School of Engineering (SOE) of Cochin University of Science and Technology is only a step away from being recognised by the Washington Accord. The institution has approached the National Board of Accreditation (NBA) for Tier 1 status and once approved, the graduates will be recognised as having met the academic requirements for the practice of engineering in 16-member countries of Washington Accord.
Currently, no institution in the state has NBA Tier 1 accredited programmes.
Washington Accord is an international agreement among bodies responsible for accrediting engineering degree programmes which recognises the substantial equivalency of programmes accredited by the member bodies. The National Board of Accreditation (NBA) became a signatory of the accord representing India on June 13. Any programme offered by an institution that is accredited by the NBA as Tier 1 will be recognised by other signatories in the accord.
School of Engineering has applied for a Tier 1 NBA accreditation for its programmes in seven streams – Civil Engineering, Computer Science Engineering, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Electronics and Communication Engineering, Fire Technology and Safety, Information Technology and Mechanical Engineering.
“It will be an outcome-based accreditation. The NBA officials will visit the campus and assess the quality of the programmes offered in terms of the quality of engineers. Surveys will be conducted among the graduated students and parents. A report on the same should also be submitted by us as self-assessment. It could take about six months to one year,” said G Madhu, Principal, SOE.
Tier I is for technical programmes in institutions with autonomy to review the content of curriculum and make changes as a result of recommendations from accreditation visits. These institutions have the financial and academic independence to engage in continuous improvement actions in the local settings and need not wait for the approval of outside bodies. No other institution in the state has applied for the Tier 1 accreditation so far.
“Once the NBA Tier 1 accreditation is granted, the programmes with such an accreditation will by default be recognised as equivalent to those offered by the bodies of other member countries in the Washington Accord. But this is not a life-time accreditation.
It is given only for a period of time and is conditional,” said an NBA official in New Delhi.
The status gives a better mobility to engineers on a national and international level.
In future, it could also be a criteria for allowance of specific grants from bodies like the All India Council for Technical Education, MHRD and University Grants Commission.