Credit Transfer Research Articles

Knowledge Based Information System to Manage Transfer of Credits in An Outcome Based Higher Educational Setting

While shifting from one outcome based educational system to another one, a student needs to gain the benefit of credits transfer for all or most of his/her attained credits, followed by the policy and procedure of the granting institutions. Transfer of attained credits for a relocating student is quite normal and obvious in an outcome based higher educational system. With equal importance to transfer of credits, it is also vital to confirm that the knowledge and competency gained by the student does map the core skills needed for further progress in his/her education, in the receiving institution. In context to the field of Computer Science or Information Technology or any other related technical area, where programming languages and software platforms are imperative, the normal method of credits transfer could be a critical concern. On one hand, while the receiving institutions provide the transfer of credits for all or most of the courses successfully completed by a student, it is also a major concern whether the student occupies the core knowledge, competencies and skills needed to proceed with higher level courses, specific to software platforms or other specific requirements, in the receiving institution. This is because different institutions provide different curriculum for a similar program and thus, though the concepts may remain in general, the core software platforms or course related specific requirements may differ. In this case, with varying platforms from institution to institution, if a student is being received with transfer of credits but with lack of relevant knowledge, competencies and skills, he/she would face a critical challenge to cope up with the higher-level course, to succeed in the program. The competition within the institution may not allow the student to progress smoothly and could develop a sense of criticality or failure. With much needed effective solution to this problem, in our research, we have discussed the backdrops of normally executed credits transfer, addressed its complications as well repercussions and proposed a knowledge-based information system that would effectively tackle this problem. The outcome of the conducted research proposes to create a prototype of an information system tool to be identified as Knowledge Management Credit Transfer System in order to manage an efficient credits transfer process.

An Unconventional Way to Support Health Expenditure

Here, we propose a taxation scheme towards the implementation of universal health care under Beveridge model. In our proposed framework, a small amount of health tax is imposed on each and every non-cash transaction including transactions through debit and credit card, credit transfer, direct debit and cheque which is found to be solely sufficient to cover up entire health expenditure of a nation. We have shown empirically that a 1.84 USD levy on every non-cash transaction is enough to meet up the annual health expenditure in the CEMEA (Central Europe, Middle East and Africa) region. For Latin America (LA), Emerging Asia (EA), Mature Asia and the Pacific (MAP) and North America (NA) this value is found to be 4.51, 2.04, 15.93 and 21.07 USD respectively. Moreover, as the proposed levy is collectable electronically without any human intervention, no additional logistic support is required for the implementation of the scheme.

Automating Articulation: Applying Natural Language Processing to Post-Secondary Credit Transfer

Within the field of post-secondary student mobility, the assessment, and evaluation of transfer credit is a labor-intensive human intelligence task that is subject to time limits and human bias. This paper introduces a semi-automated approach to assessing transfer credit and generating articulation agreements between post-secondary institutions using natural language processing (NLP). The output from the NLP system is tested using a content expert generated an assessment of transfer credit between computer science programs at two separate post-secondary institutions. Initial testing with an unsupervised NLP algorithm, despite good results against standardized measures, assessed the percentage of course overlap as 71% similar to the percentages selected by human content experts. The application of an algorithm based on the Word2Vec model using domain-specific Wikipedia corpus and dependency parsing was applied to compensate for domain specific language and improved the relationship between content experts ratings and NLP output to 86% related overlap.

Performance of agriculture development bank limited in Nepal

For the survival and growth, every organization should be capable to translate its plans and programs enhancing performance. Agriculture Development Bank Limited (ADBL) was incorporated in 1968 through enactment of Agriculture Development Bank of Nepal (ADBN) Act.1967, with mains objective to provide institutional credit for enhancing the production and productivity of the agricultural sector in the country. In this context, this article explores the capacity and performance level of Agriculture Development Bank and discussion about contribution of ADBL in rural credit supply in Nepal. Continuous performance is the objective of any organization because only through performance, organizations are able to grow and progress. For the discussion, about Performance of ADBL, operating status of ADB, financial status of ADBL, total investment Share and loan investment, dividend received, contribution on rural credit transfer, Revenue generation, Shareholder's Fund/net-worth, working capital, administrative and unfunded liabilities of ADBL on the based on PBM theory assumptions, Secondary data are obtain from Ministry of Finances and National planning commission and some of the key personnel of the ADBL are also interviewed. The finding shows that there are still very important roles of ADBL for service delivery system, social and economic development, and the roles of income Tax; value added tax and not taxable-tax collection and social welfare, Employees ’generation, curtailing, syndicate and market control, the role of crisis management and emergency situation etc.

