Document Number: ACC-SOP-04-02
Version Number: 1.0
Effective Date: 01 July 2024

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SOP for Evaluating Undergraduate Engineering Programs

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1.0 PURPOSE OF THIS DOCUMENT

The purpose of this document is to establish the Board of Accreditation for Engineering and Technical Education (BAETE) procedure for evaluating undergraduate engineering programs.

2.0 SCOPE OF THIS DOCUMENT

This standard operating procedure (SOP) is applicable for constituting the Evaluation Team for evaluating single/multiple undergraduate engineering programs of Higher Educational Institutions (HEI).

3.0 ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

3.1 HEI/Programs

• Prepares the program Self-assessment report using ACC-TMP-04-04 (V2.1, V3.0) and submits the accreditation application to the BAETE.
• Submits an Institutional Response upon receiving the Evaluation Team Report.

3.2 The Board

• Constitutes and approves program evaluation teams following the guidelines provided in ACC-MAN-05.
• Makes accreditation decisions based on the Evaluation Team Report and Sectoral Committee Report.

3.3 The Evaluation Team

• Liaison with the program representatives regarding accreditation-related activities from the formation of the evaluation team to the exit meeting. The BAETE Registrar and/or Member Secretary must be informed of all correspondence between the Chair/HoD.
• Submits the Evaluation Team Report following the post-visit activities as per the timeline given in ACC-MAN-04.
• Revise the Evaluation Team Report, if necessary, based on the observation of the Quality Assurance Cell.
• Attends the accreditation decision meeting of BAETE to provide any further clarification on the Evaluation Team Report sought by the Board.

3.5 The Quality Assurance Cell

• Moderates the Evaluation Team Report by consistency checks with BAETE policy and benchmark requirements.

3.6 The Sectoral Committee

• Reviews the Evaluation Team Reports, the Quality Assurance Cell Report and Institutional Response and provides a recommendation to the Board.

4.0 DEFINITIONS AND ACRONYMS

See ACC-MAN-06 for definitions and acronyms.

5.0 SPECIFIC PROCEDURE

Step 1
The program prepares a self-assessment report (SAR) using the ACC-TMP-04-04 (V2.1, V3.0) template. The Program submits the SAR and applicable fees to BAETE to complete its accreditation application.

Step 2
The BAETE Secretariat reviews the submitted SAR to confirm program eligibility for BAETE accreditation (ACC-MAN-01; section 7.0). For ineligible programs, the BAETE notifies the Program of its findings. For ineligible programs, the evaluation process ends at step 2. For eligible programs, the BAETE Secretariat moves to step 3.

Step 3
The BAETE Secretariat checks the SAR for consistency with the template and the requested information in a SAR. If a revision is required, the BAETE Secretariat forwards the request to review the Program with necessary suggestions. If the BAETE Secretariat is satisfied with the SAR, step 4 is skipped, and the procedure continues with step 5.

Step 4
The Program revises the SAR and resubmits it to BAETE. If the program fails to meet the timeline (ACC-MAN-04), the application moves to the next round of application.

Step 5
The BAETE forms the Evaluation Team as per ACC-SOP-04-01 and notifies the Evaluation Team, the relevant Sectoral Committee, and the Program on forming the Evaluation Team.

Step 6
The Sectoral Committee may assign one of its members to accompany the Evaluation Team. If assigned, the assigned Sectoral Committee member shall play an observer role in the Evaluation Team. The Sectoral Committee member will not participate in the evaluation but can perform on-site moderation if necessary.

Step 7
The Evaluation Team completes the pre-visit activities, as stipulated in ACC-MAN-04, section 5.5. The pre-visit activities include but not limited to comprehensive review of the SAR, review of the Evaluation Team Report of the previous visit and program annual reports submitted to BAETE (for renewal applications; BAETE shall share these documents with the Evaluation Team), completion of the Findings from SAR segment of the Evaluation Team Report, identification of the documents to be requested before on-site visit and during on-site visit, identification of facilities to be visited and stakeholders to meet during on-site visit, and preparation of the on-site visit schedule (a sample visit schedule can be found in ACC-PLN-04-10).

Step 8
The Evaluation Team Chair (or The Head of Delegation) communicates with the program representative(s) to convey the Evaluation Team requirements for the on-site visit. The Program must be given reasonable time to make necessary arrangements to accommodate the Evaluation Team’s request for additional documents.

