Datafication of Higher Education: Quality, Governance and Academic Decision-Making

Fatima Tfaily

Datafication of Higher Education: Quality, Governance and Academic Decision-Making

Abstract

This study analysis the datafication of higher education as a revolution in socio-technical governance that redefines institutional understandings of quality, performance, and academic decision-making. Moving beyond technical analyses of digital systems and analytics tools, the paper conceptualizes datafication as a governance rationality in which quantification increasingly defines what is considered legitimate, valuable, and actionable within universities. The study used a qualitative exploratory research approach to examine higher education policy papers, quality assurance and accreditation frameworks, institutional strategic plans, performance reports, dashboards, and current academic literature. An inductive thematic analysis identifies five interrelated themes: metric-centered quality, visibility and comparability, transitioned decision authority, normalization of surveillance, and data-induced simplification. Findings reveal that datafication enhances transparency, coordination, and comparability across institutional contexts, yet simultaneously narrows the space for contextual judgment, collegial deliberation, and professional discretion. Quality is increasingly articulated through measurable indicators and numerical thresholds, while complex academic processes are translated into standardized metrics that facilitate benchmarking and accountability. Although data-driven governance promises objectivity and fairness, it may obscure value-based decisions behind technical indicators and reconfigure academic autonomy within performance-oriented frameworks. Study contributes conceptually by framing datafication as a governance rationality rather than a neutral technical development; analytically by demonstrating how quality and performance are redefined through metric logics; and practically by offering critical insights for institutional leaders and quality assurance bodies seeking balanced and responsible data use. Rather than pursuing empirical generalization, the research offers an interpretive framework to enhance reflective data governance in higher education systems increasingly influenced by digital infrastructures and performance assessment systems.

Keywords

Supporting Institution

None

Project Number

None

Ethical Statement

None

Thanks

None

References

Atenas J, Havemann L, Kuhn C, Timmermann C (2023). Critical Data Literacy in Higher Education: Teaching and Research for Data Ethics and Justice. In J. E. Raffaghelli & A. Sangrà (Eds.), Data Cultures in Higher Education: Emergent Practices and the Challenge Ahead (pp. 293–311). Springer International Publishing.
Aydarova E (2022). Neoliberal Fictions for the Audit Theater: University Educators and Administrators Navigating Accountability Regimes. Anthropology and Humanism, 47(1), 133–146.
Barkas LA, Scott JM, Poppitt NJ, Smith PJ (2019). Tinker, tailor, policy-maker: Can the UK government’s teaching excellence framework deliver its objectives? Journal of Further and Higher Education, 43(6), 801–813.
Barron G (2019). Universities in the Making: Rankings, Performance Metrics and Control in Academia. https://doi.org/10.7939/r3-w9vx-vw08.
Bayanbayeva A (2025). Global university rankings and the dissemination of the Western university model: Balancing global influence and national priorities in Kazakhstan. Globalisation, Societies and Education, 1-15.
Bee, D (2016). Introducing Metric Power. In D. Beer (Ed.), Metric Power (pp. 1–35). Palgrave Macmillan UK.
Beerkens M (2022). An evolution of performance data in higher education governance: A path towards a ‘big data’ era? Quality in Higher Education, 28(1), 29-49.
Brankovic J (2024). Worlds of rankings research. In The Routledge International Handbook of Valuation and Society. Routledge.

