The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and UNESCO have launched a major initiative to develop global guidelines on quality assurance and accreditation for transnational post-secondary education.
The initiative, begun earlier this summer, is in response to what both agencies characterize as the rapid growth of cross-border education and "non-traditional" providers such as electronic and for-profit universities and colleges.
In a discussion paper released before the first drafting meeting in April, the OECD argues that cross-border delivery of education services needs to be better regulated to protect students against the emergence of degree mills and weak accreditation systems.
"Learners need to be protected from the risks of misinformation, low-quality provision and qualifications of limited validity," the paper states.
"Strong approval, quality assurance and accreditation systems which extend their coverage to cross-border and commercial provision and non-traditional delivery modes, should guarantee that learners are safeguarded from rogue providers and are acquiring qualifications that are meaningful and valid."
More cynical observers say that the guidelines may be used as ways to further entrench the privatization and commercialization of post-secondary education.
"At the moment, the biggest obstacle to the growth of for-profit education internationally is skepticism about the quality of education being provided," said David Robinson, an associate executive director of CAUT. "My concern is that the quality assurance guidelines being proposed are simply a way to add some form of badly-needed legitimacy to for-profit education providers."
Robinson accepts that rules are needed to cover the cross-border provision of post-secondary education, but argues, however, that regulations should be based on educational, not commercial objectives.
"Quality assurance and accreditation decisions should be made by each government and regulatory body based on their educational needs and objectives," he said. "What's worrying is that the draft paper sees public regulation primarily as a constraint on the ability of commercial providers to set up shop."
The OECD report confirmed that: "In many countries the (accreditation) system is state-controlled, leading to a legally defined list of 'publicly recognised' institutions. In such systems, access by private or foreign institutions can be difficult ... Providers wishing to be registered as educational entities in a country where they are active should have the opportunity to do so and should be treated in a fair manner without being subjected to unnecessary administrative or financial burdens.
"Commercial provision of educational services in itself creates new economic activity ... New policy frameworks should try to create conditions under which these potential benefits can be maximised and the risks minimised."
The second drafting meeting of the guidelines will take place in October.
"We have to ensure that international quality assurance and accreditation guidelines do not dilute the standards of national systems or create further openings for commercial providers," Robinson stressed.
The OECD paper Enhancing Consumer Protection in Cross-Border Higher Education is available at www.oecd.org/dataoecd/11/38/20196012.pdf.