Procedure for dealing with programme accreditation appeals  

1. To start the process of an appeal on a programme accreditation decision, an email must be sent by not later than 20 days from the day when the accreditation decision was provided.

2. The email should state the reason/s for the appeal and list any evidence which contradicts the accreditation decision.

3. The email must be sent to the MFHEA officer working on the programme accreditation process and the generic mailbox – [email protected], if the programme application has been submitted by a university, Higher Education Institution, or Further and Higher Education Institution OR [email protected], if the programme application has been submitted by a Further Education Institution or a Further Education Centre.

4. One External Evaluator will be appointed to assess appeals related to programmes from MQF Level 1 to MQF Level 4. For programmes from MQF Level 5 to MQF Level 7 who classify as an Awards, one external evaluator will be appointed  while in the case of Qualifications (MQF Level 5 upwards)two External Evaluators will be engaged [1].

5. The External Evaluators will be appointed from the pool of MFHEA evaluators to review the appeal. The External Evaluators that review the appeal must be approved by the MFHEA’s Quality Assurance Committee.

6. The External Evaluators shall be provided with all the documentation related to the accreditation process (the programme description and the evaluators’ report presented for each evaluation cycle) to determine whether the Authority’s decision should be confirmed or otherwise changed.

7. The External Evaluators shall provide a detailed report explaining their decision by not later than 3 months from their date of appointment.

8. When submitting the appeal, the appellant shall pay an appeal fee which shall be of 50% of the original accreditation fee. Provided that the minimum fee shall not be less than 100 euro.

9. If the appeal is upheld the appeal fee paid may be refunded upon the recommendation of the External Evaluator/s. The amount to be refunded from the appeal fee will be determined by the External Evaluators.

[1]  As from September 2023, one of the engaged evaluators in the evaluation of an appeal of Qualifications at MQF level 6 and higher will be a student enrolled in a programme of studies leading to a full qualification at a higher level.