Quality Assurance in Higher Education: A Case Study of the Vaal University of Technology

Abstract

The Vaal University of Technology (hereafter VUT) ensures that the University applies the three elements of quality assurance. Attempts have been made in this paper to define quality in different contexts and specifically how quality is processed at the VUT. Quality is ensured by participation and representation in structures and processes and by understanding how the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) functions in the setting of standards and quality qualifications. The subject of standards has produced much legislation and many policies and documents, but the authors argue that the recommendations in these documents are not always implemented. With regard to relevance, it is noted that quality assurance in higher education is important because of the rapid expansion of higher education systems.

A framework to benchmark the quality of clinical assessment in a South African undergraduate medical programme

“…Quality, standards and relevance are key elements of quality assurance. 9 As far back as 1980, Donabedian defined quality in order to measure it. 20 He concluded that quality is not one-dimensional but includes various aspects that should be agreed upon before the measurement.…”

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Three components of quality in assessment have been described in the literature, namely, accreditation, assessment and audit. 8,9 In this article, registration is added to accreditation, as the MBChB degree is a professional qualification that must be accredited and registered with various authorities. The term audit is replaced by quality assurance, as both these terms serve the purpose Background: The outcome of the undergraduate medical programme is to produce clinically competent health care providers relevant for the South African context.

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