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All qualifications and part qualifications registered on the National Qualifications Framework are public property. Thus the only payment that can be made for them is for service and reproduction. It is illegal to sell this material for profit. If the material is reproduced or quoted, the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) should be acknowledged as the source. |
| SOUTH AFRICAN QUALIFICATIONS AUTHORITY |
| REGISTERED QUALIFICATION: |
| Diploma in Public Affairs |
| SAQA QUAL ID | QUALIFICATION TITLE | |||
| 111241 | Diploma in Public Affairs | |||
| ORIGINATOR | ||||
| Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) | ||||
| PRIMARY OR DELEGATED QUALITY ASSURANCE FUNCTIONARY | NQF SUB-FRAMEWORK | |||
| - | HEQSF - Higher Education Qualifications Sub-framework | |||
| QUALIFICATION TYPE | FIELD | SUBFIELD | ||
| Diploma (Min 360) | Field 03 - Business, Commerce and Management Studies | Public Administration | ||
| ABET BAND | MINIMUM CREDITS | PRE-2009 NQF LEVEL | NQF LEVEL | QUAL CLASS |
| Undefined | 360 | Not Applicable | NQF Level 06 | Regular-Provider-ELOAC |
| REGISTRATION STATUS | SAQA DECISION NUMBER | REGISTRATION START DATE | REGISTRATION END DATE | |
| Reregistered | EXCO 0821/24 | 2019-08-16 | 2027-06-30 | |
| LAST DATE FOR ENROLMENT | LAST DATE FOR ACHIEVEMENT | |||
| 2028-06-30 | 2033-06-30 | |||
| In all of the tables in this document, both the pre-2009 NQF Level and the NQF Level is shown. In the text (purpose statements, qualification rules, etc), any references to NQF Levels are to the pre-2009 levels unless specifically stated otherwise. |
This qualification replaces: |
| Qual ID | Qualification Title | Pre-2009 NQF Level | NQF Level | Min Credits | Replacement Status |
| 72630 | National Diploma: Public Management | Level 6 | Level N/A: Pre-2009 was L6 | 360 | Complete |
| 63051 | National Diploma: Local Government Management | Level 6 | Level N/A: Pre-2009 was L6 | 360 | Complete |
| PURPOSE AND RATIONALE OF THE QUALIFICATION |
| Purpose:
The purpose of the qualification is to equip learners with foundational and practical knowledge, competencies and contextually relevant skills required to optimise the administration. The modules that comprise the curriculum for the qualification were developed; each with Exit Level Outcomes which is linked its purpose. The first-year level modules focus on the fundamentals of managing public affairs. In other words, the modules have been designed to provide fundamental knowledge to learners Subsumed in these are policy design, analysis, interpretation and implementation, including the politics and economics of its administration. Furthermore, learners will be able to apply key terms, concepts, facts, principle and theories of the discipline. There are also fundamental modules that will provide learners with skills that would enable them to communicate and interact effectively in the public space, be able to engage in systematic inquiry, gather and analyse information, and optimise decision-making using statistical models for managing public affairs. Also, learners will be able to gain problem-solving skills, ethics and professional ethics, management of information and its communication, context and systems, management of learning and accountability. Upon completion of the qualification, learners will be able to: Rationale: The rationale for this qualification required a rethinking of its epistemological and ontological disposition in crafting a qualification for education and training for those that chose a career in the administration of the state. The complexities of the 21st century as they relate to statecraft requires that the state should be staffed with the best, highly educated, sophisticated and capable with rounded knowledge, coupled with strategic and technical skills to function in a public space with efficiency and commitment to the common good. This emerged in many interactions with the public sector, where it was said that the existing qualifications lack the rigour and have largely been outpaced by the changing world where fundamental questions are how should the education and training of the 21st-century officials of the state respond to Fourth Industrial Revolution and the decoloniality imperative. Advisory board meetings urged that curriculum development endeavours should try to attend to these questions, which the South African Association of Public Administration and Management (SAAPAM) reiterated. This is a professional association in the field which provides a platform for the intersection of ideas in the conferences it hosts annually. Scholars in academy and practitioners meet each year to reflect on the state of the discipline and its contribution to building the capacity of the state. Insights from all these, coupled with the outcomes of the analysis of global trends relating to the organisation of the public affairs qualifications and the epistemological shift in the discipline, were used to conceptualise the Diploma in Public Affairs. The public management qualification, as currently offered, was introduced for the technikons, which their designations as the universities of technology did not immediately result in re-curricular. Almost a decade after the reconfiguration of the institutional landscape of higher education, universities of technology are still largely etched in the technikon culture in terms of their curricula orientation. This is so in the field of public management, where the curriculum, along with other pedagogical aspects and research, continue in the technikons, with its philosophical and theoretical bases anachronistic in the changing society. The neoliberal logic that informs the philosophical and theoretical foundations of public management no longer holds. It is against this background that a Diploma Public Affairs was conceptualised, and is for consideration to replace the existing National Diploma Public Management and National Diploma Local Government. The Diploma in Public Affairs assumes a two-stream approach. This maximises the employability prospects of the graduates. Local government is an important aspect of public affairs, in the same way, the administration of the state is. It is therefore not a different field of study as if often made to be. The existing approach of educating either for employment in the administrations of the national/provincial spheres of government or those in the local sphere limits the employability prospects of learners. It is against this background that the design of the qualification adopts a two-stream approach, where the administration of the state and local government streams are integrated rather than disaggregated as different