Online higher education is growing by leaps and bounds in Latin America, but quality accreditation remains a challenge in many countries. In this context, the International University of La Rioja (UNIR), in collaboration with the Metropolitan Technological University (UTEM) of Chile and the National Accreditation Commission (CNA), organized a key international seminar: “Experiences of institutional and programmatic evaluation of virtual higher education in Latin America and Europe”. The event, in hybrid format, was held on November 25, 2025 in Santiago, Chile and brought together experts from Spain, Chile, Argentina, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia and other Ibero-American countries.
UNIR, with almost two decades of experience in 100% virtual training and all national and international accreditations, has positioned this meeting as a space to strengthen rigorous evaluation mechanisms. The Spanish university had already organized more than four similar seminars, with the participation of more than 20,000 global specialists, thus consolidating itself as a benchmark in quality digital education.
A plural and high-level meeting
The program began at 9:00 a.m. in the René Zorrilla Auditorium of UTEM, with greetings from the rector Marisol Durán Santis (UTEM), the president of the CNA, Andrés Bernasconi, and the academic director of Institutional Relations of the UNIR, Manuel Herrera. Bernasconi’s inaugural lecture discussed Trends and challenges in higher education accreditation.
The technical sessions included roundtable discussions with high-level speakers. Martín Strah (CONEAU, Argentina), Luiz Roberto Liza Curi (Brazil) and José Luis Aznarte (ANECA, Spain) participated in the first, on the evaluation of virtual programs. The second focused on institutional evaluation, with María Eugenia Bolaños (FIMPES, Mexico), Federico Morán (Fundación madri+d, Spain) and Iván Ramos (RIACES, Colombia). The third presented the institutional perspectives of Sergio Morales (Vertebral, Chile), Martín Centeno (UTEM) and Ignacio Hierro (UNIR). Each presentation lasted 20 to 30 minutes, followed by 15 minutes of debate, for an in-depth exchange of bi-regional best practices.
In Chile, the host country, the virtual modality represents 16.7% of total enrollment in higher education and 13.8% in the first cycle. First-year enrollment in distance programs increased by 17% compared to 2024 and by 70% in five years. In the case of master’s degrees, the annual increase was 21.3%. Additionally, 49.1% of people enrolled in online undergraduate courses are 35 years or older. “Online education is growing rapidly, but there is still much to prove,” said Andrés Bernasconi. “This seminar is timely for Chile and the region because it offers an observatory of biregional best practices that accelerates the convergence of standards. »
Accreditation in progress remotely
Bernasconi highlighted the differences with Europe: “In systems such as UNIR and ANECA, assessment integrates pedagogical innovation and holistic measures from program design. In most Latin American countries, a reactive approach predominates, focused on regulatory compliance without sufficient emphasis on student impact. While recognizing national particularities, he highlighted that in Latin America, accreditation covers both programs and institutions, while the European tradition focuses more on programs and, more recently, on complete institutions.
From Argentina, Martín Strah put forward the model of institutional distance education systems (SIED). In a country with 149 universities (74 public and 75 private), any institution offering online degrees must validate its SIED, evaluating aspects such as the regulatory framework, educational proposal, teacher training and technologies.
“It’s a double check: validation of the SIED and subsequent accreditation of the courses,” explains Strah. In ten years (2013-2023), the number of undergraduates and online degrees increased by 107.5% and the number of graduates increased by 143.2%. Today, 4% of students at public universities and 32% at private universities follow distance learning modalities. “The key lesson is to prioritize the traceability of learning: documenting evidence of interaction and outcomes from the start,” he added. This approach ensures “minimum standards of quality” in all accredited careers, including those in the public interest such as medicine or engineering.
UNIR strengthens its pioneering role by sharing its expertise in academic and technological management. Manuel Herrera emphasized: “Online education is a powerful tool to correct inequalities, bringing training to excluded spaces, but it must be delivered with quality and according to rigorous standards. An illustrative example is the collaboration with the Technological University of Pereira (Colombia): after a week of virtual exchange in 2020, they adopted online tutoring models that allowed hundreds of distance students to obtain engineering degrees. Herrera warned of a common mistake: “Prioritizing technology tools over teacher training; the online teacher must be a relationship manager and encourage critical thinking.”
The seminar, broadcast via streamingpromoted convergent accreditation proposals, aligned with innovation and inclusion. In a context where virtuality is redefining higher education, initiatives like this pave the way towards a fairer and more competitive region, linking European and Latin American experiences to raise common standards.
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