Accreditation: The Suitable Model for Quality Improvement of Research Institutions

Nowadays, there is a big gap between countries which is the result of differences in scientific development. The key to development and success in the world competition is the qualitative and quantitative development of research activities and scientific advances. This does not happy by itself and needs strict evaluation and consequent planning in all scientific organizations including research institutions. Therefore, the evaluation of research institutions should be carried out on the basis of a suitable model and scientific methods so that strengths and weaknesses, capabilities and limitations may be recognized and necessary steps may be taken for their development. The investigation of international experiences shows that depending on the scientific nature of research institutions, their evaluation is based on internal and external evaluation. in Iran, accreditation model has been just utilized in university systems. This paper tries to provide an accreditation model for research institutions and report the international experiences in this regard. Then, it investigates a decade of accreditation experience in the Iranian university systems and their outcomes and tries to extend the use of this model to Iranian research institutions. Finally, it provides solutions in order to increase its efficiency.