Перехід від модульної до сесійної форми організації навчального процесу: перший досвід НМУ імені О.О. Богомольця

The article deals with the first experience of Bogomolets National Medical University's transition from modular to session form of organization of educational process for ECTS. Organisation of educational process is one of the most powerful tool to use and fine-tuning which directly displays the integrative results of activities of the institution of higher education. Thus, it was a question of the need to create a culture of quality in educational environment of the university using changes to the learning method as a key lever. There were made changes to the educational-methodical complexes of disciplines according to the peculiarities of organization of training students of the first year. After that an internal audit of the materials developed by the Departments was carried out. The main directions of the transformation of the curricula concerned the following aspects: introduction of winter and summer exam sessions; reasonable and well-balanced choice of final control form for each discipline taking into account the competent approach; introduction of intermediate (semester) control in disciplines, the study of which lasts more than one semester, in form of a transfer credit (attestation). At the level of university management the foundation for the development of successive changes in the responsibility of the departments for the production of better teaching materials and for improving the quality of education for applicants, and in the responsibility of students for learning outcomes was laid. The article gives convincing evidence of the positive impact of organizational changes on qualitative indicators of training: quality of success, absolute success of the entire contingent of first-year students and average grade of first-year students (contract form of training). It is shown that the transformation of the organization of training allowed to reduce the percentage of students with academic debts and the number of hours they heve missed, for Ukrainian and foreign students. The transformation of the organization of education into Bogomolets National Medical University became an effective tool for improving the quality of educational services in accordance with the current social request.

Promoting the Attainment-to-Transfer Pathway: Effects of Transfer Associate Degree Policies Across States

This study examines the effects of transfer associate degree policies: an articulation approach featuring two-year credentials as a mechanism to transfer credits from two-to four-year institutions. Using institution-level data, I exploit variation in the introduction of these policies across multiple states as a natural experiment. Results suggest that there is variation across states in the effect on transferrable associate degree completion. The findings support the hypothesis that comprehensive articulation may be most effective at redirecting students to transferrable pathways specified by the legislation.

Modeling the Effect of the Reverse Credit Transfer Associate's Degree: Evidence from Two States

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of receiving an associate's degree via reverse credit transfer on retention and bachelor's degree attainment for students in Hawaii and Minnesota who transferred from a community college to a university before earning an associate's degree. Results showed mostly positive evidence with some null results, and we found no evidence that reverse credit transfer negatively influences students' progress toward the bachelor's degree. The results have implications for states and institutions who are developing and implementing reverse credit transfer programs and policies.

Reverse Credit Transfer and the Value of the Associate’s Degree: Multiple and Contradictory Meanings

ABSTRACTThis study examined how transfer students perceived the value of the associate’s degree in the context of reverse credit transfer. Five student focus groups of transfer students provided individual and collective discourses on the perceptions of the associate’s degree. The findings show that transfer students perceived the associate’s degree to be both beneficial and limiting. The results show the potential of the associate’s degree via reverse credit transfer as a way to support students’ progress toward the bachelor’s degree. However, the findings suggest that all transfer students do not equally value or understand the purpose of the associate’s degree, and we provide recommendations for policy, practice, and future research.

8 Identifying factors that affect the transition of transfer students to a four-year university through the use of focus groups.

