The concept and implementation of total quality assurance (TQA) in higher environmental education

The concept and implementation of what is called Total Quality Assurance (TQA) is described in this paper. TQA is essentially a management tool to ensure that the overall quality of a Masters degree course, offered at a beneficiary university outside western Europe, conforms to best west European standards. The concept of TQA was originally developed for Masters degree courses in the Environmental discipline. Over the years it has been tested, fine-tuned and successfully applied to several Masters degree courses in this as well as in other disciplines. The major elements of the TQA have been described, together with the modalities of its implementation, the benefits and the systemic: difficulties in its application. It is shown how best results can be achieved in terms of delivering targeted quality standards when all the major elements of the TQA are applied in concert under competent overall management.