Whereas the 'old' RCVS certificates were all examined by RCVS appointed examiners, under the new system, assessment for individual modules will be undertaken under the aegis of universities which the RCVS will accredit for the purpose.
One of the benefits of this is that universities have the necessary experience of quality-assuring assessments and this will help to ensure that standards are maintained. In some cases, it will also mean that a credit may count towards a university postgraduate qualification, as well as the RCVS certificate.
On 1 June 2006, RCVS Council approved the Certificate in Advanced Veterinary Practice Bye-laws and Rules for the Administration of the Modular System. Organisations will need to refer to these when considering applying for accreditation of modules. Copies of these papers, along with an application form, are available to download below.
Veterinary schools and other course providers have been invited to submit their proposals for accreditation and we will publish details of which have been accredited as and when these are approved.
Although universities and other course providers will normally be organising courses to support modules, we are asking universities to provide for 'assessment-only' routes to modules, as well as their more traditional short courses and postgraduate qualifications, to allow for candidates who may wish to submit themselves for assessment without necessarily attending a particular course.
We hope that there will be many opportunities for the various CPD providers to work in collaboration with universities in the delivery and assessment of modules.
Although accreditation for assessing modules will only be available to universities, partnership arrangements will be considered, and the RCVS is particularly interested to encourage different course delivery methods such as online learning, local professional networks and learning sets, which CPD providers outside the university system may be well placed to offer.
Accreditation fees for universities
The cost of submitting an accreditation proposal to the RCVS depends on the number of modules the university wishes to offer, as set out below:
- £283 for a submission with up to 6 modules
- £816 for a submission covering 7 to 12 modules
- £849 for a submission covering more than 12 modules
Working in partnership with universities
To explore the opportunities for CPD providers to work in collaboration with other providers over course delivery, the RCVS held a half-day seminar on 25 January 2007 - 'Partnerships in Life-Long Learning'. Please visit our latest news article to read about the event and view the presentations, and question and answer session.
Organisations wishing to apply for accreditation, or to receive further information on the process, should contact the RCVS Education Department on T 020 7202 0791 (direct line), F 020 7222 2004, or E education@rcvs.org.uk.