NVAO
Encyclopedia
NVAO is the educational accreditation
organisation of the Netherlands
and Flanders
. It was established by international treaty and for the purpose of ensuring the quality of higher education
in the Netherlands and Flanders by accrediting study programmes.
The organisation pursues its mission by:
education.
In Flanders
, the operation of NVAO is established by the Decree on Higher Education of 4 April 2003. This decree provides for an international treaty that appoints the body that grants accreditations and carries out the validations of all new study programmes in higher education in Flanders. The decree stipulates that bachelor’s
and master’s degree courses in Flanders can only be awarded if they have been accredited, if they have been recognised as a new study programme or if they have received temporary provisional recognition.
in the Netherlands and Flanders. The organisation also intends to fulfill a pioneering role in the development of quality assurance
and accreditation
in Europe.
In both the Netherlands and Flanders, NVAO engages in intensive consultation with institutions of higher education, experts, umbrella
and professional organisations, students, employers' organisations and labour unions. NVAO endeavours to be proactive, to engage in dialogue with institutions, students and the labour market.
Together with noted foreign accrediting agencies NVAO verifies to what extent their policies are based on the same approach and procedures as those laid down in the Dutch
and Flemish
accreditation frameworks.
and independent quality assurance. The ministers therefore stated that "a well functioning and internationally recognised accreditation system is a prerequisite to advance international comparability in higher education". The choice for co-operation between the Netherlands and Flanders fits in with this international perspective.
. In order adequately to fulfill this international role, NVAO formulated five objectives that outline its international policy. These objectives are:
Educational accreditation
Educational accreditation is a type of quality assurance process under which services and operations of educational institutions or programs are evaluated by an external body to determine if applicable standards are met...
organisation of the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and Flanders
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
. It was established by international treaty and for the purpose of ensuring the quality of higher education
Higher education
Higher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
in the Netherlands and Flanders by accrediting study programmes.
Mission
The organisation's mission is to ensure the "quality" (defined in official terms) of higher education in the Netherlands and Flanders and contribute to its advancement. In addition, it endeavors to contribute to quality awareness and to publicize the distinctive features of study programmes in higher education in the Netherlands and Flanders in national and international perspective.The organisation pursues its mission by:
- AccreditingEducational accreditationEducational accreditation is a type of quality assurance process under which services and operations of educational institutions or programs are evaluated by an external body to determine if applicable standards are met...
existing study programmes in higher educationHigher educationHigher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
(basic quality assessment). - Validating new study programmes in higher education (anticipated basic quality).
- Contributing towards promoting the distinctive features of study programmes in higher education or institutions by assessing the specific quality features of existing study programmes at the request of institutions.
- Advancing both the EuropeEuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an and the international dimension in DutchNetherlandsThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and FlemishFlemish RegionThe Flemish Region is one of the three official regions of the Kingdom of Belgium—alongside the Walloon Region and the Brussels-Capital Region. Colloquially, it is usually simply referred to as Flanders, of which it is the institutional iteration within the context of the Belgian political system...
accreditation and maintaining international contacts in order to reach agreement and cohesion. - Performing other commissioned tasks. For instance, providing recommendations on lengthening the master’s degree courses in universityUniversityA university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
education in the NetherlandsNetherlandsThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
. - Contributing to the public debate on developments in higher educationHigher educationHigher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
.
The legal framework
In the Netherlands, the tasks of NVAO are based on the Higher Education and Research Act in Dutch: Wet Hoger Onderwijs en Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek, WHW which, in short, comes down to: accrediting existing study programmes, validating new study programmes in higher education and advising on the possible lengthening of master’s degree courses in universityUniversity
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
education.
In Flanders
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
, the operation of NVAO is established by the Decree on Higher Education of 4 April 2003. This decree provides for an international treaty that appoints the body that grants accreditations and carries out the validations of all new study programmes in higher education in Flanders. The decree stipulates that bachelor’s
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
and master’s degree courses in Flanders can only be awarded if they have been accredited, if they have been recognised as a new study programme or if they have received temporary provisional recognition.
How NVAO views its role
NVAO wishes to be a proactive partner in higher educationHigher education
Higher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
in the Netherlands and Flanders. The organisation also intends to fulfill a pioneering role in the development of quality assurance
Quality Assurance
Quality assurance, or QA for short, is the systematic monitoring and evaluation of the various aspects of a project, service or facility to maximize the probability that minimum standards of quality are being attained by the production process...
and accreditation
Accreditation
Accreditation is a process in which certification of competency, authority, or credibility is presented.Organizations that issue credentials or certify third parties against official standards are themselves formally accredited by accreditation bodies ; hence they are sometimes known as "accredited...
in Europe.
In both the Netherlands and Flanders, NVAO engages in intensive consultation with institutions of higher education, experts, umbrella
Umbrella organization
An umbrella organization is an association of institutions, who work together formally to coordinate activities or pool resources. In business, political, or other environments, one group, the umbrella organization, provides resources and often an identity to the smaller organizations...
and professional organisations, students, employers' organisations and labour unions. NVAO endeavours to be proactive, to engage in dialogue with institutions, students and the labour market.
Together with noted foreign accrediting agencies NVAO verifies to what extent their policies are based on the same approach and procedures as those laid down in the Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and Flemish
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
accreditation frameworks.
The international policy of NVAO
The treaty signed by the Dutch and Flemish governments by which NVAO was set up explicitly refers to the international dimension of NVAO’s activities. In the explanatory note the importance is underlined of international transparencyTransparency (humanities)
Transparency, as used in science, engineering, business, the humanities and in a social context more generally, implies openness, communication, and accountability. Transparency is operating in such a way that it is easy for others to see what actions are performed...
and independent quality assurance. The ministers therefore stated that "a well functioning and internationally recognised accreditation system is a prerequisite to advance international comparability in higher education". The choice for co-operation between the Netherlands and Flanders fits in with this international perspective.
Objectives of NVAO’s international policy
Hence, from the outset, NVAO was assigned the task of playing an important role in internationalizationInternationalization
In economics, internationalization has been viewed as a process of increasing involvement of enterprises in international markets, although there is no agreed definition of internationalization or international entrepreneurship...
. In order adequately to fulfill this international role, NVAO formulated five objectives that outline its international policy. These objectives are:
- Active membership of international networks in accreditation and quality assurance (INQAAHE, ENQA, ECAECAECA may refer to:Government and government agencies:* Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, a part of the United States Department of State* Economic Cooperation Administration, a former United States government agency...
); - Promoting the Dutch and Flemish accreditation system and Dutch and Flemish higher education systems in order to strengthen the international position of Dutch and Flemish higher education;
- Mutual recognition of accreditation decisions;
- Promoting a European Higher Education AreaEuropean Higher Education AreaThe European Higher Education Area was launched along with the Bologna Process' decade anniversary, in March 2010, during the Budapest-Vienna Ministerial Conference....
in which degreeAcademic degreeAn academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...
s from accredited programmes are automatically recognised; - Pro-actively following up on international developments in quality assurance and higher education.