Academic Board
Aberdeen College has had an Academic Board for a considerable time. The role of the Academic Board is to “tender advice to the Principal on matters relating to the academic activities of the College”.
Five sub-committees with specific remits support the Board. The sub-committees report directly to the full Academic Board that also considers specific reports on a range of issues such as curriculum development and the College calendar and timetable.
Membership
The membership of the Board includes a number of people with specific cross-College roles relating to the delivery of the curriculum and related services (who are ‘ex officio’ members of the committee by virtue of their posts) together with elected representatives.
The sub-committees are as follows:
The Curriculum Advisory Panel (CAP) which is responsible for vetting new course proposals. All new full-time programmes must be considered and sanctioned by the CAP before the College can offer them. In each case the relevant Curriculum Manager has to provide a rationale for the programme and demonstrate that it will be financially viable and that it can be developed to an appropriate quality standard.
The Quality Assurance Sub-Committee is responsible for the annual review of College provision and other aspects of quality assurance of College programmes. Every College curriculum team must carry out self-evaluation of each programme each session. The process involves analysing the effectiveness of a given course using a range of performance indicators and other information. Courses that are considered not to be fit for purpose may need to be restructured or amended or have delivery arrangements altered. Courses may be deleted on the advice of the Sub-Committee.
The Information and Communication Technologies Group is tasked with providing a cross-College perspective on how effectively the use of ICT is being promoted and developed within the College.
The Guidance Committee monitors the guidance arrangements in place to meet the needs of the student body. It also identifies areas for improvement.
The School Links Group oversees the effectiveness of links with local schools. Its remit is an operational one.