Governance
Organisational structure
The Directorate is the central executive body of MCQA. It is responsible for strategic and operational management, implementation of accreditation policies and procedures, representation of MCQA at international level, and overall coordination of all internal units.
Key responsibilities:
Key responsibilities:
- Strategic planning and annual work plans
- Approval and oversight of accreditation procedures and guidelines
- Coordination of Secretariat, Financial Office and Projects Office
- Acting as the official MCQA representative in relations with public authorities, partner organisations, higher education institutions and international networks
- Liaison with the Accreditation Board and the Pool of Experts
The Secretariat provides day-to-day administrative and logistical support to MCQA.
Main functions:
The Secretariat reports to the Directorate.
Main functions:
- Handling applications and correspondence with institutions
- Organising meetings and accreditation visits (onsite/online)
- Maintaining records, archives and the register of accredited programmes
- Providing support to the Directorate, Accreditation Board and expert teams
The Secretariat reports to the Directorate.
The Financial Office manages all financial and accounting matters of MCQA.
Main functions:
The Financial Office reports to the Directorate and works closely with the Secretariat and Projects Office.
Main functions:
- Budget planning and financial reporting
- Invoicing and contract-related financial management
- Ensuring compliance with applicable financial and tax regulations
The Financial Office reports to the Directorate and works closely with the Secretariat and Projects Office.
The Projects Office manages MCQA’s participation in international projects and capacity-building activities.
Main functions:
Main functions:
- Designing, coordinating and implementing international projects
- Developing training and advisory services for institutions and experts
- Supporting the dissemination of MCQA results and good practices
The Accreditation Board is an independent decision-making body responsible for accreditation decisions.
Main functions:
The Accreditation Board is supported by the Secretariat but operates independently in its decisions.
Main functions:
- Reviewing accreditation reports and recommendations
- Adopting final decisions on MCQA accreditation
- Ensuring consistency, transparency and fairness in accreditation outcomes
- Advising the Directorate on the development of criteria and procedures
The Accreditation Board is supported by the Secretariat but operates independently in its decisions.
The Pool of Experts is a pool of trained external reviewers (academics, professionals, students, QA specialists) who carry out reviews on behalf of MCQA.
Main functions:
Experts are called per assignment. They are coordinated by the Secretariat and Directorate and provide input to the Accreditation Board through their expert reports.
Main functions:
- Participation in accreditation expert teams and site visits
- Analysis of Self-Evaluation Reports and evidence
- Formulation of findings and recommendations
Experts are called per assignment. They are coordinated by the Secretariat and Directorate and provide input to the Accreditation Board through their expert reports.
Code of Good Practice - Guiding principles for conducting accreditation
MCQA promotes quality in education through accreditation processes that are rigorous, transparent, and improvement-oriented. In all its activities, MCQA is committed to the principles below.
2. Integrity, professionalism, and fairness in accreditation processes
MCQA conducts accreditation with integrity and professionalism by ensuring that it:
3. Respect for institutional independence and academic freedom
MCQA recognises institutional autonomy and academic freedom by ensuring that accreditation:
- Commitment to educational quality and student learning
- Prioritises student learning and achievement, aligned with the mission, goals, and intended outcomes of programmes and institutions.
- Assesses educational quality objectively and without bias, using consistent evidence-based approaches.
- Encourages programmes and institutions to publish relevant, clear, and accessible information on student achievement and learning outcomes.
2. Integrity, professionalism, and fairness in accreditation processes
MCQA conducts accreditation with integrity and professionalism by ensuring that it:
- Maintains autonomy in governance and operations, supported by appropriate relationships and practices, and by preventing and managing conflicts of interest.
- Applies standards and decision-making fairly and consistently, through documented policies and procedures that ensure due process, confidentiality, timely handling of concerns, and an efficient and clearly defined process for appeals and complaints.
- Regularly develops, reviews, and updates standards and procedures, involving relevant communities of interest.
- Maintains adequate financial, human, and operational resources to ensure effective and efficient accreditation activities.
- Cooperates with other quality assurance and accreditation bodies whenever feasible to reduce duplication for institutions and programmes, and to minimise conflicting requirements or standards.
- Provides evaluation feedback that supports improvement, clearly distinguishing between accreditation requirements and recommendations for enhancement.
- Communicates accreditation information in an accurate, clear, accessible, and timely way, including standards, procedures, and accreditation status.
- Ensures continuous training and professional development for all accreditation staff, experts, and volunteers.
- Assigns decision-makers and evaluators with the appropriate expertise, experience, and training for each review.
- Periodically evaluates the effectiveness of its accreditation processes, incorporating feedback from accredited programmes and institutions.
3. Respect for institutional independence and academic freedom
MCQA recognises institutional autonomy and academic freedom by ensuring that accreditation:
- Supports institutions’ freedom to make academic decisions while meeting accreditation requirements.
- Respects the right of institutions and programmes to define and implement their mission and goals.
- Encourages innovation and responsible change that respond to the needs of the profession, students, and the communities served.
