IEQAS Fourth-Cycle Preparation: Map Programmes, Years and Evidence
Connect current requirements to records, owners and dates. Official fourth-cycle changes inform a practical university evidence map.
Having many IEQAS files is not enough if assessment years and programmes are mixed. Select the applicable institutional type, degree or language route and year, then connect each requirement to source records, an owner and a review date. The fourth-cycle changes are a reason to rebuild those links.
What changed from the 2025 assessment?
The February 2026 joint announcement and attachments describe fourth-cycle changes from the 2025 assessment, including separate junior-college criteria, consolidated indicators and removal of the counselling-rate indicator. Certification also involves annual monitoring.
Check whether existing evidence matches the current item, rather than merely whether last year’s file exists. Look for obsolete counts, mixed programme records and criteria from different years.
Identify the institution and route first
The representative indicator table in the official attachment is labelled for four-year institutions. Junior colleges have separate criteria. Degree and language programmes also follow separate routes, even when one institution operates both.
Distinguish certification assessment from the monitoring survey for other institutions. Put institutional type, programme, assessment year, document version and evidence deadline at the front of the working record. Link any actual threshold to the applicable current-year document and formula.
An evidence map proposed by GEA
This working example organises evidence; its themes do not replace the official indicator list.
Work theme | Source record | Owner confirms |
|---|---|---|
Planning and selection | Intake plan and selection records | Applicable item and period |
Academic support | Activity, participation, follow-up | Population and counting unit |
Living and career support | Guidance, referrals, delivery | Operating evidence and route |
Status and outcomes | Academic status, language evidence, date | Numerator, denominator, duplicates |
Language programme | Classes, instructors, completion | Separation from degree data |
Review and submission | Final file, reviewer, version | Match with source records |
Attach the original rule location, applicable year, reference date, file location, owner and reviewer. Keep counts beside formulas and explain revisions when a denominator changes. The next staff member should be able to find the same evidence.
Read official examples as operating records
The announcement describes Hansung’s support across admission, adaptation, study and careers, and Sejong’s connection from diagnosis through support and reassessment to major entry. Ask what records demonstrate each action.
A sent notice proves guidance was sent. Participation and follow-up require their own records. For a satisfaction survey, connect the activity, respondent group and operational changes rather than retaining only the questionnaire.
Reconcile regularly, not only before submission
Set term-time review dates. Connect approved source records to submission files instead of re-entering the same values in multiple sheets. Separate identifiable evidence from shared aggregates.
For cooperation with GEA, prepare the institution and programme, applicable assessment documents, existing evidence and work that remains uncovered. Overseas-partner guidance, student-support handovers and document organisation can then be discussed as defined tasks. Keep the university’s approval and assessment responsibilities visible in the map.
Related guides
Sources
Sources checked: 24 October 2026.
Official resources
Updated · 2026-10-24
Source