Higher education in South Africa has been grappling with the issue of quality assurance since the early 1990s. This paper investigates the relationships or tensions between quality, culture and change as a result of the introduction of quality assurance systems in higher education institutions in South Africa. The imperatives for the introduction of a quality assurance system are reviewed followed by an overview of lessons learnt in this area within the South African context. The impact of quality assurance on the organisational cultures of higher education institutions is discussed. This is followed by an analysis of the individual and organisational sources of resistance to change. Finally, some strategies for the creation of a culture of quality within higher education institutions are explored and the importance of future research of these tensions is stressed.