Braun V, Clarke V (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77-101.
Brooks R, Timms J (2025). Institutional constraints to higher education datafication: An English case study. Higher Education, 90(4), 1049-1063.
Broucker B, De Wit K (2015). New Public Management in Higher Education. In J. Huisman, H. de Boer, D. D. Dill, & M. Souto-Otero (Eds.), The Palgrave International Handbook of Higher Education Policy and Governance (pp. 57–75). Palgrave Macmillan UK.
Brown M, Sowl S, Steigleder KM (2023). “May I Contribute Some Data to the Discussion?”: Negotiating Data Politics Through General Education Reform. The Journal of Higher Education, 94(7), 851-895.
Castañeda L, Selwyn N (2018). More than tools? Making sense of the ongoing digitizations of higher education. International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, 15(1), 22.
Chen G, Chan L (2021). Chapter 31: University rankings and governance by metrics and algorithms. https://www.elgaronline.com/edcollchap/book/9781788974981/book-part-9781788974981-43.xml
Chiavaroli N, Prescott-Clements L, Nicholls J, Mitchell P, Reid K (2024). Accreditation Approaches for Professional Education Programs: Toward Best Practice. Journal of Veterinary Medical Education, 51(1), 3-13.
Clarke V, Braun V (2017). Thematic analysis. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 12(3), 297–298.
Dagdag JD, Daracan JE (2025). Faculty Perspectives on the Impact of World Rankings on Academic Practices. International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research, 24(6), 523–542.
Daniel BK (2016). Big Data and Learning Analytics in Higher Education: Current Theory and Practice. Springer.
Dill DD (2018). Chapter 4: Can public policy promote academic quality? An assessment of policy instruments for instruction and research. https://www.elgaronline.com/edcollchap/edcoll/9781785369742/ 9781785369742.00012.xml
Emmanuelle G (2023). Reviews of Literature on Accreditation and Quality Assurance. Online Submission, 1(1), 1-57.
ENQA (2015). Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area (ESG).
Erstad O, Gilje Ø, Gudmundsdottir GB, Wagstaffe RB, Kumpulainen K, Viberg O et al (2023). Datafication in and of Education–a literature review. Agile EDU.
Espeland WN, Sauder M (2007). Rankings and reactivity: How public measures recreate social worlds. American Journal of Sociology, 113(1), 1–40.
EUA (2015). Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area. https://www.eua.eu/publications/policy-input/standards-and-guidelines-for-quality-assurance-in-the-european-higher-education-area-esg.html
EUA (2024). Quality Assurance. https://www.eua.eu/our-work/topics/quality-assurance.html
European Commission (2025). Digital Education Action Plan 2021-2027—European Education Area. https://education.ec.europa.eu/focus-topics/digital-education/actions
Fábri G (2024). Measured or communicated?: University Rankings as the Postmodern Media Communication of Higher Education. Journal of Adult Learning, Knowledge and Innovation, 7(2), 82-85.
Fawns T, Aitken G, Jones D (2021). Ecological Teaching Evaluation vs the Datafication of Quality: Understanding Education with, and Around, Data. Postdigital Science and Education, 3(1), 65-82.
Gourlay L (2024). Surveillance and Datafication in Higher Education: Documentation of the Human. Postdigital Science and Education, 6(4), 1039–1048.
Gourlay L (2025). The university and the algorithmic gaze. Bloomsbury Publishing.
Gourna S, Rigou A, Kyriazi F, Marinagi C (2024). The added value of Learning Analytics in Higher Education. Assessment, 15, 17.
Gravett K (2024). Different voices, different bodies: Presence–absence in the digital university. Learning, Media and Technology, 49(3), 388-400.
Hazelkorn E, Gibson A (2019). Public goods and public policy: What is public good, and who and what decides? Higher Education, 78(2), 257-271.
Ibrahim MB, Hassan SU (2022). Exploring the Research Landscape of Pakistan: A Data-driven Analysis of Scopus Indexed Scientific Literature.
International Association of Universities (2020). IAU Global Survey on the Impact of COVID-19 on Higher Education around the World. https://iau.global/all-publications/iau-global-survey-on-the-impact-of-covid-19-on-higher-education-around-the-world
Jarke J, Breiter A (2019). Editorial: The datafication of education. Learning, Media and Technology, 44(1), 1-6.
Kaliisa R, Dolonen JA (2023). CADA: A teacher-facing learning analytics dashboard to foster teachers’ awareness of students’ participation and discourse patterns in online discussions. Technology, Knowledge and Learning, 28(3), 937-958.
Kayyali M (2025). Higher Education Rankings and Their Worldwide Significance: Dissecting Methodologies, Systems, and Global Influence. Apple Academic Press.
Khan DN, Azam I, Khaliq HBA (2025). Comparative Analysis of Public and Private Universities’ Performance in the QS Ranking System in Pakistan (2020–2024). Social Science Review Archives, 3(3), 2011-2016.
Knipp R (2024). Digital Scholarship from the Periphery: Insights from Researchers in Chile on Academia.edu and ResearchGate. Journal of Interactive Media in Education, 2024(1). https://eric.ed.gov/?id= EJ1427518
Komljenovic J (2022). The future of value in digitalised higher education: Why data privacy should not be our biggest concern. Higher Education, 83(1), 119-135.
Komljenovic J (2025). When data does not deliver: Rethinking datafication in global higher education. International Higher Education, (122), 3-4.
Komljenovic J, Sellar S, Birch K (2025). Turning universities into data-driven organisations: Seven dimensions of change. Higher Education, 89(5), 1369-1386.
