Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Domestic and foreign expertsdiscussed the value and benefits of international accreditation and recognitionfor higher education at a forum held in Hanoi on May 27.

The forum was co-organised by the “BuildingUniversity-Industry Learning and Development through Innovation and Technology”or BUILD-IT project, Arizona State University, and the Hanoi University ofIndustry.

At the forum on International Accreditation and RecognitionValue and Success Showcase, experts in academia, industry, and governmentexplored the importance, the successes, and the challenges of raising theprofile of academic institutions through international recognition andaccreditation.  

Participants also looked at an introduction to a structuredapproach and key factors leading to successful ABET programme accreditation orAUN-QA programme evaluation, experienced increased capacity development forinternational accreditation and via a keynote address and panel sessionshighlighting Vietnamese successes in obtaining AUN-QA evaluation or ABETaccreditation.

Proven models and key success factors were highlighted, allwithin the Vietnamese context.

The event also provided guided exploration of necessarysteps and preparations towards successful international recognition ofprogrammes, based on the recently developed “playbook” or quick startguide. 

A key part of international accreditation recognition isquality and seeking continuous improvement.

Nguyen Huy Phuc, Head of Office of Testing & QualityAssurance at the Industrial University of Ho Chi Minh City said: “Qualityassurance is not a destination, but it is a journey to further continuousimprovement.

"And the most important aspect is to build a culture ofquality assurance institutionally so that all stakeholders can see that qualityassurance activities are not of a single unit or individual, but of acollective, from the programmes to the faculties and departments and theinstitution as a whole.”

For the past seven years, the BUILD-IT project has beenhelping Vietnamese universities implement robust systems to attaininternational accreditation and recognition. The tools and techniques BUILD-ITteaches for accreditation and assessment become part of institutional processesand contribute to improving quality of teaching and learning.  BUILD-IT’s goal is to enable sustainabilityof quality STEM education in the long-term, in part by increasing the breadthof programs seeking and achieving international accreditation andrecognition. 

Since the inception of BUILD-IT, 86 partner programmes haveachieved international/regional accreditation and recognition.

This forum showcased some of those programmes and theirinstitutions by bringing together a national audience focused on implementingbest practices for international recognition, such as ABET accreditation orAUN-QA evaluation. 

Dr. Pham Tran Vu, the Dean of the Faculty of ComputerScience and Engineering at HCM City University of Technology, the firstuniversity in Vietnam to achieve ABET-accredited programmes, said:“Accreditation, after all, helps us to have better insights into qualityassurance in education."

Deputy Head of International Cooperation Department at CaoThang Technical College (the second higher education institution in Vietnam toachieve ABET accreditation), Nguyen Thi Thanh Binh, added: “Accreditation isnot for certificate only, but for the real benefits to the stakeholders alongthe way.” 

To leverage seven years’ worth of programmes, workshops,seminars, and training sessions, BUILD-IT created its Playbook Series to assistto sustain BUILD-IT’s value long after the project ends in 2023. 

Topics in this playbook series include InstitutionalAccreditation, Project Based-Learning, Digital Immersion Learning, ProgramAccreditation (AUN-ABET), Industry Advisory Boards, Women in STEM, MakerInnovation Network, and Faculty Development and Active Learning.

BUILD-IT anticipates that the playbooks will becomerecognised resources and utilised for university and higher education planning.These tools can help build scale – reaching additional universities andengineering programmes throughout Vietnam for sustainable and nationwidechange./.