QUALITY ASSURANCE AND ENHANCEMENT POLICIES AND PROCEDURES. 1 Imperial College London Mission and Strategic Intent

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1 QUALITY ASSURANCE AND ENHANCEMENT POLICIES AND PROCEDURES 1 Imperial College London Mission and Strategic Intent 1.1 The College s mission is documented in the Imperial College Strategic Plan as follows: Our Mission 1.2 Imperial College London embodies and delivers world class scholarship, education and research in science, engineering and medicine, with particular regard to their application in industry, commerce and healthcare. We foster interdisciplinary working internally and collaborate widely externally. 1.3 Our Strategic intent In further of its mission the College s Strategic Plan identifies a Strategic Intent which sets out the following aims: To remain amongst the top tier of scientific, engineering and medical research and teaching institutions in the world. To harness the quality and breadth of our research capability, across multiple disciplines, to address major challenges. To continue to attract and develop the most able students and staff worldwide. To develop our range of academic activities to meet the changing needs of society, industry, commerce and healthcare. To communicate widely the significance of science in general, and the purpose and ultimate benefits of our activities in particular. 1.4 The College has developed quality assurance and enhancement policies and procedures to support the achievement of the College s educational strategic intents. 2 Framework for quality assurance and enhancement 2.1 The College quality assures its programmes within a light touch guidance framework led from the Registry and the office of the Pro Rector for Education. This incorporates local action and specificity within a broad College structure that complies with national and European guidance. 1

2 2.2 The Senate and its sub-committees are the formal framework for the quality assurance of learning and teaching in the College. The Senate is responsible for promoting the academic excellence of the College and does so through a number of sub-committees whose terms of reference include quality assurance matters (Appendix1: Senate and its Sub-s). These include the Quality and Academic Review, which has an over-arching remit for quality assurance and enhancement, the Engineering, Medical and Science Studies s and the Management s of the two Graduate Schools. The Recruitment and Admission Policy coordinates the formulation and implementation of policy on admissions. This is in recognition that a rigorous adherence to high entrance standards is a fundamental aspect of the College s strategy for ensuring the quality and standards of its programmes of study. 2.3 Responsibility for the maintenance of academic standards and quality assurance is shared by senior officers of the College. At College level the Pro Rector for Education is appointed to take an overall lead on quality assurance matters and education strategy; she chairs the Quality and Academic Review (QARC) and the Recruitment and Admission Policy, and is advised by the Quality Assurance Advisory (QAAC). The Engineering, Medical and Science Studies s are chaired by one of the Deans for the relevant Faculty. Deans also play an important role in the appointment and promotion of senior academic staff. The Principals of the Faculties and the Heads of Departments and Divisions are responsible in their various ways for the quality and delivery of teaching at programme level. 2.5 Thus while quality assurance is undertaken by the College Senate through the principal committees mentioned above, the responsibility for quality control lies with individual academic departments, or, within the School of Medicine, academic divisions A high priority is given to continuous improvement of the quality of learning, teaching and the student experience. Methods and mechanisms employed to enhance this include student feedback, peer observation, programme review, professional development for staff, and provision of extensive academic and pastoral support for students. These features are key to attracting able students, to supporting the full diversity of the student population and to maintaining the high standards of outcomes expected of Imperial graduates. 3 Approval of proposals for new programmes of study 3.1 In almost all instances the initiative for introducing a new programme of study or radically altering an existing one emanates from one or more 2 For ease of reference, the term department is used throughout this document to include divisions, Schools and the Centre for History of Science, Technology and Medicine, unless otherwise indicated in the text. 2