Komljenovic J, Williamson B (2025). The Political Economy of Datafication and Platformization: Digital Transformation in Higher Education. International Higher Education.
Leišytė L (2022). Performance management under surveillance capitalism in higher education. In Research handbook on academic careers and managing academics (pp. 218–231). Edward Elgar Publishing.
Lewis S, Holloway J, Lingard B (2022). Emergent developments in the datafication and digitalization of education. In Reimagining Globalization and Education. Routledge.
Liang A, Ke G (2025). The transformation of quality management in Chinese transnational higher education: Implications of integrating students into the system. Education and Lifelong Development Research, 2(2), 63-73.
Liu Y, Dai K (2025). Balancing acts? Exploring the dynamics between quantity and quality in Chinese transnational higher education through data governance. Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management, 47(2), 210-226.
Macgilchrist F (2021). Theories of Postdigital Heterogeneity: Implications for Research on Education and Datafication. Postdigital Science and Education, 3(3), 660-667.
Madsen M (2022). Governing by Numbers and Human Capital in Education Policy Beyond Neoliberalism: Social Democratic Governance Practices in Public Higher Education. Springer Nature.
Maher S (2026). Index mania! Organization, 33(1), 134–137.
Marginson S, Yang L (2022). Individual and collective outcomes of higher education: A comparison of Anglo-American and Chinese approaches. Globalisation, Societies and Education, 20(1), 1-31.
Marginson S, Yang L (2025). Higher education and public good in England. Higher Education, 89(1), 183-203.
Márquez L, Henríquez V, Chevreux H, Scheihing E, Guerra J (2024). Adoption of learning analytics in higher education institutions: A systematic literature review. British Journal of Educational Technology, 55(2), 439-459.
Mertala P (2020). Data (il)literacy education as a hidden curriculum of the datafication of education. Journal of Media Literacy Education, 12(3), 30-42.
Mills D (2022). Decolonial perspectives on global higher education: Disassembling data infrastructures, reassembling the field. Oxford Review of Education, 48(4), 474-491.
Müller R, de Rijcke S (2017). Thinking with indicators. Exploring the epistemic impacts of academic performance indicators in the life sciences. Research Evaluation, 26(3), 157-168.
Noteboom J (2024). Everyday datafication and higher education: Student agency, trust and resignation. Proceedings of the International Conference on Networked Learning, 1-7.
OECD (2021). OECD Digital Education Outlook 2021: Pushing the Frontiers with Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain and Robots. OECD Digital Education Outlook, 2021.
OECD (2023). OECD Digital Education Outlook 2023: Towards an Effective Digital Education Ecosystem. OECD Digital Education Outlook, 2023.
Perrotta C (2021a). Programming the platform university: Learning analytics and predictive infrastructures in higher education. Research in Education, 109(1), 53-71.
Perrotta C, Selwyn N (2020). Deep learning goes to school: Toward a relational understanding of AI in education. Learning, Media and Technology, 45(3), 251-269.
Perrotta C, Williamson B (2018). The social life of Learning Analytics: Cluster analysis and the ‘performance’ of algorithmic education. Learning, Media and Technology, 43(1), 3-16.
Poelmans H, Sacchetti L, Vancauwenbergh S, Piazza S (2024). Fuzzy data definitions distort fair comparability of universities in university rankings: Results from Italy and Belgium on the Times Higher Education Ranking. Quality in Higher Education, 30(1), 75-96.
Pozdniakov S, Martinez-Maldonado R, Tsai YS, Cukurova M, Bartindale T, Chen P et al (2022). The Question-driven Dashboard: How Can We Design Analytics Interfaces Aligned to Teachers’ Inquiry? LAK22: 12th International Learning Analytics and Knowledge Conference, LAK22, 175–185.
Prinsloo P (2020a). Big data in education. The digital future of learning, policy and practice: By Ben Williamson, London, UK, Sage, 2017, 256 pp., $38 (paperback), ISBN: 9781473948006. Taylor & Francis.
Prinsloo P (2020b). Data frontiers and frontiers of power in (higher) education: A view of/from the Global South. Teaching in Higher Education, 25(4), 366-383.
Prinsloo P, Slade S, Khalil M (2022). The answer is (not only) technological: Considering student data privacy in learning analytics. British Journal of Educational Technology, 53(4), 876-893.
Raffaghelli JE, Grion V (2023). Beyond Just Metrics: For a Renewed Approach to Assessment in Higher Education. In J. E. Raffaghelli & A. Sangrà (Eds.), Data Cultures in Higher Education: Emergent Practices and the Challenge Ahead (pp. 89–121). Springer International Publishing.
Raffaghelli JE, Grion V, de Rossi M (2023). Data practices in quality evaluation and assessment: Two universities at a glance. Higher Education Quarterly, 77(1), 7-26.
Raffaghelli JE, Sangrà A (2023). Data Cultures in Higher Education: Acknowledging Complexity. In J. E. Raffaghelli & A. Sangrà (Eds.), Data Cultures in Higher Education: Emergent Practices and the Challenge Ahead (pp. 1–39). Springer International Publishing.
Raths D (2018). When learning analytics violate student privacy. Campus Technology, 31(4).
Regmi KD (2025). Decolonising meritocratic higher education: Key challenges and directions for change. Globalisation, Societies and Education, 23(3), 766-783.
Reutter L (2022). Constraining context: Situating datafication in public administration. New Media & Society, 24(4), 903-921.
