With unemployment at an all time high, more and more people are returning to school in hopes of finding a higher education and better pay in order to survive.  But before you choose that College, University or online program, making sure your school is accredited will save you headaches later on.  Since the United States has no centralized authority over postsecondary schools, schools vary in quality and character, realizing the need for Accreditation Organizations.

What is Accreditation?
Accreditation by one of the recognized accrediting agencies below is an independent review of an institution's education programs for the purpose of helping to establish the learning offered by the select institution is of a uniform and sound quality.

The United States has two routes to recognizing accrediting agencies. Those recognized by the U.S. Department of Education for financial aid purposes and a private organization named The Council For Higher Education.

 The most popular recognized accrediting agencies by The United States Department of Education include:

 

• MSA - Middle States Commission on Higher Education
• NASC - Northwest Association of Schools and of Colleges and Universities
• NCA - Higher Learning Commission of North Central Region
• NEASC - New England Association of Schools and Colleges
• SACS - Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
• WASC - Western Association of Schools and Colleges
• DETC – Accredits distance education, programs and institutions
• ACICS-The Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges & