The Distinguished

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ROLE OF THE UCJ
The UCJ advises students, employers, and other key
stakeholders on matters concerning the recognition of
institutions, programmes, and qualifications. The
credential assessment process generates a report that
includes verification of the legitimacy of the
qualification and its Jamaican comparability. The
report allows a foreign credential to be understood
in relation to one earned in Jamaica, thus removing
any obstacle to employment and pursuit of career or
educational goals.
Without a doubt, the work of The UCJ in
credential assessment is more
important than ever, given the rise of
fraudulent providers and practices.
Throughout the world, students,
employers, and the academic
community, need to contend with an
increase in diploma mills, accreditation mills, and
rogue for-profit providers.
With many of our students being attracted to the
opportunity for foreign and seemingly low-cost and more portable
THE UNIVERSITY COUNCIL OF JAMAICA FEATURE | III MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2018
a “formal acknowledgement by a
competent authority of the value of a
foreign educational qualification with a
view to accessing educational and/or
employment activities”. Against this
background, in recognising foreign
qualifications, the UCJ considers factors
such as the quality assurance culture of
the country of study, level of
qualification, entry requirements,
programme length, number of credits,
purpose and components of the
programme. The UCJ does this by making
reference to Jamaica’s education system,
the Tertiary Qualifications Framework, and
the National Qualifications Framework of
Jamaica. It should be noted that
qualifications are assessed only in cases
where the institution is recognised by a
competent authority in its own country.
Given the rapid changes in higher
education, the decision-making process
for admission officers and employers may
become complicated. For example,
employers might not be able to tell the
difference between an authentic
document and a fake qualification from a
degree mill, for which prior education and
work experience were used to gain a
degree from a rogue private provider. On
this note, it is
surprising
that not
many private
sector
employers
seem to
demand a
formal
recognition
of foreign
qualifications
from The UCJ.
It must be
recognised that The
UCJ’s national
credential assessment
system serves as one
means to protect the
value of legitimate
qualifications and the integrity of
Jamaica’s higher education. PLEASE SEE ROLE, IX
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