Any institution with a proposed PEQAB recommendation for denial of consent may apply for reconsideration of that recommendation prior to the recommendation being sent to the Minister.

After each PEQAB Board meeting, the PEQAB Secretariat will share with the applicant institutions and the related External Expert Review Panel the PEQAB Final Report. The PEQAB Final Report incorporates the Board’s recommendations as to the length of consent, any conditions of consent or denial of consent, along with selected External Expert Review Panel conclusions and comments. It also incorporates the institution’s responses. This communication with the applicant will occur prior to PEQAB sending its Final Report to the Minster. Denial of consent recommendation by PEQAB is subject to reconsideration.

Request for Reconsideration

Applicant institutions will be given up to ten business days to provide to the Secretariat notice in writing (normally via email) for a reconsideration of any aspect of the recommendations stated above.

This applicant institution’s notice should clearly state which portion(s) of the Board’s recommendation are to be reconsidered and the reasons for the reconsideration. An additional 20 days will then be given the applicant to finalize its submission. Changes made since the institution’s response to the original Panel Report will, however, not be considered. If a response from the applicant is not received within this 20 day period, the Board will forward its recommendation to the Minister.

Evaluation by a Neutral Third Party Panel

To conduct the evaluation, the Board and the applicant institution will agree on an independent External Expert Review Panel to re-evaluate. Normally, this Panel will comprise two persons taken from the previously agreed upon list of External Expert Review Panel candidates. In no case shall parties be appointed who were involved in the review being reconsidered, and in no case will Panel members be appointed who are not acceptable to the institution. (In the case of a deadlock on the two member Panel a third member would then be appointed, according to the same process as the two original members.)

The Panel will receive all documents concerning the program that were available to the initial External Expert Review Panel as well as the institution’s initial response and its submission for re-evaluation. No additional material will be available to or considered by the Panel. The Panel will make one of the following evaluations to the Board:

a) that the Board’s original recommendation be affirmed or

b) that the Board’s original recommendation be modified.

The evaluation of the Panel will be sent to the applicant and the Board in a written report that conveys the basis of the evaluation. The evaluation of the Panel will then be considered by the Board at its first meeting following, and the Board may revise its recommendation to the Minister accordingly. The evaluation by the Panel is not binding on the Board.

Costs

In regards to the recommendation of the neutral third party:

If a recommendation is affirmed, costs are charged against the applicant.

If a recommendation is modified, costs are charged against PEQAB.

If a recommendation is affirmed in part or reversed or modified in part, costs are shared proportionally between the applicant and PEQAB.s here…