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Higher education institutes to face stiff hurdles soon under new laws
Institutions providing higher education including universities and private academies will soon be required to conform to a new law that will stipulate operational standards. Under the Quality Assurance Accreditation Qualification Framework draft criteria necessary for a course of study are the academic competency of the staff conducting the course of study, the conditions of the learning environment in relation to specific standards, the facilities for student welfare, guidance and counselling being made available to the students. The financial stability of the institution is also another criterion.
University Grants Commission (UGC) Chairperson Professor Kshanika Hirimburegama told the Sunday Times there is a growing trend of requesting a quality assurance certificate for degrees and professional courses, and that in some countries this is an essential document to certify the course was conducted meeting accepted quality criteria.
“If the country is hoping to attract foreign students and raise the local higher education institute standards to those of international standards, there is a need for quality assurance,” she said.
Under the proposed Act, a Higher Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation Council, an independent body is to be established and the Council is to set criteria and requirements for the accreditation of any university or institution. There will also be assessment panels.
According to the draft, when a university or higher education institute fails to take appropriate action to ensure compliance with the requirements imposed under the Act, the governing authority/proprietor/Board of Directors of the University/Higher Education Institute will be guilty of an offence and shall on conviction by a Magistrate, be liable to a fine of Rs.500 for each day from the date of deadline given or imprisonment or the cancellation of the accreditation.
The draft states that all fines, cancellation and imprisonment can be imposed concurrently in instances. The Council also has the discretion to notify the public of such a decision.
The draft by the Ministry of Higher Education in coordination with the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the World Bank Project ‘Higher Education for the Twenty First Century Project’ (HETC) is to be submitted to the Legal Draftsman’s Department soon.
The draft is presently with the Vice Chancellor’s Committee for further observations and recommendations. Prof.Hirimburegama said that this move will also help to sustain and strengthen free education and bring it to an international level.
The UGC Chairperson said that the Advanced Level Exam is highly competitive and a mere 23,000 out of 200,000 students get entrance to the local university system.
“Equal or higher numbers go to other higher education institutes, therefore there is a need to provide accessibility with quality of the programmes offered assured. This will be an international recognition to attract foreign students,” she added.
The Council consists of a full-time Chairman, Director General and six other members. The members will be drawn from quality assurance, educational and professional, commercial and management, industrial, scientific, legal or administrative fields.