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Course Professional Accreditation Procedure

Section 1 - Preamble

(1) Charles Darwin University (‘the University’, ‘CDU’) is committed to ensuring that specific courses are professionally accredited so that graduates are eligible to seek registration or a license to practice.

(2) Professional accreditation processes are designed to ensure that CDU courses meet external standards and are recognised by accrediting bodies.

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Section 2 - Purpose

(3) This procedure outlines the University’s approach to the: 

  1. preparation and submission of professional accreditation documentation to meet the requirements of professional accrediting bodies;
  2. review timeframes for submission to a professional accrediting body; and
  3. recording, monitoring, and reporting of professional accreditation status and outcomes.
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Section 3 - Scope

(4) This procedure applies to all HE and VET courses with:

  1. professional accreditation that is a pre-requisite for course graduates to be registered with or otherwise licensed to practice in a regulated profession; or
  2. professional membership to bodies framed by maintenance of professional standards where association benefits students and graduates.
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Section 4 - Procedure

Preparation

(5) Submissions to professional accrediting bodies can be initiated by:

  1. accreditation of a new HE or registration of a new VET course;
  2. reaccreditation of an existing HE or re-registration of a replacement VET course with impacts on professional accreditation;
  3. changes to professional accreditation standards or reporting requirements; or
  4. expired professional accreditation of an existing HE or VET course.

(6) The Faculty Discipline Head (or delegate) or VET Team Leader (or delegate) will be responsible for overseeing the preparation of the submission and engagement with the relevant professional accrediting bodies.

(7) The curriculum detail used to support professional accreditation submissions for CDU  HE coursework courses will be aligned to the information prepared and submitted as per the Higher Education Course and Unit Accreditation Procedure.

(8) The curriculum detail used to support professional accreditation submissions for CDU VET courses will be aligned to the information prepared and submitted as per the VET Course Registration Procedure.

(9) The relevant data required to be included as part of the professional accreditation submission will be applied for authority to release by the Director Planning and Performance.

Submission

(10) The Discipline Head (or delegate) or VET Team Leader (or delegate) will ensure a copy of the final draft is submitted to the Provost and the Quality Assurance and Enhancement team at least two weeks prior to the planned submission date. 

(11) The Quality Assurance and Enhancement team will notify the submitter of any feedback. The submitter does not need a response before submitting to the external accrediting body.

(12) The Discipline Head (or delegate) or VET Team Leader (or delegate) will submit the professional accreditation submission to the accrediting body. 

Recording and monitoring

(13) Upon receipt of the accreditation outcome from the professional accrediting body, the Discipline Head(or delegate) or VET Team Leader (or delegate) will ensure copies are provided to the Quality Assurance and Enhancement Team within five working days.

(14) A centralised register of all courses holding Professional Accreditation will be maintained by the Quality Assurance and Enhancement Team.

(15) The register will include: 

  1. Professional accreditation status.
  2. Submissions sent to professional accrediting bodies.
  3. Formal outcomes from professional accrediting bodies, including accreditation dates, expiry dates, conditions and changes.

(16) The Quality Assurance and Enhancement Team will:

  1. maintain the Professional Accreditation Register annual updates.
  2. monitor the accreditation timelines for courses with upcoming expiring Professional Accreditation for the next calendar year.
  3. monitor externally published statements regarding the professional accreditation of the course.

(17) The Discipline Head (or delegate) or VET Team Leader (or delegate) will ensure all formal professional accreditation documentation is stored in the University’s approved Electronic Document Records Management System (EDMRS) in line with the Records and Information Management Policy and Procedure. 

Reporting

(18) A summary of outcomes of Professional Accreditation will be reported annually by Teaching and Learning Connect to Academic Board.

(19) Changes to the professional accreditation status of a course, including conditions, must be reported to the Quality Assurance and Enhancement Team within 5 days of notification of the changes. 

  1. Changes to the course curriculum required in response to the accrediting body outcomes are made as per the Higher Education Course and Unit Accreditation Procedure and VET Course Registration Procedure.

(20) Responses to accreditation reports, including development and implementation of an action plan in response to conditions or concerns raised by accrediting bodies must be monitored by the Discipline Head (or delegate) or VET Team Leader (or delegate) and reported to the Quality Assurance and Enhancement Team.

(21) Where changes impact on student progression and completion and/or the quality of a course, the Quality Assurance and Enhancement Team will facilitate reporting the changes to the relevant regulator, in line with the Material Change Procedure.

Marketing of accreditation outcomes

(22) The Discipline Head or VET Team Leader have a responsibility to ensure that all publicly available statements (including any marketing or promotional material) about a course professional accreditation status are accurate and in no way misleading to students. 

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Section 5 - Non-Compliance

(23) Non-compliance with Governance Documents is considered a breach of the Code of Conduct – Staff or the Code of Conduct – Students, as applicable, and is treated seriously by the University. Reports of concerns about non-compliance will be managed in accordance with the applicable disciplinary procedures outlined in the Charles Darwin University and Union Enterprise Agreement 2022 and the Code of Conduct – Students.

(24) Complaints may be raised in accordance with the Complaints and Grievance Policy and Procedure - Employees and Complaints Policy - Students.

(25) All staff members have an individual responsibility to raise any suspicion, allegation or report of fraud or corruption in accordance with the Fraud and Corruption Control Policy and Whistleblower Reporting (Improper Conduct) Procedure.