Hi, I need some simple links for the accreditation of University of Portsmouth. My daughter is retaking her final. If it goes well she will be reimbursed by her company. They are claiming they could not find accreditation of the school. Is it listed in any dl guides? This would be extremely helpful. Thanks. Test date is in two weeks. Hille
The beauty of the British system is that the Quality Assurance Agency posts its quality assurance evaluations (roughly equivalent to American periodic accreditation reviews) on its website in great detail. Here's the scoop on the University of Portsmouth: http://www.qaa.ac.uk/revreps/inst_reports.asp?instID=H-0074 Here's the complete listing of reports, by institution: http://www.qaa.ac.uk/revreps/inst_index.asp
Thank you. Hello and thanks for the links. She has forwarded these to HR. I do not own the latest dl guides. Is it listed anywhere? Again, thanks. Hille
Portsmouth and UK accrediation QAA does attempt to access quality and it's reports are taken very seriously but it has nothing to do with "accreditation". Institutions in Britain may be "authorized to grant degrees" by Parliament or the Crown. Here's the list: "http://www.dfes.gov.uk/recognisedukdegrees/wcoukd.shtml" The University of Portsmouth is authorized. The TRICKY thing about UK institutions is that NON-approved institutions can operate so long as they do not grant or claim to grant a UK degree. This has been a trap for many foreign students who arrive in Britain only to find their "university" is two rented rooms above a chippie. Same problem with de. For example, Shepperton University "http://www.sheppertonu.org.uk/about.html" has a UK address but states: "NOTE: It is the responsibility of each student to determine, prior to registering with Shepperton University, that their degree program of interest or studies, meet admission or transfer requirements to other public or private educational institutions. The University makes no "representations, promises, or guarantees of employment; or acceptability of transfer credit(s) to any public or private educational institution." Of course, they are NOT authorized to grant a UK degree. They grant a degree but from the UK even though they are inthe UK! Now that I'm thinking about it, I'll email Shepperton to see if they will tell me WHERE their degree is granted from.
If you use 3d trace route it gives you a best guess as to the geographical location of the server which in this case appears to somewhere in Virginia. The addresses on the website and whois details are either fake or mail forwarding services and there is unlikely to be anyone in the UK to take proceedings against. I happen to know that another (which is not directly advertising degrees) uses a mailbox address in London where mail is forwarded to an address in Portugal which is almost certainly another mail box. Where it goes from there is anyones guess but I suspect that it goes to the US again since it appears to be associated with a University in Texas. The University of Dorchester uses a London address that was a mail box /virtual office address but is now private dwellings , a telephone number which untraceable, a URL registered to an Israeli company which has its own website registered to an individual in Las Vegas and a server that is based in Colombus, Ohio, again in the USof A. Admittedly I and fellow Trading Standards Officers would like to see the law amended to extend to catch these 'foreign bodies', however the work involved in chasing the international connections would be excessive given our other other duties (weights and measures, product safety, consumer credit, trade descriptions, product counterfeiting etc (see www.tradingstandards.gov.uk for an a-z list)). In any case, when some of my colleagues managed to get some sites closed down in March last year, with the assistance of the US Federal Trade Commission, at least 2 of them were back up operating by May!
Re: Portsmouth and UK accrediation It doesn't? The QAA is a body that provides on-going quality assurance oversight over British higher education institutions, undertaking site visits and so on. In the United States, the accreditors provide on-going quality assurance oversight over American higher education institutions, undertaking site visits and so on. It seems to me that the roles of the QAA and of an American regional accreditor like WASC are almost identical. In the United States, institutions may only operate in accordance with the appropriate state laws.
Bill While higher education in the UK is devolved to Scotland, it operates its universities under Royal Charter from the Queen ('in parliament', i.e., via the UK government). The QAA is the power in the land in matters of quality standards and all UK universities submit to its inspections (one is due this year at Heriot-Watt, inclusive of EBS). Its reports are published on the web site and taken seriously by all institutions. The threat of losing Royal Charter status brings any deviants into line (usually the top adminstrators and academics would be required to 'retire'). Without a Royal Charter the university would cease to be one. Portsmouth, our original subject, is a bona fide British university. It has a good reputation for distance learning (though it is too much 'distance teaching' for my liking) and I would recommend it and its courses to anybody contemplating them. That a US employer was suspicious, that is OK, provided it accepts the evidence.
