This article explores the wicked problem of quality in higher education, arguing for a more robust theorising of the subject at national, institutional and local department level. The focus of the discussion rests on principles for theorising in more rigorous ways about the multidimensional issue of quality. Quality in higher education is proposed as a wicked, ill-defined problem that is under-theorised yet associated with high stakes policy-making and funding, particularly at the macro national level. Theoretical frameworks informing the quality debate in higher education are explored before proposing four sensitising concepts as potential vehicles for enhancing theory-building around quality in higher education. The article concludes by considering practical implications for governments, universities and departments grappling with the complex suite of problems associated with defining, theorising, measuring and demonstrating quality in higher education.