Evaluating the Effectiveness of the New Zealand Academic Audit Unit: Review and outcomes

The New Zealand Vice-Chancellors' Committee set up the Academic Audit Unit to carry out quality audits of each university following the Education Amendment Act 1990. The Academic Audit Unit was required to advise the New Zealand Vice-Chancellors' Committee on what should happen after the first cycle of audits. The Academic Audit Unit Board decided to submit the Academic Audit Unit to a very thorough review by an independent group with an analogous composition to the Academic Audit Unit's audit panels (members from within and without academia, and from New Zealand and abroad). The Review Panel concluded that the procedures developed by the Academic Audit Unit requiring universities to undertake a self-review with the Academic Audit Unit validating the process have been a major stimulus for introduction of effective quality systems. A climate of trust and mutual respect is developing between the Academic Audit Unit and the universities. There are promising signs that universities are highly committed to the audit process, are going beyond compliance and are now ready to influence the audit process through identifying their own specific audit themes as part of the next two audit cycles. New Zealand universities are now preparing for the next cycles of audits and there is a sense of optimism that the relationship between the Academic Audit Unit and the universities will become more robust, enabling a climate of critical evaluation and reform to prevail.