DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

APPLICATION FOR ADDITIONS OR CHANGES TO APPROVED ACADEMIC PROGRAMMES
[Please read the attached notes before completing this form]

1	NAME OF INSTITUTION:--------------------------------------------------------------------

2	NAME OF PROGRAMME TO BE CONSIDERED:  ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3	TECHNICAL INFORMATION ON EACH QUALIFICATION TO BE OFFERED IN PROGRAMME   (If more than 3 qualifications are involved in above programme, continue on another form)

	Qualifications involved in programmes
	
	Qualification 1	Qualification 2	Qualification 3	
3.1  Qualification 
        type				
3.2  Full title of 
       qualification

3.3  Abbreviated 
       title				
3.4  Majors/fields of 
       study by  2nd 
       order CESM 
       categories				
3.5  Course level of 
       majors in final 
       year of study				
3.6  Delivery mode
				
3.7 Delivery sites				
3.8  Minimum total 
       time				
3.9  Minimum 
       experiential time				
3.10  Exit points
				
4	NATURE OF APPLICATION  (Please use separate column for each qualification involved in programme and tick appropriate blocks)

	Qualifications involved in programmes
(Write abbreviated title of qualification in appropriate column)	

	Qualification 1	Qualification 2	Qualification 3	
4.1  New qualification  in new cell  of grid 				
4.2  Existing qualification in new cell  of grid				
4.3  New qualification in approved cell  of grid	 			
4.4	New qualification in approved cell but in
       new second order CESM category				
4.5	Existing qualification in approved cell but 
       in new second order CESM category				
4.6	Change of name/title of existing
        qualification				
4.7  Other (explain below):				

5	BRIEF JUSTIFICATION OF APPLICATION  (Please use no more than the lines made available)
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	CERTIFICATION BY INSTITUTION THAT APPLICATION HAS BEEN APPROVED BY COUNCIL AND/OR SENATE

	SIGNED:------------------------------------------------------------ DATE--------------------------------
	DESIGNATION:--------------------------------------------------	

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION USE ONLY

Qualification 1-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Qualification 2------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Qualification 3-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Signed--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Date--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

										APPENDIX

APPROVAL PROCESS FOR NEW ACADEMIC PROGRAMMES AND 
AMENDMENTS TO EXISTING PROGRAMMES

1.	APPLICATION FLOW

The Department of Education, the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) and the Council On Higher Education have agreed on the following process dealing with programmes, new qualifications registration, accreditation and approval:

•	All applications, which must be approved in advance by the Council and/or Senate of an institution and signed by the Vice-Chancellor or his designate, must be submitted to the DOE on the attached form. 
•	Institutions will be allowed to submit applications at the most twice a year. The closing date for these submissions will be communicated to institutions annually.
•	The DOE will analyse and evaluate applications in term of the criteria as set out in Par. 2. The decisions of the DOE in this regard will be conveyed to institutions no later than one month after receipt of the application.
•	In the event of an application being approved, the DOE will communicate such outcomes to the HEQC and SAQA.
•	If the DOE decides that it cannot support an application the process ends for that particular application. The HEQC and SAQA will only consider those programmes or parts of programmes, which have been certified as acceptable by the DOE.
•	If the DOE decides that all or part of an institution’s application is acceptable, then that institution must submit an application for accreditation to the HEQC and at the same time apply to SAQA for the registration of the new qualification on the National Qualifications Framework (NQF). Applications for accreditation and registration must be in the format required by the SAQA and the HEQC. The closing date of these submissions will be communicated to institutions annually.
•	Only those programmes, which are accredited and registered, will then be submitted to the Minister of Education for formal approval.

It must be stressed that institutions will not be permitted to introduce any new or reconfigured programmes until it has been (a) accepted as part of the institution’s PQM by the DOE, (b) accredited by the HEQC, (c) registered on the NQF by SAQA and (d) approved by the Minister of Education. 

Applications that are incomplete or do not comply with any of the conditions will not be screened or evaluated.

2	CRITERIA FOR ASSESSING APPLICATIONS

2.1	National academic policies

All applications must be consistent with the set of national academic policies approved by the Minister of Education. If an application is not consistent with these policies, then it will not be considered further by the DoE.

The latest versions of these policies are contained in the following documents:

•	A Qualification Structure for Universities in South Africa (Report 116,  March 1995)
•	General Policies for Technikon Instructional Programmes (Report 150, January 1997)
•	Norms and Standards for Educators (Government Gazette, Vol 415, February 2000)

The Government Gazette referred to above sets out the latest academic policy for all qualifications associated with teacher training, Report 116 that for all qualifications and programmes offered by universities, other than those in teacher training, and Report 150 that for all qualifications and programmes offered by technikons, other than those in teacher training.

2.2	Guidelines developed in 2001 and 2002

The Higher Education Branch will continue to use the guidelines developed during the 2001/2002  assessment of institutional programme and qualification profiles, when assessing those applications which are consistent with national academic policies. These guidelines are spelled out in Section A of the report Approved Academic Programmes for Universities and Technikons: 2003-2006, which was circulated to institutions in December 2002. The essential features of these guidelines are the following:

2.2.1	Account will be taken of the following in assessing any application:

•	the fit between the institution’s mission, including national or regional needs and the proposed additions and/or changes to its approved programme and qualification mix;
•	institutional capacity, in particular in terms of qualified academic staff and student to academic staff ratios;
•	overall graduation rates and the graduation rates in the proposed programme area;
•	past enrolment trends, particularly if the application is for a new qualification which builds on a lower level qualification;
•	the programme and qualification mix of neighbouring institutions.

2.2.2	Proposed programmes either (a) in new CESM categories or (b) at new qualification levels will be approved in exceptional circumstances only. 

2.2.3	New distance education programmes to be offered by contact institutions will be permitted in exceptional circumstances only.

2.2.4	If a new programme area is approved, either in a new CESM category or in a new cell in an existing category, then, unless further exceptional circumstances obtain, the institution will be permitted to introduce only the appropriate first level qualification. 

2.2.5	A qualification (undergraduate or postgraduate), which builds on an existing lower-level qualification, will be considered for approval only if the enrolment and graduation trends of the lower-level qualification show that there is likely to be an adequate flow of students into the new qualification. 

3	SOME POINTS ON THE APPLICATION FORM 

•	A separate application form must be used for each programme for which an institution is submitting an application. 

•	Paragraph 2:  the name of the proposed programme is that given to it by the institution. This can be a specific  title or generic title covering a number of qualifications

•	Paragraph 3: 
3.1	The qualification type is that which will appear in the HEMIS qualification file.
3.2 & 3.3	The full and abbreviated titles used must be consistent with the degree, diploma and certificate designations of the national academic policies referred to in 2.2 above
3.4	A short  (at most 4 words) description of the second order CESM plus the appropriate numerals should be used here.
3.5	Course levels are as used in the HEMIS course file.  The classification used must be that which applies to the final course of the major or principal subject.
3.6	The delivery mode should be as defined in HEMIS, and should be reflected as either (a) contact or (b) distance or (c) mixed. 
3.7	The delivery site should, in the case of a contact programme, be either the main campus or an approved satellite campus.
3.8 & 3.9	These times should be as defined in the HEMIS qualification file.
3.10	The exit points would be those lower level qualifications which could be awarded to a candidate who does not complete the proposed qualification.

•	A fuller, more detailed justification of the application may be attached separately if the space 
provided in paragraph 5 is not sufficient.