Students who transfer from a community college to a 4-year university face different transition barriers compared to those who come directly from high school, which has led to a decrease in retention rate of over 10% (from 89.9% to 78.3% - 2016). Roughly 20% of students in the Department of Animal Science at Iowa State University (ISU) are transfers, therefore this is an issue of great concern. The objective of this study is to identify issues specific to transfer students and determine if additional resources are needed to address these issues. The study consists of two parts: 1) identification of barrier themes through focus group discussion, and 2) development of a survey instrument that can be used across multiple disciplines. Focus group data is reported here. A structured discussion was conducted in six different focus groups (n=58) that consisted of 8–10 transfer students. Focus groups were formed through the use of transfer student peer mentor groups that were assigned based on student interests and career goals. The discussion focused on three main categories of issues commonly found in literature: psychological, academic and environmental barriers. Qualitative analysis of the focus group discussions revealed common themes of struggles that our students face within these categories. It was found that transfer students at ISU commonly struggle with social integration, lack of knowledge on transfer credits and having larger class sizes, thus a lack of personal relationships with professors. Notably, a majority of students reported negative feedback on the requirement of an orientation class that consisted of predominantly freshman. Collection of this data has led to the addition of a transfer-specific orientation course that will address the challenges that were identified. In addition, the themes that were identified are being used to develop a survey instrument that can be used across multiple disciplines.

ASEAN University Network in Enhancing Student Mobility

Internationalization of higher education pushes for more intensive regional collaborations as well as student mobility. There are a plethora of studies exploring student mobility patterns, but research on the transformative potential of regional mobility networks is limited. As the most predominant regional network of universities in Southeast Asia, ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) University Network (AUN) commits to boosting student mobility in the region, and thus, can be conceived to be a deliberative space capable of expanding student mobility. This chapter examines the role of AUN in promoting student mobility within the ASEAN region. Indonesia’s engagement is used as a point of entry to assess the extent of policies and programs in encouraging student mobility in the ASEAN region. It shows that AUN has established regional quality assurance and credit transfer systems to promote credit student mobility across AUN member universities. In this regard, the implementation of Indonesian qualification framework has reinforced AUN in the operationalization of credit transfer system across the member universities. Similarly, the existing Indonesian quality assurance body has strengthened AUN in bridging collaborations for student mobility. Thus, the current state of credit student mobility across AUN member universities is shaped by not only by AUN but also Indonesian and higher education institutional policies and systems related to student mobility reflecting the various levels of players in the ASEAN region.

ASEAN University Network in Enhancing Student Mobility

Internationalization of higher education pushes for more intensive regional collaborations as well as student mobility. There are a plethora of studies exploring student mobility patterns, but research on the transformative potential of regional mobility networks is limited. As the most predominant regional network of universities in Southeast Asia, ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) University Network (AUN) commits to boosting student mobility in the region, and thus, can be conceived to be a deliberative space capable of expanding student mobility. This chapter examines the role of AUN in promoting student mobility within the ASEAN region. Indonesia’s engagement is used as a point of entry to assess the extent of policies and programs in encouraging student mobility in the ASEAN region. It shows that AUN has established regional quality assurance and credit transfer systems to promote credit student mobility across AUN member universities. In this regard, the implementation of Indonesian qualification framework has reinforced AUN in the operationalization of credit transfer system across the member universities. Similarly, the existing Indonesian quality assurance body has strengthened AUN in bridging collaborations for student mobility. Thus, the current state of credit student mobility across AUN member universities is shaped by not only by AUN but also Indonesian and higher education institutional policies and systems related to student mobility reflecting the various levels of players in the ASEAN region.

Features of teaching thermal injury course for the third-year students at the general surgery department.

In the article, on the basis of methodological recom­mendations on the introduction of the European credit transfer system and its documents, current issues of optimizing the educational process, the effectiveness of mastering the material on the topic "Thermal trauma", based on theoretical training and practical skills are elucidated. Lectures, practical classes and skills are formulated taking into account modern terrorist attacks with outlining effective ways of medical self-aid, mutual and first aid.

