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The purpose of this paper is to examine faculty members' perceptions over time with respect to the concept of quality assurance; the evaluation objects and the rationale for choosing them; and attitudes toward the application of this process in the college and in its academic units.

This a qualitative longitudinal case study of one veteran college of education in the center of Israel. The leading faculty members under study comprised 17 subject‐matter department heads specializing in the humanities, science and in education. All of them implemented an internal evaluation in their departments as part of a quality assurance process. The study involved two rounds of semi‐structured interviews: at the beginning of the process and two‐and‐a‐half years later, using categorical content analysis.

The results indicate that time is required for the process to mature, for process objection level to decline and for assertive leadership to evolve. Positive attitudes emerge when faculty members are given the opportunity to act in an autonomous atmosphere, when organizational learning frameworks are established and when variety is legitimized. Furthermore, faculty members take responsibility and understand that the process improves the quality of their work. Overall, perceptions of processes changed from quality assurance as external supervision imposed on the institution, to quality enhancement emerging from the academic faculty and from the needs of the institution.

For decision makers and practitioners in higher education, this case study represents one stage in building an organizational culture, that can contribute in the future to external quality assurance processes when required by stakeholders.