Quality Matters

Quality Matters Logo

Quality Matters™ (QM) is a faculty-centered, peer review process designed to certify the quality of online and blended courses. QM has been chosen by UMBC as the standard for quality course design in our online courses. QM is a leader in quality assurance for online education and has received national recognition for its peer-based approach to continuous improvement in online education and student learning. The QM program includes:

  • Faculty-centered, continuous improvement models for assuring the quality of online courses through peer review
  • Professional development workshops and certification courses for instructors and online learning professionals
  • Rubrics for applying quality standards to course design

The QM Rubric

The Quality Matters Higher Education Rubric (7th edition) is a set of 8 General Standards and 42 Specific Review Standards used to evaluate the design of online and blended courses. QM Standards are research-supported and based on published best practices. Faculty may download the Rubric from UMBC Box (login required).

QM’s Eight General Standards are:

  1. Course Overview and Introduction
  2. Learning Objectives (Competencies)
  3. Assessment and Measurement
  4. Instructional Materials
  5. Learning Activities and Learner Interaction
  6. Course Technology
  7. Learner Support
  8. Accessibility and Usability

Training & Support

Faculty may complete QM’s foundational workshop, Applying the Quality Matters Rubric (APPQMR), through USM-sponsored facilitation throughout the year. Follow Instructional Technology on myUMBC for APPQMR workshop opportunities and participation details.

Quality Matters themes are also infused throughout our course design and professional development, serving as a framework for PIVOT and Ultra course redesign workshops.

Self-Review

UMBC faculty have access to the free Self-Review Tool in the Quality Matters Course Review Management System (CRMS) to conduct a review of an online or hybrid course. The Self-Review Tool provides a list of each QM Standard with links to detailed annotations that define each standard and  describe how it is deemed as Met. There is no fee to complete a QM Self-Review – faculty can start and stop at any time in the process. A Self-Review is intended to be reflective and rigorous to allow faculty to determine if a course has Met met or Not Met QM standards. The completed Self-Review can be downloaded and shared with colleagues or utilized as part of a course redesign project.

Learn how to access the Self Review Tool.

Course Review

The Alternate Delivery Program incorporates a Quality Matters course review into the redesign process. Program coordinators and department chairs may also request course reviews for hybrid and online courses.

As an extension of the award-winning PIVOT program, the Quality Matters Impact program is an initiative to formally recognize courses that meet Quality Matters standards and demonstrate exemplary online/hybrid course design.

Instructional Technology provides consultations with faculty and program leaders interested in learning more about QM, undertaking course redesign projects with QM’s Rubric, or pursuing internal Quality Matter course reviews.