Welcome to our blog, where guest authors and QAA specialists discuss issues which really matter for our sector, in the UK and around the world.
Latest blogs
Lessons in Access
28/01/2025
Working small – and thinking big
11/12/2024
Defining a discipline
02/12/2024
Promoting equity in assessment
08/11/2024
The future of lifelong learning
02/05/2024
Previous blogs
- 17 November 2023
Micro-credentials good practice: A tertiary view from Scotland | Dr Anne Tierney, Deputy Chair of the Scottish Tertiary Education Network for Micro-credentials - 13 November 2023
International Day of Action for Academic Integrity - 11 October 2023
Immersed in Immersive Learning! The Welsh Collective: Digital Learning and Teaching Enhancement | Steph Tindall, Head of Educational Practice Development, University of Wales Trinity Saint David - 25 July 2023
Reflections on the European Network for Academic Integrity Conference | Professor Sandie Dann, Professor Michael Draper and Dr Irene Glendinning, Academic Integrity Advisory Group members, QAA - 25 July 2023
Root to shoots: A holistic route to designing high quality inclusive learning environments | Virna Rossi, Associate Professor and PGCert Course Leader, Ravensbourne University London - 20 July 2023
QAA modernises with agile working arrangement | QAA - 10 July 2023
How are we using different modes of communication to engage students with their learning? | Professor Sam Elkington, Teesside University - 25 May 2023
My experience of transitioning to university | Gianna De Salvo, Get Ahead Transition Programme Project Officer, Queen Mary University of London - 16 May 2023
The rise of entrepreneurship and innovation in HE: A case study of the 'With Proficiency in Entrepreneurship' pathway at the University of Exeter | Raphael Dennett, Director, ‘With Proficiency in Entrepreneurship’ Pathway; Deputy Director, Centre for Entrepreneurship, University of Exeter - 20 April 2023
Mature students: Managing your university offers | Nicola Turner, Senior Fair Access Adviser, UCAS - 12 April 2023
Student Intrapreneur and Entrepreneur Toolkit and community of practice | Professor Tony Wall, Professor & National Teaching Fellow, Liverpool John Moores University - 6 April 2023
Creating a sense of belonging: Our guidance for supporting international students | Eduardo Ramos, Director of International and Professional Services, QAA - 5 April 2023
Launching QAA's new strategy | Vicki Stott, Chief Executive, QAA - 9 March 2023
The Retention Rubik’s cube | Dr Russell Crawford, Director of Academic Innovation and Quality, Falmouth University - 6 March 2023
A community-based approach to advancing thinking and practice in student engagement: Some reflections | Professor Sam Elkington, Professor of Learning and Teaching, Teesside University - 10 February 2023
Introducing The Careers Group’s QAA-funded Collaborative Enhancement Project | Kate Daubney, Director of The Careers Group, University of London - 8 February 2023
Moving Beyond Measurement: Enhancing Learning and Teaching Quality Through Collaborative Observation | Professor Matthew O’Leary, Professor of Education, Director of CSPACE research centre, Faculty of Health, Education & Life Sciences, Birmingham City University - 6 February 2023
Staff-student partnership working - exploring how staff are supported | Dan Axson, Learning Technologies Manager, University of Sussex, Professor Susan Smith, Professor (Education), School of Management, University College London
- 6 December 2022
Partners in quality: Working together to support UK-UAE higher education collaboration | Dr Wafi Dawood, CEO of Strategy and Planning, Knowledge and Human Development Authority - 1 December 2022
Designing, measuring and supporting success for PGRs from diverse backgrounds | Mercy Mwansa, PGR Project Consultation Officer, University of Leeds - 10 November 2022
Modular learning by design and not by default | Dr Charles Wiffen, Head of Academic Portfolio Development, Bath Spa University - 7 November 2022
Reading Classics online: Staff and student perspectives | Annabelle Mansell, Samantha Sharman & Jamie Wood, University of Lincoln - 3 November 2022
