The Commission for Institutional and Programme Assessment holds its fourth meeting in 2024
Members of the Institutional and Programme Review Commission (CAIP) met online to hear about the drafting of the new VSMA Framework and to approve the updated guide for assessing foreign centres, among other issues.

The Institutional and Programme Review Commission (CAIP) held its fourth meeting of 2024 yesterday online. After approving of the minutes from the previous meeting, the director of AQU Catalunya, Jaume Valls Pasola, presented his report, which updated the commission's members on various activities that are being carried out at the Agency.
The Institutional and Programme Review Commission (CAIP) held its fourth meeting of 2024 yesterday online. After approving of the minutes from the previous meeting, the director of AQU Catalunya, Jaume Valls Pasola, presented his report, which updated the commission's members on various activities that are being carried out at the Agency.
Valls' presentation began by explaining the current state of progress of the assessment processes. In addition, he also presented the next benchmarks that the Agency plans to develop, which are those of Medicine and Education, as well as the surveys that are currently being prepared, which are the Employers' Survey, the Employment Outcome Survey for 2026, and the Satisfaction Survey, which began its field work this week. The Director's Report also addressed the update of the teaching assessment methodology that AQU Catalunya is working on. It also reported on the course for Student Training in University Quality Assurance, which took place on 23 November. Lastly, Valls also showed the results of the public enquiry on the proposal for new criteria for the accreditation of teaching staff that AQU Catalunya carried out between 23 September and 7 October.
The Director of AQU Catalunya went on to present the draft of the new Framework for institutional quality improvement in the Catalan Higher Education System, which will replace the current one, from 2016. The new document is intended to adapt to the current regulatory framework and to make it more useful given the current circumstances of the Catalan higher education sector.
The meeting heard the various items on the agenda submitted for the consideration of the members of the commission. Firstly, the new Guide for the assessment of foreign schools was approved, which replaces the current one, which was published in 2022. One of the issues it updates is the assessment process, including the 10-day period the school has to present the documentation for the assessment.
The Guide to the accreditation of joint programmes using the European Approach and the Procedure for the European Approach for quality assurance of joint programmes were approved. The approval of these two documents stems from experience with assessment using the European Approach and the need to adjust the guide and separate the procedure from the guide, as is currently being done in the rest of the assessment programmes.
The CAIP, which already met in person this year in July, is the body that oversees the correct application of the set of quality assurance instruments and processes that AQU Catalunya carries out on an institutional and programme scale. The work of the CAIP can be grouped into two main areas: the quality of teaching and the quality of institutions.