NBA - An Overview, Objectives, Accreditation Process, Parameters

National Board of Accreditation is different from other accreditation bodies in India, as it accredits programmes or courses and not institutes. There is a major difference between NAAC and NBA. National Board of Accreditation (NBA) accredits technical programmes/ courses such as engineering and management programmes, while NAAC accredits general universities and colleges.

NBA Accredited Courses/ Programmes in India

The NBA accreditation applies for Diploma, Undergraduate, and Postgraduate courses. As far as education fields concerned, the NBA accreditation include –

• Hospitality and Tourism Management
• Computer Applications
• Applied Arts and Crafts
• Architecture
• Pharmacy
• Management
• Engineering & Technology

NBA accreditation is voluntary. However, AICTE in 2017 announced that it would not grant approval for technical institutes, which failed to accredit at least half of its courses/ programmes. The NBA accreditation is valid for three years.

Authorities of NBA

At present, NBA comprises of the following authorities –

• The General Council
• The Executive Committee
• Additional Authorities declared or constituted by the General Council

Objectives of NBA Accreditation

• NBA accreditation assures that the graduates of courses accredited by NBA possess enough academic background for going ahead with their professional career in IT, engineering and computer-related disciplines, or engineering technology.
• NBA accreditation promotes new and innovative methods in engineering and associated fields education system, provides consultation and guidelines for educational programmes.
• NBA provides feedback to educational institutes for the improvement/ development of educational programmes.

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Importance and Benefits of NBA Accreditation

The benefits and significance of NBA accreditation is given below -

• NBA accreditation demonstrates accountability to the public or people.
• The accreditation of NBA clearly indicates the commitment to excellence.
• NBA accreditation plays a vital role in facilitating constant quality improvement in higher learning institutes.
• NBA accreditation recognises the innovations and achievements of higher learning institutes.
• The accreditation of NBA helps higher educational institute to know its strengths, weaknesses and opportunities.
• NBA accreditation helps institutes to get financial assistance from government agencies, private bodies etc.
• The accreditation gives higher learning institutes a new sense of direction and identity.
• The society can get reliable information about the quality of education offered in an institute through NBA accreditation.
• NBA accreditation promotes intra and inter-institutional interactions.

Impact of NBA Accreditation

The purpose and impact of NBA accreditation go far beyond quality assurance of a programme/ institution. Major impacts of NBA accreditation are elaborated below -

• One of the major impacts of NBA accreditation is that it encourages quality improvement initiatives by higher learning institutes.
• The second impact is that NBA accreditation student enrolment both in terms of quantity and quality.
• NBA accreditation helps educational institutes in securing necessary funds.
• The employability of graduates will be enhanced through NBA accreditation.
• NBA accreditation motivates faculty to actively take part in academic/ institutional/ departmental activities.
• NBA accreditation brings sound and challenging environment in the premises of an educational institute.

NBA Accreditation Process

The accreditation process of NBA involves the following stages –

• Institute Registration
• Submitting Application for NBA Accreditation
• Pre-Visit Activities
• Visit of NBA Evaluation Team to Applicant Institutes
• Post-Visit Activities
• Assessment and Decision Making Process

NBA Accreditation Parameters

The NBA evaluation team will assess the programmes offered by institutes based on the following parameters –

• Mission and Vision Statement
• Programme Educational Objectives
• Programme Outcomes
• Course Outcomes
• Faculty Contributions
• Students’ Performance
• Teaching-Learning Process
• Laboratories, Infrastructure, Library associated with programmes

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In all, NBA accreditation adds value to the reputation of the institute. Most of the universities in India have NBA accreditation for their courses/ programmes.

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