The independence imperative: 25 years of QAA | Simon Gaskell, Chair of the QAA board - 3 November 2022
Student transitions to higher education: Partnership working | Dr Sally Burtonshaw, Head of Policy, London Higher - 11 October 2022
QAA at 25: Perspectives on quality in Osteopathy | Steven Bettles, Policy Manager, General Osteopathic Council - 10 October 2022
Embedding Mental Wellbeing | Zoë Allman, De Montfort University (Project Lead) - 28 September 2022
Quality enhancement through collaboration, trust and empowerment (a celebration of the Scottish approach) | Sir Paul Grice, Principal and Vice-Chancellor and Professor Catriona Bell, Director of Learning Enhancement & Academic Development, Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh - 12 September 2022
‘What even is a seminar?!’ Reflections on the hidden curriculum of higher education | Dr Madeleine Pownall, Lecturer in Psychology, University of Leeds - 2 September 2022
Embedding Inclusive Assessment | Professor Sam Elkington, Teesside University (Project Lead) - 30 August 2022
Defining what we mean by ‘quality’ education | Professor Tom Ward, Pro Vice-Chancellor, Education, Newcastle University - 27 July 2022
Active Online Reading – findings and recommendations | Jamie Wood, Professor of History and Education, University of Lincoln - 12 July 2022
Embedding Education for Sustainable Development | Dr Rehema White, Senior Lecturer, School of Geography & Sustainable Development, University of St Andrews - 30 June 2022
Using data to identify risks and evidence outcomes: Key points from QAA's Specialist and Independent Provider Network | Dr Kate Mori, Academic Engagement Manager, QAA - 28 June 2022
College HE Policy and Practice Network: key reflections | Dr Kate Mori, Academic Engagement Manager, QAA - 1 June 2022
Reclaiming student engagement: The first year of a collaborative approach from Wales | Dr Myfanwy Davies, Head of Quality Enhancement, Bangor University - 19 May 2022
Students at the heart of quality | Emma Murphy, Education Officer, Queens’ University Belfast Students’ Union - 9 May 2022
Designing programmes for learning: Foundations and aspirations | Carmen Tomas, Associate Director of Education, University of Nottingham - 29 April 2022
HEFCW HEIR: Collaborative Programmes Wales Project - Guidance Resource Pack | John Bolton, Bangor University - 27 April 2022
Supporting inclusivity and accessibility in the QAA Subject Benchmark Statements | Dr Andy Smith, Quality and Standards Manager, QAA - 22 April 2022
College-based higher education - a unique place for students | Leon Annett, Dean of Higher Education, Cardiff and Vale College and Jane Nickisson, Head of Higher Education, Salford City College - 22 April 2022
Higher education to empower #GenerationRestoration | Dr Mark Nason, Head of Eden Project Learning, Cornwall College Group - 12 April 2022
'Campus Plus' - An institutional model for success after Covid | Professor Patrick McGhee, Assistant Vice-Chancellor, University of Bolton - 29 March 2022
Micro-credentials: Stackability and portability | Dr Demelza Curnow, Lead Quality Manager, QAA - 18 February 2022
Adaptations to enhance the Access to HE student experience: Reflections from QAA’s National Standardisation Event | Ann-Marie Karadia. Access Officer. QAA
- 6 December 2021
Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol's Welsh Medium Digital Learning Materials Project | Delyth Ifan, Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol - 6 December 2021
Looking back at the QAA Northern Ireland Conference: Contemporary issues in higher education | Elizabeth Shackels, Quality Assurance Manager, South West College - 6 December 2021
Enhancing Welsh language employability skills and overcoming learner underconfidence | Huw Swayne, Head of Learning, Teaching and Student Experience, Sian Harris, Senior Lecturer Welsh Employability, University of South Wales - 3 December 2021
Supporting the transition of disabled students to higher education through peer-led ambassador schemes | Dr Melanie Thorley, STAART Manager, University of Greenwich - 24 November 2021
