- Home
- Qualifications and standards
- NCEA
-
Māori and Pasifika
- Field Māori Assessment Support Materials
- Field Māori programme development support
- Mātauranga Māori qualifications and assessment standards
- Te Hono o Te Kahurangi quality assurance
- Māori providers
- Te Kōkiritanga 2020-2023
- Māori and the Future State
- Pasifika
- Ngā Kete Mātauranga
- Equity in STEM Symposium
-
Providers and partners
- About education organisations
- NZQA's quality assurance system for tertiary education organisations
- Guidelines and forms
- Consistency of graduate outcomes
- Approval, accreditation and registration
- Monitoring and Assessment
- Self-assessment
- External evaluation and review
- Assessment and moderation of standards
- Submitting results and awarding qualifications and micro-credentials
- Tertiary and International Learners Code of Practice
- Offshore use of qualifications and programmes
- Reform of Vocational Education
- International Education planning
- International
- About us
eQuate

August 2019
- 28 Aug 2019
Sector consultation
Further consultation on NZQF changes
The second round of consultation on proposed changes to the New Zealand Qualifications Framework (NZQF) is now open, focused around eight detailed proposals.
Information is available at Further consultation on the review of the New Zealand Qualifications Framework.
Consultation runs from Thursday 25 July to Monday 9 September.
Sector updates
Update on monitoring programme for NZCEL
We have begun monitoring all providers of the New Zealand Certificate in English Language (Level 4) (Academic) over 2019-2020. Each provider will have at least two weeks notice before their programme monitoring starts.
We are monitoring programmes leading to NZCEL because they provide a pathway to higher-level qualifications and involve large numbers of international students.
See the NZQA website for more information on the monitoring programme and how it relates to other quality assurance activities: Programme monitoring for the New Zealand Certificate in English Language (Level 4) (Academic).
QAD on the web
Guidelines recently published on the NZQA website
- Guidelines for the review of New Zealand qualifications at level 1-6 on the NZQF
- Guidelines for applying for registration as a private training establishment
- Guidelines for maintaining registration as a private training establishment
Web pages recently updated
- The Education (Pastoral Care of International Students) Code of Practice 2016 (Amendment 2019)
- External evaluation and review
- Register of NZQA-approved micro-credentials
- Submitting results and awarding qualifications and micro-credentials
- Quicklinks to NZQF documents
- Diplomas, degrees and related qualifications monitoring
- Degree monitoring
- Self-monitoring
Good practice
Managing your student complaints well
Providers should make sure students can easily access information on making complaints, and that the process and forms are available on their website and in the student handbook.
We have been getting calls from students saying they can't find information about making a formal complaint to their provider. Students may not feel they can ask staff directly for this information, especially if they have not decided if they will make a formal complaint.
A good time to make students aware of the complaints process is during orientation. Displaying the complaints process on student notice boards and in classrooms is especially helpful for newly enrolled students.
NZQA rules about student complaints, as well as NZQA’s complaints processes about PTEs, are set out in Rule 5.1.4(e) of Private Training Establishment Registration Rules 2018.
If you have any questions or want to discuss this further, contact the Risk Management team at risk@nzqa.govt.nz.
Mātauranga Māori
Hui with the sector
- Te Hono o Te Kahurangi and the Mātauranga Māori Advisory Group held their first meeting for 2019 in July.
- A workshop was held with the sector in Hamilton in July. The workshop covered strengthening the Te Hono o Te Kahurangi framework.
What does the Whare Ako framework cover?
Te Hono o Te Kahurangi Whare Ako framework can be used to approve qualifications and programmes, or to conduct an external evaluation and review or consistency review. If you want to know more, contact Rowena.Wirepa@nzqa.govt.nz.
Look out for a survey
We are keen to get your feedback on our services relating to Te Hono o Te Kahurangi and mātauranga Māori. Keep an eye out for a link to a customer satisfaction survey that will be emailed to you.
NZQA processes
Keeping your registration status current
Private training establishments (PTEs) must deliver at least one approved programme or training scheme within a 12-month period to avoid lapse of registration.
If you anticipate not providing a programme or training scheme for 12 months or more, you can apply for an extension of time to stop your registration lapsing.
Apply for this extension before the 12 months of non-usage ends by emailing qaadmin@nzqa.govt.nz.
