Timing of Approvals for Courses and Units Influencing Factors and National Benchmarking

Record Keeping PlanFile Ref:

UWA CURRICULUM MANAGEMENT

TIMING OF APPROVALS FOR COURSES AND UNITS – INFLUENCING FACTORS AND NATIONAL BENCHMARKING

TRIM File Reference:F37868

File PATH ON SERVER:S:\Curriculum Management Project\Timelines\Timing of Approvals for courses and units - Final report (v1.0).docx

Document Status

Document Modification History

DOCUMENT APPROVAL

1

<Name of LG>Page

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1.1 Review and Key Outcomes

2.BACKGROUND

3.EXTERNAL INFLUENCING FACTORS

3.1 Reporting Requirements – Commonwealth Government, Department of Education

3.1.1Course File

3.1.2Campus File

3.1.3Course and Campus File – UWA Timelines

3.1.4Unit Information

3.1.5Unit Information – UWA Timelines

3.2 Australian Government – MyUniversity Website

3.3Australian Career Information Register (ACIR) – The Good Universities Guide

3.4Tertiary Institutions Service Centre (TISC) Guide

3.5Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses For Overseas Students (CRICOS) Registration Process

3.6Fees

3.6.1Domestic Fees

3.6.2International Fees

3.6.3Publication of Fees

3.6.4Funding Agreement with the Commonwealth Government

3.6.5Funding Estimates for the Commonwealth Government

4.INTERNAL INFLUENCING FACTORS

4.1University-wide Systems and Processes

4.1.1UWA Committee Approval Process

4.1.2Callista Student Information Management Systems (SIMS)

4.1.3Student Enrolment and Load Planning and Budgeting

4.1.4Timetabling

4.2Marketing, advertising and other publication requirements

4.2.1Publications – UWA Handbook

4.2.2Future Students’ website

4.2.3Domestic Student Marketing - UWA Prospectus

4.2.4International Student Marketing – UWA Prospectus

4.2.5UWA Open Day

5.BENCHMARKING

5.1 The University of Melbourne

5.2 The University of Adelaide

5.3 Curtin University of Technology

5.4 Edith Cowan University

5.5 University of Western Sydney

5.6Benchmarking – Summary Table

6.UWA CURRICULUM MANAGEMENT – CRITICAL DATES

Appendix A – Key Stakeholders

Appendix B - Stakeholder List of Annual Key Dates

1.EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The purpose of this document is to provide University staff, both professional and academic, with an overview of the range of constraints that are imposed, both external and internal, consequent critical deadlines and the data requirements that influence the setting of the University’s timelines for the submission of new proposals and changes to existing curriculum. But most importantly - the impact of missing these scheduled dates is highlighted.

It is intended to prompt all staff and sections to revisit their planning and processes associated with new and changes to curriculum, to ensure that the University is well placed to recruit and graduate a diverse student cohort of the highest quality while at the same time meeting statutory obligations to the Commonwealth.

1.1 Review and Key Outcomes

The timelines detailed in this document, which was first formulated in October 2012, have been reviewed in February 2014 at a workshop attended by all key stakeholders (refer Appendix A), in particular to take account of changes in Federal Government reporting requirements. Three key findings of the review are:

• Many opportunities continue to be missed, in particular international marketing, but also local opportunities such as the TISC guide, school visits, various prospectus’, as faculties do not provide adequate lead in time for new offerings. For example, new postgraduate courses need to be approved and CRICOS registered approximately 18 months prior to offering in order to maximise international marketing opportunities.
• UWA provides a flexible approach, providing one of the most generous timelines (refer Section 4. Benchmarking) to enable opportunities to review and update curriculum and respond to national and international trends whilst maintaining a rigorous approval process to ensure a high quality curriculum and meet Commonwealth Government requirements.
• Faculty teaching allocations tend to take place in November each year, as a consequence further changes to unit availabilities and unit content are requested by faculties. Such late changes have a broad impact, for example on enrolments, the Handbook, timetabling and admissions, all of which flow on to the UWA student experience.

The 2014 roll-out of CAIDi (Curriculum Approval Information Database) as an on-line tool for curriculum management has further streamlined internal processing of curriculum and provided clarity on a definitive source for such data, ensures the information is collected only once, and has been appropriately considered, approved and disseminated to relevant stakeholders, in particular the University’s Callista Student Information Management System (SIMS).

Faculties are encouraged to focus on the consequences of missing certain critical dates so that staff can make informed decisions on the management of their curriculum and the impact on the student experience, in particular attracting high quality students who are sought after by competing universities in the global market.

2.BACKGROUND

In support of the University’s 2020 Vision to be recognised as a global leader in university education, the University is committed to delivering an excellent educational experience, high levels of student satisfaction and will be at the forefront of educational innovation in course structures and curriculum, in teaching and pedagogy, and in on-line education.

