HBKU's Master of Public Policy programme gets EAPAA recognition

The Master of Public Policy (MPP) programme at Hamad Bin Khalifa Universitys (HBKU) College of Public Policy (CPP) has officially received accreditation from the European Association for Public Administration Accreditation (EAPAA).

HBKU's MPP is the first academic programme based in the Gulf region to earn this prestigious accreditation, and only the second across the Middle East and North Africa.

The EAPAA is the only quality assurance authority in the European public administration education sector that helps academic institutions refine their programmes and ensure their adherence to the European Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in Higher Education. Since 1995, the association has accredited more than 70 programmes in 18 countries across Europe and Asia.

Commenting on the achievement, Dr Ala al-Fuqaha, acting provost, said: "This latest milestone illustrates HBKU's track record of developing multidisciplinary academic programmes and national research capabilities that help facilitate expertise and to build capacity in key fields for Qatar, the region, and beyond. It also underlines the CPP's commitment to learning experiences with a distinct combination of interdisciplinarity, ethics and innovation in policy design and evaluation."

Noting the College's efforts, Dr Leslie Pal, dean, CPP, said: "This achievement cements CPP's reputation as one of the leading public policy schools and knowledge hubs in the world. It is a testament to our faculty and staff's tireless efforts to provide its students world-class academic and professional training where they can build the skills needed to understand, evaluate and contribute to policymaking in Qatar and beyond."

The stringent accreditation process was conducted by internationally renowned academics from the field of public administration and based on peer review and assessment of, among other parameters, the curriculum, research and faculty. The EAPAA Accreditation Committee rated several aspects of the MPP highly, citing the quality of teaching staff, their impressive track record in academic publications, the diversity of its community and effective management structure.