A quality online course-sharing experience is one in which the student can further their academic progress by seamlessly enrolling in a well-designed and supported online course, offered outside their home institution, with transparent expectations and requirements, taught by a qualified and well-prepared instructor, recognized and appropriately transcripted by the home institution without the need for credit transfer.
If your institution is offering courses through a course-sharing arrangement (such as through Acadeum), QM offers a rigorous process to review and provide recognition for ensuring quality course design and delivery. This recognition allows you (the Teaching Institution, or TI) to show that you can provide a quality learning experience for students from Home Institutions (HIs).
Recognition means that an institution’s quality protocols ensure the shared courses meet QM Standards in three categories (Criteria for Recognition):
- The courses are well-designed and have been reviewed and found compliant with quality standards.
- Instructors of shared courses are credentialed and prepared.
- Instructors of shared courses are supported with resources and guidance so that students are supported during the course.
Here’s how it works:
- The Teaching Institution (TI) engages with QM in the Quality in Course Sharing review process by submitting an application and providing information used by the review team.
- An initial review is conducted with an external review team, one of whom serves as the Team Chair.
- A preliminary report is provided and the TI has the opportunity to respond if needed. Additional information may be requested.
- A final report is provided and, if Standards are met, QM Recognition is awarded.
- The Recognition Mark is an institutional award that also may be displayed in a course-sharing platform, making it easier for Home Institutions (HIs) to differentiate between providers and select courses for their students.
- Recognition is valid for five years and can be renewed for three more years.
Ready to get started?
- The introductory fee for a review is $4500 for QM Members or $6000 for non-members.
- Complete the form at right so that QM staff can contact you with next steps.
About the Criteria and Standards
QM collaborated in the development of the Quality in Course Sharing review with Acadeum — the leading provider of course sharing opportunities with a network of over 460 institutions.
The collaboration began in June of 2022 and involved a literature review, information briefs from Acadeum, the creation of an advisory committee, and a working group of experienced practitioners involved in course sharing at their institutions. These committees worked iteratively from September, 2022 to November, 2023 to provide insights, guidance and feedback that helped QM develop a model for recognizing quality in course sharing. There were three foundational tools for this work: 1) QM Framework for Quality in Course Sharing, 2) QM Quality Standards for Course Sharing for Teaching Institutions and 3) QM Quality Course Sharing Guidelines for Home Institutions: Self-Assessment.
From these foundational documents, QM developed a set of reviewable criteria for recognizing Teaching Institutions that are aligning their courses to the Standards for TIs, an award for QM Recognition for Quality Course Sharing: Teaching Institutions, and a protocol for conducting the review and issuing that award. QM piloted this process from January to May of 2024 with four institutions.
The Recognition is awarded for quality assurance practices that ensure compliance with QM Standards for Quality Course Sharing for Teaching Institutions (TI Standards).
