What Happens During the NAAC Peer Team Visit?

The National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) has been entrusted with the responsibility to conduct the assessment and accreditation of higher education institutions. In their effort to complete this responsibility in a holistic, systematic, and transparent manner, they have designed different stages of the accreditation process. One of the most pivotal stages of the assessment and accreditation process is the NAAC peer team visit.

What is a NAAC Peer Team?

The NAAC Peer Team is an assessing team of peer experts who visit the higher education institution (HEI) campus seeking accreditation. They are trained to conduct an objective assessment of the quality of education offered in HEIs. After the visit, the assessors submit a detailed report of their observations. The account carries significant weightage in the final score given to an HEI.

What Happens During a NAAC Peer Team Visit?

The members of the Peer Team are trained to follow the protocol for the assessment process. Here is an account of what you can expect when a NAAC Peer Team visits your institution –

1. Only institutions that clear the minimum prequalification stage of DVV validation are assessed by a Peer Team.
2. Peer Team members verify, validate, assess, and score the institution with respect o qualitative metrics described by the HEI in their Self-study Report (SSR).
3. The Peer Team visits as many facilities of the institution as they can to understand the institution’s quality and experience of higher education.
4. The Peer Team members write a detailed report on each criterion around 300 to 500 words and provide a score on each qualitative metric. The score is given on a scale of 0 to 4, wherein 0 is the lowest and 4 is the highest.
5. The scores and reports are submitted online using the assessor’s portal, and they are confidential.
6. Depending upon the institution’s size, the Peer Team may choose to visit all or 50% of the departments. The peer team selects half the departments to visit, while the HEI decides the other half.
7. The institution is responsible for helping the peer team and ensuring that their schedule is managed well. It helps to render the visit fair, complete, and satisfactory.
8. The Peer Team may have specific questions about any information provided by the HEI in the SSR. They may seek pinpointed clarifications about the facts stated in the SSR. This information is almost always included in the Peer Team Report. Sometimes, the peer team receives specific requests for such clarifications from NAAC. The institution should strive to provide all the clarifications requested and answer all the queries raised by the Peer Team as best as they can.
9. The Peer Team may take any original documents of the HEI into their possession until their report is submitted. The papers should be related to the quantitative or qualitative metrics of assessment.
10. A short cultural programme of 30 to 45 mins may be organized and showcased for the peer team at a time and place mutually agreeable to everyone.
11. During the Peer Team Visit, both the HEI authorities and the Peer Team should adhere to COVID Appropriate Behaviour. The institution should ensure that the Peer Team is comfortable and can carry out the assessment with convenience.
12. After the Peer Team visit is complete, the members of the Peer Team are not to contact anyone from the HEI. If the HEI has questions, they may connect to NAAC directly.