Re-accreditation 07 August 2014

Renewal of course accreditation

Report on renewal of accreditation of one higher education course of study offered by The Australian Institute of Music (AIM).

TEQSA has determined, under Section 56 of the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency Act 2011 (the TEQSA Act), to renew accreditation of the following higher education course of study offered by The Australian Institute of Music for a period of seven years until 7 August 2021

• Bachelor of Performance

TEQSA has imposed the following conditions on the accreditation of the course under subsection 53(1) of the TEQSA Act:

Condition 1

That, on 1 April 2015 and 1 April 2016 (when the application for renewal of registration is made) AIM provides TEQSA with an annual report which covers the previous 3 years and contains accurate and sufficient comparative data on each category of students enrolled in the Bachelor of Performance in relation to attrition, progress and completion rates and grade distributions. The report should include evidence that this data is monitored and acted upon through AIM's academic governance processes.

Condition 2

That, by 7 November 2014 AIM provides:

a) evidence that its Policy for the Qualifications and Equivalence of AIM Academy/Teaching Staff ensures compliance with Provider Course Accreditation Standard 4.2, in particular the requirement to ensure that staff who teach students in the course of study are appropriately qualified in the relevant discipline for their level of teaching (qualified to at least one AQF qualification level higher than the course of study being taught or with equivalent professional experience) and

b) details of the qualifications and/or equivalent professional experience of each staff member involved in teaching the course of study in accordance with its policy.

Background to Decision

The Australian Institute of Music submitted an application for renewal of accreditation of one course of study under Part 4 of the TEQSA Act. Subsection 45(4) of the TEQSA Act requires a registered higher education provider who is not authorised to self-accredit the course of study to apply to TEQSA for accreditation. Subsection 56(4) enables TEQSA to renew accreditation of a course of study for a period not exceeding seven years.

Main Reasons for the Decision

TEQSA has determined that the Bachelor of Performance submitted by The Australian Institute of Music for accreditation complies with the Provider Course Accreditation Standards but that, in order to address a number of risks to compliance, the conditions as proposed be imposed. The course accreditation covers delivery at all Australian sites.

TEQSA considers that the decision to apply conditions to the accreditation of AIM's Bachelor of Performance is consistent with the basic principles for regulation in Part 2 of the TEQSA Act, as AIM is at risk of not complying with a number of the Threshold Standards relating to the Bachelor of Performance. TEQSA considers that the risks of non-compliance with the Threshold Standards involve matters that may affect AIM's capacity to manage and deliver its higher education awards.

The conditions have been imposed on the basis that TEQSA considers that there is a risk that AIM may not meet the following Provider Course Accreditation Standards (PCAS) which relate to the Bachelor of Performance:

• PCAS 5.4. TEQSA is concerned that AIM was unable to provide reliable comparative data relating to student outcomes.

• PCAS 4.2. TEQSA is concerned that AIM had not provided evidence of the application of a compliant policy for professional equivalence to its current staffing.