Institutional Review Process for Reaffirmation (2023-2024)

The University of the South Pacific (USP) commenced its institutional review process for the reaffirmation of WSCUC accreditation in early 2023. Initially, this process was guided by the 2013 WSCUC Standards of Accreditation, along with the established processes and requirements outlined in the WSCUC 2013 Handbook of Accreditation.
To support the review process, a WSCUC Core Team was established, comprising the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Education) (DVCE), the WSCUC Accreditation Officer, Accreditation Officers, and the Research Skills Development (RSD) Coordinator.
To ensure a comprehensive review and active participation from the wider university community, four working groups were subsequently formed, bringing together representatives from both academic and support sections. These groups were assigned specific Criteria for Review (CFRs), standards, and prompts, forming the foundation of the institutional self-review report.
Over a six-week period, these working groups convened multiple times to discuss their assigned CFRs, standards, and prompts. Representatives from the WSCUC Core Team attended these meetings, taking notes that were later used in drafting the report.
By May 2023, when the university had completed approximately 70–75% of its self-review and was preparing to draft its institutional report, it was notified of the introduction of new WSCUC accreditation standards, structural changes, and revised requirements. This necessitated significant adjustments to align with the updated framework and prepare its first institutional report for reaffirmation, which was submitted in early August 2023.
In November 2023, the report was discussed in a conference call with the review team, who identified areas for improvement. Recognising the substantial changes introduced by WSCUC and acknowledging that USP was the first institution to undergo the new accreditation standards as a pilot case, the review team granted the university additional time to adapt to the revised framework. USP was subsequently given the opportunity to revise and resubmit the report by 21 August 2024.
As part of this revision process, members of the Core Team took responsibility for specific standards, dedicating six weeks to identifying data and information gaps, collecting new data, and refining relevant content. This was followed by a further six-week period for collective review and consolidation of the report.
The revised report was submitted to WSCUC on 21 August 2024. Subsequently, university representatives, along with the WSCUC Steering Committee, participated in the Offsite Review (OSR) call on 30 October 2024. During this session, the University was verbally informed of the review committee’s findings and the next steps in the process, leading up to the accreditation visits for reaffirmation.