Quality Audits for Private Colleges

Quality Audits for Private Colleges

Private Institutions, expecially those associated with foreign education providers, may have to undergo a quality audit soon. The government is exploring the option of asking the University Grants Commission (UGC) to undertake a review of institutions so as to help parents and students make an informed choice when it comes to admissions.

High cut-off marks for admission to colleges mean that many students opt for a place in a private college. Often it is the chance to pursue an innovative course or too acquire a foreign degree siting at home that takes students to these institutions. This provides fly-by night operators an opportunity to prof it. In the absence ofa regulatory frame work that could thwart such operators, especially those with foreign partners or outside the existing Indian system, the government is considering an audit. "As a parent, there has to be assurance that the institution will live up to the promises it makes," a senior official said. Sukhdeo Thorat, chairman of UGC, said:" All institutions come under the purview of the UGC but there are different modalities for reviewing different types of universities."

The UGC is a statutory body that is reponsible for the maintenance of quality and standards in higher education institutions. A request for reviews of institutions would then be in keeping with its larger mandate. The proposed review of institutions would look into issues such as infrastruture, faculty strength, and research work under taken by faculty members. "The idea is to see that claims made by institutions in their advertisements and prospectus are honoured on the ground," an official said. The proposed review process will help students and parents make an informed choice. The government has been considering providing students with the option of authentic information on higher education institutes for some time. This is the idea behind considering making the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) a statutory body. This would mean that each of the country's higher education institutes will have to be mandatorily assessed and accredited by the NAAC, as against the current system where institutions volunteer for a review by NAAC.

Quality Audits for Private Colleges

Related Web Pages

Quality Audits Private Colleges |  University Grants Commission |  Private Institutions |  National Assessment Accreditation Council |  NAAC |  UGC | 

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