Overseas delegations eager to learn about NZQA

Education is an international business. Not only does New Zealand earn considerable sums from international students coming here to study, but we also share information all the time with countries wanting to learn about running a national qualifications framework, quality assurance programmes, industry and vocational training, in fact almost any aspect of the education system.

New Zealand's National Qualification Framework is considered a model by many countries with their own burgeoning frameworks. As a result NZQA is visited regularly by overseas delegations wishing to learn more about the implementation and operation of the Framework.

Over the past 12 months the New Zealand education sector has hosted overseas delegations from Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, China, Botswana, Japan and the Sultanate of Oman - to name a few.

NZQA is just one of the many agencies these delegations come to visit. Recently NZQA joined forces with the New Zealand Vice-Chancellors' Committee, Universities Academic Audit Unit and Polytechnic Programmes Committee to run a combined day for the Oman delegation, whose focus was on New Zealand's overarching quality assurance policies and procedures. They also visited the Ministry of Education, and met with the Minister of Education, Trevor Mallard.

The group from Saudi Arabia's General Organisation for Technical and Vocational Training was particularly interested in the National Qualifications Framework, industry training organisations, the New Zealand Register of Quality Assured Qualifications and the quality assurance of private training establishments.

The Japanese delegation, a university researcher, was here to investigate university entrance; in particular, NZQA's role, NCEA and New Zealand Scholarship.
"Meeting with our sector colleagues from overseas helps us to share best practice in quality assurance, and raise the profile of the education sector in New Zealand, which is invaluable from an economic perspective" says NZQA chief executive
Karen Van Rooyen.

"It is by no means a one-way street in regards to learning. We have much to gain from the sharing of ideas and knowledge, and from the strengthening of relationships that results from these visits," she said.