Robinson-Garcia N, Torres-Salinas D, Herrera-Viedma E, Docampo D (2019). Mining university rankings: Publication output and citation impact as their basis. Research Evaluation, 28(3), 232-240.
Rubel A, Jones KML (2016). Student privacy in learning analytics: An information ethics perspective. The Information Society, 32(2), 143-159.
Runhardt RW (2025). Reactivity, validity, and measurement in the social sciences. Studies in History and Philosophy of Science, 112, 1-9.
Sarrico CS (2022). Quality management, performance measurement and indicators in higher education institutions: Between burden, inspiration and innovation. Quality in Higher Education, 28(1), 11-28.
Schäfer MT, Es K, Lauriault T (2025). Collaborative Research in the Datafied Society: Methods and Practices for Investigation and Intervention. Taylor & Francis.
Sellar S, Lingard B (2016). The OECD and global governance in education. In Testing Regimes, Accountabilities and Education Policy. Routledge.
Selwyn N (2015). Data entry: Towards the critical study of digital data and education. Learning, Media and Technology, 40(1), 64-82.
Selwyn N (2019). Should Robots Replace Teachers?: AI and the Future of Education. John Wiley & Sons.
Selwyn N, Gašević D (2020). The datafication of higher education: Discussing the promises and problems. Teaching in Higher Education, 25(4), 527-540.
Sharvashidze G, Grdzelidze I, Sikharulidze D, Gabrichidze T (2023). Data-driven analysis for evidence-based decision making at universities: Benchmarking, software tools and weighted indicators in quality assurance – analytical framework of Tbilisi State University. Quality in Higher Education, 29(1), 42-59.
Skene A, Raffoul J, Chittle L (2020). Higher Education Under Surveillance: Navigating the Audit Culture. Collected Essays on Learning and Teaching, 13, 160-165.
Stein S, Andreotti V de O, Suša R (2019). ‘Beyond 2015’, within the modern/colonial global imaginary? Global development and higher education. Critical Studies in Education, 60(3), 281–301.
Stevens RE, Loudon DL, Cole H, Wrenn B (2013). Concise Encyclopedia of Church and Religious Organization Marketing. Routledge.
Su F (2024). The datafication of higher education: Examining universities’ conceptions and articulations of ‘teaching quality.’ Perspectives: Policy and Practice in Higher Education, 28(1), 38–45.
Topçu S (2025). THEQC Releases Version 3.2 (2025) of the Evaluation Programs Guide. Yükseköğretim Kalite Kurulu Başkanlığı. https://www.yokak.gov.tr/en/2025/02/06/theqc-releases-version-3-2-2025-of-the-evaluation-programs-guide/
Tripathi S, Nundy S (2025). Navigating Excellence: The Imperative of University Rankings Today. Journal of Medical Evidence, 6(1), 76.
Tzimas D, Demetriadis SN (2021). The Impact of Learning Analytics on Student Performance and Satisfaction in a Higher Education Course. EDM.
UNESCO (2023). UNESCO Recommendation on Open Science—UNESCO Digital Library. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000379949
University of Edinburgh (2022). University Executive. https://edwebcontent.ed.ac.uk/sites/default/files/ atoms/files/20221108-ue-_web.pdf
University of Edinburgh (2024). The University of Edinburgh Annual Report and Accounts for the Year to 31 july 2024. https://uoe-finance.ed.ac.uk/sites/default/files/2025-01/ARA%2024.pdf
University of Melbourne (2023). Advancing Students and Education Strategy: 2023—2030. https://about. unimelb.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0031/384367/Advancing-Students-and-Education-Strategy.pdf
University of Oxford (2024). Annual Report and Accounts. https://assets-oxweb.admin.ox.ac.uk/2026-02/Oxford_University_Financial_Statements_2023-24.pdf
Vasylyev A, Smolennikov D (2023). International, National and Intra-University Rankings as a Motivator of Quality and Success: The Experience of Sumy State University. International Scientific Journal of Universities and Leadership, (16), 128-138.
Watermeyer R, Bolden R, Knight C, Holm J (2022). Leadership in global higher education: Findings from a scoping study.
Williamson B (2018). The hidden architecture of higher education: Building a big data infrastructure for the ‘smarter university.’ International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, 15(1), 12.
Williamson B (2019). Policy networks, performance metrics and platform markets: Charting the expanding data infrastructure of higher education. British Journal of Educational Technology, 50(6), 2794-2809.
Williamson B (2020). Datafication of Education: A Critical Approach to Emerging Analytics Technologies and Practices. In Rethinking Pedagogy for a Digital Age (3rd ed.). Routledge.
Williamson B, Bayne S, Shay S (2020). The datafication of teaching in Higher Education: Critical issues and perspectives. Teaching in Higher Education, 25(4), 351-365.
Williamson B, Macgilchrist F, Potter J (2021). Covid-19 controversies and critical research in digital education. In Learning, Media and Technology (Vol. 46, Issue 2, pp. 117-127). Taylor & Francis.
Williamson B, Macgilchrist F, Potter J (2023). Re-examining AI, automation and datafication in education. Learning, Media and Technology, 48(1), 1-5.
Xu RH (2025). Making Higher Education Market Through Open Data Platform: Digital Educational Governance and Struggling Universities. Higher Education Policy.
Yan L, Pammer-Schindler V, Mills C, Nguyen A, Gašević D (2025). Beyond efficiency: Empirical insights on generative AI’s impact on cognition, metacognition and epistemic agency in learning. British Journal of Educational Technology, 56(5), 1675-1685.
Zembylas M (2026). Decolonising data in higher education: Critical issues and future directions. Learning, Media and Technology, 51(1), 48–59.

Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Quality Assurance in Higher Education

Journal Section

Research Article

Authors

Fatima Tfaily ^*
0000-0001-7417-9494
Kuwait

Publication Date

June 30, 2026

Submission Date

April 27, 2026

Acceptance Date

June 8, 2026

Published in Issue

Year 2026 Volume: 01 Number: 01

IZ

https://izlik.org/JA95YX48WZ

Cite

RIS / Bibtex

APA

Tfaily, F. (2026). Datafication of Higher Education: Quality, Governance and Academic Decision-Making. Journal of Accreditation and Quality Assurance in Higher Education, 01(01), 25-51. https://izlik.org/JA95YX48WZ

AMA

1.Tfaily F. Datafication of Higher Education: Quality, Governance and Academic Decision-Making. JAQAHE. 2026;01(01):25-51. https://izlik.org/JA95YX48WZ

Chicago

Tfaily, Fatima. 2026. “Datafication of Higher Education: Quality, Governance and Academic Decision-Making”. Journal of Accreditation and Quality Assurance in Higher Education 01 (01): 25-51. https://izlik.org/JA95YX48WZ.

EndNote

Tfaily F (June 1, 2026) Datafication of Higher Education: Quality, Governance and Academic Decision-Making. Journal of Accreditation and Quality Assurance in Higher Education 01 01 25–51.

IEEE

[1]F. Tfaily, “Datafication of Higher Education: Quality, Governance and Academic Decision-Making”, JAQAHE, vol. 01, no. 01, pp. 25–51, June 2026, [Online]. Available: https://izlik.org/JA95YX48WZ

ISNAD

Tfaily, Fatima. “Datafication of Higher Education: Quality, Governance and Academic Decision-Making”. Journal of Accreditation and Quality Assurance in Higher Education 01/01 (June 1, 2026): 25-51. https://izlik.org/JA95YX48WZ.

JAMA

1.Tfaily F. Datafication of Higher Education: Quality, Governance and Academic Decision-Making. JAQAHE. 2026;01:25–51.

MLA

Tfaily, Fatima. “Datafication of Higher Education: Quality, Governance and Academic Decision-Making”. Journal of Accreditation and Quality Assurance in Higher Education, vol. 01, no. 01, June 2026, pp. 25-51, https://izlik.org/JA95YX48WZ.

Vancouver

1.Fatima Tfaily. Datafication of Higher Education: Quality, Governance and Academic Decision-Making. JAQAHE [Internet]. 2026 Jun. 1;01(01):25-51. Available from: https://izlik.org/JA95YX48WZ