Academic Standards and Quality

Periodic review panel

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Panel members

Periodic Review Panels will be convened by the Academic Standards and Partnerships Office after consultation with the Department, relevant Dean or Chair of the review panel. Each Panel is normally constituted as follows:

  1. A Dean, or an alternative appointed at the request of the Dean(s) responsible for the provision under review (Chair), this will usually be the Faculty Dean of the Department under review, although a Dean cannot act as Chair for their own Department’s Periodic Review 
  2. At least one subject expert from outside the University and its partner institutions (in the case of vocational or professional programmes , there should be two external subject experts, one of whom should be an employer representative) (1)
  3. At least one student representative (normally currently registered on one of the courses, although a recent graduate of an undergraduate course who has progressed to postgraduate study may alternatively be appointed)
  4. A senior administrator from the Academic Section (Secretary of the Review);
  5. Normally two members of academic staff external to the Department concerned but internal to the University, although the Dean or Chair of the panel may approve one member only under exceptional circumstances.

(1)  Initial consultations with the unit responsible for the delivery of the course will establish the number of external subject specialists needed to cover the range of courses falling within a particular periodic review and which individuals might be approached to serve in this capacity.  This decision may also be governed by the requirements of any accrediting Professional, Statutory or Regulatory Body.

Criteria for choosing panel members

External subject expert

The external academic panel member should normally:

  • be a senior academic currently employed in a substantive role at a higher education institution with degree awarding powers
  • have relevant subject expertise and current experience of delivering provision at the same level as the course(s) being reviewed
  • not be a current or previous external examiner employed by the University to oversee provision at the University or any partner institution, unless at least five years have elapsed between ceasing employment as an external examiner and the date of the review event
  • not have any conflict of interest arising from links with the University or its partner institutions, or from personal or professional relationships with members of staff or students at the University or its partner institutions
  • where more than one external academic is included on the panel, be from a different institution to any other external representative
  • reside in the UK (approval to appoint a panel member from outside the UK will be granted only exceptionally).

Student panel member

Every periodic review should have a student representative panel member.  The department will be asked to identify potential students for this role.

For undergraduate events suitable candidates would be either a final year student or a masters student who undertook their undergraduate degree within the department. For postgraduate events an ideal candidate would be a PhD student who had previously undertaken a masters degree in the department.

Roles of panel members

External subject expertsstudents walking

As the external panel member you will be asked to:

  • read the periodic review documentation
  • prepare a list of questions/issues you would like to explore as part of the review meeting's agenda
  • visit the University for a meeting and contribute to discussions with the department
  • comment on a draft report

The University will pay you a fee of £250 and will meet travel and subsistence expenses according to normal internal rates. Accommodation for one night can be arranged if required.

As an external panel member, your main role is to examine:

  • the currency of the curriculum
  • the appropriateness of the curriculum in relation to national benchmarks and similar provision at other HEIs
  • the appropriateness of the strategy for assessment
  • the quality of the student experience

The student representative

The department will brief students on the role in advance of the meeting.  As the student panel member you will be asked to:

  • read the periodic review documentation
  • think about the issues you would like the panel to explore in advance of the meeting
  • visit the University for a meeting and contribute to discussions
  • comment on a draft report

Your role is to:

  • contribute to discussions from the perspective of your experience to help to ensure that the periodic review takes due regard of student opinion
  •  contribute to the agenda of the meeting and identify questions for the departmental team to answer. Normally the student panel member would identify questions relating to:
    1. the quality of the student experience
    2. academic support and guidance
    3. how the department provides advice on improving student performance
    4. the effectiveness of assessment methods
    5. the availability of resources
    6. the clarity and accessibility of information

The University will pay student panel members a fee of £50.00

Briefing notes are also available for students meeting the Panel.

Internal panel members

All Periodic Review panels include members from cognate disciplines to those being reviewed. While you are not expected to be able to comment on subject specific content, your experience of your own department’s and the Faculty's practice in relation to learning, teaching and assessment should enable you to critically evaluate the periodic review documentation and identify possible issues or good practice.

If you have, for example, a particular responsibility or interest in assessment methods, then you might focus on this area when reading the Periodic Review documentation and be prepared to ask questions about this area at the review meeting.

 

 

 

 

Page last updated: 03 May 2013