The UK Quality Assurance Agency of Higher Educations "National Qualifications Framework" How do they fit in with the recognition, accreditation and validation of UK (or international) degrees?
The QAA was established in 1997 as an independent body and it is funded by subcriptions from universities and colleges of higher education. The Agency reviews the quality and standards of UK higher education rather than acts as an accreditation agency. Its web site is http://www.qaa.ac.uk All UK universities, except one, are government funded and thus accreditation and validation of UK degrees would not be a problem.
Re: Re: United Kingdom Accreditation Isn't that what accreditation is? I don't understand the distinction that you are making. That would only be the case if quality assurance were a condition of government funding. While Britain obviously has a good record in that regard, it isn't automatic. My understanding is that the QAA was formed to bring together under one roof the higher education quality assurance functions that had previously been handled by a number of separate agencies, including the Higher Education Funding Council.
As some of you know I am debating on another board about the value of a University of Oxford MA. What I discovered today is that the QAA of Higher Education has said that Cambridge and Oxford MA's are "not academic qualifications." Should I believe them? P.S. Rich Douglas, I owe you an apology, the US accreditation system is easier to understand.
Re: As some of you know If I recall correctly there was debate on this issue some time ago, either here or in AED, that stated that the BA is upgraded to an MA after one year.
Re: As some of you know Kane: You might want to read the discussion thread at: http://www.degreeinfo.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=4255 I think that the Oxford MA thing was explained pretty well there. If you wanted a Masters in Ancient History, for example, you would take the MPhil, which is a two-year degree (described at: http://www.classics.ox.ac.uk/anchist/intro.html). I hope that some of the visitors to this from the UK will explain this in more detail for us in the near future. As for the acceditation issue, well, it may work for the Americans, but when my admin at AU wants to waste money getting involved with it...I'd better stop now before I go off on one of my tangents! Regards, Darren.
Re: Re: Re: United Kingdom Accreditation QAA has carried out academic reviews (subject review and institutional review) on behalf of the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) since 1997. The result of academic reviews may affect the allocation of government funding and the ranking of universities, but it will not affect the legal status of the universities and the validity of the degrees they granted.
