The National Chapter for Andorra brings together the country’s only public university, the Universitat d’Andorra, and the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education in Andorra (AQUA) to promote a culture of quality-driven assessment that recognises the full diversity and impact of academic endeavours. 

The National Chapter for Andorra was introduced during the ERA Action 3 event held on 17 October 2024. Since then, the two participating institutions have been working collaboratively to develop an agenda aimed at fulfilling the chapter’s objectives. Notably, one of these objectives has already been achieved: the translation of the CoARA Agreement into Catalan. As the official language of Andorra –the only country in the world where Catalan holds this status — this translation is a significant step in ensuring accessibility and national relevance. 

The National Chapter for Andorra will bring together the only public university of Andorra (Universitat d’Andorra) and the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education in Andorra (AQUA) in fostering a culture of quality-focused assessment that acknowledges the complete diversity and impact of academic endeavours.

The Nation Chapter aims to create a platform for Andorran members of CoARA to exchange knowledge and engage in mutual learning regarding issues unique to Andorra and other small countries and territories. This effort is aimed at integrating global principles into local contexts, covering aspects such as peer review processes, revisions to promotion criteria and alternative career pathways, ethical metrics, and a more coordinated and systematic approach toward reforming research assessment on a national level in line with European and international developments of the CoARA agreement.

The objectives of the Andorran National Chapter are:

• Ensure mutual learning across institutions by sharing experiences and good practices
• Raise awareness about the reform of research assessment in other institutions of Andorra as well as in international institutions, such as the universities of the Network of Universities of Small Countries and Territories (NUSCT) or the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA).
• Establish strategies to culturally adapt and incorporate global principles into local contexts
• Address multi- and interdisciplinary assessment
• Seek dialogue with researchers from different disciplines
• Encourage involvement of Andorran non-members of CoARA
• Host webinars and seminars to inform and involve researchers, evaluators and leaders in the reform of research assessment and to advocate for a change in assessment culture
• Publish web pages and reports to communicate the diverse benefits of the reform, the progress at the national level, and international developments
• Collaborate with other NCs
• Translate the CoARA Agreement and other significant CoARA documents into Catalan