Application for law degree accreditation rejected
NOKUT has rejected UiA’s application for accreditation for a two-year master’s degree in law. “We won’t give up”, says Rector Whittaker.
The rejection was made public in a press release from NOKUT on Monday 17 October [Norwegian only]. The size of the professional environment at the time of accreditation is stated as the main reason for rejection.
“We are deliberating the rejection and don't intend to give up. We will study the report thoroughly [Norwegian only] and continue our efforts to establish a master’s level law degree in Agder”, says Rector Sunniva Whittaker.
The next application deadline is 1 March 2023.
Strong competition from two other institutions
The press release states that the Norwegian Business School (BI) has received accreditation. They can now apply to the Ministry of Education to launch their programme. After receiving the expert committee’s first assessment, BI has employed four new researchers at associate professor /professor level to meet the requirements.
The University of Stavanger is still waiting for a response “since new information has come to light that will need to be assessed more closely”.
Background
Usually, universities such as UiA can accredit their own programmes of study, with the exceptions of degrees in law, psychology and theology. Previously, only select educational institutions were allowed to offer these programmes due to the so-called Degree Regulation (‘Gradsforskriften’). The requirement to apply to NOKUT for accreditation was a result of changes to this regulation.
UiA has also applied to be accredited to offer a six-year professional degree in psychology. The university has received a preliminary assessment from the expert committee pointing out shortcomings in the application. UiA will respond to this assessment and will then wait for NOKUT’s final assessment.