variation between 2008-2009 and 2019 (37 institutions), and another focused on the year 2019 (48 institutions). It can be seen that all the analyzed universities have quality units and some of them, especially the recently founded private sector, place them in the highest hierarchies. The development of organizational capacities has allowed them to improve their achievements in the accreditation processes, generating a virtuous circle. Whether this also has effects on the quality of teaching or on the efficiency of management remains an open question, as in most of the literature.