For more information about PTE registration see:
- Guidelines for applying for registration as a private training establishment
- Guidelines for maintaining registration as a private training establishment
Updated consistency review self-assessment summary
There is an updated template for self-assessment when preparing for a consistency review. The new design fixes some problems with the original template.
The template guides self-assessment in:
- programme design and assessment evaluation
- graduate feedback and destination data evaluation
- evaluating feedback from stakeholders (including employers when relevant) and future users.
The template also requests supporting evidence to:
- identify the evidence used in the self-assessment
- explain how the evidence is used for self-assessment
- explain any gaps in the evidence
- explain the actions to address these gaps.
The section about individual graduate profile outcomes has been removed as repetitive. If you wish, you can add these outcomes back into the self-assessment submission by including them in the programme design and assessment section.
Find the new template at Preparing for and participating in a consistency review.
If you want more information, contact the Consistency team at consistency@nzqa.govt.nz.
Change of contact person for external evaluation and review
If you are due for an external evaluation and review and your contact person changes at any time, please notify the lead evaluator. This will ensure that we communicate with the right person.
To find the name and contact details for the lead evaluator, check the confirmation letter sent to your organisation four to six weeks before the evaluation.
Approvals and Accreditation TEO contacts
We have updated the NZQA contact person for each TEO. When you login to your NZQA provider page, please note this information so all your staff know who their NZQA contact person is.
While you’re logged-in, can you check your provider page to ensure that:
- your organisation contacts are current
- your list of approved permanent delivery sites is correct and shows the sites that are in use
- the degrees, programmes and/or training schemes listed are those that have been delivered by your organisation within the past 12 months.
If you wish to make any changes to this information, please call or email your Approval and Accreditation contact.
Awarding New Zealand qualifications and micro-credentials
Tertiary education organisations (TEOs) can award and issue New Zealand qualifications and micro-credentials listed on the New Zealand Qualifications Framework (NZQF). This flexibility is one of the outcomes of the Targeted Review of Qualifications.
The certificate must be signed by the chief executive or another senior staff member with the authority to confer the award on behalf of the TEO. Include the role/job title of the signer.
Note that our staff cannot sign the certificates.
See TEO issue of New Zealand qualification documents for further information.
Printing New Zealand qualification certificates
We encourage TEOs to award and issue New Zealand qualifications listed at levels 1-6 on the NZQF.
When you are designing New Zealand certificates and diplomas, refer to the guidance at: TEO issue of New Zealand qualification documents.
Cut-off dates for submitting programme applications for delivery in 2020
Application |
Final date for submission to NZQA |
New degree approval and accreditation; or Type 2 programme changes to existing degree-level programmes |
Monday 12 August 2019 |
Sub-degree programme approval and/or accreditation applications; or Type 2 programme changes to approved programmes (levels 1-6 and level 7 diplomas) |
Friday 11 October 2019 |
The cut-off dates are intended to allow enough time for providers to prepare and market for the incoming academic year, and provide an opportunity to plan and implement the new or changed programmes. You can apply at any time.
If you have any questions about programme applications, contact the Approvals and Accreditation team.
Coming up this quarter
Send us your… |
Who? |
By when? |
Applications for new degree approval and accreditation or Type 2 changes to existing degrees to be delivered in 2020 |
All TEOs
|
12 August 2019 |
Annual Statutory Declaration Form Different forms for PTEs and TEIs |
TEOs with a financial year-end of 31 March 2019 |
31 August 2019 |
Independent Assurance Practitioner's Review Report or Auditor's Report |
PTEs with a financial year-end of 31 March 2019 |
31 August 2019 |
TEOs not exempt |
31 August 2019 |
|
Quarterly student fee protection attestation Quarter ending 31 August 2019 |
TEOs not exempt
Not required for standard trusts |
To trustee by 6 September 2019; to NZQA by 13 September 2019 |
All signatories to the Code of Practice |
1 October 2019 |
|
Applications for sub-degree programme approval or accreditation or Type 2 changes to existing sub-degree programmes (levels 1-6 and level 7 diplomas) |
All TEOs |
11 October 2019 |
Fit and proper person and conflict of interest declarations Submit a new or amended declaration:
See Section 232 of the Education Act 1989 for the definition of governing member |
PTEs only:
|
|
Forwarding information and queries
Forward any compliance documents and queries to: qaadmin@nzqa.govt.nz.
Subscribe to eQuate
You can subscribe to eQuate through this ‘sign up’ link.