Education approval

Education approval

The College of Radiographers works in partnership with clinical and academic departments, external organisations and individuals to ensure that programmes of education and training related to the clinical imaging and oncology radiographic workforce, maintain, and continue to develop the highest standards of clinical imaging and oncology practice and conduct.

Wherever possible, the College’s approval and accreditation framework works within existing internal approval and quality assurance arrangements of education institutions and clinical departments. It also aims to work collaboratively with external bodies to provide a streamlined and integrated process.

Through the approval and accreditation framework the College:

• Secures consistency of standards of clinical imaging and oncology education.
• Aligns standards of clinical practice with the profession’s Education and Career Framework (2022).
• Supports and encourages the development of courses that are at, and remain at, the forefront of education and developing clinical imaging and oncology practice;
• Promotes and supports flexibility in the design and delivery of education and new roles in practice.
• Disseminates guidance on best practice in clinical imaging and oncology education and practice.
   

Programme approval process during Covid-19 - Education providers

To follow government guidance on restrictions during the months of Covid-19, we are making small changes to the way we can assess programmes for College of Radiographers’ approval. Covid-19 will have an impact on the number and availability of assessors.

If you have applied for re-approval of a programme
You may apply for an extension to your approval period. Submit via email a request on letterhead paper addressed to the Chair, Approval & Accreditation Board, and this will be reviewed at the next Approval and Accreditation Board meeting.

New programmes, new education providers or permanent significant changes to the programme
If you are planning to start delivery, or implement significant changes in September 2020, then you will need to proceed with the approval process:

• Apply via the website and provide purchase order, if you haven’t already.
• Provide details and dates of the approval event.
• Once an assessor is allocated to you, provide all documentation for the event to the assessor:
  • Programme Handbook
  • Practice Placement Handbook
  • Student Programme Handbook
  • Module specifications
  • Placement proforma
  • Practice placement agreement (tripartite if sharing placement with other education providers)
  • Practice placement audit 
     
• If the event is still going ahead, please provide the assessors with an online link to attend virtually.
• Assessors still need to speak to programme team, management team, practice placement providers, students, etc – please arrange this via telephone or virtually.
• Your placement sites will need to be assessed – please provide virtual access to enable the assessors to speak to the placement manager and coordinator for each site.

Additional practice placement
If you need to change your numbers at a placement site, or request approval for use of a new placement provider for your programme, then please apply as normal. 

We will need:

• Placement proforma clearly completed with numbers for the relevant year groups and indicate numbers for another education provider if you will be sharing this placement site.
• Practice placement agreement and placement audit – please provide these to the assessor. This needs to be a formal agreement between the education provider and the practice placement provider. Where there are placements shared with other education providers, then a tripartite placement agreement will be required.
• Your placement sites will need to be assessed - please provide virtual access/telephone details to enable the assessors to speak to the placement manager and co-ordinator for each site.

Short courses
Short courses or individual modules not leading to an award may apply for approval; these approvals will be undertaken using the course documentation. The assessor can email/telephone the education provider if they have any questions. Please ensure that you give accurate contact details for those not working from their normal place of work.

Post-registration programmes
Approvals of post-registration programmes will be undertaken utilising the programme documentation and the assessor can email/telephone the education provider if they have any questions. Please ensure that you give accurate contact details for those not working from their normal place of work.

Programme approval

To apply for approval of a programme you run please complete the application form here. All approvals must be ratified by the Approval and Accreditation Board (AAB) and College Board of Trustees. Please see the AAB page for details of the dates these boards convene.

Details of approval fees can be found here.

A list of approved pre-registration programmes can be found here.

Courses leading to qualifications and/or credits

The College of Radiographers can approve UK and international education programmes which lead to undergraduate or post graduate qualifications and/or credits. These include:

• Programmes not leading to eligibility to apply for registration as a Radiographer e.g. those leading to voluntary registration as a CoR Accredited Assistant Practitioner.
• Pre-registration programmes (undergraduate or postgraduate).
• Post-registration programmes including those leading to CoR accreditation as a Practice Educator.
  For example: FD Imaging Science, BSc (Hons) Radiotherapy, MSc Radiography

Short courses

Short courses are designed to provide opportunities for individuals to update their knowledge and skills and may also assess or confirm competence.  The document, College of Radiographers Short Course Approval, contains further information and about the short course approval process and can be downloaded from the bottom of this page.

• Short courses may be offered by UK or international education institutions, equipment manufacturers, commercial companies, clinical departments etc.
• It is unlikely that a short course would contribute academic credit and as such is unlikely to make a significant contribution to a postgraduate award.
• There may be assessment associated with the course but there is unlikely to be a prolonged period of study.
  For example: Intravenous administration courses and dental radiography courses.

Ultrasound courses

The College of Radiographers is a member of the Consortium for the Accreditation of Sonographic Education (CASE).  You can find further information about ultrasound education and accreditation here.and also a flowchart in the document download box toward the bottom of this webpage.

CPD Now endorsement

CPD endorsement can be provided for study days, tutorials, education events and e-learning materials. Applications for endorsement should be made via CPD Now. Further details are provided here.

Approval and Accreditation Board Annual Reports

We have all AAB Reports available for viewing via the CoR Document Library which can be found here.

Document downloads