to evaluate the effectiveness of programmes and the extent to which the intended learning outcomes are being achieved by students
to review feedback from students, staff, external examiners, professional bodies and other external stakeholders
to ensure that programmes remain current and valid in light of developing knowledge in the discipline, and practice in its application
to develop, as a result of the review process, improvements to the programme structure and curriculum
to consider how a department is implementing its learning and teaching strategy to ensure the currency, coherence and fit with the University's strategy
to identify areas for improvement/enhancement and to ensure that appropriate actions are taken in response to perceived weaknesses
to enable external stakeholders to participate directly in the development and enhancement of curricula, thus bringing programmes of studies closer to their needs and improving employability prospects of graduates
it provides a formally structured opportunity to reflect on the programmes and to develop new approaches and/or enhance current practices
it provides independent and external confirmation of the quality and standards attained
it offers an opportunity for good practice to be recognised, verified and disseminated
it allows for the identification of common themes and issues across the University which could benefit from co-ordinated action
Programme Review should be undertaken for every taught undergraduate or postgraduate programme. Departments are required to gather feedback on their taught undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, taking into account a range of factors. The checklist of items to be discussed should be used to ensure that relevant key matters are covered. It is not a definitive list, and many other issues can be raised during the review, as required.
Each Faculty/Institute/Centre/School decides whether to undertake this event at a Board level or through an ad hoc Sub-Committee. It may decide that a Board of Studies for a programme can function as such an ad hoc Sub-Committee. The decision on the composition of the Sub-Committee shall be driven by practical consideration, such as the number of programmes for review, the size of the Faculty/Institute/Centre/School, size of the programme, etc.
The Sub-Committee charged with the PPR (in consultation with the Dean/Director) will draw up a list of persons who may have an interest in the quality of the programme in view of their relationship to its subject matter.
A meeting will be held with the Pro-Rector spearheading the University internal evaluation process to identify the adequacy of the identified persons, and the resources required to collect the information necessary for the conduct of such an internal evaluation.
The following data is required for the review of a programme of studies:
Programme Specifications
Minutes of Boards of Studies
External Examiners' Reports
Applicants' Profile
Progression, attrition and completion rates
Student Feedback results (study-unit and end of programme)
Feedback from academic staff
Stakeholders' Feedback
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