Joint statement of principles for the higher education sector COVID-19 response
TEQSA welcomes and supports the Joint Statement of Principles for the Higher Education Sector COVID-19 Response that has been endorsed by the Australian Council of Professions (ACoP), Universities Australia (UA), the Independent Tertiary Education Council Australia (ITECA), the Australian Collaborative Education Network (ACEN) and the Independent Higher Education Australia (IHEA).
The Joint Statement outlines consensus-based principles for the higher education sector adapting during the COVID-19 pandemic in the following areas:
- accreditation flexibility and maintaining course quality
- maintaining quality during changed teaching and learning
- supporting online assessments while maintaining rigour
- mitigating a reduced availability of professional placements
- flexibility on (re-)registration/accreditation of professionals
- maintaining international accords for professionals' mobility.
As Australia’s independent quality assurance and regulatory agency for higher education, TEQSA will refer to the principles outlined in the Joint Statement as part of our course accreditation activities during this time.
This continues our approach to work closely with the higher education sector, including peak bodies and individual providers, to understand the wide-ranging effects of COVID-19 and how we can continue to provide supportive regulation, including flexibility and temporary regulatory relaxations where appropriate.