A Web-based academic quality management system for evidence traceability and continuous improvement in engineering education: the QAMS case study

Abstract

This study aims to present the quality academic management system (QAMS), a Web-based academic quality management system designed to strengthen evidence traceability, outcome-based assessment, stakeholder feedback, reporting and continuous improvement in engineering education. QAMS is evaluated as an integrated quality-assurance intervention rather than only as a software interface. A design-science and institutional case-study approach was used. The design-science process is described through problem identification, requirements definition, design and development, implementation, evaluation and refinement. The case study analyses aggregated and anonymised operational data from a college of engineering implementation, including source-structure evidence, system-generated reports, instructor-activity records, graduate attribute reports and final-report outputs. The operational repository contained 1,148 system files, 958 Excel workbooks, 233 active course sections, 2,703 enrolled students, 46 registered users, 2,723 course-evidence upload records, 702 direct student Outcome (SO) assessment workbooks, 171 indirect survey workbooks, 56 stakeholder-survey files, 905 login events and six final-report workbooks. Additional fall-to-spring evidence shows that SO evaluation completion improved from 95/108 assigned SOs (88.0%) to 127/127 assigned SOs (100.0%), while graduate attribute achievement increased in all five mapped attributes. The study was conducted in one college of engineering and should be validated across other colleges, disciplines and academic years. Fall-to-spring comparisons provide useful process evidence but do not prove causality. Future research should examine longitudinal closure rates, user experience, workload reduction, evidence completeness and pre-/post-QAMS effects across several semesters. QAMS provides a structured mechanism that can support accreditation readiness by connecting required evidence, assessment results, dashboards, support materials, final reports and follow-up actions. The manuscript discusses staff training, Help, SearchEngine and SupportedMaterial pages, data governance, maintenance, cybersecurity, interoperability and faculty adoption requirements. By improving transparency, traceability and accountability in academic quality assurance, QAMS can help institutions strengthen stakeholder confidence in engineering programmes. The system supports a culture of evidence-based improvement by enabling faculty members, coordinators and quality committees to monitor outcomes, identify gaps and document improvement actions more systematically. The study contributes an implemented digital quality-assurance framework that integrates direct assessment, indirect assessment, course evidence, stakeholder feedback, dashboards, final reports, follow-up tracking and faculty support within one traceable workflow. A comparison with prior accreditation-support systems clarifies the distinctive contribution of QAMS.