A study was conducted using quality control and quality assurance models to examine student outcomes. The purpose was to investigate current quality control and quality assurance practices in six colleges, to evaluate the relationship between quantitative effectiveness measures and qualitative outcomes measure and to assess the readiness of each college to develop its own quality policy. A course data survey and a program review were conducted in each college. The results indicated that the colleges were more ready to make quantitative measurements than they were to use qualitative indicators. The quality control metaphor proved useful in the analysis. (Author)