QAA Membership Impact Queens University Belfast case study

Strengthening assurance and enhancement at a research-intensive university

Professor Judy Williams

Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Education and Students
Queen's University Belfast

Membership impact highlights

Supports our global standing and strengthens our ability to form partnerships across sectors and borders.
Gives our students, staff and stakeholders real confidence that our programmes are academically robust, high quality and continuously enhanced.
Provides a national and international benchmark of academic integrity and educational excellence that strengthens trust in our qualifications.
Helps us stay ahead of regulatory expectations while remaining responsive to evolving learner needs.
Ensures a high-quality, student-centred learning experience through frameworks and thematic reviews that identify good practice and address risks early.
Offers a vigorous external lens through which our governance, programme design and student outcomes are regularly tested and validated.
Provides informed, timely guidance and sector-wide dialogue that help us balance agility and assurance in an increasingly complex landscape.

This case study shows how QAA Membership strengthens confidence, enhances academic standards and supports a high-quality, student-centred learning experience.

Institutional context

Queen’s University Belfast is a leading Russell Group institution with over 25,000 students. Based in the heart of Northern Ireland, we are known for research excellence, high-quality teaching and a strong civic and social mission that guides our academic portfolio and engagement work.

A national and international benchmark of integrity

For us at Queen’s, QAA Membership represents a national and international benchmark of academic integrity and educational excellence. It provides confidence that our provision meets the highest standards expected by students, employers and global partners.

One of the greatest benefits is the assurance it instils in our students and staff, and also in our external stakeholders. It demonstrates that our programmes are academically robust, high quality, and continuously enhanced through reflection and peer learning. QAA guidance helps us stay ahead of regulatory expectations while remaining responsive to evolving learner needs.

Enhancing the student experience

All students directly benefit from QAA Membership through the assurance of a high-quality, student-centred learning experience. QAA frameworks and thematic reviews help us identify and scale good practice, address risks early, and ensure that our students graduate with qualifications that carry national credibility and international esteem.

QAA also provides a vigorous external lens through which our academic governance, programme design and student outcomes are regularly tested and validated. This independent assurance reinforces public trust in our qualifications, supports our global standing, and strengthens our ability to form partnerships across sectors and borders.

Shaping curriculum improvement and academic strategy

QAA’s evidence-led, collegial approach to quality enhancement is both supportive and challenging. It has helped shape our academic strategy and driven enhancements in curriculum design and assessment. For our staff, it has supported development opportunities that strengthen practice across the institution.

I personally value the thought leadership and sector-wide dialogue QAA facilitates, particularly around themes such as digital learning, the student voice and inclusive practice. QAA has opened doors for collaborative dialogue across the UK and with global partners through quality enhancement network events and thematic working groups. Through these connections, we have developed meaningful relationships with peers facing similar challenges and have co-developed solutions grounded in evidence and practice.

QAA provides an essential compass in an increasingly complex landscape, whether the challenge relates to AI, assessment, or inclusive curriculum design. Its resources and forums offer informed, timely guidance that helps us balance agility and assurance as we navigate sector reforms alongside funding pressures and evolving student expectations.

Improving programme monitoring and student partnership

QAA guidance and the new Quality Code have shaped key enhancements to our curriculum improvement processes, particularly in strengthening student partnership and ensuring a more evidence-based approach. We have refined elements of programme monitoring to align with this guidance, creating a more coherent and transparent quality cycle that supports continuous improvement. Queen’s staff are also contributing nationally through their roles on the Writing and Reading Groups developing the new Advice and Guidance.

Final reflections

QAA Membership supports us in maintaining integrity, enhancing practice and strengthening our global standing. It provides the assurance, insight and collaborative opportunities that allow us to deliver a high-quality, student-centred experience and ensure our qualifications continue to meet the highest standards expected by all those we serve.

Institution name	Queen's University Belfast
Location	Belfast, Northern Ireland

Number of students	25,000+
Total number of staff	4,710
Campus type	One campus, in the south of the city centre