3 departments. Heads of Department are required to ensure that such proposals are considered by at least two departmental bodies - the first dealing with programme content and the quality of teaching and the second being a more general body with a wide academic overview, such as a staff meeting. Before putting forward new proposals, departments/divisions use a range of external agencies for advice on the merits of what is being suggested including accreditation bodies, industrial contacts, joint industry/academic boards, Visiting Professors, funding agencies, and external examiners. 3.2 Thereafter proposals are scrutinised above departmental level as described in the following paragraphs. 3.3 At College level formal authority for the approval of new programmes of study rests with the Senate. In practice detailed consideration of new undergraduate programme proposals is delegated to one of its principal committees, the Engineering, Medical or Science Studies s, in accordance with the following procedure documents: (a) Procedures for the Review of New and Existing Undergraduate courses (b) Special Procedures for the Review of New and Existing Undergraduate Degree courses involving a Year Abroad (Appendix 2: List of academic procedures, practices and guideline documents) 3.4 This is generally an iterative procedure: suggested modifications often go back from the relevant committee to the department leading, eventually, to a modified proposal which is recommended for acceptance by the Senate. 3.5 New undergraduate programmes are reviewed rigorously in the second or third year of operation by the relevant Studies to ensure that the new programme is meeting the objectives originally laid down. 3.6 The review of proposed new postgraduate programmes is undertaken by the relevant Graduate School Management in accordance with the procedure document: Procedure for the Approval and Review of Master s Degrees and Postgraduate Diploma Courses. This involves the appointment of a small ad hoc panel, chaired by the Chairman of the Management or their nominee, which receives reports from outside assessors. As with undergraduate programmes there is an iterative procedure with the resultant modified proposal being recommended for acceptance by the Senate. 4 Monitoring and review of existing programmes 4.1 Internal review procedures 3

4 Existing programmes of study at undergraduate level are reviewed over a five year cycle by the QARC in accordance with the procedures referred to in paragraph 3.3 above. Each year the conducts a review of two or three departments degree programmes. The reviews aim to expose all facets of undergraduate teaching in academic departments to peer review in a constructive non-confrontational manner and to assure the that students are set and enabled to achieve appropriate standards in the subject area. This requires the department and the College administration to prepare a review document supported by statistical data for consideration by the. The same data is provided to four specially chosen outside assessors (two UK academics, one academic from a European HEI, usually one of the other IDEA league members, and one industrialist) who visit the department concerned to discuss the programme with the Head of Department, senior academics and with students, as well as to view the facilities. The external assessors each provide independent reports to the. The reviews these and all the written material and discusses them with the Head of Department and the Director of Undergraduate Studies before submitting a report and recommendations for action to the Senate. Twelve months after the report to the Senate the Head of Department is asked to advise the QARC on the steps taken to act upon its report and recommendations. 4.2 The Graduate School Management s monitor the performance of the postgraduate taught programmes in their subject areas on a biennial basis. A report is made on each programme from the course director to the Graduate School committee following a standard format (see paragraph Procedures for the Approval and Review of Master s Degree and Postgraduate Diploma courses). A member or nominee of the relevant Graduate School reviews and rates the material; the rating is then referred back to the programme organiser. The reviewer s report and any comments from the programme organiser are then considered by the Graduate School, after which feedback is provided to the Head of Department/Division. 4.3 The QARC undertakes a periodic review of taught postgraduate programme at Faculty level (see paragraph 3.2 Procedures for the Approval and Review of Master s Degree and Postgraduate Diploma courses). This takes an overview of the Faculty s provision, including strategic matters and includes external assessors, thus paralleling the periodic review of undergraduate programmes undertaken by the. The review uses the evidence provided from the biennial reviews of postgraduate programmes undertaken by the Graduate Schools. 4.4 The QARC also carries out periodic review of research training in departments. The procedure is similar to that for the review of undergraduate teaching, although a joint report is made by internal and external experts to the which then meets with departmental representatives before a final report is made to Senate. The department is asked to report back to the QARC in twelve months time on the action proposed in the final report. 4

