Quality Assessment Considerations in Programme Policy Formulation and Implementation

South African higher education is moving towards a programme-based higher education system. The National Commission on Higher Education proposed that the funding formula should be based on programmes and not on institutions per se. As a result, all higher education institutions are in the process of getting programmes registered on the National Qualifications Framework to be accredited by the South African Qualifications Framework Authority. In future, institutions will increasingly have to prove the quality of their programmes. One way of doing this is to invest in programme self-evaluation. In this article it is argued that programme self-evaluation is a prerequisite: (1) for bringing policy for a programme-based higher education system into practice; and (2) to promote quality assurance in higher education.