Academic Standards & Quality (ASQ) is part of the Secretariat division.  As part of its remit, ASQ has administrative responsibility for the management of validated collaborative taught provision.

The university has a number of partnerships with both regional further education colleges and overseas institutions which offer Lancaster-validated degrees.  Our primary responsibility is demonstrating that the quality and standards of awards validated by the university are academically equivalent to those offered here at Lancaster.

Located on C Floor in University House, ASQ is overseen by the Academic Registrar. The ASQ is responsible for servicing the Collaborative Provision Oversight Committee (CPOC) and related bodies, and for managing institutional validations (including negotiation of formal agreements), programme validations, regulations and student assessment procedures of collaborative partners, and quality assurance mechanisms. For more information on our current collaborative partnerships, see the Collaborative Institutions page.

Key to the success of the university's validated provision are the internal course consultants and the external examiners.  For details and guidelines on roles and appointments, and access to the relevant forms (annual report forms and travel and subsistence claims) please see the relevant pages.

ASQ also includes the University's Teaching Quality Support team, who manage collaborative provision delivered through the university's faculties, as well as the university's relationship with professional, statutory and regulatory bodies (PSRBs).

The International Office manages Study Abroad and Exchange programmes, and Access programmes (with the exception of the Lancaster University International Study Centre's International Foundation Year), through the Overseas Programmes Unit.