WORKSHOP OVERVIEW:

The development and utilization of effective mechanisms for quality assurance and improvement are critical to the success of higher education everywhere, and is strongly linked to the ability of institutions to achieve national and international accreditation. Accreditation is perceived as one of the most critical and challenging aspects of higher education because it touches almost every aspect of the institutional system. Accreditation is much more than meeting some minimal standard measures of inputs; it is instead a comprehensive, planned and systematic review process of an institution, its programs, services and resources to determine whether or not acceptable standards of education, scholarship, and infrastructure are being met, maintained and enhanced on a continuous basis. It is an ongoing process which must be built into the day to day practices of institutions of higher education. With the emergence of quality assurance agencies and quality frameworks in the region, higher education institutions are placing more and more emphasis on implementing quality at all levels and ensuring continuous improvement. The workshop aims to introduce participants to the principles of quality and continuous improvement as an institutional concern that links to the process of accreditation; it also addresses the role of executive leadership in creating a culture of excellence. The workshop will expose participants to the various accreditation methodologies and processes, the standards set forth by national accrediting bodies and how these standards are interpreted and applied. It will familiarize participants with the processes of conducting self- assessment and writing ‘self –study’ reports as well as the preparation for the external review team visit and how to close the gaps and make the most out of the process.

TARGET AUDIENCE:

This workshop is intended at Deans of Schools and Colleges, Heads of Departments, Program Leaders, and faculty members involved with accreditation. The program is also appropriate for Directors, Managers and Staff of Effectiveness, Institutional Research, Quality and Accreditation Offices working in higher education institutions in the region.

MAIN TOPICS COVERED:

Ø  The Context of Accreditation

Ø  The Accreditation Process

Ø  Preparing an Effective Self- Study Report

Ø  Preparing for the on-site visit

Ø  Closing the Loop

VENUE LOCATION:

COSTS & DISCOUNTS:

Dr Clare Morris is Emeritus Professor at the University of Gloucestershire, UK, where she was Dean of Student Experience and Quality Enhancement until 2009; she is now an independent higher education consultant. An academic statistician, she holds an MA from the University of Oxford, MSc and PhD from the University of Bristol, and is a Chartered Statistician and Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society. Her interests lie in the fields of quality improvement and quantitative research methods, and she has acted as a consultant to major organisations including Hewlett-Packard and a number of UK government departments. She previously held posts in the Business Schools at Warwick and Cardiff universities, and was an Assistant Director at the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA); she is also involved with the UK’s Open University. She has authored or co-authored numerous papers and a number of successful texts, including the widely-adopted ‘Quantitative Approaches in Business Studies’, now in its 8th edition.

She has been a member of the Council of the Royal Statistical Society, and chaired its Quality Improvement Committee. She was also vice-chair of the Quality Strategy Network, and has chaired or been a member of many university review panels in the UK and throughout the world, including New Zealand, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Singapore and South Africa as well as in Europe. She has a particular interest in outcomes-based learning and the assessment of students, and is a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education. Other areas of expertise include benchmarking in higher education institutions, collaborative arrangements between institutions, and the enhancement of the student experience. Under the auspices of the British Council she has delivered a number of workshops on quality assurance in the United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.