The development and maintenance of a high quality curriculum is a key part of delivering the University’s educational goals. The University has a long established process for the development, approval and reviewof its courses and units. This process is based on the collegial decision-making framework and ensures that consideration and approval are given at appropriate levels.

A consequence of introducing the new courses framework in 2012, which included a change in academic governance requirements with the introduction of Boards of Studies and the Board of Coursework Studies, was a shift in some of these responsibilities and associated procedures to approve courses and units. The approval of new degree awards remain the responsibility of the Senate.

Primary drivers for the University's curriculum approval requirementsare its strategic and operational objectives, coupled with the responsibilities of the Faculty Boards, the Board of Coursework Studies (and the five Boards of Studies) the Academic Council/Board and the Senate toensure that UWA courses have educational integrity within the new framework, meet quality assurance standards, and align with the University's strategic directions. These committees carry out their functions within constraints that are imposed by a number of external stakeholders and others constraints that derive from the University’s annual student recruitment and admission cycle (and with it, the competition for the best domestic and international students) and the needs of enrolling and re-enrolling students.

3.EXTERNAL INFLUENCING FACTORS

3.1 Reporting Requirements – Commonwealth Government, Department of Education

(http://education.gov.au/help-resources-providers)

Under section 19-70 of the Higher Education Support Act 2003, the University is required to provide “such statistical and other information that the Minister by notice in writing requires from the provider in respect of … the provision of higher education by the provider”.

Section 19-95 of the Act also mandates that the University “must give the Minister a schedule of the student contribution amounts for places, and tuition fees … for all the units of study it provides or proposes to provide during a period ascertained in accordance with the Higher Education Provider Guidelines”, and “must give the schedule … in a form approved by the Minister” … and “publish the schedule for a particular period by the date ascertained in accordance with the Higher Education Provider Guidelines”.

In more practical terms, these requirements translate into the need to:

• produce and submit by 1st August a course and campus file that shows details of all courses to be offered for the following year by campus; and
• publish a schedule of student contribution amounts and tuition feesfor all units of study to be provided or proposed to be provided, on or before the earliest enrolment date for units of study, enabling students to access information about fees before they enrol.

The Commonwealth government does not take lightly breaches in its reporting requirements and has previously withheld funding from a university that failed to submit its data collections on time.

The Statistics Office in Planning Services prepares and submits these data files and schedules using data stored on the Callista Student Information Management System (SIMS). It is important that accurate and relevant data are loaded on the system well in advance of the prescribed Department of Education deadlines for submitting these data.

Further details of the requirements are provided below.

3.1.1Course File

The course file provides details of the course name, course code, course type, special course type (i.e. medicine, dentistry or veterinary courses), field of education, course length (course of study load) and combined course of study indicator.

3.1.2Campus File

The campus file provides details of the campus postcode, type of operation (stand alone or partnership) and principal mode of delivery (of offshore courses). It also provides for each course and campus location, indicative student contribution amounts for a Commonwealth-supported place and indicative tuition fees for a domestic fee-paying place for the next year, and entry cut-offs and additional entrance criteria for a Commonwealth-supported place and for a domestic fee-paying place in the previous year.

3.1.3Course and Campus File – UWA Timelines

In order to meet the 1st August Department of Educationdeadline for course and campus file data, Planning Services need to access the data in SIMS by no later than 15th July. Planning Services generates the files from SIMS and submits them to the Commonwealth government via the Higher Education Information Management System (HEIMS) for validation. Follow-up of courses that fail validation may be required and results in updates to SIMS, hence two weeks is needed to complete this iterative process.

To meet the Planning Services deadline, Student Systems need to receive from Academic Policy Services (following the University’s committees approval process) new, changed and proposed course information by 1st July allowing two weeks for input of the new data and update of changed data in SIMS.

New and changed course information is updated in SIMS. The new course data items provided by Academic Policy Services form the stem of an extended record that must be created within SIMS.

To accommodate the above critical timelines and processes, new degrees, new courses and major changes to courses (those that have a structural impact) would need to be approved by the Academic Council no later than its early-June meeting for new degree awards and its early-July meeting for new courses and major changes. Approval of new degree awards would need to flow onto the Senate for approval at its late-June meeting.

The current turn around between Academic Council in the first week of July and the flow on of information to Student Systems and Planning Services to enable UWA to meet the Department of Education deadline of 1st August is as streamlined as possible and utilises available reporting tools including CAIDi and Callista.

3.1.4Unit Information

The University is obliged to report information on individual units twice a year to the Department of Education and publish a schedule of student contribution amounts and tuition fees on the University’s website (refer http://www.unitcosts.uwa.edu.au/).

Schedules must be published on the website on or before the earliest enrolment date for units of study, enabling students to access information about fees before they enrol.

