Accreditation
The goal of accreditation is to ensure that higher education institutions meet acceptable levels of quality.
Accrediting agencies are private educational associations of regional or national scope that develop criteria and conduct peer evaluations to assess whether or not those criteria are met. Institutions or programs that meet an agency's criteria are thereby "accredited."
Accreditation does not provide automatic acceptance by an institution of credit earned at another institution, nor does it give assurance of acceptance of graduates by employers. Acceptance of students or graduates is always the prerogative of the receiving institution or employer.
For these reasons, besides ascertaining the accredited status of a school or program, students should take additional measures to determine, prior to enrollment, whether or not their educational goals will be met through attendance at a particular institution. These measures should include inquiries to institutions to which transfer might be desired or to prospective employers and, if possible, personal inspection of the institution at which enrollment is contemplated.
History of accreditation
The United States does not exercise national control over postsecondary educational institutions. Individual states assume varying degrees of control over education, but, in general, institutions of higher education are permitted to operate with considerable autonomy. As a result, American educational institutions can vary widely in program character and quality.
To ensure a basic level of quality, accreditation arose in the United States as a means of conducting nongovernmental, peer evaluation of educational institutions and programs.
Private educational associations of regional or national scope have adopted criteria reflecting the qualities of a sound educational program and have developed procedures for evaluating institutions or programs to determine whether or not they are operating at basic levels of quality.
Types of accreditation
The two basic types of educational accreditation are: 1) institutional, and 2) specialized or programmatic.
Institutional accreditation applies to an entire institution, indicating that each of its parts is contributing to the achievement of the institution's objectives, although not necessarily all at the same level of quality. The various commissions of the regional accrediting associations, for example, perform institutional accreditation, as do many national accrediting agencies.
Specialized or programmatic accreditation applies to programs, departments, or schools that are parts of an institution. The accredited unit may be as large as a college or school within a university or as small as a curriculum within a discipline.
Most of the specialized or programmatic accrediting agencies review units within an institution of higher education that is accredited by one of the regional accrediting commissions. However, certain accrediting agencies also accredit professional schools and other specialized or vocational institutions of higher education that are freestanding in their operations. Thus, a "specialized" or "programmatic" accrediting agency may also function in the capacity of an "institutional" accrediting agency.
A number of specialized accrediting agencies accredit educational programs within noneducational settings, such as hospitals.
Benefits associated with accreditation
Both the federal government and the states use accreditation as an indication of the quality of education offered by
American schools and colleges.
At the federal level, colleges and universities must be accredited by an agency recognized by the
United States Secretary of Education in order for it or its students to receive federal funds.
At the state level, California allows colleges and universities that are accredited by the Western Association of Schools and
Colleges (the recognized regional accrediting agency for California) to grant degrees without the review and approval of the
Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education (BPPVE).
However, the BPPVE became inoperative on July 1, 2007. Non-WASC regionally accredited institutions that were state approved
on June 30, 2007 were provided the opportunity to enter into voluntary agreements with the
Department of Consumer Affairs.
These agreements state that the institution agrees to comply with state statutes, rules, and regulations in effect as of the
close of business on June 30, 2007. A list of participating institutions is available at the
BPPVE website.
In some states, it can be illegal to use a degree from an institution that is not accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting
agency, unless approved by the state licensing agency. This helps prevent the possibility of fraud. Always be aware of
unrecognized or unapproved accreditation agencies.
Check with the following states about laws regarding degree / diploma mills and accreditation mills:
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Maine
- Michigan
- Nevada
- New Jersey
- North Dakota
- Oregon
- Texas
- Washington
Additional Information
