Core Functions and Activities of QAB

According to the QAB Policy, the Bureau is mandated to perform the following core functions:

1. Develop, strategize, promote and oversee the implementation of the Quality Assurance Policy;
2. Develop and maintain appropriate and relevant general operational manuals including internal self-evaluation instruments to guide university-level QA operations;
3. Set performance standards including updating in every five years, operational manuals to guide university-level quality assurance operations as well as instruments for use in internal evaluations;
4. Evaluate the link between various university policies and quality assurance framework and devise harmonization strategies;
5. Formulate and oversee the implementation of various responsive strategies for quality assurance and promotion in accordance with changes in education challenges;
6. Evaluate resource availability for training, research and outreach programmes and advise accordingly;
7. Coordinate programmes for institutional self-evaluation on quality assurance systems;
8. Carry out analysis of quality assurance reports such as students’ course evaluations; External Examiners reports, external evaluation/audit reports and identifying issues for short-,medium- or long-term implementation and their implementing units;
9. Coordinate external evaluation or institutional audits;
10. Initiate and maintain links with TCU and Quality Bureaus/Directorates/Units in sister universities and colleges and forging partnership with relevant regional QA bodies for mutual benefit;
11. Monitor, evaluate and ensure quality in teaching, learning, research, outreach and service provision;
12. Evaluate performance of UTLIP and devise corrective measures for enhanced teaching and learning performance;
13. Advise DVC-Academic and DVC-Administration and Finance on matters of the attention of their offices;
14. Evaluate and ensure that all staff and students implement  set institutional quality standards in teaching, learning, research, outreach and service provision;
15. Conduct periodic training on quality assurance issues;
16. Keep abreast with topical quality assurance matters in higher education at national, regional and global levels and determine how the University can actively participate in any debates and/or practices arising thereof; and
17. Perform any other duties related to QA as shall be determined by the University.

To facilitate implementation of the above mandate and as contained in the Quality Assurance Policy of 2017, the QAB works closely with Colleges, Schools, Directorates and Institutes as well as academic and administrative Departments to have the prescribed Quality Assurance Implementation Committees functional to be able to feed into the Quality Assurance Board, which in turn recommends issues to relevant higher decision-making organs of the University.

In a nutshell, the above list summarizes the activities of the QAB in collaboration with other units. These procedures serve two major purposes: quality assurance for accountability and improvement purposes. Quality procedures for accounatbility purposes are based on criteria set down by external authorities and institutions such as the TCU, the Inter-University Council for East Africa (IUCEA) with the aim of strengthening external insights and control, with the possibility of undertaking external corrective action, if necessary. On the other hand, quality assurance for improvement purposes, which the QAB is mainly focusing on improving quality by creating a quality culture and internal systems to achieve our vision, mission and strategic objectives in an orderly and systematic manner. Generally, quality assurance must promote self-regulatory capacities rather than adherence to a culture of compliance.