Supporting the smooth uptake of instant payments: Pan-European infrastructure principles revisited and checked against the live RT1 system

In November 2017, the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) witnessed the introduction of realtime euro payments following the launch of the European Payments Council’s SEPA Instant Credit Transfer scheme and the first systems capable of processing instant payments. In preparation for this major date, which also saw its own instant payment platform, RT1, go live, EBA CLEARING published a white paper on pan-European infrastructure considerations. The paper focused on crucial drivers of success for instant payments and how they could best be supported in the infrastructure layer. A year after the publication of this paper, the company revisited these drivers, as well as the elements, processes and arrangements it had implemented at the level of its RT1 system in order to support them. The aim was to determine whether these measures had contributed to the uptake and smooth day-to-day processing of instant payments. The present paper provides a summary of this reality check.

Empirically Supported Development of Specialisation Courses for Extra-Occupational Studies within the Discipline of Business Informatics

This article contains the analytical results of qualitative and descriptive research regarding the definition of specialisation courses in the areas of "Informatics" and "Management" for extra-occupational study offers within the discipline of Business Informatics. The subjects were IT specialists with either foundation or advanced Chamber of Commerce (IHK) IT training, who participated as students in the credit transfer courses developed in the "Open IT" research project, or who were interested in participating. The investigative results reveal clearly in certain parts just what the preferences of working IT students are in terms of the scientific specialisation courses on offer, and how student target groups can be actively and effectively integrated into the design process of degree programme curricula.

What influences banks’ choice of credit risk management practices? Theory and evidence

Banks use different risk management practices with varying levels of sophistication. This paper examines the factors that determine the choice of risk-management practices. In a theoretical model, we identify two main determinants for the choice of risk management tools: bank competition and sector concentration in the loan market. We empirically test the predictions of our model using hand-collected data on the credit risk management of 249 German savings banks. The results are in line with our theory: Competition pushes banks to implement advanced risk management practices. Sector concentration in the loan market promotes credit portfolio modeling, but it inhibits credit risk transfer.

Evaluating the Design Standard of UiTM Massive Open Online Courses

Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) was one of the initiatives of the Malaysia Ministry of Education to ensure the standard of our national education system was at par with the global education trends. This initiative was documented in Malaysian Education Blueprint 2015 -2025 (Higher Education, Shift No.9: Globalised Online Learning). Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) was among the public universities in Malaysia that were seriously involved in MOOC development. Starting with one MOOC in 2014, four MOOCs in 2015, 16 MOOCs in 2016, UiTM embarked into developing 450 new MOOCs in 2017. To ensure UiTM MOOC had achieved the required standard and quality of Malaysian MOOC, an internal guideline for UiTM MOOC Development (i-Learn Centre, 2016) was constructed. The construction of the guideline was based on the standard provided by the Guidelines of Development and Delivery of Malaysian MOOC (KPT, 2017). Some additional elements required by the administrator of UiTM MOOC were also added. The study was interested to determine whether the MOOCs developed by UiTM lecturers complied with the standard of UiTM MOOC and ultimately the Malaysian MOOC. It was also interested to determine the readiness of UiTM MOOC for credit transfer. To do that, a UiTM MOOC Evaluation Checklist was introduced. The checklist consisted of 45 questions which were constructed based on the guideline on UiTM MOOC Development (i-Learn Centre, 2016) and the Guidelines for Credit Transfer for MOOC (MQA, 2016). The study evaluated two active UiTM MOOCs in terms of adherence to the standard of UiTM MOOC. The findings of the study highlighted areas to be improved and provided suggestions to increase readiness for MOOC credit transfer.

ECVET and ECTS credit equivalency in higher education – A bridge too far?

AbstractThe implementation within Europe of a credit system for vocational education and training known as ECVET is a European Commission priority. The potential for permeability between the ECVET and European Credit Transfer and accumulation System (ECTS) was foreseen in the Recommendation to establish ECVET in 2009, while the Bruges Communique of 2010 called for the promotion of flexible links between vocational and higher education and increased coherence between ECVET and ECTS. To this end a significant number of EU‐funded projects were undertaken to explore compatibility between ECVET and ECTS. This article reviews the findings of these projects and reflects on their success in terms of achieving this policy goal. These bridging projects identified several points of compatibility between the two credit systems and produced valuable tools and frameworks to facilitate such permeability. Achieving credit equivalency between ECVET and ECTS does not appear feasible, rather the evidence points to using a learning outcomes‐based equivalency framework. However, this article calls into question the sustainability of these project results with regard to the lack of success in translating these findings into practice and the lack of co‐ordinated efforts to implement these findings at a national or pan European level.

