VPRS 11422 Agenda, Minutes and Board Papers

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This series consists of the Agendas, Minutes and Board Papers of the Victorian Post-Secondary Education Accreditation Board (VPSEAB).

VPSEAB was established in July 1987 by an amendment to the Post-Secondary Education Act. It replaced the TAFE Accreditation Board and the Victorian Post-Secondary Education Commission Accreditation Board. The Amendment Act invested responsibility for the accreditation of TAFE courses and advanced education courses in the single Board, VPSEAB.

The amending legislation which established VPSEAB reflected the differences between accreditation in the TAFE sector (previously the responsibility of the TAFE Accreditation Board) and the advanced education sector (previously the VPSEC Accreditation Board). In the advanced education sector each course was identified with a particular institution which had right over that course and the award gained by its students. Courses led to academic awards and advanced education awards placed on the Victorian Register of Accredited Courses were listed by college, name of award and dates of accreditation.

In the TAFE sector courses for which accreditation had been sought were not identified with a particular teaching institution and were the property of the TAFE Board (replaced by the State Training Board in 1988). Approval to develop a course was granted by the TAFE Board to one or more institutions on its behalf. Once the course was on the TAFE Register of Accredited Courses, institutions could apply at any time to the TAFE Board for permission to conduct the course.

In 1990 VPSEAB was abolished, the last meeting was held in December 1990. The implementation of the National System of Higher Education moved responsibility for the accreditation of higher education programs from VPSEAB. The responsibility gradually passed to the colleges in the higher education sectors (and universities once colleges began to be amalgamated with the universities). Responsibility for accreditation in the TAFE sector went to various industry accreditation boards established by the State Training Board.

Series includes agenda, minutes and papers submitted to the Board - correspondence, reports, summaries of recommendations received from committees and panels, minutes of other committees and panels. The committees which submitted minutes to VPSEAB were the Policy and Procedures Committee, Advanced Education Panel, TAFE Panel, Associate Diploma Panel, Joint Standing Committee on Higher Degrees by Research. If the papers were first submitted to a subcommittee of VPSEAB the papers should be with the minutes of the subcommittee as well as VPSEAB. VPSEAB also received minutes of the Victorian Post - Secondary Education Commission for information.