NC State’s First Continuing Education Course Earns Quality Matters Certification
The recognition highlights the university’s ongoing commitment to staff learning and course design excellence.
NC State’s dedication to high-quality learning experiences now extends beyond the classroom and into the workplace. The university recently celebrated a milestone with the Quality Matters (QM) certification of SIM 101: Supplier Information, a course designed to help NC State staff navigate key financial processes. The course was developed by Maria Fister, director in the university’s finance division education and communications, and Megan Catt, supplier information manager. To date, 132 NC State employees have taken the course.
The recognition marks the first time a continuing education course at NC State – one created for internal staff professional development – has achieved QM certification. Offered through Procurement and Business Services and developed in collaboration with FinDEC (Finance Division Education and Communications), SIM 101 empowers campus departments to support the vendors they engage with throughout the supplier onboarding process.
“Getting this course certified by Quality Matters is a great first step to recognizing the hard work that goes into training and professional development at NC State,” says Bethanne Winzeler, associate director of course quality at DELTA. “It demonstrates that we value quality and consistency in all types of learning, not just for-credit courses. Staff training deserves the same level of care and attention.”
Why Quality Matters?
Quality Matters is a nationally recognized, faculty-driven peer-review process designed to improve and certify the quality of online and blended courses. While it is widely used across higher education, QM certification for non-credit professional development courses is less common – making this accomplishment especially significant.
To earn QM certification, a course must undergo a rigorous review based on a research-supported rubric. NC State’s SIM 101 course was evaluated against standards covering learning objectives, content organization, assessment strategies and learner engagement. Courses must meet all essential standards and receive a minimum overall score to be certified.
“This certification reflects the finance division’s commitment to providing impactful, well-designed learning experiences. Our adoption of Quality Matters standards across our training programs ensures the campus community experiences a structured and effective path to mastering key finance practices,” Fister says.
Raising the Bar for Staff Development
SIM 101: Supplier Information is part of a growing suite of internal professional development courses designed to help NC State staff work more effectively and efficiently. By applying instructional design best practices and the QM rubric, FinDEC and its campus partners are elevating the learning experience for employees.
“This course reflects the best of what happens when instructional designers collaborate with campus units to develop meaningful training,” Winzeler adds. “We hope this sets a new standard for professional learning across our campus.”
Interested in partnering with DELTA’s Course Quality Program to improve your online courses and support better learning outcomes for your students?
- Learn more about CQ programming
- Explore DELTA Grants opportunities in course improvement
- Join the Course Quality at NC State group
- Reach out to the CQ team