Variations to this published information that will disadvantage students, such as increased fees or bringing the published census date forward in time, must be referred prior for Ministerial approval.

The data reported for units is their availability, their student contribution amount and their domestic fee (if applicable). This relies on the following:

• Unit code
• Unit name
• Credit points
• Unit availability (census date, campus)
• Field of education

3.1.5Unit Information – UWA Timelines

In order to meet the Department of Education reporting and publishing dates Planning Services need to access the data in SIMS by 1 May for units with census dates in the second half of the calendar year and by 1 November for units with census dates in the first half of the following calendar year

To meet the Planning Services deadline, Student Systems require the approved unit information four weeks prior for input into SIMS.

UWA Contacts: Mr Luke Minchin, Manager, Statistical Services, Statistics Office, Planning Services and Ms Mary Carroll, Associate Director (Student Systems), Student Services

3.2 Australian Government – MyUniversity Website

(http://myuniversity.gov.au/)

The MyUniversity website is the Commonwealth government’s online higher education information service that is intended to provide students with access to clear, meaningful and transparent information about Australia’s higher education providers. This interactive, searchable website displays course information and fees, student demographics, student satisfaction and graduate destination survey results, student services and campus facilities, and research student numbers and scholarships.

The University’s data in support of this website is mainly drawn from the course and campus file data provided to the Department of Education by 1st August each year (refer section 3.1.3).

UWA Contact: Mr Luke Minchin, Manager, Statistical Services, Statistics Office, Planning Services.

3.3Australian Career Information Register (ACIR) – The Good Universities Guide

( (

ACIR collects information from Australian universities, for UWA its primary purpose is The Good Universities Guide. Planning Services collects this information for both undergraduate and postgraduate coursework courses, based on approved data, and submits the UWA response for postgraduate courses by late-March and for undergraduate courses by mid-October.

The Good Universities Guide publishes individual university ratings and also comparisons with other universities that are of interest to both undergraduate and postgraduate students.

UWA Contact: Mr Robert McCormack, Director, Planning Services.

3.4Tertiary Institutions Service Centre (TISC) Guide

(http://www.tisc.edu.au/static/home.tisc)

All domestic prospective students seeking admission to a public Western Australian university at the start of the academic year apply for university admission through TISC. Applications for university admission open in August.

Undergraduate course and major information for school leavers is provided by the Admissions Centre for publication in the TISC guide each year. The deadline for providing course information to TISC is mid-April. At UWA new undergraduate curriculum proposals may not have completed the approval process (or in some instances may not have been submitted for approval) by this deadline therefore information is often incomplete or provided with a note added ‘subject to final approval’.

Where there are changes to subject entry requirements then two years notice is required so that Year 10 students have adequate opportunity to take this into account in their subject selection

Late submission of data is possible however many promotional opportunities are missed when school material is printed or if information is inaccurate; it causes confusion for TISC applicants and impacts on the repution of UWA.

UWA Contact: Dr Anne Mills, Associate Director, Student Services (Admissions), Admissions Centre

3.5Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses For Overseas Students (CRICOS) Registration Process

The International Centre can apply for CRICOS registration of new courses only when the courses have been approved (by Senate if the new course results in a new award, or by Academic Council if no new award is involved).

Information required by the approving authority, Tertiary Education Quality Standards Agency (TEQSA) include the expected number of domestic and international enrolments in a given year, duration of any work component if applicable (in hours per week and number of weeks), details of arrangements with other providers if any, course duration, quantum non-tuition fees and quantum tuition fees.

When the course and the fees have been approved (refer section 3.6.2), the International Centre (Manager, International Quality Assurance), applies to TEQSA for CRICOS registration. TEQSA approval generally takes six weeks from the date they receive the application. Currently there is no cost for CRICOS registration. However, it should be noted the registration charge was suspended in 2012 and is subject to review by TEQSA.

The Manager, International Quality Assurance, informs the appropriate Dean(s), Faculty Administrative Officer(s) and other stakeholders when the CRICOS codes are issued by TEQSA.

No advertising or promotion to (prospective) student visa holders can legally take place before the CRICOS codes have been issued.

UWA Contact: Mr Anthony Turner, Manager, International Quality Assurance, International Centre

3.6Fees

3.6.1Domestic Fees

Fees for domestic students, both undergraduate and postgraduate, are collated and coordinated by the Senior Administrative Officer (Fees) in Student Administration. New tuition fees are approved by the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Education), proposed fee amendments to existing fees that are outside of University Policy require the approval of the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Education). After compiling fees information from Faculties, Student Administration provides a report to the Planning and Resources Committee in readiness for reporting and publication by Planning Services.

Domestic postgraduate fees are managed in accordance with the University Policy on Fees: Setting, amending and monitoring tuition fees for domestic postgraduate students