Providers and partners

Approval, accreditation and registration

Approval, accreditation, and registration define NZQA's quality requirements for education organisations and the programmes they provide.

The different processes of approval, accreditation and registration are part of the initial entry processes for tertiary education organisations (TEOs).

The purpose of these processes is to ensure that TEOs operating in or from New Zealand provide quality education for students that meets the requirements set out in NZQA rules and the Education and Training Act 2020.

Approval is a process where a TEO seeks permission to develop or implement a new quality assured product.

Accreditation is a process where a TEO seeks permission to use or deliver an NZQA-approved programme that has already been developed, including one developed by another TEO.

Registration is a process where an organisation seeks to be recognised by NZQA as a private training establishment (PTE). An organisation needs to be registered as a PTE before applying for any NZQA approvals or accreditations.

Approval, accreditation and registration for TEOs

The approval, accreditation and registration processes that NZQA runs are:

Approval

Assessment standards listed on the Directory of Assessment Standards
Consent and Moderation Requirements for standards on the Directory of Assessment Standards
Tertiary: Consent to assess against standards on the Directory of Assessment Standards
Secondary: Consent to assess against standards on the Directory of Assessment Standards
Listing qualifications on the New Zealand Qualifications Framework
Reviewing New Zealand qualifications listed on the New Zealand Qualifications Framework
Maintaining national qualifications listed on the New Zealand Qualifications Framework
Programme approval, including programmes of industry training
Degree approval and monitoring
Micro-credential approval

Get endorsement from a Workforce Development Council (WDC) before you develop a programme

A Workforce Development Council (WDC) must see and endorse any programmes related to the industries they cover.

We recommend that your educational organisation works closely with the relevant WDC while you develop the programme.

For more information, see the Programme approval and provider accreditation page.

Accreditation

Registration

Related processes and policies

Maintaining approval, accreditation and registration for TEOs

Once a TEO has gained approval, accreditation or registration, the TEO needs to continue to meet NZQA requirements and rules to maintain them.

There are different requirements for different processes. For more information see the appropriate guidelines.

If you know what document you are looking for, you can go straight to the Guidelines and forms page to find it.

Stay informed

Keep up with changes to regulations, quality assurance processes and other information of interest to the tertiary sector by checking out the eQuate newsletter.

You can also sign up to receive an email update when a new eQuate is published.

Update your details on your Tertiary Education Organisation profile

Tertiary education organisations must update their phone, email, fax, website, key contact, and some other details through their TEO Profile.

Log on using your Education Sector Authentication and Authorisation (ESAA) user ID and password to access these details.

Only users with TEO Management Representative access are able to edit these details.