external quality assurance of norwegian higher education

EXTERNAL QUALITY ASSURANCEof Norwegian Higher Education

AccreditationQuality Audit

01.12. 2007 Gro Hanne Aas, Quality Audits Unit, NOKUT

NOKUT – Norwegian Agency for Quality Assurance in Education

20.04.23 | NOKUT - Norwegian Agency for Quality Assurance in Education | 2

NOKUT in context

NOKUT was established in 2003, taking over Quality Assurance functions from its forerunner, the Network Norway Council

Part of general changes in higher education Part of ’Quality Reform’ package of legislation in 2002

that implemented Bologna measures: National QA, the BA/MA degree structure and ECTS

HEIs are fully responsible for QA of activities, and have to demonstrate how they honour this responsibility

National QA-system includes both rewards and sanctions


NOKUT anchored in legislation (1)

Norway has got a national law for higher education.

From Act relating to universities and university colleges, 1 April 2005:

Chapter 2: The Norwegian Agency for Quality Assurance in Education – NOKUT

Section 2-1. NOKUT’s responsibilities and authority

(1) NOKUT shall be a professionally autonomous state body which, by means of accreditation and evaluation, shall monitor the quality of Norwegian institutions that provide higher education and recognize qualifications awarded by institutions not subject to this act. Accreditation and evaluation activities shall be designed in such a way that the institutions can benefit from them in the course of their quality assurance and development work.



(2) NOKUT’s responsibilities are: Evaluation of the institutions’ systems for quality assurance Accreditation of institutions Accreditation of course provision Revision of previously granted accreditation Evaluations for significance to assessment of the quality for

higher education. The Ministry may instruct NOKUT to conduct such evaluations.

General recognition of qualifications awarded by institutions not subject to this Act.

The Ministry may not instruct NOKUT beyond what is authorized by statue or laid down in regulations issued by the Ministry, and may not set aside accreditations granted by NOKUT.

All evaluations conducted by NOKUT are public, and NOKUT shall ensure that they are made known.



Section 2-2. NOKUT’s board NOKUT shall be governed by a board that shall have overall

responsibility for NOKUT’s activities and the decisions made by NOKUT.

The board shall be appointed by the King and shall consist of eight members. One member shall be a student. One member shall be appointed from among NOKUT’s staff and shall have the right to vote in matters concerning the staff. Deputies shall be appointed, including persons deputies for the staff and student members. The Ministry shall appoint the chairman for the board.

The board’s term of office shall be four years. Student members are appointed for two years.

Members of the board may not hold leading positions or office at institutions under the present Act.

The board shall appoint NOKUT’s director for a fixed term of years. The fixed term shall be six years.


NOKUT’s powers

NOKUT has the sole right to recognise Higher Education – both institutions and programs - through accreditation. Accreditation is official and mandatory

NOKUT can open revision of given accreditation – both institutions and programs

NOKUT is instructed to carry out cyclic evaluations of internal quality assurance in all HE institutions. Successful outcome is prerequisite for institutional accreditation


Norwegian HEIs and their accrediting powers

7 UniversitiesHave the right to establish programs at all levels

6 Specialized universitiesHave the right to establish programs at all levels within their respective specialisms

33 Accredited university collegesHave the right to establish programs up to and including bachelor level. Must apply to NOKUT for accreditation of programs abovethis level. Are self-accrediting within accredited programs of Ph.D.

30 University colleges with accredited programsMust apply to NOKUT for accreditation of programs at all levels


Accreditation

Accreditation may concern institutional status (giving certain rights to ’self-accredit’ educational programmes)

Or it may concern a single program that the institution cannot ’self-accredit’ under its present status of institutional accreditation

All accreditation procedures include a self-evaluation report

All accreditation procedures involve the use of extenal experts (2 – 5) who make recommendation in report.

Institutional accreditations always involve site visits. All accreditation decisions are made by NOKUT, either

in the Board of Governors or as delegated to the Director General


Accreditation of institutions (1)

College of Higher Education (’University College’):

Standard includes:

• Higher education, research and/or artistic development work must be main activity.

• Organisation and infrastructure

• Permanent, qualified academic staff

• At least ONE full accredited program that qualifies candidates for lower degree (BA) diploma

• Library facilities

• Participation in relevant national and international networks


Accreditation of institutions (2)

University

The same requirements as for University Colleges In addition:

• Stable research/development activities of high quality in its discipline areas

• At least 5 programs that qualify candidates for higher degree (MA) diploma and lower degree programs in several subject areas

• The right to award doctoral degrees in at least 4 separate discipline areas

• Stable training of researchers in its doctoral degree programs


Accreditation of programmes (1)

Standard for the accreditation of programs is set by NOKUT’s Board of Governors.