Step 9
The Evaluation Team Chair (or the Head of Delegation) finalizes the on-site visit schedule and dates in consultation with the Evaluation Team members and the Program Representative(s). The Chair should select three consecutive working days for the on-site visit.

Step 10
The Evaluation Team completes the on-site visit at the HEI. The team must adhere to BAETE policy, procedure, and practices throughout the visit. The Evaluation Team must consult with the ACC-TOR-04-11 and ACC-GUI-04-13 documents for the on-site visit. The Evaluation Team must also adhere to the finalized on-site visit schedule for all activities relating to the on-site visit.

Step 11
The Program(s) must adhere to BAETE policy and procedure during the on-site visit. The Program(s) must consult with the ACC-GUI-04-12 document for the evaluation team's on-site visit.

Step 12
The evaluation team debriefs the program head in a pre-exit meeting to ensure no gap in understanding between the Evaluation Team and the program. In the debriefing meeting, the Program may respond to correct any factual error in the Evaluation Team’s Findings.

Step 13
The Evaluation Team Chair (or the Head of Delegation) conducts a concise exit meeting at the end of the on-site visit to present its preliminary findings to the educational institutions following section 5.2.8 of ACC-MAN-05.

Step 14
The Evaluation Team prepares and submits the Evaluation Team Report as per ACC-TMP-04-05 (V2.1, V3.0) and provides recommendations to the Board based on the evaluation findings.

Step 15
The BAETE Secretariat conducts a preliminary review of the Evaluation Team Report. The BAETE Secretariat may ask for a revision of the Evaluation Team Report if the report does not satisfy the requirements.

Step 16
The Quality Assurance Cell Chair forms a 3-member team to review the Evaluation Team Report. The BAETE conflict of interest policy must be followed when selecting members. A QAC member from the same sector may get preference when selecting sub-committee members.

Step 17
The three-member QAC review team performs a consistency check on the Evaluation Team Report. The review team can either forward the report to the program for Institutional Response (Step 19) or return the report back to the Evaluation Team for revision (Step 18).

Step 18
The Evaluation Team revises the Report based on QAC’s recommendation. The Evaluation Team is not obliged to agree with the QAC’s recommendation; however, a justification must be provided for disagreement. The Evaluation Team resubmits the Report.

Step 19
The Program(s) is provided with one week to respond to the findings of the Evaluation Team Report. The Program must focus its response on any factual error that may be present in the Report. The Program’s response must be supported by evidence.

Step 20
The Sectoral Committee receives the Evaluation Team Report, Institutional Response, and the Quality Assurance Committee Report. The Sectoral Committee Chair forms a 3-member team for the review. The BAETE conflict of interest policy must be followed when selecting members.

Step 21
The three-member team reviews the Evaluation Team Report, Institutional Response and Quality Assurance Cell Report and provides a recommendation to the Board based on the review.

Step 22
The BAETE Secretariat prepares the working paper for the Accreditation Decision Meeting (ADM) and circulates it among the Board Members.

Step 23
The Board decides on the programs based on the evaluation findings and reviews of the reports. The Board seeks clarification from the Evaluation Team Chair, Quality Assurance Cell Chair and/or Sectoral Committee Chair, if necessary. The Board decides all programs against the benchmark requirements set in the BAETE manual ACC-MAN-02 (V2.2, V3.0). The decisions are categorized as “Accredit”, Not to Accredit” and “Deferment”. The decision and duration of the accreditation are decided based on ACC-SOP-04-03.

Step 24
The Member Secretary notifies the Honorary General Secretary of the IEB with a request to report the decision in the following Central Council Meeting of the IEB.

Step 25
The HGS of the IEB reports the BAETE accreditation decisions in the IEB Central Council Meeting.

Step 26
The Member Secretary notifies the Programs of the BAETE accreditation decision. The notification letter encloses the BAETE requirements and recommendations for the program, the entire Evaluation Team Report and a certificate (if applicable).

Step 27
The BAETE updates its accreditation register on the BAETE website with the decisions made during the Accreditation Decision Meeting.

6.0 FORMS/TEMPLATES TO BE USED

7.0 EXCEPTIONS

• None allowed. In case of any exception, the BAETE Secretariat must be informed.

8.0 REVISION HISTORY