On Monday 24 October the Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering received the exciting news that their courses have received accreditation from the Institution of Engineering and Technology, a continuation of their previous IET accreditation record. This news can be seen as a mark of assurance for current and prospective students that the degree programmes offered by the department meet the high standards set by the engineering profession.
The accreditation is a rigorous process. Programmes are accredited against output standards set by the Engineering Council. These include, for example, programme aims, learning outcomes, content, innovative teaching, assessment standards, project delivery, student support offered, staffing, resources and facilities and monitoring procedures for quality assurance and enhancement. We are delighted that our programmes are accredited by the IET for a further 5 years.
Dr Charith Abhayaratne
Lecturer in the Department and Accreditation Team lead
How does IET accreditation work?
To receive this accreditation, a trained team of accreditors including both academic and industry experts consider the content and delivery of programmes offered by the department. Factors such as quality assurance, relevance and resources are considered. The entire process not only focused on the quality of the department’s teaching delivery from the perspective of this team, but included feedback from a cross section of current students, including year in industry students, as well as external partners such as those employers who form part of the Industrial Liaison Board.
In their assessment, the IET had positive feedback in particular on the quality of the facilities available to students at the University of Sheffield through their studies in the department, and the methods through which students are assessed during their studies.
What does IET accreditation mean for students in the department?
As a result of the Department’s continued accreditation, students currently studying for an MEng or BEng (Honours) degree followed by a further learning qualification via an accredited MSc will have achieved part or all of the underpinning knowledge for later professional registration as a Chartered Engineer (CEng).
Through IET accreditation, the Department will now also be linked to UK-SPEC through the Engineering Council, and be internationally recognised through the Washington Accord, advances which will assist students with their graduate employability.
The department has invested significantly in improving our teaching curriculum, delivery and student experience in the last few years. Thanks to active contributions from our academics and student support staff, we have made significant progress and improvements that are now recognised by the IET accreditation panel. I am particularly pleased that the IET panel commended our splendid teaching facilities and our assessment model using threshold and graded assessments. The department is proud that all our programmes are accredited by the IET
Professor Chee Hing Tan
Head of Department for Electronic and Electrical Engineering