5 4.5 The Graduate Schools promote common, best practice in research supervision and regularly review how provision within departments matches this best practice. Departmental review procedures 4.6 Departments rely upon a number of means of monitoring the effectiveness of existing programmes of study, some formal, others informal. These include examination/coursework performance of students, student feedback via tutorials with personal/subject tutors, staff-student committees, the College-wide student on-line evaluation exercise (see paragraph 6.2) and reports of external examiners. Senior members of staff are appointed to be responsible for undergraduate and postgraduate studies within the department/division. (In the Faculty of Medicine the Head of Undergraduate Medicine undertakes this responsibility in regard to the undergraduate medicine course). In addition departments obtain feedback from statistical data on examination performance, comments from employers, demand for graduates and accreditation body visitations as well as College reviews of existing programmes. Guidance has been issued to departments on the regular monitoring of their undergraduate programmes while the Graduate Schools coordinate the regular monitoring of postgraduate taught programmes as described above. 4.7 The College has agreed a checklist of guidance to departments on the key elements which should be included in the regular monitoring of their undergraduate programmes. Each year departments report to the Engineering, Medical or Science Studies as appropriate on the outcomes of their annual monitoring and review processes. Mindful of the need to minimise the load on academic staff time, the College expects only a brief report but one which should cover the key elements identified in the checklist of guidance. The intention of the annual monitoring reports is to make transparent at College level what departments should already be doing, rather than to create another layer of review. A summary of the reports is made to the QARC and is disseminated to departments, by which means examples of good practice can be shared. External Examiners 4.8 Comparability of standards with other providers of equivalent level programmes is principally ensured through the appointment of external examiners from appropriate institutions. The College has strict criteria for the appointment of external examiners, requiring them to be persons of seniority and experience, who are able to command authority. The College appoints external examiners who are of high standing in their field, generally with considerable experience of examining at the required level in an institution of similar academic profile to the College. External examiners monitor the standards of assessment through approval of examination questions, determination that internal marking and classifications are of an appropriate standard and consistency, participation, in some instances in viva examinations and endorsement of the final examination results. They are asked to report comprehensively on the degree programme, including the 5

6 appropriateness of the objectives and learning outcomes, the methods of assessment and the overall structure of the course and are explicitly requested to comment on the comparability of the degree programme with those at their own institution. 4.9 External examiners are requested to send their reports to the Rector. Upon receipt they are scrutinised by the Pro Rector for Education and by the Registry to identify any points of concern raised by the External Examiner. The report is then referred to the Chairman of the Board of Examiners and the Head of Department, with a request to comment on the points identified. The reports and departmental comments are subsequently considered by the relevant discipline Studies for undergraduate examinations and by the relevant Graduate School committee for taught postgraduate examinations. These committees may seek further assurances from a department on the resolution of a particular problem Following consideration of the reports the Registry sends a copy of the departmental response to the external examiner together with a copy of the relevant minute of the committee meeting where the report was considered. 5. Quality assurance of learning opportunities Learning resources 5.1 Library, computing, laboratory and other teaching accommodation facilities are all considered by the appropriate Senate committee as part of proposals for new programmes or amendments to existing programmes. Resource implications are also considered in reviews of existing programmes by the QARC. Resources for teaching are covered in the statement which every department has to produce for the annual Planning Round. Departments must confirm that they have sufficient resources to teach any additional planned students without adversely affecting teaching quality. 5.2 The College Libraries, a sub-committee of the Senate, advises on general library policy and services and the co-ordination of library facilities across College. The Library is also represented at a senior level on the College s Quality and Academic Review. The Director of Library Services and the Library s Assistant Director meet regularly with the President of the Students Union and Deputy President (Education and Welfare) and senior library staff meet with student representatives to discuss library services. 5.3 The Library s Faculty Support Services teams map to the academic structure of the College. Each of the Library s four teams has responsibility for liaising with their faculty/departments, to ensure that the delivery of library services matches the needs of their students and staff. This liaison ranges from regular, informal contact with users through to formal consultative structures, including Department and Medical Campus Library s, membership of faculty or departmental teaching committees and staff-student committees. 6

7 5.4 The Library s Assistant Director: Administration and Planning has overall responsibility for quality assurance procedures in respect of library services. Service Level Definitions set the standards for the library service, and provide one mechanism for monitoring the Library s performance. Other procedures for quality assurance include general user satisfaction surveys, surveys to elicit more detailed comments on specific aspects of the service, focus groups and feedback forms (both web-based and paper) that library users can complete at any time to make their views known. 5.5 IT infrastructure for learning and teaching is maintained and supported by the Information and Communication Technologies Division (ICT), which strives to ensure that the College has appropriate IT infrastructure to underpin its teaching and research and maintain its international reputation for excellence. The ICT Division is represented on the QARC and on the e- Learning. Student support 5.6 Students are supported through their studies in a number of ways. There is a general programme of induction organised centrally at the beginning of the academic session for all new undergraduate and postgraduate freshers complemented by departmental induction programmes. Undergraduate students are assigned a personal tutor who will normally stay with the student for the duration of the degree programme and who will be the first point of advice on academic matters. The Senior Tutor or, at postgraduate level, the Postgraduate Tutor oversees the progress of students and is a further source of advice to students. The College Tutors provide an extra tier of support outside the student s department or when students have very serious problems. There are four College Student Counsellors as well as counsellors based in the College Health Centre and, in addition, the Imperial College Union operates a confidential advice service. 5.7 Remedial academic measures available to students include extra classes in mathematical skills provided by most departments, use of the METRIC mathematical support software and access to the student counsellors, who offer advice on study difficulties as well as personal problems. The College publishes the Learning to series of booklets on study skills targeted separately at undergraduate, Master s and research degree students. 5.8 The International Office provides support for the College s international students both before and after the students arrival at the College. The English Language Support Programme (ELSP) supports students who are non-native speakers of English through a range of activities including: presessional English courses, testing and teaching of postgraduate research students in line with the College s English entry and transfer requirement, and the delivery of a range of English Language classes and other language support services. 5.9 Information on programmes is provided for students, usually in the form of year handbooks or programme guides which complement the information 7

