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The Accreditation Organisation of the Netherlands and Flanders (; NVAO) is the independent
educational accreditation Educational accreditation is a quality assurance process under which services and operations of educational institutions or programs are evaluated and verified by an external body to determine whether applicable and recognized standards are me ...
organisation for
higher education Tertiary education (higher education, or post-secondary education) is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank defines tertiary education as including universities, colleges, and vocational schools ...
institutions in the
Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
and
Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...
. It was established by
international treaty A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between sovereign states and/or international organizations that is governed by international law. A treaty may also be known as an international agreement, protocol, covenant, conventio ...
by the
Dutch government The Netherlands is a parliamentary representative democracy. A constitutional monarchy, the country is organised as a decentralised unitary state.''Civil service systems in Western Europe'' edited by A. J. G. M. Bekke, Frits M. Meer, Edward E ...
and the
Flemish government The Flemish Government ( ) is the executive branch of the Flemish Community and the Flemish Region of Belgium. It consists of a government cabinet, headed by the Minister-President of Flanders, Minister-President and accountable to the Flemish Par ...
in
Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
, for the purpose of ensuring the
quality Quality may refer to: Concepts *Quality (business), the ''non-inferiority'' or ''superiority'' of something *Quality (philosophy), an attribute or a property *Quality (physics), in response theory *Energy quality, used in various science discipli ...
of higher education in the Netherlands and Flanders by accrediting study programmes. The Accreditation Organisation of the Netherlands and Flanders (NVAO) was established in 2005 by the Dutch and Flemish governments as an independent accreditation organisation tasked with providing an expert and objective assessment of the quality of higher education in the Netherlands and Flanders. NVAO is an international body established by treaty, which is recognised as a legal entity under Dutch public law, in accordance with the Treaty of 3 September 2003 between the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Flemish Community of Belgium concerning the accreditation of Dutch and Flemish higher education programmes.


Legal framework

The Dutch and Flemish accreditation systems stem from the agreements reached among the European Ministers of Education to establish a European Higher Education Area (EHEA). In the European regions concerned, they agreed to establish a Bachelor's/Master's degree structure in higher education and to introduce an independent accreditation system. The Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Flemish Community of Belgium signed a Treaty on 3 September 2003 concerning the accreditation of Dutch and Flemish higher education programmes in order to establish a common accreditation organisation. As of 1 February 2005, the independent Accreditation Organisation of the Netherlands and Flanders (NVAO) became an international body established by treaty that has the status of a legal entity under Dutch public law. The tasks and work method of NVAO in the Netherlands and in Flanders are set down in legislation. In the Netherlands, the tasks of NVAO are based on the "Higher Education and Research Act" (Wet Hoger Onderwijs en Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek, WHW), in Flanders, the operation of NVAO is established by the "Decree on Higher Education" of 4 April 2003.


International policy

NVAO exchanges ideas and collaborates with stakeholders, such as governments, universities of applied sciences (NL) / university colleges (FL), research universities, and representatives of student organisations and umbrella organisations in the Netherlands,
Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...
, Europe and beyond concerning the quality and the quality assurance of (international) higher education. NVAO is recognised and accredited as a bi-national accreditation organisation. It performs its tasks in an international perspective, within the context of the European Bologna process and in accordance with the European Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance. At European level NVAO is registered in the European Quality Assurance Register for Higher Education (EQAR); member, Board member, and providing the secretariat of the European Consortium for Accreditation in higher education (ECA); full member of the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA); full member of the
International Network for Quality Assurance Agencies in Higher Education International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...
(INQAAHE).


Criticism

Some commentators are sceptical about the usefulness of NVAO and similar accreditation organs. Thus Bram Delen, student at the
KU Leuven KU Leuven (Katholieke Universiteit Leuven) is a Catholic research university in the city of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium. Founded in 1425, it is the oldest university in Belgium and the oldest university in the Low Countries. In addition to its mai ...
even calls it a "classical example of useless bureaucracy", writing in the student paper Veto that the funds spent by NVAO on the "validation" of the work of visitation committees could have been better spent on the core tasks of the university, namely research, teaching and social service. Prof.
Arnold Heertje Arnold Heertje (19 February 1934 – 4 April 2020) was a Dutch economist and professor at the University of Amsterdam, writer and columnist. He became more generally known for his opposition to the Betuweroute. Life and career Heertje was born ...
and Anne Marie Oudemans have argued, in response to an appeal by Karl Dittrich, former Chair of NVAO, that the process bureaucracy of NVAO is swallowing up substantial funds, especially in the field of Higher Professional Education, without producing reliable results. But a full debate on the role and effects of the operation of NVAO has yet to take place.


See also

*
Education in the Netherlands Education in the Netherlands is characterized by division: education is oriented toward the needs and background of the pupil. Education is divided over schools for different age groups, some of which are divided in streams for different educatio ...
*
Education in Flanders The education in the Flemish Community covers the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium and consists of three networks (''netten''): government-provided education (''gemeenschapsonderwijs''), subsidized public schools (by provinces and municipalities) an ...


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nvao Education in Belgium Education in the Netherlands Higher education accreditation Higher education organisations based in Europe