For most people, selecting a college or university is not an easy task. Small or large? Public or private? Traditional classroom or online? Not all questions about college selection may jump out at you right away. Accreditation is an important assessment of institutional quality, namely, quality assurance and quality improvement. Accreditation is both a process and a status that assures higher education institutions and programs meet a set of standards developed by peers. So when a college or university says they are accredited, it means they have been recognized with a seal of approval.
Accreditation in the United States is more than years old and, today, serves a regulatory role in higher education. Most regionally accredited institutions are predominantly degree-oriented, nonprofit or state-owned and have more regulations in place for educational quality and academic standards across regions. National accreditation is a much newer concept. Text vs. AD accredited-online-college. Featured or trusted partner programs and all school search, finder, or match results are for schools that compensate us.
This compensation does not influence our school rankings, resource guides, or other editorially-independent information published on this site. Got it! Phone Vs. Text Vs. Email The Everlasting Lessons of Mr. What is Online College Accreditation? Online Graduates Vs. Understanding the Differences As the name implies, regional accrediting organizations operate in specific areas of the country. Accreditation by ACEN facilitates student recruitment, transfer, and funding opportunities.
It also meets many state licensure requirements and helps employers identify competent practitioners. ABET accredits over 4, postsecondary programs in applied and natural science, computing, engineering, and engineering technology, including distance learning and alternative offerings.
ABET's rigorous, month accreditation process evaluates programs based on factors like academic rigor and faculty qualifications. ABET accreditation serves as the international standard for engineering and technology programs. ACBSP awards accreditation based on seven standards, including leadership, strategic planning, and faculty focus.
Accredited programs hold membership to ACBSP, offering students access to networking opportunities, industry publications, and career resources.
Accreditation standards take into account general purposes and practices, organization and administration, faculty, and library and information resources. Legal schools and programs receive provisional approval upon initial accreditation. After three years of monitoring, schools and programs may receive full accreditation. Fully accredited schools and programs undergo a site evaluation every third year, with a complete evaluation every seven years. National and regional accreditation carry over to online programs offered by accredited colleges and universities.
Schools that only offer online programs may hold national accreditation, especially if they operate using a for-profit model. Online programs can also obtain programmatic or specialized accreditation.
Colleges and universities often list their accreditors on their website. If learners are unable to locate accreditation information on an institution's website, they can contact the school directly to learn more about their accreditation credentials. However, CHEA has established international quality principles to serve as guidelines for establishing a universal understanding of educational quality. Many online colleges that fall under the description of " degree mills " or "diploma mills" claim to hold accreditation through fake agencies to try to boost their credibility.
Enrolling in one of these schools presents problems with respect to financial aid opportunities, transfer options, and employment. Plus, if an unaccredited institution closes or simply fails to deliver what they promise, students are left without the education for which they paid. Regionally accredited institutions often only accept transfer credits from other regionally accredited institutions. Therefore, when assessing transfer options, students from nationally accredited institutions should search for schools that accept transfer credits from nationally accredited schools.
Students can also reach out to institutions about their transfer guidelines. Regionally accredited colleges and universities might make exceptions for some students transferring from nationally accredited institutions. The loss of accreditation indicates that a school no longer meets accrediting standards for one reason or another.
It impacts the credibility of an institution, often causing enrollment to decline and leading to a school's closure. Students attending a college or university that loses accreditation can potentially transfer to a different institution, but the loss of accreditation does not provide any recourse for a tuition refund or loan forgiveness.
For alumni of a school that loses accreditation, there are no direct consequences. Loss of accreditation does not negate a graduate's existing degrees or certificates.
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