National Qualifications: Overview of Quality Assurance

SQA and centres running SQA qualifications have a shared responsibility for quality assuring the internally assessed elements of National Qualifications.

The quality assurance arrangements:

  • ensure continued credibility of National Qualifications
  • support sharing of knowledge and understanding of national standards
  • increase confidence in assessment decisions
  • support flexible delivery of our National Qualifications

How does quality assurance work?

Understanding Standards

Materials and training events to develop your understanding of the national assessment standards in each subject area.

Internal verification

The internal verification toolkit will help you develop your own practice and ensure your internal assessment is robust.

External verification

SQA uses external verification to assure the quality of internal assessment, including internal verification, in centres.

Prior verification

A free service for centres that devise their own summative assessments, or that significantly change assessments to suit their local needs.

We also carry out other quality assurance exercises to monitor standards effectively such as post-certification quality assurance. This involves appointees reviewing internal assessment evidence from centres that were not verified during the academic session.

Who is involved in quality assurance

Appointees

All quality assurance activities are overseen by a subject-specific team of appointees, who are teachers and lecturers experienced in assessment. Appointees in each subject area include a Principal Verifier, a Depute Principal Verifier and Team Leaders.

  • Principal Verifiers are responsible for overseeing all quality assurance activity for internal assessment within their subject area. They ensure that national standards are applied and maintained, and are responsible for training the team.
  • Depute Principal Verifiers support the Principal Verifier in overseeing quality assurance activities, and will deputise for the Principal Verifier when required.
  • Team Leaders directly support the work of verifiers and carry out quality assurance activities themselves.
  • Verifiers carry out quality assurance activities during events and in centres.