fields of study. Therefore, the local government stream of the qualification will enable learners to be employed in the municipalities so that they remain highly marketable in other parts of the public sector. The converse applies with those who pursue the administration of the state stream. The qualification is designed to ensure that their disciplinary orientations are grounded in the theories and philosophies of managing public affairs. The focus to a particular area of public affairs is the reason behind the two-stream approach, the idea is to educate for rounded knowledge. In other words, public management and local government are all aspects of managing public affairs. The qualification follows an integrated approach for the entirety of the public sector, rather than differentiation. The Diploma in Public Affairs is designed to prepare learners for the entire area of the public sector in which they will operate: public service (national and provincial spheres of government), municipalities, public entities, government enterprises and public sphere institutions. They can also work in the public affairs divisions of the private companies. This qualification is designed to articulate to Advanced Diploma in Public Affairs. Learners with this qualification could further enrol for Postgraduate Diploma in Public Affairs, which articulates to Master of Public Affairs. Ultimately the candidates can pursue Doctor of Public Affairs. Graduates of this qualification are expected to be responsible citizens with a strong sense of ethics and the ability to make a significant contribution towards building the capacity of the state in the pursuit of the public good. |
| LEARNING ASSUMED TO BE IN PLACE AND RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING |
| Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL):
RPL refers to the recognition of knowledge acquired either formally, non-informally or informally elsewhere, which is considered against the requirement for credit for inclusion or advancement in the formal education and training system. Access into the qualification through RPL can be at either entry or an advanced level. Advanced RPL level refers to the second or higher level qualifications the applicant wishes to access. Typically, this follows the RPL application to access the qualification. "Equivalence" status can also be granted. This is another dimension of RPL. It refers to an arrangement where the applicant is granted admission into the qualification based on the fact of his/her current qualification "which is similar to granting admission into the qualification based on "equivalent qualification". RPL employing "equivalent qualification" means a qualification completed at an accredited institution of higher learning which is not identical to the admission requirements of the qualification but which is evaluated to be on the same National Qualifications Framework (NQF) Level. Entry Requirements: The minimum entry requirement for this qualification is: Or |
| RECOGNISE PREVIOUS LEARNING? |
| Y |
| QUALIFICATION RULES |
| This qualification consists of the following compulsory and elective modules at National Qualifications Framework (NQF) Levels 5 and 6 totalling 360 Credits.
Compulsory Modules at Level 5, 100 Credits (Choose all modules from either Stream 1 or 2): Stream 1: Administration of State Stream: Stream 2: Local Government: Elective Modules, Level 5, 20 Credits: Stream 1: Administration of State Stream: Select one. And Select one: Stream 2: Local Government: Select one: And Select one Compulsory Modules at Level 6, 205 Credits (Choose all modules from either Stream 1 or 2): Stream 1: Administration of State Stream: Stream 2: Local Government: Elective Modules Level 6, 35 Credits: Stream 1: Administration of State Stream: Select one: And (select one): And Select one: And Select one: Stream 2: Local Government: Select one: And Select one: And Select one: And Select one: |
| EXIT LEVEL OUTCOMES |
| 1. Demonstrate detailed knowledge and understanding of key terms, concepts, facts, principles, rules and theories of the public affairs field, in terms of its various paradigms or school of thoughts: public administration, public management and governance.
2. Demonstrate detailed knowledge and understanding of the evolution of the study of public affairs from the historical-descriptive perspective. 3. Analyse, interpret, historicise, narrate, engage, articulate, communicate, interact in the public space, engage in systematic inquiry and make decisions, gather evidence using the procedures appropriate to the field to identify, analyse and solve problems in the public affairs space. 4. Take decisions and act ethically and professionally and justify those decisions and actions drawing on appropriate ethical values and approaches within public affairs. 5. Manage communication, information and knowledge for strategic utilisation to optimise the efficiency and effectiveness of the state. 6. Develop and communicate their ideas and opinions in well-formed arguments, using appropriate academic, professional, or public affairs dialectics. |
| ASSOCIATED ASSESSMENT CRITERIA |
| Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 1:
Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 2: Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 3: Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 4: Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 5: Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 6: Integrated Assessment: Formative Assessment is used to determine the progressive development of the learner's competence in the learning process. It is integrated into the process of teaching and learning. The formative assessment tools that would be used are: Assignments, portfolios, projects, research papers, case studies, role plays, self-assessment and fieldwork. Summative Assessment is administered at the end of the learning qualification to make a judgement about the learner's achievement against the qualification's Exit Level Outcomes. It takes the form of either written, oral examination, or both. |
| INTERNATIONAL COMPARABILITY |
| The Diploma in Public Affairs is comparable to Syracuse University's Bachelor of Arts in Citizenship and Civic Engagement, Princeton University's qualification in public policy, as offered by its Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs; London School of Economics and Political Science's Bachelor of Science in International Social and Public Policy; Indiana University Bloomington's Bachelor of Science in Public Affairs, offered by its O'Neill School of Public Affairs and Environmental Affairs; and Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Bachelor of Science in Political Science.
