18 Jul UA is ISO 9001:2015 Certified

University of the Assumption (UA), the oldest Archdiocesan Catholic University in Asia, is the first recipient of ISO 9001:2015 Management System Certificate among educational institutions in Central Luzon. The certification was issued by QAS International on July 14, 2016 after UA’s international quality standards.

ISO 9001:2015 is the latest among the standards released by the International Organization for Standardization. It is based on eight (8) principles: client focus, leadership, involvement of people, process approach, systematic approach to management, continual improvement, factual approach to decision making and mutually beneficial supplier relations. UA for the last 50 years continues to be faithful to its mission of delivering quality Catholic education. Being ISO 9001:2015 certified is a proof that our students are assured of an outstanding education backed up with processes that comply with international standards.

University President Fr. Joselito Henson says, “the certification speaks well of the quality standards that we implement in the University”. He explained further, “because our processes and systems follow internationally accepted standards, we are extremely confident that UA can deliver quality education”.

The lead auditor, Mr. Albert Montano, reported that UA “has established and maintained its management system in line with the requirements of the standard and demonstrated the ability of the system to systematically achieve agreed requirements within the scope of the organisations’ policy and objectives”.

WHAT IS ISO?

International Organization for Standardization or ISO is an international agency composed of national standard bodies from more than 160 countries. It brings together experts who, together, develop consensus-based and market relevant international standards that support innovation and provide solutions to global challenges.

ISO has over 21,000 standards. In the ISO 9000 series, ISO 9001 which sets the international standard for quality management system (QMS) is the most popular. It is being used by various organizations to demonstrate the ability of organizations to consistently provide products and services that meet customer and regulatory requirements.

The current version of ISO 9001:2015 was released in September 2015. It is based on a number of quality management principles including a strong customer focus, the motivation and implication of top management, the process approach and continual improvement.

ABOUT QAS INTERNATIONAL

QAS International Ltd. is based in the United Kingdom. It provides certifications to a range of quality standards, including ISO 9001:2008 and ISO 14001 to businesses which have demonstrated through documented procedures and manuals that they have achieved the international standards set by ISO.

An established certification company, QAS International has been operating within the UK and selected international markets for some nine years.

According to their brochure, QAS International has granted ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certification to more than 8,000 companies in over 20 countries.

UA CERTIFICATION

The ISO 9001:2015 certification is a recognition of the collective efforts of the UA community to make its processes more efficient and effective in providing quality education.

“We are very proud of our UA community who has been very cooperative and supportive in attaining our ISO 9001:2015 certification,” says Ms. Khriselle Castillo, Director for Quality Management and Head of the ISO Committee. “This shows our commitment to providing quality service to our students,” she said.

Meanwhile, the entire UA community celebrated this new feat. In a post on its facebook page, the UA Central Student Council (UACSC) called the ISO 9001:2015 certification a “giant leap” for the university. Within 24 hours, the post was shared by 260 persons – students, alumni, parents and employees – and liked on their respective walls.

Indeed, this new achievement, which came only a few weeks after three (3) of the graduates of the UA College of Nursing made it to the top 3, 11 and 14 in the licensure examination, proves that for the University of the Assumption quality is not only a concept, but a reality. ISO 9001:2015 certification reflects the commitment of the UA community to quality and to our students.

Fr. Henson summarized it well when he said that in UA, “quality is and should be a way of life”.