Yes. According to QQI, external authenticator(s) should be "independent of the centre to which they are assigned" (QQI Quality Assuring Assessment Guidelines for Providers revised 2013, p 26) . Therefore, for a multi-centre/location provider, an external authenticator may be selected from within the provider but must be external to the centre/location. A provider must document their procedures for selecting external authenticator(s) as part of their quality assuring assessment process.