This Diploma in Public Affairs is compared with them. Of distinctly significant is their approach to the study of the art and science of managing public affairs, which is not limited to either public administration or public management. It is inclusive of many aspects that make the entirety of statecraft, and in many ways follows interdisciplinary and liberal arts education approach. A nomenclature for the description of the discipline that aptly captures this international trend is public affairs. It is because of this that this qualification is named Diploma in Public Affairs. Its purpose and the package of the curriculum are similar to that of the international qualifications as offered at the universities referred to. The Diploma in Public Affairs is vocational in its design with the essentialism of liberal arts education. The intention is to equip learners with rounded knowledge and the skills required for managing public affairs in the 21st century. The complexity that the changing world has spawned in managing public affairs requires that teaching and learning at the universities of technology should not just simply be confined to vocational education, but should also be aimed at enhancing the ideational capacity of those who are being educated for enhancing the human capital of largely the state. In other words, they should not only have technical dexterity or sleight of hand, but intellectual prowess required for innovative approaches to managing public affairs. The Public Affairs qualifications at the Syracuse University, Princeton University, London Schools of Economics and Political Science, Indiana University Bloomington and Massachusetts Institute of Technology are instructive in how to design an instructional qualification that incorporates liberal arts in vocational education. Each was analysed, insights drawn and used in the development of this Diploma in Public Affairs; hence in many ways, it is comparable to the international qualifications. The comparability of these qualifications is also at the level of the purpose of their design. Syracuse University's Maxwell School of Public Affairs Citizenship and Civic Engagement qualification was designed to enable "learners to contribute to the public good while preparing for careers in the public, private, and non-profit sectors" (Syracuse University's Maxwell School of Public Affairs, on-line). The Indiana University's O'Neill School Public Affairs qualification was designed to prepare learners to lead for the greater good. This resonates with the concept of the public good, which the Maxwell School of Public Affairs Citizenship and Civic Engagement qualification emphasises as the basis of its design and epistemological foundation. For many years the neo-liberal philosophy of science, incarnated as the new public management in the discipline and assumed hegemonic proportions especially in the eighties and early nineties, had blurred the public good in statecraft. In these qualifications, the public good is foregrounded as the ontology of the epistemology of the public affairs. The Diploma in Public Affairs qualification is designed to shed off the debilitating public administration paradigms and the shrillness of the new public management. It seeks to equip learners with rounded knowledge, coupled with strategic and technical skills, to function efficiently and effectively in the public space, with a commitment to the public good. The Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School Public and Environmental Affairs qualification is designed "to enable learners to acquire the tools, understanding, and habits of mind necessary to pursue policy problems" (Woodrow Wilson School, Princeton University). The strategic objective is to educate them about how to be "in the nation's service and the service of all nations". This is what the public good is about. The London School of Economics and Political Science's International Social and Public Policy "is designed to provide learners with the skills to understand how voters, political parties and politicians, civil servants, different government departments and agencies interact, whether proposing, modifying, blocking or implementing policies across the world"(London School of Economics and Political Science). Likewise, Massachusetts Political Science qualification is designed to enable learners "to develop [an] understanding of public problems and how governments attempt to address them, with emphasis on the process and outcomes of policymaking" (Massachusetts, on-line). All these are consistent with the purpose of the Diploma in Public Affairs qualification, and this is to the extent of the similarity of the modules that make their curricular. The logic of the design of their qualifications, as all made up of the core, fundamental and elective courses/subjects/modules, is similar, It is only in some instances that the difference is context rather than substance. |
| ARTICULATION OPTIONS |
| This qualification allows possibilities for both horizontal and vertical articulation.
Horizontal Articulation: Vertical Articulation: |
| MODERATION OPTIONS |
| N/A |
| CRITERIA FOR THE REGISTRATION OF ASSESSORS |
| N/A |
| NOTES |
| N/A |
| LEARNING PROGRAMMES RECORDED AGAINST THIS QUALIFICATION: |
| When qualifications are replaced, some (but not all) of their learning programmes are moved to the replacement qualifications. If a learning programme appears to be missing from here, please check the replaced qualification. |
| NONE |
| PROVIDERS CURRENTLY ACCREDITED TO OFFER THIS QUALIFICATION: |
| This information shows the current accreditations (i.e. those not past their accreditation end dates), and is the most complete record available to SAQA as of today. Some Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionaries have a lag in their recording systems for provider accreditation, in turn leading to a lag in notifying SAQA of all the providers that they have accredited to offer qualifications and unit standards, as well as any extensions to accreditation end dates. The relevant Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionary should be notified if a record appears to be missing from here. |
| NONE |
| All qualifications and part qualifications registered on the National Qualifications Framework are public property. Thus the only payment that can be made for them is for service and reproduction. It is illegal to sell this material for profit. If the material is reproduced or quoted, the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) should be acknowledged as the source. |