ACADEMIC RANKING - PREREQUISITE FOR IMPLEMENTING QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IN HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS

The article aims to substantiate the concept that one of the key prerequisites for implementing quality management system in higher education institutions and making productive management decisions for updating higher education in Ukraine is the formation of an objective ranking mechanism. The challenges and risks in higher education in the case of ignoring the ranking mechanism applied to measure the quality, performance or effectiveness of higher education have been identified.The study subject is the analysis of ranking as a criterion tool for managing higher education institutions. The purpose of the article is to substantiate the importance of ranking for building an effective management system for higher education institutions. The basic study methods are systemic and comparative analysis – systemic tools reveal the importance of ranking as one of the key elements in the management system of higher education institutions, and the comparative method verifies the interdependence of ranking indicators and quality of educational services. Research findings indicate the need for continuous improvement for ranking mechanisms applied to measure the quality, performance or effectiveness of higher education. In the era of globalization, the ranking of higher education institutions is becoming an important tool for assessing the quality of higher education; it serves to mobilize the university function as the locomotive of social development. The research findings can be used to improve the ranking mechanisms and create an effective management system for higher education institutions. The findings help to draw correlations between the effectiveness of ranking tools and the effectiveness of the management system for higher education institutions.Keywords: ranking; ranking tools for assessing the quality of higher education; criteria; correlative dependence; system connections; prospects for modernization of higher education in Ukraine