Four staff members including the director and deputy director of Italy’s Information Centre on Academic Mobility and Equivalence (CIMEA) visited NIAD-QE for three days from May 8 to May 10, 2019. This visit was proposed by CIMEA, with the aim of sharing information and knowledge about higher education systems and academic qualifications in Italy and Japan.

NIAD-QE provided explanations about the degrees it awards and the Japanese higher education system, and CIMEA representatives gave presentations about its activities, operating a national information center (NIC), methods for evaluating qualifications, and managing information about qualifications with blockchain technology. In addition, CIMEA also gave a lecture about trends regarding recognition of higher education qualifications in Italy and other European countries.

Since it was established in 1984, CIMEA has been actively comparing and evaluating both Italian and foreign qualifications, and has been designated by the government of Italy as the nation’s NIC in accordance with the Lisbon Recognition Convention. Through this visit, NIAD-QE confirmed the close connection between quality assurance of higher education and recognition of foreign qualification and determined future cooperation with CIMEA to have positive impacts on its operations. On the final day of their visit, the director of CIMEA and NIAD-QE Vice-President Hasegawa agreed to cooperate in various ways in the future.

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