All providers of post-secondary education in Fiji that are delivering and awarding award conferring courses (Certificates, Diplomas and Degrees) are deemed “Higher Education Institutions” (HEIs) and therefore must undergo an Institutional Accreditation process to become fully registered with the HEC in order to practice.
The Higher Education Act 2008 has classified higher education institutions under two categories. These are; Universities including Degree Awarding Institutes of Technology and Other Higher Education Institutions. Part 3 of the Act provides legislative provisions on recognition pertaining to Universities and Degree Awarding Institutes of Technology while Part 4 of the Act contains similar provisions about Other Higher Education Institutions.
To be registered, you must first apply for and be granted a certificate of recognition, which comes with the fulfilment of 13 quality assurance criteria. The certificate of recognition is a temporary certificate, and the HEI is given a specific timeframe within which to complete the registration requirements. Award conferring means that the higher education institution is delivering a course(s) that fulfils the minimum teaching/learning requirement of 400 notional hours of learning for a certificate programme, a minimum of 720 notional hours of learning for a Diploma and a minimum of 1200 notional hours of learning for a degree. This comes with a credit point ratio of 1:10 or 1 credit point is equivalent to 10 notional hours of learning.