8 provided in programme specifications. Departments are encouraged to use a variety of methods to communicate information to students, including webbased material and face-to-face meetings Information about College procedures and advisory services relevant to students is provided in the Students Handbook, issued at the start of session by the Registry to each registering fresher and available to all continuing students on the College website The College Disabilities Officer advises students with physical disabilities or learning difficulties on the help which is available to them. Such help may include special examination arrangements The College endeavours to ensure that students have a clear understanding of what constitutes plagiarism from the beginning of their studies. A full explanation is included in the Student Handbook and in the study guide booklet Learning to Learn issued to all undergraduate students. Departments reinforce this in the guidance which they provide to students and most require students to sign statements that work handed in for assessment is the student s own. The Library is helping to combat plagiarism by promoting information literacy to enable students to understand the legal, economic and social issues that surround the use of information, including the importance of good citation practice and being plagiarism aware. Information literacy is embedded within the undergraduate and postgraduate taught course curricula and information literacy sessions are also included in the Graduate Schools programme of transferable skills. In addition the Library has created an online information literacy course called OLIVIA (On-line Virtual Information Assistant) designed in self-contained units so it can be used independently and selectively according to students needs Careers advice is available to students both in the department, through the departmental careers advisor and through the College Careers Service There is a complaints procedure for students and appeals procedures for students who are required to withdraw from the College on the grounds of unsatisfactory academic performance. Staff educational development 5.15 The College requires its staff to perform to high standards and to contribute towards the effective operation of their department or division. To help achieve this, the College is committed to providing staff development opportunities for all staff and to foster a learning and development environment which encourages staff to take responsibility for their own development The Centre for Educational Development (CED) offers a portfolio of teaching development activities, which includes workshops that support the development of all those who teach Imperial students. Current provision is for both new and experienced staff and aims to improve the design and 8

9 delivery of undergraduate and postgraduate programmes and research supervision, and thus enhance student learning. The Centre also trains academic staff in departments and divisions to run workshops locally to improve the teaching skills of Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs), produces materials to enhance GTA teaching and runs workshops for GTAs involved in assessment The CED runs a Higher Education Academy accredited Certificate of Advanced Study in Learning and Teaching (CASLAT). Probationary nonclinical lecturers have to complete CASLAT to be released from probation; other staff inexperienced in teaching are also strongly encouraged to take all or part of CASLAT. Contracts for newly appointed senior staff (such as readers and professors) also emphasise the College s commitment to staff development generally, and in particular highlight opportunities for these staff in relation to learning and teaching. For those who perform a different role in learning and teaching, for example with little input to summative assessment such as librarians, there is an alternative non-compulsory option the Supporting Learning and Teaching Programme Staff with educational development expertise are employed to teach on these workshops and programmes and work with individuals and groups of staff on learning and teaching initiatives in departments and divisions. Directors of Undergraduate Studies, Directors of Postgraduate Studies and Directors of Teaching have specific responsibilities for the design, delivery, assessment and evaluation of programmes within their departments or divisions 6. Maintenance and enhancement of quality and standards 6.1 The Senate and its sub-committees regularly receive and consider quantitative data on student achievement. These include degree classifications, examination failure rates, research degree submission rates and destinations of graduates. 6.2 Qualitative feedback is obtained through the Student On-line Evaluation exercise (SOLE) and its research counterpart ROLE, the reports of student representatives to committees, through external examiner and accreditation reports and through internal programme review processes. These latter are the principal means by which good and poor practice in teaching and the structuring of programmes are identified at College level. The report which is submitted to the Senate after each QARC review of a department s teaching specifically highlights any examples of good practice which the reviewers wish to bring to the attention of other parts of the College. Similarly, each QAA subject review report has been scrutinised for instances of poor and good practice and a summary report submitted to the Senate and thence to departments. A central digest of examples of poor and good practice arising from QARC reviews is maintained and circulated to the Senate and to Heads of Departments and departmental Directors of Studies. 9

