What is the EQA?
You may have read my previous blog on the IQA process but another term you may have heard of it is the EQA.
EQA process:
This is a very similar process, but an external verifier comes into the centre to invigilate all of the processes, policies and students a couple of times per year for each area of education e.g. hair or beauty.
The external verifier is the middleman between the centre and the awarding body. The awarding body send an EQA to the centre approximately twice per year to have a look at all the policies and procedures that are put into place. The IQA and the assessor are also there, checking all the students work and treatments on that course.
Not every student has to be seen by the EQA but they do all have to be put through the IQA process.
That EQA will speak to the students and ask them how they are getting on, what they are doing and how they are being supported throughout their training course.
Risk Ratings:
An EQA will give the cenre a risk rating. This is a rating that VTCT (awarding body) use to clarify how much risk the education given, and centre policies are put into place for those students. The lower the risk rating the better the centre. Certain points are individually risked making an overall statement of how that centre has performed e.g. low risk medium risk high risk and very high risk.
It gives us a centre rating, and this is used on marketing material to students to prove how good of centre they are to potential students. The next visit from the external verifier can see if anything has changed and why. They can also revisit anything that was a higher risk and see if changes have been put into place.
EQA Report:
The EQA will send over a report to the centre manager, detailing many things from the day. These will include what the EQA looked at on the day from treatments, services, students, feedback given, test results, assignment work, portfolios, equipment and much more.
The report has feedback from the EQA, centre risk rating and the centre feedback. This is emailed and kept on file for future reference.
We know these events that take place within your course can be daunting, but we are here to make you feel at ease and understand the process and what it’s for. Feel free to talk to your tutor or the internal verifier about any of your concerns.
