German University of Technology in Oman, Institutional Quality Audit, Mar 2013
 
Dr. Achim Hopbach
 
Dr Achim Hopbach has over 25 years of experience in higher education, having served as research assistant, in university administration, higher education policy, and quality assurance. He recently set up his own consultancy business after having retired from leading the quality assurance agencies in Austria and Germany for 15 years. Dr Hopbach has extensive experience in the development and implementation of quality assurance legislation, systems and processes in Europe, Southeast Asia, Central Asia, Africa and the Caribbean. He has served and serves as panel member and chair of evaluation panels for national audit and evaluation of quality assurance agencies in Germany, Austria, Italy, Ireland, Malta, Oman, Indonesia, Malaysia, Haiti and East-African countries. His consultancy activities focus on the areas of cross-border higher education and branch campuses, design of quality assurance systems and setting up higher education institutions. He held and holds various positions in quality assurance agencies and associations, such as President of the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA) from 2009 to 2013; member of the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications (HKCAAVQ) from 2005 to 2013; member of the University Quality International Board (UQAIB), Dubai, since 2015, and on international advisory board of various agencies. He has published numerous articles on the Bologna Process, quality assurance and qualifications frameworks.Dr Hopbach holds a PhD in History (University of Tuebingen, Germany) and a Master in History, Political Science and Law (University of Heidelberg, Germany). 

 
Prof. Ian Cumbus
 
Professor Ian Cumbus studied Biological Sciences at the University of Lancaster (UK) and subsequently in 1975 obtained his PhD in Plant Physiology at the University of Bath (UK). Postdoctoral Fellowships at the University of Bath and Oxford University were followed by appointment as Senior Lecturer at Oxford Brookes University in 1979. Secondments have included Foundation Dean of Science at the Asian University of Science and Technology in Thailand, start up and Head of Biotechnology programs at the Singapore Polytechnic, and Coordinator of Policy & Planning at Zayed University (1998-2000). Dr. Cumbus is a member of the UK’s Higher Education Academy and is a Chartered Biologist with the Institute of Biology (UK).   Over the years Professor Cumbus has received awards for Teaching Excellence and was recipient of the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust Fellowship in 1981. Most recently, in his role as Assistant Principal (Academic) at Writtle College UK, Dr. Cumbus was awarded Professorial status by the University of Essex in 2003. Dr. Cumbus has worked on contract for the Higher Education Funding Councils in England and Wales as Special Subject Quality Assessor and for other accreditation boards in the UK and internationally. Dr. Cumbus has worked as a Commissioner with the Commission for Academic Accreditation, Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, in the United Arab Emirates. He has also been a Qualifications Framework Expert at the National Qualifications Authority, United Arab Emirates. 
 
Dr Maha Merghani Kobeil
 
Dr. Maha Kobeil, Dean, Majan College (University College), Muscat, earned her Ph.D. from the University of Manchester in Applied Linguistics and an MA from the University of Liverpool, UK. Her extensive experience in the areas of higher education, teaching, curriculum evaluation, planning and development, and institutional and programme quality assurance standards has spanned more than eighteen years.  She has expertise in the fields of English Language, Applied Linguistics, Quality Assurance, Teacher Education, and Student Counselling. She has supervised dissertations at Masters Level in Khartoum University and Al Neelain University in Sudan as well as undergraduate projects in Ahfad University and Majan College. Dr. Kobeil has been involved in the preparation of documentation for programme validations, institutional reviews and strategic planning. She also plays an active role in ensuring that quality assurance standards are adhered to. She has chaired and actively participated in Examination Boards in the Business and IT Faculties in Majan as well as being an external examiner for programmes in other institutions. She was instrumental in the preparation and implementation of the BA (Hons) in English Language and the validation of the Majan’s new Foundation Programme in 2003. Dr. Kobeil has contributed to the development of the English Language courses for the Colleges of Applied Sciences with the Ministry of Higher Education. She was a member of the working group for establishing the National Standards for General Foundation Programmes in Oman. Her research interests are in the areas of reading comprehension, information processing, critical thinking skills, and student learning styles.
 
Dr Saleh Salim Al Busaidi
 
Dr Saleh Salim Al-Busaidi is an Associate Professor of English as a Foreign Language at the College of Education, Sultan Qaboos University (SQU), Sultanate of Oman. He received his BA in TEFL at Sultan Qaboos University in 1995, his MA in TEFL at the University of Exeter, United Kingdom in 1997, and his PhD in curriculum studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA in 2003. He served as the Director of the Language Centre at SQU  from 2010 to 2016. He has also chaired and taken part in many committees and project teams inside and outside SQU. Dr Al-Busaidi has also served on several audit panels. He has participated in the development of the General Foundation Programme (GFP) standards project supervised by the Oman Academic Accreditation Authority back in 2007. Dr Al-Busaidi has also participated in many national and international conferences and symposia. He has published many journal articles and book chapters on a range of topics. His main research interests are: learner autonomy, material development, study/academic skills, academic readiness and language acquisition.
 
Dr. Serge Herzog
 
Born and raised in Switzerland, Dr. Herzog completed his graduate education in government studies (MA, Georgetown University, Washington, DC) and technology management (PhD, University of Denver,USA). He joined the Emirates Center of Strategic Studies & Research in Abu Dhabi, UAE, as a research associate before moving on to become a consultant for international trade with Texas-based Ost Europa Investment Strategies, Inc. Since 2001, he has served as Director of Institutional Analysis at the University of Nevada, Reno, USA, with a concurrent appointment as statistical consultant for the university’s Center for Research Design & Analysis (CRDA).  Since 2016, he has served as Research Fellow for the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC). He has participated in numerous higher education institutional accreditations and teaches regular higher education workshops and webinars on predictive analytics and data management and reporting in affiliation with Percontor LLC. He is the author of Defense Reform and Technology (Praeger), and chapter contributor to Change and Development in the Gulf (ed. Abbas Abdelkarim; Macmillan). His publications have been covered in the Chronicle of Higher Education, University Business Magazine, Campus Technology Magazine, Research in Higher Education, European Journal of Engineering Education, and New Directions for Institutional Research (NDIR). Most recently, he is co-editor of Methodological Advances and Issues in Studying College Impact. New Directions for Institutional Research(Jossey-Bass), and Validity and Limitations of College Student Self-Report Survey Data, New Directions for Institutional Research (Jossey-Bass). In 2019, he developed the first value-added university ranking system, the College ROI.