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This paper aims to analyse how learning levels differ within and between degrees and diplomas with specific application to the Bachelor of Applied Business Studies degree and the New Zealand Diploma of Business, which are delivered at a New Zealand polytechnic.

A literature review and content analysis of National Qualifications Frameworks was conducted to analyse how learning levels differ within and between degrees and diplomas with specific application to the Bachelor of Applied Business Studies degree and the New Zealand Diploma of Business which are offered at a New Zealand polytechnic.

A literature review and content analysis of National Qualifications Frameworks reveals that learning levels are differentiated by level of complexity, degree of abstraction, depth in a major subject, research competency, learner autonomy and responsibility, relative demand placed on students and increasing complexity and unpredictability of operational context. This analysis failed to find any difference in learning level between Bachelor of Applied Business Studies and New Zealand Diploma of Business papers nominally at the same level on the New Zealand National Qualifications Framework. The degree comprises a portion of papers at a higher learning level than the diploma and it is at this level that the difference is realised.

Future research should investigate learning level differences between disciplines, qualifications and institutions.

This paper provides a framework on which to base course design, delivery and assessment of the Bachelor of Applied Business Studies degree and the New Zealand Diploma of Business and credit transfer between them.

This case study addresses the increasingly important issue of the compatibility of learning levels between different qualifications. As many economies acknowledge the necessity for increasingly skilled workforces, credit transfer to enable seamless transfer between qualifications is becoming a focus in seeking to facilitate lifelong learning. There are few studies that focus on National Qualifications level descriptors and the implications for different qualification types.

The purpose of this paper is to assess the overall alignment of undergraduate accounting degree programmes from all Certified Practicing Accountants Australia and Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand accredited higher education providers in Australia with the profession’s minimum educational expectations (MEEs).

The paper uses a series of quantitative and qualitative analyses to determine whether or not the content and focus of these programmes prepares students for contemporary accounting practice.

The results of these analyses demonstrate that most accredited undergraduate accounting degrees in Australia are largely unaligned with the profession’s expectations, with 18 (out of 57) degree programmes showing no overlap between their learning outcomes and the profession’s MEEs. In addition, only two (out of 57) programmes are shown to address all of the profession’s minimum expectations. A subsequent analysis of the focus and structure of the evaluated degree-level learning outcomes revealed additional inconsistencies between the interpretation of individual MEEs by the profession and the higher education sector.

This paper demonstrates that accredited undergraduate degrees are predominantly unable to prepare students for entry into the accounting profession, and that the prior efforts to align accounting curricula with the profession’s needs and expectation have thus far been largely unsuccessful. The findings of this paper are relevant for higher education providers and the accounting profession because they reflect the current level of alignment between the content and focus of undergraduate accounting education and the profession’s expectations. In addition, the findings of this paper highlight that the current accreditation process of the professional accounting bodies in Australia does not generate the desired alignment between academia and accounting practice.

Inquiry-based learning is a fruitful way to create “effective, independent learners” (Baird, 1988, p. 142) and set up the pattern for lifelong learning, but inquiry skills demand significant practice to master and incorporate in both academic and personal dimensions. The Bachelor of Health Sciences Honours program at McMaster University provides a model of an undergraduate program that balances knowledge and the complex transferrable skills associated with inquiry. By devoting considerable resources to the first year experience and integrating the curriculum so that meaningful use is made of the inquiry skills developed there, the program fosters the curiosity, confidence, and capability of students. The curriculum demonstrably meets or exceeds the standards for quality set out by governing bodies within and outside of the university known as the degree level expectations. The current chapter provides an overview of the program, including lessons for anyone engaged in curriculum design that builds undergraduate research capability.

The purpose of this paper is to highlight the knowledge and insight gained building a work-based learning (WBL) degree apprenticeship developed through the Higher Education Funding Council for England Catalyst Fund. Requirements of the funding stipulated that, in addition to work WBL provision, the course should be offered as a two-year fast-track. This was required to help reduce the increased financial burden placed on students, which arose from the substantial rise in HE tuition fees sanctioned by the UK Coalition Government in 2010.

The paper presents a case study detailing the advantages and pitfalls of integrating WBL into fledgling but rapidly expanding creative industries, such as web media production and social media. The development and composition of WBL model was adapted from an existing and successful three year, traditionally structured, BA (Hons) web media production course. It adopted a model whereby partnerships between external organisations and educational institutions are established through a contractual agreement.

Growth of the web media sector, while rapid, is still embryonic. Consequently many employers, particularly in social media, remain small or micro businesses, many capable of only employing one student. This caused several accumulative and administrative and issues along with funding implications. While for many micro businesses the WBL model was appealing by provided employers with an appropriately skilled workforce that addressed the technical and digital skills gap, government funding and partnership initiatives proved to be more directly suitable for larger businesses.

The author considers the case study to be a distinctive insight into the development of creative and vocationally orientated subjects. The paper examines degree apprenticeships and WBL from the perspective of creative industries employer partnerships, particularly in the area of web and social media micro businesses. These are crucial areas for expansion as higher-level degree apprenticeships are rolled out in the UK.

The purpose of this paper is to highlight both the need for measurement of graduate capabilities post-degree completion and the challenges posed by such a task. Higher education institutions provide an important site of learning that can equip future professionals with capabilities to manage and respond to complex sustainability challenges in their careers. Measurement of graduate uptake and application of sustainability capabilities is an important part of advancing sustainability curriculum and pedagogy to educate the twenty-first century sustainability capable graduates.

