Every institution offering “Post-Secondary” or “Tertiary Education” should at all times be registered with the National Accreditation Council, according to a Ministry of Education notice.
According to the notice in yesterday’s edition of the Guyana Chronicle, registration refers to the assessment of an institution’s capacity to deliver on its programmes offered, in accordance with the Council’s standards. Registration, it further stated, is done on a year to date basis, with a maximum of three years. The Council offers two types of registration; Provisional Registration, which is awarded to an institution that did not meet the minimum standards set out by Council (a period of 1 year is granted to the institution for the recommendations that was identified by the Council to be implemented with their support); and Full Registration, which is offered to institutions that exceed or meet the criteria set out by Council and they are granted registration status for a maximum of three years. During the registration period, the institution will have to provide the council with an Annual Status Report.
The notice further defined accreditation as the process of external reviews used in higher education to scrutinize colleges, universities and higher education programmes for quality assurance and quality improvement.
The Council is the principal body in Guyana for conducting and advising on the accreditation and recognition of educational and training institutions, providers, programmes and awards, whether foreign or national, so as to promote quality and high standards of education and training in Guyana, it was noted.
