Strategy

NOKUT will increase its efforts to stimulate the development of educational quality in the sector. This will partly be achieved through a strengthening of research and analysis activities and partly by developing further the element of making recommendations for improvement in connection with our control tasks. In our written and oral communication we will make a clear distinction between demands for measures that have to be taken in order to achieve compliance with national standards on the one hand and further recommendations or advice for improvement on the other. Through open seminars and a more distinct voice in the public domain we will disseminate the results of our activities or direct public attention towards identified challenges in the field of educational quality. Our statements and recommendations shall be based on facts and aimed at the improvement of educational quality in specific institutions or in the sector as a whole.

NOKUT will develop a comprehensive and holistic model for the monitoring of educational quality, with improved interplay between the different mechanisms. We shall exercise greater flexibility in our choice of controlling mechanisms and our activities will be more targeted at areas where specific demands have been identified. This entails that the factors of demand, risk and cost-effectiveness will loom larger than before in our planning of control activities.

NOKUT will continue the work to strengthen its role as a national competence centre. We will develop further the total range of services related to our function of issuing ‘general recognition’, including information and counselling services. In order to match a rising number of applications and inquiries, the strengthening of our processing capacity and the introduction of a new processing system will be tasks of high priority.

NOKUT shall provide better information and service to its stakeholders and other interested parties. We will make it easier for those who apply for recognition of foreign higher education to find the correct recognition authority, while improving the level of information about NOKUT’s own recognition activity. We will also improve the level of information to institutions about our quality assurance processes and other activities.

NOKUT shall strengthen its dialogue with the educational institutions. When dealing with the institutions we must be aware of our dual role as quality assurance agent on the one hand and adviser in matters of quality enhancement on the other. With regards to the recognition of foreign qualifications we will put increased emphasis on contact with applicants, the labour market and other recognition agents. We will also strengthen contact with the public and make our activities better known in society by developing our website and strengthening the dialogue and networks with relevant organisations.