UAE Tightens Rules; Essay Mills; A New Dawn for Asian HE; and Other Important News

RAK [UAE] Tightens Rules for Free Zone Universities (The National, May 20, 2017) "'Setting and maintaining accreditation standards in line with international benchmarks is in the best and long-term interests of attracting and sustaining world-class universities, good faculty and students to any emirate.'"

Expediting QA Exhibits Preparation (The Manila Times, May 19, 2017) “Institutions preparing for quality assurance (QA) visits for a degree program or institution-wide, could undergo a stressful search for exhibits to accompany the self-survey evaluation report.”

“Essay Mills” and Cheating Targeted Under New Government Proposals (The University Times, May 15, 2017) “A new draft law would empower Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI), which regulates the third-level sector, to target cheating in coursework and essays.”

World Bank funds US$155 Million to Support Autonomous Higher Education in Vietnam (The Financial, May 15, 2017) “Additional objectives of the project include support for the strengthening of the key components of higher education – such as the national accreditation system -  as well as efforts to share the lessons learned by the beneficiary universities.”

A New Dawn for Asian Higher Education Regionalisation? (University World News, May 12, 2017) “The alliance’s aims include expanding educational goals to include social development, enhancing quality, improving postgraduate level teaching and technical transfer, strengthening specialisation, especially in terms of cross-disciplinary and innovative international collaborations, and addressing regional and global challenges.”

East Africa: Bid to Upgrade East African Community Education Sector (AllAfrica, May 11, 2017) “The minister underscored the importance of ensuring that the principles and guidelines for quality assurance and other related instruments were operational.”