Resulting in a Triple Certification Milestone in Distance Learning Education
The University of Nicosia (UNIC) becomes the first university in the European Union to be recognised with a 5-Star rating for Online/Distance Learning. The distinction was awarded following an assessment by the QS Intelligence Unit, a leading, independent, global university-rating agency.
Along with its groundbreaking achievement in Online/Distance Learning, UNIC also received the highest (5-Star) rating by the QS Intelligence Unit in the fields of: Teaching; Facilities; Inclusiveness; Social Responsibility; and Internationalisation. This reinforces the results of previous prestigious ratings and high-profile assessments, including for related clusters in the U-Multirank university ranking system.
QS Stars is a rating system that allows students to obtain an overall view of an academic institution’s qualities, examining everything from teaching, to facilities, to community engagement. The QS Stars audit evaluates institutions against 50 different indicators, and awards them between 1 and 5 stars over eight broader fields, as well as an overall rating. UNIC secured an excellent 4-Star institutional rating, placing it among the top universities in the world.
The QS Stars rating is the latest testament to the University’s commitment to delivering quality distance learning/online programmes, by investing heavily in the requisite people and infrastructure for a world-class offering. Indeed, only 12 other universities in the world have been recognised in this way by the QS Intelligence Unit. With this latest recognition, UNIC reaches a triple certification milestone in Online/Distance Learning Education, having also been awarded the premier European quality assessment awards in this domain. This includes being labelled as an E-xcellence Associate in Quality (2015), by the European Association of Distance Teaching Universities (EADTU), Europe’s leading body in lifelong open and flexible learning. UNIC had also achieved the UNIQUe Certification for Quality in e-Learning and Excellence in use of ICT in Higher Education (2014), awarded by the European Foundation for Quality in e-Learning (EFQUEL).
Professor Constantinos N. Phellas, Vice Rector for Faculty & Research at UNIC, noted that “such recognitions are a reflection of our University’s strong commitment to excellence in education, while serving as an endorsement of our global presence”. Moreover, he highlighted that “these developments pave the way for continued excellence in the future, in line with our philosophy to continually Think Big. Looking ahead, we remain focused on strengthening our core offerings in a shifting academic, technological and societal landscape, and on preparing our students to effect real change in society”.