Micro-credentials as an Enabler of Sustainability | Demelza Curnow, Lead Quality Manager, Kate Mori, Quality and Standards Specialist, QAA - 19 November 2021
The impact of the pandemic on higher education – a Canadian perspective on digital learning | Dr Nicole Johnson, Research Director, Canadian Digital Learning Research Association (CDLRA) - 16 November 2021
How can we accommodate the needs of mature students when we contemplate post-pandemic recovery in higher education? | Amarjit Basi, Executive Director, Black FE Leadership Group - 9 November 2021
Climate, Environment and Sustainability: The Importance of Universities in Addressing the Climate Crisis | Professor Simon Kemp, Professorial Fellow in Education for Sustainable Development, University of Southampton and Professor Jim Longhurst, Professor of Environmental Science and Assistant Vice Chancellor: Environment & Sustainability, UWE Bristol - 28 October 2021
The Future of Blended Learning: A Student Perspective | Becky Ricketts, NUS Wales President and Shawn Shabu, Swansea University Student - Applied Medical Sciences BSc (Hons) - 13 October 2021
Why ‘going beyond the metrics’ matters even more as we ‘build back better’ | Professor Elizabeth Cleaver (Independent HE Consultant) and Professor Fiona Smart (Edinburgh Napier University) - 8 October 2021
Reflecting on 20 years at QAA - A tribute to Douglas Blackstock | Dr Paul Greatrix, Registrar, University of Nottingham - 5 October 2021
Innovating assessment to motivate Access to HE students | Pritee Rajput, Subject Leader for Science and Health, Adam Beral, Head of Curriculum for Health, Education and Science, Morley College - 29 September 2021
Sustaining and Enhancing digital Learning Pan-Wales | Professor Claire Taylor, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Professor of Education, Wrexham Glyndŵr University - 23 September 2021
Subject confidence among bioscience students | Dr Harriet Jones, University of East Anglia, Professor Jon Scott, University of Leicester - 15 September 2021
Putting the Emphasis on Enhancement: The Welsh Approach to Quality | Alastair Delaney, Executive Director of Operations and Deputy Chief Executive, QAA - 13 September 2021
Tackling contract cheating at the root – where next in the battle against essay mills? | Gareth Crossman, Head of Policy and Communications, QAA - 31 August 2021
QAA Evolving Student Engagement Conference blog - Where do we go next? Lessons from a decade of student engagement | Dan Derricott, Head of Academic Policy and Quality Assurance, University College London - 31 August 2021
QAA Evolving Student Engagement Conference blog: Driving change for inclusivity with students as partners | Dr Zainab Khan, Pro-Vice-Chancellor Teaching and Learning, London Metropolitan University - 18 August 2021
Reflections for the future: Taking forward learning from the global pandemic | Bethan Gulliver, Lecturer in Medical Education, University of East Anglia - 15 July 2021
Supporting students’ transition to university during COVID-19 | Dr Pam Birtill, Dr Richard Harris and Madeleine Pownall, University of Leeds - 1 July 2021
QAA Membership - A specific place for college higher education | Dr Roshani Swift, Quality Manager, QAA - 23 June 2021
Women in Engineering | Hayley Little, Former Access to HE Diploma in Engineering student - 10 June 2021
Net Zero Skills by 2030? | Nick Petford, Vice-Chancellor, University of Northampton - 26 May 2021
Life in ‘pandemia’: UK university staff perspectives on work during COVID-19 | Richard Watermeyer, Tom Crick and Cathryn Knight, Centre for Higher Education Transformations, University of Bristol and School of Education, Swansea University - 20 May 2021
What happens next? Student arrival in higher education in 2021 | Dr Harriet Jones, Senior Lecturer, School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia - 20 May 2021
Supporting student transitions - preparing for university during a pandemic | Heather Monsey, Outreach Officer, University of East Anglia - 10 May 2021
Access to HE Conference Blog - Growth Opportunities for Gender Diversity in the Graduate Labour Market | Richard Hewitt, Director - Higher Education, Emsi - 07 May 2021
