By-Law 3

National Curriculum Accreditation Procedures

Through the accreditation process, AHRI seeks to influence ongoing human resources curriculum development. Any academic institution, whether affiliated with AHRI or not, may apply to the Institute for accreditation of their academic programs.

The accreditation standards are underpinned by AHRI’s HR Model of Excellence (MoE). This model is subject to change pending current research and emerging industry benchmarks.

Accreditation processes operate in accordance with the following principles:

1. Delegated authority to the national accreditation committee
  1. AHRI Ltd Board shall delegate to a National Accreditation Committee (NAC) established for this purpose, the task of assessing curriculum content, maintenance and delivery of HR courses.
  2. The NAC will operate as an independent body with authority to report on the accreditation outcomes to the Board and membership.
  3. The NAC is a sub-committee of the National Certification Council (NCC) and supports the NCC in its work in relation to certification by ensuring the AHRI Model of Excellence (MoE) is updated in line with good HR practice.
  4. The committee will be appointed by AHRI Ltd according to the following criteria which is designed to represent the various stakeholder groups:
    1. Chair of the NAC nominated by the AHRI Ltd Board
    2. AHRI Non-Executive Director
    3. Academia HR Specialisation (4)
    4. VET (2)
    5. Private Sector
    6. Public Sector
    7. Not for Profit Sector
    8. CSP Representative/Councillor/Past Board Member/Past CSP
    9. Representatives from AHRI Ltd (in a non-voting capacity) as required.
  5. The terms of service for NAC members is for a period of 3 years. NAC members can be invited to undertake continuous terms of service.
2. Curriculum approval processes
  1. A program of study is deemed to be an eligible course in HR management if the course will equip a graduate to meet the desired accredited HR course outcomes. Curriculum may be submitted from any academic institution using the AHRI university and VET application kits.
    1. Criteria for accreditation include:
    2. The institution is a reputable provider of education and training. ASQA
    3. reports are reviewed to identify recommendations applicable to the HR courses.
    4. The course is the product of an industry-focused curriculum development process.
      Assessment is appropriate and planned.
      Evaluation, review and improvement are ongoing.
  2. All applications undergo a desk audit prior to review by the NAC to ensure all
    documentation is in place. Requests are made to the institutions for additional
    information if required.
  3. The NAC convenes bi annually to review applications and to review the MoE.
  4. Any conflicts of interest are declared, and the Chair recommends the procedures
    for proceeding.
  5. Three levels of decisions are available to the NAC:
    1. Approved – institution is advised of their successful accreditation
    2. Pending – institutions are advised of the deficiencies within their application and have 28 days to submit additional information as requested. Information is forwarded to the NAC for consideration and recommendation is made by the Chair
    3. Application Premature – institutions are advised that their application has not been successful and advised of areas within the application which must be strengthened.
3. Notification of decisions
  1. The decisions by the NAC to accredit HRM courses of study will be forwarded to the institution together with the accreditation branding.
  2. Those institutions successful in the accreditation process will be published on the AHRI website
4. Reaccreditation processes
  1. The period of AHRI accreditation is for three years.
  2.  At the completion of the accreditation period, AHRI advises the institutions when their course is nearing the end of registration period and sends out documents for re-accreditation.

 March 2018