Through Army-Colored Glasses: A Layered Account of One Veteran’s Experiences in Higher Education

There is a lack of research on military veterans in higher education that captures the issues from an insider’s perspective. To that end, I sought to reflect upon my own experiences with higher education as military veteran—from a budding recruit all the way through to now being an administrator and faculty member. I utilized a layered-account autoethnographic approach (Ronai, 1995) to interrogate my multiple perspectives that developed over time on veterans’ issues in higher education. I found that the GI Bill—the modern iteration of the Serviceman’s Readjustment Act of 1944—was a powerful motivator both in starting my military career and continuing my studies; my thinking on transfer credits from the Joint Service Transcript evolved from seeing them as an entitlement to lacking rigor. I felt out of place as I left the military and attended a traditional university campus, and then I sought out the faculty members who reminded me of the no-nonsense military from which I had departed. My experiences in the military continually guided my behavior as a student and that of other student veterans I observed, thus, I recommend that institutions glean lessons from these experiences to better serve the unique demographic presented by the growing population of student veterans.

Successful Curriculum Change in Health Management and Leadership Studies for the Specialist Training Programs in Medicine in Finland.

In Finland, the specialization programs in Medicine and Dentistry can be undertaken at all five university medical faculties in 50 specialization programs and in five programs for Dentistry. The specialist training requires 5 or 6 years (300–360 ECTS credits) of medical practice including 9 months of service in primary health care centers, theoretical substance specific education, management studies, and passing a national written exam. The renovation of the national curriculum for the specialization programs was implemented, first in 2008 and officially in August 2009, when theoretical multi-professional social, health management and leadership studies (10–30 ECTS credits) were added to the curriculum. According to European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS), 1 ECTS credit (henceforth, simply “ECTS”) means 27–30 h of academic work1 National guidelines for the multi-professional leadership training include the basics of organizational management and leadership, the social and healthcare system, human resources (HR) management, leadership interaction and organizational communication, healthcare economy, legislation (HR) and data management. Each medical faculty has implemented management studies autonomously but according to national guidelines. This paper will describe how the compulsory management studies (10 ECTS) have been executed at the Universities of Tampere and Turku. In Tampere, the 10 ECTS management studies follow a flexible design of six academic modules. Versatile modern teaching methods such as technology-assisted and student orientated learning are used. Advanced supplementary management studies (20 ECTS) are also available. In Turku, the 10 ECTS studies consist of academic lectures, portfolio and project work. Attendees select contact studies (4–6 ECTS) from yearly available 20 ECTS and proceed at their own pace. Portfolio and project comprise 2–5 ECTS each. The renovation of medical specializing physicians' management and leadership education has been a successful reform. It has been observed that positive attitudes and interest toward management overall are increasing among younger doctors. In addition, management and leadership education will presumably facilitate medical doctors' work as managers also. Continuous development of medical doctors' management and leadership education for physicians and dentists is needed while the changing and complex healthcare environment requires both professional and leadership expertise.

Harmonizing Higher Education at the Regional Level: The Case of ASEAN and the Philippines

Education is in the heart of Southeast Asia’s quest for equitable human development throughout the region. This has never been more pronounced than when the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) formed the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC) in 2003, ushering in a number of regional directives and initiatives to harmonize higher education among ASEAN member states. Yet, the process has not been easy due to fundamental differences in higher education structure, quality, and processes among member countries. In light of this, the study traced the institutional arrangements and policy responses that have taken place at both regional and national levels in pursuit of integrating higher education in the region. First, it reviewed the key mechanisms that ASEAN has established to foster harmonization. It then discussed the experience of the Philippines in relation to the three components of harmonization, namely, qualifications framework, quality assurance, and credit transfer. It showed that while the government has shown sufficient response to its regional obligations through legislation and administrative issuances, it needs to do much more to show its commitment and ensure involvement of all higher education institutions in the integration process.