ANECA (Spain)
The accreditation procedure consists of the following steps:
- The University designs the study plan of the programme and sends it to the University Council (a governmental body) for the ex-ante accreditation.
- The University Council sends the study plan to ANECA for the assessment process.
- ANECA appoints the members of the panel.
- The panel assesses the study plan according to the criteria set up for the assessment procedure for the ex-ante accreditation of official university degrees and writes the draft accreditation report.
- ANECA sends the draft report to the University in case it wants to add any observations.
- ANECA analyses the observations presented, finalises the accreditation report and sends it to the University Council, a governmental body.
- The University Council checks that the name of the degree is coherent with the study plan and establishes the ex-ante accreditation result (positive or negative).
- The ex-ante accreditation result is notified to the Autonomous Community and to the University.
- If the University appeals the ex-ante accreditation result, the University Council will appoint a different panel for the review who can confirm the ex-ante accreditation result or accept the appeal and send it to ANECA.
- ANECA reviews the appeals and sends the final assessment result to the University Council who will inform the other stakeholders of the process.
- After the Autonomous Community authorises the degree, it is registered and considered an official degree.
- The registered degree will be monitored by ANECA and the regional quality agencies until the renewal of the accreditation is required.
- 6 years after the degree is registered, an ex-post accreditation is demanded in order to prove that the degree fulfils what it was specified in the design.
Accreditation is a yes or no decision. There is no possibility to attach conditions to a positive decision.
