About SACCA

SACCA

The Scottish Advisory Committee on Credit and Access (SACCA) is a joint Committee of Universities Scotland (US) and QAA Scotland.

SACCA was constituted in 1992 with a remit to advise the then Higher Education Quality Council (HEQC) and the Committee of Scottish Higher Education Principals (CoSHEP) on a wide range of matters relating to widening participation in lifelong learning and credit and qualifications. To this day these matters remain its core remit.

Membership comprises of representatives from ten Scottish higher education institutions all of whom are appointed for three year terms. The remainder of the membership is comprised of representatives from organisations from relevant education sectors. A full membership list can be viewed here.

SACCA and Credit and Qualification Frameworks.

SACCA's early remit included oversight of the Scottish Credit Accumulation and Transfer Scheme (SCOTCATS). SCOTCATS laid the foundations of the higher education part of the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF), which SACCA manages on behalf of the higher education sector in Scotland. From this work the Framework of Qualifications of Higher Education Institutions in Scotland (which sits within the SCQF) was developed. That Framework provides a key reference point for the higher education institutions in the development of their programmes and qualifications. SACCA has a key role of advising QAA Scotland on the maintenance of the Framework.

The SCQF has embedded as the national overall framework for credit and qualifications and SACCA is now turning its attention to the applications of the SCQF and the ways in which, across the education sectors, a unified framework can help support access to and participation in lifelong learning.

Due to the Bologna process and the European Commission's work on qualification frameworks Scottish higher education has found themselves at the vanguard of good practice. Much of SACCA's work is concerned with keeping abreast of and contributing to the developments in European higher education.

SACCA and links between FE and HE

The creation of the Scottish Funding Council and the guidance from the Minister to continue to improve links between Scotland’s College and higher education institutions means that SACCA does a substantial amount of work supporting the transitions between FE and HE and promoting ways in which these can happen.

SACCA's official remit can be found here.