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Several key initiatives have instigated by HEC in order to improve higher education outcomes in the Kingdom of Bahrain. A brief summary for each project is below; Our expectations are that the following reforms will have measurable and sizeable impact on the sector which are focused on improving higher education in the Kingdom of Bahrain. A 10 year higher education strategy for higher education: PwC s middle east education team have been engaged to develop a 10 year higher education strategy that represents the current challenges facing higher education lays out there future direction of the sector against labor market challenges, the 2030 vision of Bahrain and the globalisation of higher education. PwCs team will meet with all higher education stakeholders to assess the current situation and develop the roadmap for the future with initiatives to improve the sector. The strategy will focus on the following key areas of:
Work has started on developing the strategy with the new strategy expected to be in place for 2014. Sally Jeffery a partner for PwC says about the work " " PwC education are delighted to be working with the Higher Education Council to develop a strategy that will reform the sector in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Our expectation is that the strategy will tackle the current challenges and presents a way forward for the sector that carefully considers labor market challenges, the 2030 economic vision, the globalization of higher education, quality of teaching and learning and improving graduate outcomes." "our team looks forward to gaining the views of all stakeholders in developing the strategy so that the implementation phase is clear, realistic will have measurable impact". A national scientific research strategy for the Kingdom of Bahrain: HEC are exited be working with Stanford University, one of the worlds leading institutes to develop the nation's first scientific research strategy , work will begin in September 2013. The aims of the strategy will be to:
The expectations are that for the Kingdom of Bahrain that by strengthening the culture of research that this will improve the quality of faculty and students and increase benefits to the nation from investment in university research and that Universities foster collaborations with domestic, regional and international partners. Introduction of a Higher Education Professional Standards Certificate: HEC in September will build a professional standards framework with the UK Higher Education Academy (HEA) with a pilot to commence in early 2014 which will be available to all universities. The HEA is the national body for enhancing learning and teaching in the UK that helps bring about change that has a positive impact for students. Teachers that demonstrate competencies that meet with the standards will also become fellows of the HEA UK. By 2018 HEC expects all teaching staff to have gained the professional standards certificate. Although the modules are yet to be developed they are expected to include;
In addition The University of Bahrain have agreed to subscribe to the Higher Education Academy in order to benchmark their professional development for their university teachers against UK standards. For the past six years, they have run an HEA-accredited programme, ‘Postgraduate Certificate of Academic Practice’ (PCAP) through York St John University, which provides support to new teachers and now they wish to have their own programme accredited independently. Teachers successfully completing the programme will become HEA Fellows– an international community of staff dedicated to demonstrating excellence in their teaching, who wish to gain recognition for their work and raise the profile of teaching in universities. HEC Institutional Accreditation: HEC in partnership with the British Accreditation Council (BAC) will introduce accreditation in 2013which will ensure international standards are introduced to Bahrain. BAC was established in 1984 to be the national accrediting authority for higher education in the UK . The key benefits of accreditation are to raise standards and obtain a mark of quality based on recognised international standards. The benefit to students is that by choosing an accredited university it provides students and their families with assurance that the University meets minimum standards. Universities that receive accreditation will have demonstrated that they meet international standards and this will have significant impact on students, parents, employers and in the region. Student guide to Higher Education: This year HEC produced the first student guide to higher education courses available for the year 2013-14. It contains all key course facts, modules of study, fees and career opportunities. It is the first time that such a student guide has been developed and made available to all students. HEC will ensure that the guide is kept up to date with any changes and will be available on the HEC website Please click on the link to view the student guide to higher education. Online Data System: An online portal went live in July this year which allows universities to input student data onto a live system every semester. Key information that will be captured will allow HEC to collect data covering academic staff, students and graduates to run over 50 types of reports and comparisons. HEC will be able to track individual student performance not just annually but by semester. In addition HEC will be able to follow each student from graduation from high school all the way to employment, it will allow for analysis and comparison at institutional level, national level and international level. HEC will use the reports generated to help make informed policy decisions, analyse trends and make comparisons with other GCC countries.