QAA Audit 2010

The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA) is the national body established 'to provide independent assessment of how higher education institutions in the UK maintain their academic standards and quality'. One of its main tools is the Institutional Audit, carried out on a 5-6 yearly cycle. This web page provides details of Northumbria's 2010 audit.

Audit Outcome

This was a ‘hybrid’ Institutional audit. The hybrid process is used where QAA considers that it is not practicable to consider an institution’s collaborative provision as part of standard Institutional audit, or that a separate audit activity focusing solely on this provision is not necessary.

The audit concluded that

• confidence can reasonably be placed in the soundness of the institution’s present and likely future management of the academic standards of the awards it offers
• confidence can reasonably be placed in the soundness of the institution’s present and likely future management of the quality of the learning opportunities available to students.

(Confidence is QAA’s highest level of approval).

The audit team identified the following areas as being good practice:

• the comprehensiveness and clarity of University guidance materials provided to staff, students and external participants involved in its quality assurance processes
• the effective partnership between the University and the student body in ensuring the proactive involvement in and valuable contribution made by students at all levels to the quality assurance processes, the formal deliberative structures and other aspects of University deliberations
• the institution’s integrated and strategic approach to quality enhancement which underpins and brings cohesion to a broad range of enhancement activities
• the contribution of the Graduate School and its effective and complementary working relationship with the academic schools in providing a common support framework and sense of community for postgraduate research students across the University.

Links:

The full report can be found at: -
http://www.qaa.ac.uk/InstitutionReports/Reports/Documents/RG603NorthumbriaNewcastle.pdf

Northumbria University has an excellent record in recent QAA Audits - see our  published audit reports