10 6.3 Outside the formal quality assurance structure there are several mechanisms whereby academic staff can exchange ideas on teaching and learning. The Centre for Educational Development, as mentioned above, is a focus for the dissemination of good practice. The London Imperial Network for Education Development (LINKED) links academic staff across the College. The College-funded scheme of Teaching Development and Teaching Research Grants fosters best practice and innovation. Each department/division nominates an Educational Development Coordinator (EDC) to act as a link person on education development matters. The Centre coordinates termly meetings of the EDCs at which good practice is shared and disseminated. October

11 QUALITY ASSURANCE AND ENHANCEMENT POLICIES AND PROCEDURES SENATE AND ITS SUB-COMMITTEES QUALITY ASSURANCE Appendix 1 October 2007 SENATE Graduate School Engineering & Physical Sciences Management Quality and Academic Review Engineering Studies Recruitment & Admission Policy Medical Studies Undergraduate Admission Graduate School Life Sciences & Medicine Management Quality Assurance Advisory Science Studies

12 IMPERIAL COLLEGE LONDON QUALITY ASSURANCE AND ENHANCEMENT POLICIES AND PROCEDURES Appendix 2 October 2007 Academic procedures, practices and guideline documents [Documents marked with an asterisk are published on the Registry website at Copies of those not so marked may be obtained on request to the Registry.] Quality and Review Procedure Documents *Procedures for the Review of New and Existing Undergraduate Courses Special Procedures for the Review of New and Existing Undergraduate Degree Courses involving a Year Abroad *Procedures for the Approval and Review of Master s Degree and Postgraduate Diploma Courses *Procedures for the Review of Training of Research Students *Best Practice in respect of Undergraduate Degree Programmes with a Year Abroad Annual Monitoring of Undergraduate Programmes *Undergraduate Programme Monitoring and Review: Good Practice *Best Practice in Undergraduate Teaching *Teaching Quality Assessments: Good Practice in Teaching Teaching Quality Assessments: Critical Comments and Suggestions for Improvement *Checklist of Action for Departments arising from QAA Code of Practice on Assessment of Students Postgraduate Students *Academic and Pastoral Support of Postgraduate Taught Students *Academic and Pastoral Support of Postgraduate Research Students *Advanced Course Marking Schemes *Eligibility to Supervise Research Students *Guidelines for Double (and Joint) Degrees at PhD Level *Partner Research Institution (PRI) Scheme Notes for the Guidance of College and External Supervisors *Research Degree Procedures *Transfer Credit Requirements for Research Students Student Handbooks for Postgraduate Taught Courses General Academic Issues *Guidelines for the Role of Personal Tutor *Job Description for Senior Tutor *Placement Learning Policy Statement *Staff-Student s: Good Practice Guidelines Programme Specifications *Protocols for Double Marking *Undergraduate Course Proposal/Amendment Form 1

13 *Penalties for Late Submission of Assessed Work *Extenuating Circumstances Affecting Academic Performance: Policy and Procedures *Guidance on Using Multiple Choice Questions in Assessment *Guidelines for the Use of Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL) Examinations *Examination Regulations Guidelines for Examination Arrangements where a candidate arrives late for an examination or public transport is disrupted *Guidelines for Issuing Actual Coursework Marks to Students Notes for the Guidance of Invigilators: Examination Disturbances Duties of Invigilators at Examinations for the Degrees of BSc, MSci, BEng and MEng Supplementary Qualifying Tests Revised Policy Guidelines Advice to Students Relating to BSc Degree Resit Examinations Degree Requirements Course-Unit Degrees Revised Procedures for the Release of Undergraduate Examination Results Guidelines for Departments *Procedures for Consideration of Examination Arrangements for Students with Disabilities *Postgraduate Students and the Assessment of Undergraduate Students Criteria and Schemes for the Award of Honours External Examiners *The Role and Function of External Examiners as seen from a College Perspective *External Examiner Nomination Form *External Examiner s Report Form *External Examiner Induction 2