What is a certification of self-accreditation status? It is a status granted by MQA to universities which are confirmed to have robust internal quality assurance system.
MQA empowers Senate of the universities with self-accreditation status to accredit their own programmes on the Malaysian Qualifications Framework (MQF) and relevant standards, as well as policies of MQA and the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE).
What is the significance of the certification of self-accreditation status to Malaysian higher education system? The implementation of self-accreditation status provides a higher degree of recognition based on the university performance in enhancing and strengthening its internal quality assurance system.
It provides recognition framework that is expected to instill competetive edge among local universities to further strengthen their internal quality assurance system.
What is the difference between the self-accreditation status and programme accreditation by MQA? Self-accreditation status is granted to a university while programme accreditation (provisional or full) is granted to a specific programmes.
When was the certification of self-accreditation status first granted to local universities? The self-accreditation status was first granted in April 2010 to four public university and four foreign universities branch campuses namely:
Universiti Malaya (UM)
Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM)
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM)
Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM)
Monash University Malaysia (MUM)
The University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus (UNMC)
Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus (SUTS)
Curtin University, Sarawak Malaysia (CUM)
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) was granted self-accreditation status in March 2013.
How does a university apply for self-accreditation status? A university may apply for self-accreditation status upon an receiving invitation from the Honourable Minister of Higher Education.
When and how does MQA assess the selected universities? Upon receiving invitation from the Honourable Minister of Higher Education, a university must submit its Self-Review Report in the format prescibed by MQA.
The institutional audit conducted by MQA involves visits to university's main campus, branch campuses and learning centres followed by a comprehensive report by auditors.
What are the criteria used in the conduct of an institutional audit to determine the level of quality of the selected universities? Institutional audit is conducted based on the criteria specified in the Code of Practice for Institutional Audit (COPIA) and in compliance with the Malaysian Qualifications Framework (MQF) as well as other relevant standards by MQA and MOHE.
Who are the parties involved in the implementation of institutional audit? The institutional audit which was succesfully conducted by MQA in 2015 and 2016 involved 16 groups of auditors comprising of academic experts with vast experience in academic quality system of universities.
Who reviews and comfirms the recommendation for self-accreditation status? The result of the certification of self-accreditation status will be endorsed by the self-accreditation Committee (Jawatankuasa Swaakreditasi) which comprises the following nine members:
Chief Executive Officer of MQA as chairman
One representative from MQA Council as deputy chairman
Two reprsentatives from Accreditation Committee of MQA
Two Vice Chancellors (public and private university)
A representative from the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE)
A Chairman of the University Board of Directors
An expert in higher education
What are the advantages enjoyed by universities with self-accreditation status?
The university to accredit its own programmes through the Senate without involving MQA.
Therefore, the university has an opportunity to optimise its resources in enriching the quality of the offered programmes.
Furthermore, the university is expected to carry out own programme accreditation more efficently and effectively without MQA's involvement.
Self-accreditation status is a badge of honour which can be used to attract students and staff to the university.
With the granting of self-accreditation status to eight universities, how many programmes will be subject to the self accrediting system?
About 1,050 programmes ofr provisional and full accreditation under the charge of MQA will be transferred to te universities concerned. It also includes programmes to be offered in the future.
Will there be programmes exempted from the institutional-based accreditation? Programmes that are not subjected to the self-accreditation and still to go through the MQA processes are:
Professional programmes;
Collaboration programmes with other universities; and
Programmes offered by subsidiary company/ies owned by universities with self-accreditation status.
Can the programmes accredited through an institutional-based accreditation by self-accredited universities be listed in the MQR?
Yes. The self-accredited programmes can be listed in the Malaysia Qualifications Register (MQR) subject to the terms and procedures set by MQA.
What is the time frame for the reassessment of the self- accreditation status granted by MQA?
The reassessments are conducted once in every five years. The first group of eight universities which were granted the self-accreditation status in 2010 have been reassessed in 2015 and 2016 and successfully retained their status.
Can the self- accreditation status be revoked?
Yes. The self- accreditation status can be revoked should there be a breach in the terms and conditions or demonstrable decline in the quality of programmes offered is observed.
Where can information on universities with self-accreditation status be accessible?
List of universities with self-accreditation status is accessible at MQA official webiste while the search for information on programmes offered by these universities is carried out at www2.mqa.gov.my/mqr
