• Section 1 - Purpose and Context
• Section 2 - Definitions
• Section 3 - Policy Statement
• Section 4 - Procedures
• Reporting
• Section 5 - Guidelines
• Other Sources of External Advice

Section 1 - Purpose and Context

(1) The Award Courses and Units Approval Policy facilitates the development and approval of courses and units, taking into account the quality control delivered by schools, colleges, College External Advisory Committees, and other supporting units.

(2) In considering proposals for new undergraduate and taught postgraduate courses, or for substantial variations to existing courses, colleges must establish processes to obtain external feedback on the proposals. A "College External Advisory Committee" is one way to achieve this.

(3) Colleges may need to establish a number of External Advisory Committees, to cover the range of discipline areas, courses and key programs offered by the College.

Section 2 - Definitions

(4) Nil.

Section 3 - Policy Statement

(5) The College External Advisory Committee's principal function is to provide collegial advice on the relevance of courses to prospective students, the community, to industry, and to appropriate professional bodies, adopting open and transparent processes. The Committee may also facilitate networking with business, industry and community figures to leverage consultancy ventures, foster support for the University, attract donations for scholarships, provide opportunities for research collaborations, and provide vocational experience for student placements. With appropriate membership, the Committee may provide expert advice about Curriculum Design Standards for current or proposed courses.

(6) A College External Advisory Committee (or committees) may be established to provide advice over a considerable period - from inception of a particular course or courses, through to their being offered to students. The Committee may be invited to comment on reports from the UWS Annual Course Reports and Review system. Alternatively, the Committee might be commissioned for a limited duration, to undertake a particular task - for example, to review a particular course that was due for professional re-accreditation.

Section 4 - Procedures

(7) In establishing a College External Advisory Committee, or committees, the relevant Associate Dean (Academic) or equivalent* will:

1. determine the Committee's terms of reference;
2. appoint an external chair; that is, an individual who is not employed by the University.
3. in consultation with Heads of Programs and Heads of Schools, appoint the members of the Committee. A majority of members must be external to the University, for example, alumni, relevant professionals, academic staff at other institutions;
4. decide how often the Committee should meet, and whether meetings are face-to-face or electronic, taking into account the wishes of the Committee;
5. arrange the Committee's administrative support.
   * [In recognition that not all colleges may have staff with this title, the meaning of "equivalent" will be determined by the Executive Dean.]

Reporting

(8) The College External Advisory Committee's reports will be referred to the College Education Assessment and Progression Committee Appeals Panel, and the Academic Planning and Courses Approvals Committee, as part of the consideration of the course proposal.

Section 5 - Guidelines

Other Sources of External Advice

(9) The University recognises that an external committee is not the only way to obtain evidence, information, external views, and feedback on courses and course proposals.

(10) Other sources of information include:

1. the Annual Course Reports which include performance data on student demand, enrolments (EFTSL), retention, progression, completions, graduate outcomes and feedback on the course experience, including the Course Experience Questionnaire (CEQ) and Graduate Destination Survey (GDS);
2. the Student Feedback on Unit survey covering the student experience of each unit;
3. Other surveys, including the UWS Employer Survey, the UWS Image Survey, and surveys of non-returning students.