The recent decision by the Nursing Council of Hong Kong not to extend professional accreditation to an associate degree course run by a private institute of technology - which caused much anxiety among the 140 students about their future - has once again drawn public attention to the 'plight' of associate degree holders.
It is unfortunate that the issue has been blown out of proportion. As a professional body, the Nursing Council has to uphold high standards. Besides, it is common that academically accredited programmes may not automatically become professionally accredited.
The two accreditations are for different purposes, though it is incumbent on the educational bodies to ensure that professional programmes are capable of passing both accreditation tests.
Although problems of quality and accreditation have emerged occasionally, many associate degree courses are still run by reputable providers, including colleges attached to publicly funded universities.
Having said that, associate degrees suffer from the lack of a clear academic prospect. When they were introduced in 2000, as a self-financed mode of higher education to give youngsters failing to get into universities an alternative route of further study, they were meant to be essentially standalone academic qualifications. The policy goal was to achieve a higher education rate of 60 per cent in the city.
Things have not worked out quite that way. Employers find associate degrees neither here nor there, even though the government has since placed them within the qualifications framework.
Whereas diplomas and higher diplomas are sub-degree qualifications, with a vocational orientation, associate degrees are mostly general education courses marketed on the possibility of 'articulation' - or being able to transfer - to degree programmes.