QAA Annual Conference Blog - Rethinking authentic assessment in a post-COVID world: Is it right to hope for change? | Dr Jan McArthur, Senior Lecturer, Lancaster University - 29 April 2021
QAA Annual Conference Blog - Engaging Students in Academic Integrity | Gráinne Mooney, Communications Manager, Quality and Qualifications Ireland and Kevin McStravock, Vice President for Academic Affairs, Union of Students in Ireland - 14 April 2021
Students’ Questions about Quality and Value in COVID times | Hillary Gyebi-Ababio, Current Vice President for the National Union of Students and QAA Board Member - 12 April 2021
Congratulations to the winners of this year’s Keith Fletcher Memorial Access to HE prizes | Katie Wand, PR, Media & Communications Officer, QAA - 30 March 2021
Student transitions to higher education - the impact of changes to the school experience of A Level biological science students | Professor Jon Scott, Higher Education Consultant and Emeritus Professor of Bioscience Education - 17 March 2021
Celebrating Colleges as a Vehicle for Progress | Angela Joyce, CEO of WCG (formerly Warwickshire College Group) and QAA Board Member - 15 March 2021
The year ahead… | Professor John Sawkins, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Deputy Principal), Learning and Teaching, Heriot-Watt University - 03 March 2021
QAA in Ukraine: What our International Work means for UK Higher Education and our Members | Ian Welch, Quality Specialist, QAA - 18 February 2021
Learning from the remote pivot - approaches to aligning learning outcomes to assessment for student success | Professor Elizabeth Cleaver, Independent HE Consultant and Professor Mike McLinden, University of Birmingham - 5 February 2021
Access to HE changed my life! From 12 years in the military to studying Medicine at university | Luke Tomlinson, Current Access to HE student - 18 January 2021
My journey from Access to HE to becoming the UK's youngest MP | Nadia Whittome, Member of Parliament
- 18 December 2020
Reviewing funding for Level 3 qualifications in England: Opening doors in adult education | Katie Wand, PR, Press and Communications Officer, QAA - 17 December 2020
A student's perspective of 2020 | Alexander Hedlund, Current Vice-President Education for Heriot-Watt University Student Union and Enhancement Theme Student Lead - 4 December 2020
QAA welcomes proposals for new Wales higher education Commission | James Harrison, Lead Policy Officer for Nations and Europe, QAA - 19 November 2020
QAA's latest engagement with European higher education | Alastair Delaney, Director for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland with additional responsibility for engagement with Europe, QAA - 06 November 2020
The Accreditation Organisation of the Netherlands and Flanders (NVAO) and COVID-19: First Experiences and Lessons Learned | Luut Kroes, Chair of the NVAO Management Team, Director of the NVAO Department the Netherlands - 20 October 2020
The Impact of COVID-19 Modifications to Teaching, Learning and Assessment in Irish Further Education and Training and Higher Education | Peter Cullen and Karena Maguire, Head of the Policy, Research and Statistics Unit and Head of the Stakeholder Engagement and Communications Division, Quality and Qualifications Ireland - 19 October 2020
UK Transnational Education: Central to the UK’s International Strategy | Stephanie Sandford, Director of International & Professional Services, QAA - 29 September 2020
A local, resilient and agile mechanism to deliver more flexible education | Professor Sue Rigby, Vice-Chancellor, Bath Spa University - 22 July 2020 - 23 September 2020
Blog series - The lasting effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Conversations with sector leaders | Professor Simon Gaskell, Chair of the QAA Board - 18 September 2020
From within the UK to across Europe, quality assurance in higher education must be flexible and diverse | Alastair Delaney, Director for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, QAA - 16 September 2020
