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External Quality Requirements
The Quality Enhancement team regularly liaises with external standards and quality assurance agencies and provides support internally for review visits.
The University has a long tradition of offering vocational, professionally accredited courses and such courses are increasingly popular with applicants because of the direct link to employment. As a consequence, recruitment is strong and it is usually possible to fill available places with well-qualified and highly motivated students.
Effective management of links with PSRBs is key to securing and maintaining the accreditation of courses and the University has developed a Protocol for the management of relationships with PSRBs based on the experience of staff working in this area.
Protocol for Managing Professional and Statutory Body Relationships
Academic Standards and Quality Enhancement Committee has considered the effectiveness of this protocol and have endorsed its continued use.
The Academic Standards and Quality Enhancement Committee (ASQEC) maintains an overview of this significant area of activity. All PSRB reports and Faculty responses are received by ASQEC and, wherever possible, joint validation, revalidation, and/ or accreditation processes are developed in consultation with PSRBs. An annual report on PSRB activity is also received by the ASQEC.
The revised operating model for quality assessment consists of the following components:
Baseline Regulatory Requirements
- The framework for higher education qualifications in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
- Specific elements of the current UK-wide Quality Code.
- The financial sustainability, management and governance requirements of the Department for the Economy, Northern Ireland.
- The Higher Education Code of Governance.
- The expectations of consumer law as expressed through the Competition and Markets Authority guidance.
- Student protection measures as expressed through the Northern Ireland Public Service Ombudsman, and HEFCE’s Statement of Good Practice on higher education course changes and closures.
- Ulster's mission and strategy for its higher education provision.
Annual Provider Review
The Annual Provider Review is the core mechanism for reviewing established providers in Northern Ireland. The design of the process builds on established data analysis and assurance arrangements covering the student academic experience, student outcomes, and the standard of awards. This aspect of the revised quality assessment arrangement is operated by DfENI as part of an integrated approach to regulation and includes scrutiny of the following data:
- Over- and under-recruitment patterns
- Non-progression and non-completion rates
- National Student Survey outcomes
- Degree outcomes, including differential outcomes for students with differing characteristics
- Employment outcomes
- Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) outcomes, where applicable and when available.
The Council of the University is required to provide annual assurances on Financial Sustainability, Management and Governance, data quality, value for money and quality-related assurances through the Annual Accountability Return to DfENI. The University's Council receives assurance that academic governance is effective through consideration of a detailed annual assurance report from the Senate in October each year.
DfENI uses the Annual Accountability Return to capture and test assurances from the governing body on the student academic experience and on the standards of academic outputs.
The Department makes the final judgement on the maintenance of standards, informed by the recommendations from an Office for Students (OfS) Group established for this purpose. Judgements will fall into one of three outcome categories:
- Meets requirements - The provider will continue to undergo APR in subsequent years.
- Meets requirements with conditions - The provider will continue to undergo APR in subsequent years, but with an action plan to address areas of immediate concern.
- Pending - The provider will be referred for further investigation and intervention.
DfENI write to each HEI’s governing body to share its judgement about risk status, and any need for further action, in the annual risk letter. This letter includes feedback on the HEI’s performance against certain sector benchmarks, particularly those relating to financial health and judgements about quality to the governing body.
QAA Review
A new model for Quality Assessment in Northern Ireland is currently underway and is at the consultation stage. Until a new Quality Model has been implemented the Annual Provider Review (APR) will continue to apply.
