Academic Policy & Governance

The PSR review covers the following aspects:

• strategic approach to enhancing learning and teaching;
• enhancing and supporting the student learning experience;
• enhancement in learning and teaching;
• quality assurance and maintaining and reviewing academic standards;
• approaches to identifying and sharing good practice.

The aims of the PSR are to provide support to the Subject/School by enhancing its taught provision through:

• Evaluation
• Discussion, and
• Reporting

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Evaluation of:

• the relevance of programme aims and intended learning outcomes for each programme to each other and to the overall aims of the Subject's provision; the effectiveness of teaching, learning and assessment methods in meeting the intended learning outcomes for each programme;
• the correlation of provision with the relevant QAA Subject Benchmark Statements, the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework and other elements of the QAA’s ‘Quality Code’;
• the currency and validity of each programme in the light of developing knowledge within the discipline, and the application of that knowledge in practice;
• the effectiveness of the measures in place to assure the quality of provision and maintain standards;
• recent and proposed enhancements to the quality of the student learning experience in taught provision;
• the effectiveness of how the Subject/School engages students in developing teaching, learning and assessment practice.

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Discussion with the Subject/School, its staff, students and stakeholders on:

• the quality of teaching, learning and assessment, and learning resources;
• the Subject/School’s approach to the enhancement of provision, including recent developments and future plans;
• the quality of the student learning experience, and ways in which it might be enhanced;
• ways of promoting student motivation and effective learning.

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Reporting the outcome of the PSR review covering:

• an evaluation of the quality of the provision under review, including a statement on the Panel’s conclusions on the currency and validity of the programmes offered;
• an evaluation of the Subject/School's procedures for assuring the standards of awards and the quality of provision;
• an evaluation of the Subject/School’s approach to the enhancement of the student learning experience in taught provision;
• an evaluation of how effectively the Subject/School engages with students in developing teaching, learning and assessment practice, including preparation for the PSR process;
• an evaluation of collaborative provision (if appropriate);
• an evaluation of student mobility and work based and placement learning;
• the identification of good practices for dissemination across the University, as appropriate;
• recommendations for action to address any identified weaknesses and to further strengthen provision and thereby further enhance the provision of teaching, learning and assessment.

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There is a rolling schedule of reviews and Schools/Subjects should normally expect a PSR every 6 years. The schedule is approved in consultation with the Vice Principal (Learning & Teaching), Deans (Learning & Teaching) and Heads of School.

Reviews are normally undertaken at School level, but due to the interdisciplinary nature of some Schools, this is not always practical. Heads of School are invited to advise on appropriate groupings for reviews. The schedule aims to distribute the reviewing load in any one year across Colleges and takes account, where possible, issues such as joint degrees and articulation with external accreditation timetables.  

Reviews are not normally held at the beginning or end of the academic session or during examination periods. For this reason, the reviews are typically held in the period December to March when students are available to meet with the Review Panel. The APG consults with School/Subjects over suitable dates.