- Reinforces the importance of public information that is clear, accurate, and accessible.
Code of Ethics
To achieve the best results in the evaluation procedure and to contribute to the quality of education, the Code of Ethics for MCQA experts sets out the main rules of conduct that every reviewer must follow. Experts involved in programme audits are expected to meet high ethical standards: professionalism, honesty, impartiality and fairness.
1. Professionalism
1.1. The expert should be a recognised professional in one of the specialisations offered by the programme under accreditation.
1.2. The expert is responsible for the high quality of the audit through a thorough and rigorous analysis of the programme’s compliance with the MCQA criteria.
2. Resolution of Conflicts of Interest
2.1. The expert must refrain from any actions that could undermine the objectivity and reliability of the evaluation process.
2.2. To avoid any contradiction between personal interests and the objectives of MCQA, an expert involved in an audit must inform MCQA if he/she has, or has had, close links with the institution under review.
2.3. Close links include, but are not limited to: current or past employment; consultancy related to the programme or institution; current or past negotiations on employment; having studied at the institution; and any financial or personal interests.
2.4. During the audit visit, the expert must withdraw from meetings and decision-making where a conflict of interest may arise, and must immediately inform MCQA of any real or potential conflict that could affect the objectivity of the evaluation.
2.5. The expert must not accept money, gifts or other benefits from the institution that could influence, or appear to influence, the audit results.
2.6. The expert must keep the audit process independent from any influence by representatives of the institution, in order to ensure impartial and objective assessment of the quality of education. The self-evaluation report reflects the official position of the institution; the experts’ task is to carry out an independent audit of the accuracy and completenessof the information provided.
3. Confidentiality
3.1. Confidentiality is a fundamental principle of MCQA’s activity. All information and documentation submitted to MCQA is treated as confidential and used solely for evaluation and accreditation purposes.
3.2. The evaluation team (chair, experts and observers, where applicable) is responsible for maintaining the non-disclosure of confidential information.
3.3. Information contained in the self-evaluation report and in any materials produced during the audit visit may only be used for the purposes of the MCQA evaluation and not for personal benefit.
3.4. Confidential information shall not be distributed or disclosed to third parties without the consent of MCQA and the institution concerned, except where required by law.
3.5. Internal working documents prepared by the evaluation team are for internal use only and their detailed content shall not be discussed with institutional representatives. These documents are the intellectual property of MCQA, and the assessments they contain shall not be disclosed to the institution.
3.6. Preparation and internal discussion of the audit report shall take place without the participation of representatives of the institution.
3.7. Before the start of the audit process, each expert signs a declaration confirming their commitment to this Code of Ethics and their absence of conflicts of interest, and submits it to MCQA.
1. Professionalism
1.1. The expert should be a recognised professional in one of the specialisations offered by the programme under accreditation.
1.2. The expert is responsible for the high quality of the audit through a thorough and rigorous analysis of the programme’s compliance with the MCQA criteria.
2. Resolution of Conflicts of Interest
2.1. The expert must refrain from any actions that could undermine the objectivity and reliability of the evaluation process.
2.2. To avoid any contradiction between personal interests and the objectives of MCQA, an expert involved in an audit must inform MCQA if he/she has, or has had, close links with the institution under review.
2.3. Close links include, but are not limited to: current or past employment; consultancy related to the programme or institution; current or past negotiations on employment; having studied at the institution; and any financial or personal interests.
2.4. During the audit visit, the expert must withdraw from meetings and decision-making where a conflict of interest may arise, and must immediately inform MCQA of any real or potential conflict that could affect the objectivity of the evaluation.
2.5. The expert must not accept money, gifts or other benefits from the institution that could influence, or appear to influence, the audit results.
2.6. The expert must keep the audit process independent from any influence by representatives of the institution, in order to ensure impartial and objective assessment of the quality of education. The self-evaluation report reflects the official position of the institution; the experts’ task is to carry out an independent audit of the accuracy and completenessof the information provided.
3. Confidentiality
3.1. Confidentiality is a fundamental principle of MCQA’s activity. All information and documentation submitted to MCQA is treated as confidential and used solely for evaluation and accreditation purposes.
3.2. The evaluation team (chair, experts and observers, where applicable) is responsible for maintaining the non-disclosure of confidential information.
3.3. Information contained in the self-evaluation report and in any materials produced during the audit visit may only be used for the purposes of the MCQA evaluation and not for personal benefit.
3.4. Confidential information shall not be distributed or disclosed to third parties without the consent of MCQA and the institution concerned, except where required by law.
3.5. Internal working documents prepared by the evaluation team are for internal use only and their detailed content shall not be discussed with institutional representatives. These documents are the intellectual property of MCQA, and the assessments they contain shall not be disclosed to the institution.
3.6. Preparation and internal discussion of the audit report shall take place without the participation of representatives of the institution.
3.7. Before the start of the audit process, each expert signs a declaration confirming their commitment to this Code of Ethics and their absence of conflicts of interest, and submits it to MCQA.