22 June 2022

Dr. Choltis shared his views on credit transfer systems at the HAQAA2 African Credit Transfer System Re-Launch Workshop

By
AUN Writer Team

By Anna Chow, AUN Intern

The African Credit Transfer System (ACTS) workshop was launched during the HAQAA2 Advisory Board meeting on 8th June 2022 in Abidjan Cote d’Ivoire, Africa, to revive the discussion on ACTS which entails harmonization of curricula and promotion of academic mobility in Africa. The HAQAA2 Initiative is the second phase of the Harmonization of African Higher Education, Quality Assurance and Accreditation Initiative.

The ASEAN University Network (AUN) Executive Director, Dr. Choltis Dhirathiti, discussed at the ACTS Re-launch Workshop. In discussion of challenges and corresponding solutions to developing the African harmonization system, he shared examples of regional credit transfer systems in Southeast Asia, hoping to inspire an African solution to developing their own regional system.

Dr. Choltis introduced three regional credit transfer systems in Southeast Asia, namely the ASEAN Credit Transfer System (ACTS), ASEAN International Mobility for Students (AIMS), and University Mobility in Asia and the Pacific (UMAP). The EU Support to Higher Education in the ASEAN Region (SHARE) project is mainly on scholarship support to facilitate student mobility. The attempt to link the ACTS with the European credit transfer system is underway under this project.

He explained that the credit transfer systems in Southeast Asia have been inspired by European practices and always involve external partners from other regions, especially partners in East Asia such as Korea and Japan. These systems are linked with student mobility programs and mostly with scholarships and other means of financial support.

Dr. Choltis also shared the problems of facilitating student mobility and credit transfer systems in Southeast Asia, with concerns regarding the credit recognition, administrative procedures, and academic calendar. He highlighted the importance of an outcome-based allocation in the credit system to facilitate regional mobility and quality assurance standards, to ensure the success of regional education around the world.