Warguns wrote that the QAA has nothing to do with accreditation. I said that the QAA's function seems to be virtually identical to that of an American accreditor. Perhaps the word "accreditation" means something different in the UK and in the US.
Royal Charter and Universities In the UK there are 2 elements Calling yourself a University For businesses registred or based un the UK, if you want to use the term 'University' as part of a business name then you have to have the approval of the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry. This will not be given unless you also have the approval of the Privy Council. Now, I do not know what rules the Privy Council applies, however there is nothing in the other legislation that requires a Royal Charter. Granting Degrees The rules only cover the granting of UK (or supposedly UK) degrees. Degrees may be granted by 1] "... a university, college or other body which is authorised by Royal Charter <b>or</b> by or under Act of Parliament to award degrees" 2] bodies permitted by the above to award degrees on their behalf 3] "other such award as the Secretary of State may by order designate as a recognised award for the purposes of this section" So a body may have a Royal Charter but not be called a University or may not have a Royal Charter but still be able to award degrees.
Interesting points you have raised. The Privy Council is the 'Queen in Council' and the members of the Privy Council are senior Members of Parliament and the House of Lords appointed by the Queen (on the advice of her Ministers). It includes members of the loyal opposition as well as sitting MPS of the governing party. Usually the Membera in Council forming the PC for a current period are high office bearers in the sitting Government. The Queen may rule Britain between elections for 21 days through the Privy Council, which power she normally delegates to the current council members from the retiring government until the election results are declared. Parliament is dissolved for the 21 days of the election period and this arrangmeent permits government to continue under the current Ministers, who for the duration of the election are no longer MPs. Royal Charters are awarded by the Government acting on behalf of the Queen (who signs them). I think you will find that the powers held by both the Privy Council and the Department of Education and DTI (headed by Cabinet Members of the current government) are sufficient safeguards to the integrity of the UK degree awarding system. Henley College has a Royal Charter for its MBAs but awards Brunel University degrees for tis DBA. It is not a University as it is a single subject College. Queen Margaret University College operates under government legislation but does not yet have a Royal Charter - the procedure to gain one takes several years.
The situation is a little confused, especially for Trading Standards Officers such as myself, who are expected to enforce S214 of the Education Reform Act. Effectively the main recourse is to the recognisedukdegrees page on the DfES web site. Examples The Education (Recognised Awards) Order 1988 refers to such awards as 'Master of Horiculture' which may be awarded by the Royal Horticultural Society and the MBA which may be awarded by Richmond College (not, apparently , by anyone else!). The Education (Listed Bodies) Order, which is in effect in Scotland only, lists as 'providers of courses leading to a degree' such bodies as the East 15 Acting School, Merseyside Police and the Pre-Retirement Association of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. (much more extensive list than that for the rest of the UK). We are planning to have a meeting at the end of March with other colleagues in Trading Standards and reps from the DfES and Home Office, to discuss the problems with a sudden plague of 'colleges' offering education with degrees from dubious foreign institutions. I would hope to press for some changes in the legislation to make it easier to enforce.
Universities in UK As far as i know, the United Kingdom government does not allow any institution to grant degree without permission of the concerned bodies in the education department of UK govt. I also saw on one of UK's govt. site that any institution that offers a degree without permission is committing a crime and strict action would be taken against them.
QAA and US accreditors The QAA in the UK goes beyond the regional accrediting agencies in the USA in that it is very much concerned with the work/examinations that students actually produce. There is a detailed analysis of the curriculum and learning outcomes required that you don't find in the typical assessments made byregional accrediting agencies in the USA. The student learning experience and outcomes is crucial in QAA assessment whereas the US agencies tend to focus on facilities outcomes and processes. Because of the size of the UK the QAA is able to gain a much more comprehensive view as to what is going on in higher education than can be the case in the USA where there are six (I think!) accrediting agencies plus organizations such as the DETC, etc. Thus, comparable standards across the US is virtually impossible and, in my experience, standards really do vary considerably from one accredited institution to another. AJJ
Re: Universities in UK Only if it claims to be or can be mistaken for a UK degree. So, although Dublin Metropolitan University is an unauthorised body, illegally using the word university in Eire, a UK college offering degrees from there is not commiting an offence under the Education Reform Act because it is not a UK degree (due to that small problem in 1916!) There may now be a possibilty of obtaining a civil injunction under the new Enterprise Act, however this is, as yet, untried. Also, as I mention elsewhere, the enforcement officers have a number of other responsibilities including product safety which take priority.
