Site visits and accreditation
Institutions of higher education must be accredited to ensure they provide a high standard of education. Students, employers and other members of society can thus be assured of the quality of this education. All degree programmes at Leiden University are accredited, and one aspect of this is the site visit.
Accreditation is a governmental quality standard. If an institution or programme is accredited, this means that the quality of the education that it offers has been positively assessed by the Accreditation Organisation of the Netherlands and Flanders (NVAO). The site visit is an important part of this accreditation.
NVAO
NVAO is an independent accreditation organisation set up by the governments of the Netherlands and Flanders. It forms an expert and objective judgement on the quality of higher education in the Netherlands and Flanders.
Importance of accreditation
Periodic assessment is important to Leiden University. The independent panel looks at the extent to which the University has realised its educational vision. The University follows the panel’s recommendations on how to keep improving the organisation. The institutional audit is also important because it means that the limited, less time-consuming framework can be used for future programme assessments.
Two levels of accreditation
Leiden University is accredited at two levels:
- The programme (programme accreditation)
- The institution (institutional audit)