2.3 University and national frameworks for quality assurance

2.3.1 Oxford Brookes University is registered as a higher education provider with the Office for Students and is therefore subject to the OfS regulatory framework for higher education in England.

2.3.2 The University is responsible for the academic standards of all awards made in its name, and for the quality of the student learning experience on the programmes leading to those awards, wherever they are delivered. The University adheres to sector expectations as articulated in the OfS conditions of registration and the core practices of the UK Quality Code for Higher Education (2018). The University makes scrupulous use of external expertise in setting and assuring the standards of its awards, in line with the external examining principles published by the UK Standing Committee on Quality Assurance (2022).

2.3.3 Oxford Brookes awards also conform to the credit and qualifications frameworks which apply to higher education qualifications offered by UK degree-awarding bodies; and must also fulfil the University's general educational aims, as stated in its academic strategies.

2.3.4 An award is the qualification gained on successful completion of an approved programme of study. New awards may be added to the University’s portfolio, with the approval of the Academic Board. The formal approval, monitoring and review processes applying to all taught programmes leading to the award of University credit or qualifications are set out in the University’s Quality and Standards Handbook The policies and procedures relating to the quality assurance of research degrees are managed by the Research Degrees Team.

2.3.5 The University offers a number of awards in association with professional bodies; and some programmes are therefore designed to fulfil the requirements of a professional or licensing body, in addition to the academic requirements for the award. The University’s PSRB Register lists the professional, statutory and regulatory bodies associated with individual programmes and awards. The specific requirements for students to gain the appropriate PSRB registration will be set out in individual programme specifications and handbooks.

2.3.6 The University is on the Register of Apprenticeship Training Providers (RoATP), and appropriate awards may be approved as part of a Higher or Degree Apprenticeship.

2.3.7 The University has the legal authority to offer programmes and awards through specific partnership arrangements, including dual and joint awards with other UK and international degree-awarding bodies. The University’s Collaborative Provision Register gives details of the programmes of study delivered by, or with, partner organisations, and which lead to Oxford Brookes awards.