TY - JOUR A1 - Schindler, Laura A. AU - Puls-Elvidge, Sarah AU - Welzant, Heather AU - Crawford, Linda T1 - Definitions of quality in higher education: A synthesis of the literature Y1 - 2015 SN - 21576254 UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11268/4652 AB - The aim of this paper is to provide a synthesis of the literature on defining quality in the context of higher education. In our search for relevant literature, we intentionally cast a wide net, beginning with a broad search in Google Scholar followed by a narrower search in educational databases, including Academic Search Complete, Education Research Complete, Education Resources Information Center (ERIC), and SAGE Premier. We identified both peer-reviewed journal articles and publications from professional organizations, such as the International Organization for Standardization. We begin the paper with a discussion of the existing challenges and strategies for defining quality. Next, we provide a conceptual model of quality based on our review of the literature. Finally, we examine some considerations for defining quality assurance. KW - Quality assurance KW - Enseñanza superior KW - Enseñanza superior KW - Acreditación (educación) LA - eng ER -