This paper explores the nature of capabilities and reviews existing approaches to capability assessment.

The nature of capabilities and their assessment post-degree completion pose a number of challenges for the development of assessment and measurement tools, which is why sustainability capability assessment methods are deserving of specific research attention.

The assessment and application of capability in graduates’ professional contexts are an important part of closing the loop between learning and teaching in higher education and professional application of this learning. It is imperative that more research be undertaken on the methodology of graduate assessment, given the need to understand graduate learning outcomes as they apply in professional settings for graduate employability, promoting sustainability and developing effective sustainability pedagogy.

Given that there is significant overlap between employability skills, generic graduate attributes and sustainability capabilities, this paper has relevance beyond the measurement of sustainability capability to the measurement of uptake and professional application of generic capabilities more broadly.

The measurement of graduate capability offers potential to enhance learning for sustainability. Measurement of graduate capabilities is a critical part of closing the loop between workplace expectations, graduate learning outcomes, learning and teaching and curriculum development during degree programs.

The review provided in this paper highlights a critical gap in research on methodologies to undertake measurement of workplace application of graduate capability. The paper explores considerations for measurement of graduate learning outcomes, specifically the difference between measuring competencies, skills and capability and the necessity for the measurement of the latter in the context of sustainability education for future professionals.

This article gives an overview of education and training of records managers in anglophone Africa and then focuses on standards for training of archivist and records managers. Using South Africa’s National Qualifications Framework and the South African Qualifications Authority guidelines, a training model that can be used elsewhere in Africa with some adjustments is suggested. The article recognises that there can be no one set of universally standard desirable outcomes for all educational institutions, as the outcomes must depend on the institution’s nature and mission. Whilst the teaching and learning processes may differ between countries, there should be a substantial commonality in the outcomes achieved. Thus it would be possible to have generic processes of assessment and accreditation. Adherence to standards is key to the generic process of accreditation and professional mobility.

The aim of this paper is to explore how a teaching restaurant could be developed as an internal research (R), development (D) and innovation (I) environment based on the ideas of the students and the teachers.

Theoretical framework is composed of constructivist pedagogy. The four types of internal environments, namely learning, development, research, and innovation are described. A case organization's pedagogical model of Learning by Developing is illustrated. Empirical data were collected by utilizing a sentence completion method from the students and the teachers at the case teaching restaurant.

The empirical results illustrated that a teaching restaurant could be developed from the viewpoints of all four environments. However, the students and the teachers do not necessarily perceive a great difference between the aforementioned environments. Furthermore, the students identify more innovative research, development, and innovation (R&D&I) opportunities when compared to the teachers. The socio-cultural constructivist pedagogy was emphasized in the form of team work.

When developing a teaching restaurant, both the students’ and teachers’ ideas could be collected. Also both cognitive and socio-cultural constructivist pedagogy proved applicable.

A teaching restaurant offers possibilities for constructive learning, R&D&I which can be applied to skills, processes, and services for both individual students and students as team members.

The paper aims to examine the problems, tensions, contrasts and complementarities surrounding the use of e‐books in developing learning environments for students in UK higher education.

The authors use four case studies and a questionnaire to highlight developments.

It was found that users want some features of paper books to be preserved in the electronic medium, while also preferring electronic text to be written in a scannable style.

The authors suggest some recommendations for successful design based on an analysis of all experimental data and suggests that hand‐held devices and web site use in universities is probably secure for at least the next five years.

Although most accounting programs have made great strides in meeting assessment requirements of accreditation agencies, many have yet to actually use the data they compile to make tangible improvements (Bisoux, T. (2008). Measures of success. BizEd, March/April, pp. 22–30). This paper describes our college's assessment of learning experience in the principles of financial accounting course. Our program was based on the Association for the Advancement Collegiate Schools of Business's assurance of learning and continuous improvement paradigm. We specifically discuss how we used assessment information to promote course improvement through the sharing of teaching methodologies. Our assessment experiences in this introductory course highlight the potential value of such data in curriculum development and improvement.

Academic adjustment is an important indicator which represents the students' academic achievements. The purpose of this investigation is to examine the fundamental role of academic adjustment for the success of student's by considering the influence of several psychological, motivational and behavioral factors that affect the academic adjustment of students in the university which then influences the students' academic achievements.

Data were gathered through self-administered questionnaires from 409 students enrolled in a Business degree program in an academic institution by using a convenience sampling technique. Structural equation modeling (SEM) technique has been applied for analyzing the data and the proposed hypothesis.

Results obtained from partial least square (PLS)-SEM analysis indicated that academic adjustment is affected by psychological, motivational and behavioral factors and in turn influences the outcomes of success. Moreover, the findings also showed that psychological and motivational factors, directly and indirectly via partial mediation of adjustment, and behavioral factors via full mediation of academic adjustment influences the outcomes of success.

The study implies that it is important for university policymakers that they should give great priority to fully exploiting its potential to facilitate student's effective adjustment to academic life. Universities should pay attention to enhancing the academic study skills of students which leads to gains in academic achievement. Furthermore, universities should integrate self-regulated skills and provides motivation to students which is the biggest contributor toward adjustment as well as this study broadens the understanding of psychological capital as a resource that enhances academic adjustment.

Very little attention has been given to examining the role of academic adjustment in the success of students. Therefore, the present study makes two contributions to this research. First, the study broadens the understanding of psychological capital with the potential to strengthen adjustment with academic life in domains, i.e. academic achievement and institutional adjustment. Second, the study identifies which motivational and behavioral factors affect academic adjustment and achievement.