Developing a course
One of the major processes required for setting up a new Masters course or a short course is getting approval from the College. The following information has been put together as a guide to getting a new Masters course approved or a new short course approved.
Approval for new Masters programmes
Applying for approval to establish a new Masters programme is a four-stage process requiring approval of the host Department, the Faculty of Medicine, the College’sGraduate School, and Senate. The whole process can take up to 18 months and so it is strongly advised that you discuss your application at an early stage both with Graduate School staff and the host Department’s Education Manager, since they can often identify potential problems or controversial areas. The Department will also need to consider how the new course would fit into its existing portfolio.
The Director of the Graduate School is willing to meet new Course Organisers. The Departmental Education Manager will be key in steering the paperwork through the system.
- Having discussed your proposal informally with the Graduate School and the Department, prepare the application for approval by completing the relevant template. The template will guide you on all the things you need to have in place. The template and all the relevant guidance can be found at http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/graduateschool/qualityassurance/newcourseproposal
- As part of this you will need to nominate external referees for the course: you need to nominate 4 academics and 4 potential employers/corporates. Two will be selected from each list.
- Once the paperwork is complete, it should be submitted to the Departmental Education Manager for consideration at the relevant Departmental teaching committee. The committee will typically make recommendations to refine the application before it goes forward to the Graduate School.
- At the same time, a space request and a business case must be submitted to Faculty for approval. The paperwork cannot go forward to the Graduate School until Faculty has given its approval. The Departmental Education Manager can help you prepare the necessary documents and submit them to the relevant Faculty staff for you.
Departmental Education Managers
National Heart & Lung Institute:
Emma Watson (Research Manager) e.watson@imperial.ac.ukDepartment of Surgery and Cancer: Charlie Greenhill (Business Manager)c.greenhill@imperial.ac.uk
Julia Cork
j.cork@imperial.ac.uk - Once the Department and Faculty have approved, your application will be submitted to theGraduateSchool. They will send your application to all its members and to the External Reviewers mentioned above. They will all review it and you will be invited to a meeting of the Committee to explain the rationale for the course and to answer their questions.
- Following this meeting the course will either be approved or you will be asked to make some revisions. It is rare for applications for new courses to be rejected outright.
- Subject to your satisfactory revisions (which may need to be agreed by a further Graduate School meeting) the course will then be forwarded to Senate for approval. Once your course reaches this stage you can start advertising it provided that you note it is subject to approval by Senate.
- The final stage is Senate approval. This stage is usually a formality and it is unlikely that you will be required to attend.
Information in PDF format: Masters approvals 
Short Course Approval
What kind of short courses are required for approval?
A short course is defined as:
- Education imparted in a series of lectures or workshops, typically 3 to 5 days long
- There are no formal University award or non degree-awarding credits associated with it
- A course typically designed for professionals either as individuals or companies for the purpose of continued professional development and/or up-skilling
- Delegates receive an Imperial College London Certificate of Attendance
- These courses are open to all on a fee-paying basis
- In some cases modules from MSc courses may be offered as a freestanding short course, not leading to an award.
Types of short courses at Imperial include:
- CPD short courses offered externally
- Weekend courses (modular delivery)
- MSc Modules for CPD
- Bespoke courses for companies
- Collaborative programmes
- Stand alone online courses
- Executive Education
- Humanities programmes
Why do we need an approval process?
The quality assurance approval procedures are intended to monitor and enhance the quality of short courses offered by the College. The process also ensures that short courses are appropriately costed, that the courses meet the needs of the target customers, that professional standards associated with developing and running courses are considered, and that course evaluation processes are in place for feedback purposes. Quality assurance is also an essential part of maintaining good practice across the College and to protect the global reputation of the College, as well as ensure the experience of the participants. In addition, the process can ensure all short courses are publicised in a consistent and professional image following the College publicity guidelines (http://www.imperial.ac.uk/cpd/qualityassurance/publicity).
Who instigates the approval process and how does it work?
The Continuing Professional Development Quality Committee (CPDQC) instigates the approval process and is responsible for the review of existing short courses and for the approval of new proposed short courses that are branded under the College name. Anyone at the College or ICHNT currently running or intending to set up a short course branded under the College name should follow the approval procedures below:
For existing courses:
Course organisers will be asked to submit existing short course information through an online course submission form (http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/cpd/qualityassurance) and the information will be gathered to form a database of non award-bearing short courses offered by the College. All existing courses will be reviewed by CPDQC every 3 years.
For new courses:
Course organisers are required to complete a short course proposal form (http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/cpd/qualityassurance) which will be circulated to CPDQC for approval. The approval process will be completed online via Sharepoint and course organisers will be notified within 14 days if the course has been approved.
What happens if an application for approval is unsuccessful?
If approval is withheld, it is expected that a full explanation and constructive feedback will be given. In most cases, all that will be required is a small amendment or a little additional information before the form can be resubmitted. It is very unlikely that a proposed course will be unsuitable for re-submission. If, however, the Chair of CPDQC feels that the course content is completely inappropriate, the application may not go forward for approval to CPDQC and the course will be further reviewed and/or halted. .
What are the benefits for course organisers?
Course organisers submitting their courses for approval will receive the following benefits:
- The course will be officially approved by Imperial CPDQC and can be branded under the College name
- Provided with guidelines on short course publicity with templates
- Provided with official Imperial College London Certificate of Attendance
- The course will be listed through the School of Professional Development website with a link to the course webpage
- Course evaluation templates can be provided on request
- Opportunity to join a College-wide network of CPD course providers
- Option to use the services provided by the CPD Unit within the School of Professional Development
What about courses currently organised by ICHNT or other Imperial-associated Trusts?
Course organisers currently running short courses within the Trust or members of Trust staff who would like to set up a new course can also register their courses with CPDQC if they would like their courses to be approved by and co-branded with Imperial College London. They should in the first instance contact the School of Professional Development who can provide full support and to explore opportunity to offer the courses to an external market. Please visit http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/cpd/about/testimonials to see some examples of courses setup with the Trust.
Benefits to Trust staff to set up CPD short courses include:
- Opportunity to co-brand their courses (new or existing) with Imperial College London once it gets approved by CPDQC
- Course participants will receive Imperial College London Certificate of Attendance
- Can generate income for the unit within the Trust
- Can raise the profile of the individual or the unit as a whole externally and internationally
- Participating in CPD course delivery can be recognised as part of an individual’s professional development
Who to contact if you need support to set up a short course?
School of Professional Development
The Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Unit within Imperial College London's School of Professional Development provides a complete range of services to support internal and ICHNT staff to setup short courses. These include content development, marketing, financial management, logistic planning, course administration, contracts negotiation and client relations management.
Contact:
Betty Yue
Head of Continuing Professional Development Unit
School of Professional Development
Imperial College London
South Kensington Campus, London SW7 2AZ
Tel: 0207 594 6880 Email: b.yue@imperial.ac.uk or visit www.imperial.ac.uk/cpd
Information in PDF format: Short course approvals
