ASC 17/41
University of Glasgow
Academic Standards Committee - Friday 24 November 2017
Cover Sheet
Robbie Mulholland, Clerk, Joint Liaison Committee, University of Glasgow and Scotland’s Rural College
The enclosed paper outlines Scotland’s Rural College’s (SRUC) response to recommendations arising out of the review of programmes in the Horticulture and Landscape subject group, which was held at SRUC on 15 and 16 February 2017. The subject review incorporated the revalidation of the following University of Glasgow validated programmes.
- BSc (Hons) Horticulture
- BSc (Hons) Horticulture and Plantmanship
- BSc (Hons) Garden and Greenspace Design
Academic Standards Committee received a report of the review at its May 2017 meeting and noted that the conditions which had been highlighted in the review had all been addressed. On the basis of the information provided, ASC approved the revalidation of the three programmes for six years.
ASC noted, however, that nine recommendations were still being addressed and the committee requested that it be provided with a further update on progress against these within six months. The update was also required to provide a report on what scrutiny there had been of the revision to module descriptors as required under Condition F.
The nine recommendations and SRUC’s report on progress against these is outlined below
| Recommendation | Update on Progress |
| A. Consider including Advanced Case Studies as an elective module in year 3 of BSc Horticulture | Complete |
| B. Further examine the delivery of the module GIS and Remote Sensing within the suite of horticulture degrees. | Complete |
| C. In addition to creating a matrix indicating the development of the business theme across all years of all programmes (see condition (c)) consider being more explicit in demonstrating where business is embedded in non-business units/modules within the Horticulture with Plantsmanship programme | Complete |
| D. Consider extending the delivery of Introduction to Rural Skills to the Edinburgh campus. | Head of Department to Progress |
| E. Develop a basic marketing strategy for the department to help attract a more diverse student population. | Head of Department to Progress |
| F. For all three programmes document the range of assessments employed during years 3 and 4. | Complete |
| G. The panel strongly recommended that consideration be given to the needs of landscape businesses and the future development of higher level qualifications such as Graduate Apprenticeships. | Ongoing |
| H. The panel strongly recommended that consideration is given to developing the SQA Units which would assist progression from HNC Horticulture at Oatridge potentially utilising an online/distance learning format. | Ongoing |
| I. The panel strongly recommend that within the proposal for minor changes to the HN provision further consideration is given to the delivery and contextualisation of the two SQA Units, Preparing to Start a Business and Business Management: an Introduction. | Complete |
| Condition | |
|
F. Descriptors for all modules under the control of these programmes should be reviewed in accordance with the degree module descriptor template to ensure they include: information on the development, and where appropriate the assessment, of core skills and graduate attributes; details of appropriate reading in refereed journals and review articles; details on the approaches to learning and teaching which will be employed; clear guidelines on the assessment structure, including word limits where appropriate. |
See paper, Page 2 |