Access to HE helped prepare us for healthcare routes during the pandemic | Luke Myer, Policy and Public Affairs Officer, QAA - 11 September 2020
Data-Led Quality Assurance and Enhancement: Introducing our New Research Project | Dr Kate Mori, Quality & Standards Specialist, QAA - 12 August 2020
Specialist providers’ response to COVID-19: Reflections from the Institute of Contemporary Music Performance | Stef Jones, Deputy Registrar, Quality and Student Engagement, ICMP - The Institute of Contemporary Music Performance - 23 July 2020
What have PSRBs done in response to the COVID-19 Pandemic? | Dr Andy Smith, Quality and Standards Manager, Membership, QAA - 20 July 2020
Managing Adversity through Partnership: Representing Students in Quality through a time of Rapid Change | Eve Alcock, President 2018-20, University of Bath Students' Union and QAA Student Board Member - 08 July 2020
Creating a hostile environment: How to combat essay mills | Gareth Crossman, Head of Policy and Communications, QAA - 01 July 2020
What is a lecture? and other mysteries | Jackie Labbe and Alasdair Blair, Pro Vice-Chancellor Academic and Associate Pro Vice-Chancellor Academic, De Montfort University - 24 June 2020
Learning from disruption – exploring what counts in higher education | Ailsa Crum, Head of Quality and Enhancement, QAA Scotland - 19 June 2020
Credit where it is due: how can England's credit framework recognise micro-credits? | Professor Sue Rigby, Vice-Chancellor, Bath Spa University, QAA Board Member - 8 June 2020
The University of Bolton on opening its campuses and protecting quality and standards | Professor Patrick McGhee, Assistant Vice-Chancellor, University of Bolton - 04 June 2020
For disabled students, quality education during COVID-19 is about basic access | Molly Smallwood, Vice President (Academic Representation), Edge Hill Students’ Union - 29 May 2020
Students as partners – challenges facing students’ unions throughout COVID-19 | Amy Eberlin Quality Enhancement Specialists, QAA Scotland and and Holly Thomas, QAA Wales - 28 April 2020
Academic Integrity in Canada during COVID-19: Reflections from the University of Calgary | Sarah Elaine Eaton, Assistant Professor and Educational Leader in Residence, University of Calgary, Canada - 27 May 2020
After COVID-19: the University of Nottingham Ningbo Experience | Professor Martin Lockett, Dean of the Faculty of Business, University of Nottingham Ningbo China - 24 April 2020
COVID-19: What next for higher education? | Vicki Stott, Executive Director of Operations (Deputy CEO), QAA - 21 April 2020
TNE in Malaysia and the challenge ahead for UK TNE providers | Piers Wall, Accreditation and International Services Delivery Officer, QAA - 01 April 2020
Doing the Right Thing: Securing Standards in Challenging Times | Douglas Blackstock, Chief Executive, QAA - 18 March 2020
Innovative steps in tackling contract cheating at the University of Northampton | Dr Robin Crockett, Reader in Data Analysis and University Lead on Contract-Cheating, University of Northampton - 13 March 2020
Delivering more GPs with Access to HE | Julie Mizon, Access to HE Manager, QAA - 20 January 2020
A new decade as a new QAA | Douglas Blackstock, Chief Executive, QAA
- 15 August 2019
Working in partnership with students to transform academic tutoring | Cindy Isherwood and Jess Johnson, University of Reading - 10 July 2019
QAA is changing, here's why | Douglas Blackstock, Chief Executive, QAA - 14 May 2019
Determination and pride: 40 years of Access to HE | Julie Mizon, Access to HE Manager, QAA - 30 April 2019
Bringing Students to the Table | Matt Adie, Co-Chair, Student Strategic Advisory Committee, QAA - 24 April 2019
Postcard from our latest PSRB Forum | Maureen McLaughlin, Head of Universities & Standards, QAA - 16 April 2019
Halfway up the stairs: A progress report on the current Enhancement Theme in Scotland | Ailsa Crum, Head of Quality and Enhancement, QAA Scotland - 9 April 2019
What we mean when we talk about quality assurance of 'UK HE' | James Harrison, Policy Officer, QAA - 2 April 2019
Combatting essay mills and academic misconduct | Gareth Crossman, Head of Policy Public Affairs, QAA