Institute of Quality and Knowledge Advancement (InQKA)

What Institute of Quality and Knowledge Advancement (InQKA) does

InQKA (Institut Kualiti dan Pengembangan Ilmu) is the centralized quality assurance and knowledge advancement institute of Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), a Malaysian public university. Established in 1994, it operates as an internal administrative unit at the Shah Alam main campus (Level 5, Kompleks Al-Farabi) and coordinates quality-related activities across the entire UiTM system, including faculties, colleges, state-level campuses, and branch campuses. Its mandate covers internal and external academic quality audits, accreditation management, ISO 9001:2015 corporate certification, micro-credential verification, innovation programs (KIK), operational excellence initiatives, the Vice Chancellor's Quality Award (AKNC), and knowledge dissemination through publications and podcasts.

The institute is organized into five core service units: the Academic Quality Assurance Unit (accreditation and program compliance), the Quality Management, Innovation and Operational Excellence Unit (PKIKO, managing ISO 9001:2015, the Integrated Quality Management System or iQMS, KIK, and Operational Excellence), the UiTM Quality Verification Centre (QVC, handling micro-credentials and SAMC verification), the Communication and Knowledge Advancement Unit (UnitKom, running the KUALITI newsletter, INOVASI publication, and the ExcelLens podcast), and the Administrative & ICT Unit. It also convenes the Virtual International Conference on Quality and Innovation in Higher Education (VIQHE) and supports a panel of 158 MQA experts covering 158 assessment fields.

InQKA does not generate revenue from external customers. Its services are funded through UiTM's institutional budget, with limited conference registration income (e.g., RM150–RM380 fees for VIQHE 2025) representing the only direct pricing mechanism. Distribution is almost entirely internal via direct support to UiTM faculties, departments, and campuses, with minor external engagement through benchmarking visits from other Malaysian universities (UTM, UNITEN, UPSI) and an Indonesian institution (Universitas Gadjah Mada). The institute serves a single principal stakeholder — UiTM itself — making it functionally a cost center rather than a commercial enterprise.

Name

Institute of Quality and Knowledge Advancement (InQKA)

Legal name

Institut Kualiti dan Pengembangan Ilmu (InQKA)

Website

https://inqka.uitm.edu.my

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

InQKA is the centralized quality assurance and accreditation institute of Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), managing ISO 9001:2015 certification, academic accreditation, micro-credential verification, and quality/innovation programs across the UiTM system.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education Quality Assurance

NAICS

Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416), Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (54169)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Institutional & Programmatic Accreditation Audits (EDADAGAA)

Keywords

• Quality assurance services
• Accreditation management
• ISO certification coordination
• Higher education quality
• Operational excellence programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Shah Alam

HQ country

Malaysia

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

InQKA operates as the centralized quality assurance and knowledge advancement unit of Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), coordinating internal and external academic quality audits, ISO 9001:2015 certification, self-accreditation audits under COPIA and COPPA standards, micro-credentials verification, quality awards (AKNC), and innovation programs (KIK) across the entire UiTM system.

Product overview

InQKA (Institute of Quality and Knowledge Advancement) is the quality assurance body of Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), providing a comprehensive suite of quality management services organized into five core units: Academic Quality Assurance Unit (handling accreditation and program compliance), Quality Management, Innovation and Operational Excellence Unit/PKIKO (managing ISO 9001:2015, iQMS, KIK innovation programs, and Operational Excellence), UiTM Quality Verification Centre (for micro-credentials), Communication and Knowledge Advancement Unit/UnitKom (for publications, podcasts, and communications), and Administrative & ICT Unit. The institute also organizes major events including the VIQHE conference and administers awards like AKNC (Vice Chancellor's Quality Award) and KIK (Innovative and Creative Group Convention).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• VIQHE 2025 Conference Virtual International Conference on Quality and Innovation in Higher Education organized by InQKA, providing a platform for academics, researchers, policymakers, and industry practitioners to share research and best practices in higher education quality and innovation.
• Self-Accredited Micro-Credentials (SAMC) Verification Micro-credentials and Self-Accredited Micro-Credentials (SAMC) verification services coordinated by the UiTM Quality Verification Centre (QVC) for UiTM program providers, with documented application and training processes.

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• LRQA (Lloyd's Register Quality Assurance)coreOthersLRQA serves as the certification body for UiTM's ISO 9001:2015 corporate-level certification. InQKA acts as the secretariat coordinating surveillance audits and focus visit audits with LRQA.
• Universitas Gadjah Mada (Indonesia)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndonesian university delegation visited InQKA for knowledge exchange on quality assurance practices. Visit included three delegates plus representatives from Arsyad Ayub Graduate School.
• Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBenchmarking visit from UTM to learn about quality management practices at UiTM. Representatives included Puan Hartini Darsono, Puan Sabrina Ibrahim, Puan Siti Zarinah Abdul Jalal, and Encik Mohd Sufian Nooralazam.
• Universiti Tenaga Nasional (UNITEN)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBenchmarking visit from UNITEN (an IPTS - private university) to InQKA to share best practices in quality management implementation at universities.
• Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerQuality management benchmarking visit from UPSI's Bahagian Pengurusan Kualiti (BPQ) to InQKA, including presentations from multiple quality management experts.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Bureau Veritas: Bureau Veritas is a global testing, inspection, and certification (TIC) company providing ISO certification and quality assurance services. Comparable to InQKA's mandate at scale, though operating commercially across many industries rather than within a single university.
• SGS Malaysia: SGS is a global TIC firm offering ISO 9001 certification, audits, and training. Comparable to the role LRQA plays for InQKA and indicative of the type of commercial QA provider that could absorb or compete with institutional QA functions.
• Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA): MQA is the national regulator overseeing higher education quality and accreditation in Malaysia. It is comparable to InQKA as both operate in the same HE quality assurance domain, but MQA operates at the national policy and accreditation level while InQKA executes institutional QA internally for UiTM.

Others

• Lloyd's Register Quality Assurance (LRQA): LRQA is InQKA's certification body partner for ISO 9001:2015 surveillance and focus visit audits. It is comparable as the external auditor enabling InQKA's compliance program and operates in the same quality assurance ecosystem as an established global commercial player.

Direct peers

• Universiti Tenaga Nasional (UNITEN): UNITEN is a private Malaysian university (IPTS) that benchmarked with InQKA on quality management implementation. Comparable as a Malaysian higher education institution operating its own QA function targeting MQA and ISO compliance.
• Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI) — Bahagian Pengurusan Kualiti (BPQ): UPSI's BPQ is the QA unit within UPSI that conducted a benchmarking visit to InQKA. It is directly comparable as a Malaysian public university's internal quality management division handling ISO certification, accreditation management, and operational excellence.
• Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) — Quality Management Division: UTM maintains its own quality management division that performed a benchmarking visit to InQKA. It is the closest direct peer — a Malaysian public university operating a dedicated QA unit coordinating ISO certification, accreditation, and internal audits using the same MQA framework.

Regional players

• Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) — Quality Assurance Body: UGM sent a delegation to InQKA for knowledge exchange on QA practices. Comparable as a large Southeast Asian public university's internal QA function operating under a different national accreditation framework but addressing the same ISO and programmatic accreditation needs.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/v/EX4vXEd_D5M?version=3
• Facebookfacebook.com/1ZbWHr7Sia
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/institute-of-quality-and-knowledge-advancement-inqka

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Institute of Quality and Knowledge Advancement (InQKA)