The Deanship of Quality Assurance and Institutional Effectiveness (QA & IE) at Gulf Medical University (GMU) successfully organized a two-day institutional workshop on the CAA’s Outcome-Based Framework (OBF) on October 31 and November 7, 2025.
The workshops brought together Deans, Program Directors, and Quality Assurance and Program Effectiveness Chairs from all colleges to deepen institutional understanding of the national Outcome-Based Framework (OBF) used by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research (MOHESR) to evaluate institutional and program performance.
The sessions were led by Prof. Ammar Almaaytah, Dean of QA & IE, who provided a detailed explanation of the six OBF pillars and 24 Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that form the foundation of CAA’s performance-based accreditation system.
Day 1 focused on the foundations of the framework, including Pillar 1 (Employment Outcomes) and Pillar 2 (Learning Outcomes). The session also included insights from Prof. Mohammad Al Shorbagy, Dean of the College of Pharmacy, who facilitated discussions on graduate employability and learning assessment metrics.
Day 2 covered Pillars 3–5 Industry Collaboration, Research Outcomes and Reputation, and Community Engagement, and included practical exercises on developing Corrective Action Plans (CAPs) to address KPI performance gaps. Expert contributions were made by Prof. Walid Shaaban- Associate Dean, College of Dentistry, Prof. Jayadevan Sreedharan Program Director, Master of Public Health, and Dr. Vinaytosh Mishra– Associate Dean, Thumbay College of Management and AI in Healthcare, who presented CAP implementation case studies.
The workshop concluded with a consensus on a unified approach to KPI data management, performance tracking, and continuous improvement across all GMU colleges. It reinforced GMU’s institutional commitment to aligning its quality assurance and academic development processes with CAA standards and the UAE’s higher education excellence agenda.