There are specific standards for:

Doctoral programs Master degree programs Bachelor degree programs Programs of ½ - 2 year’s duration

Programs are initially accredited on application from the institutions


Accreditation of programmes (2)

The accreditation standards refer to (i. a.):

Curriculum plan – level, organisation, reading lists Defined aims – related to learning outcomes and

candidate competencies Description of teaching/learning methodologies Relevant assessments procedures Qualified and sufficient teaching staff Relevant and sufficient R&D activities Infrastructure


Revision of accreditation

Accreditations are not limited to a defined number of years, but valid until actively revoked.

Accreditations can be revoked through an evaluation aimed specifically at revising existing accreditation(s)

NOKUT conducts revisions: - on indications (from audits) - as random tests - as investigations of specific program areas on a

national basis


’The Norwegian System’:

Tools and connections

Institution’sportfolio ofProvision

Self-accreditingpowers inaccordance with institutionalstatus

QAS

Initial Accreditation

Audit

Revision of accreditation


Quality Audit: Evaluation of QA systems

All HEIs are required to have ’satisfactory QA system’:‘Universities and university colleges shall have a satisfactory internal system for quality assurance. Student evaluation of courses shall be included in the system for quality assurance’ (1-6, Act, 1 April 2005)

Governmental Regulation sets standard for the system – it should:

- Ensure continual improvement- Provide satisfactory documentation of the work- Be capable of revealing inferior quality- Comprise all processes of significance for the quality

of programs of study


Quality Audit

According to Governmental Regulation, NOKUT’s evaluations of the systems shall be carried out in cycles of maximum 6 years and include:

- The system’s structure- The documentation it produces- The assessment of educational quality conducted by the

institution itself… and result in decision on if the system is satisfactory as a whole

(Yes or No)

If a system is not found satisfactory after a second audit, the institution loses the right to apply for accreditation of new programs of study

NOKUT has, in consultation with the sector, stipulated 10 system-related evaluation criteria. The audit relates specifically to educational activity


Criteria for evaluation of QA-systems

Linked to institutional strategyQuality work must have defined aimsLinked to steering and managementBroad participation and defined responsibilitiesQuality data from all study units, accumulated and

formatted for use at higher levels of responsibilityAnalysis of informationUse of information for improvementUse of information for resource allocationTotal learning environment and role of studentsAnnual Quality report: Overall analysis and action

program


EVALUATORS – EXPERTS

External experts in panels of 4 – 5

Clear competence specifications for each panel

(- professor, - experience from high level academic leadership, - QA or evaluation expertise, - foreign expert, - student with relevant experience)

Pool of experts. Each member serves several years

Training of experts


Audit as ’special event’ in internal QA?

External audit builds on and interlocks with internal QA, e.g. through the uses of ’authentic’ quality assurance documentation

A special self-evaluation is NOT prepared for the audit

Generic (’system’) criteria enable institutions to create their own internal QA system

Reflects actual responsibility for quality(Primacy of internal QA over external QA)


Advising the institutions

Build system from basics. Add breath and sophistication gradually

Build it yourself!

Building the system is a process for the entire organisation

A QA system is predominantly an information system(Identification, transport and processing of information)

Build on information from the actual study units


Quality assuring the study unit

Relevant statistics: Intake indicators Input indicators (Resources/hours for teaching, etc.) Result indicators

Students’ course evaluations

Teaching group’s assessments and response to information in the two points above

Other information (stakeholders, alumni, etc.)


NOKUT’s operations 2003-2007, higher education

Accreditations of 7 HEIs (including 3 to university status)

Accreditation of more than 200 programsRevision of accreditation: 49 programs, some are still

in processQuality audits: 50

General evaluations of higher education: 1 completed (all teacher education programs)

1 in process (all engineering programs BA-level)

1 will start in 2008 (all pre-school teacher education programs)


System challenges

From NOKUT’s Self Evaluation Report Part 1:

The main challenge in relation to NOKUT’s role in the Norwegian model for external quality assurance is to strike a good balance between especially three defined objectives: to act as a tool for sanctioning and rewarding, to act as a tool for peer review-like evaluations that presuppose interpretations and judgements, and to operate a national system that requires equal and fair treatment of the institutions.


Challenges and areas for development

From NOKUTs Self Evaluation Report 2:

- Public confidence in quality

- Relationship to stakeholders

- Communication and information

- Building and maintaining competence in NOKUT

- Capacity to change and improve

external quality assurance of norwegian higher education

Documents

quality assurance functions

context nokut

quality audits unit

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nokuts activities

nokuts staff

nokuts responsibilities

education nokutsection