The Chartered Quality Institute

Becoming a CQI Education Centre

With business excellence and good business practice becoming increasingly important in the workplace, more and more employers are finding out about quality management systems and how to train their staff appropriately. The CQI is approved by the Qualification and Curriculum Authority (QCA) and offers two nationally accredited qualifications in Quality: the level three Certificate and the level five Diploma.

CQI Education Centres are vital in delivering these qualifications.

How does it work?

The CQI provides the syllabi for the Diploma and the Certificate which outline the course content and learning outcomes. We set the assessment papers and mark or moderate them. We also monitor students' results and develop the syllabus.

As an Education Centre, you develop the supporting teaching materials, coordinate students' studies and teach the courses. You also market the programmes (with the CQI's help) and administer the fees. Essentially, you will be the central point of contact for all of your students studying for the CQI qualifications. We will support you in getting the best results.

The CQI qualifications can be offered on a part-time or full time basis, with weekly tutorials or more intensive block-release study, both in the UK and overseas. We do not prescribe how you want to deliver the qualifications - as long as the exam dates and submission deadlines are met, it is entirely up to you how you want to structure the courses.

How to become an Education Centre

  1. Download the syllabus(es) of the qualification(s): Diploma (300kb PDF document) and Certificate (220kb PDF document) – it provides detailed information about the programme content.
  2. Download the Guide on becoming an Education centre. It will provide you with essential background information about the CQI and our qualifications, including details of the approval procedure and the costings.
  3. Complete an Initial interest form (165 kb Word document) to provide us with an outline of your organisation's activities and your plans in terms of the delivery of the programmes. Email the complete form to education@thecqi.org .
  4. Once we have established that becoming a CQI Education centre is the right option for you, we will supply you with the CQI Centre guidelines that detail procedures and policies relating to the CQI qualifications and, on request, examples of the past examination papers.
  5. Complete a self-assessment form (255kb Word document) to demonstrate that your organisation has an acceptable management system in place and the resources to effectively manage the provision and administration of the CQI programme(s).
  6. We will ask you to provide specific evidence to support the application.
  7. A CQI Assessor will visit your organisation with an on-site audit. Once the Assessor is satisfied that all the systems and procedures are in place, you will be issued with an Approved Education centre status.

If you have any questions regarding the CQI qualifications and becoming a CQI Education centre, we would be very happy to help. Please contact CQI Education on education@thecqi.org or +44 (0)20 7245 6877.