The schools inspectorate judges the part ‘assessment and marking’ within the course Mechanical Engineering to be ‘alarming’. The inspectorate points at the way the students’ achievements are secured. It doesn’t seem to be objective enough.
The inspectorate has held several courses from ten different Higher Vocational Education-institutions against the light. The inspectorate was ordered this task by the Ministry of Education, with reference to the troubles at InHolland college last year. At this college, students graduated by following so-called ‘alternative graduation routes’ and got their diplomas more easily.
Similar routes do not occur at HAN University, the schools inspectorate established. However, with regard to the course Mechanical Engineering, the inspectorate is concerned. Students following this course have to construct a portfolio with evidence of their achievements. According to the inspectorate, it has not been clarified to what demands it should comply with. Moreover, there are no real assessment criteria and students have the opportunity to leave out bad results. Therefore, the inspectorate considers the level of the course to be below standard.
The HAN recognizes that there has not been administratively acted according to the law everywhere, but there has been worked on this ‘carelessness’ for a long time now. The judgement and argument of the inspectorate, that the assessment of students is alarming, considers the HAN to be too severe.
Chairman of the Board of Governors, Ron Bormans: ‘Within administration, there might be something to improve, but the business world is very pleased with our students’. The level of quality of the course is to be judged by the NVAO (Dutch and Flemish accreditation organization) and is therefore beyond questioning for the time being. Ron Bormans has invited the NVAO to determine all procedures to be correct, before this summer.
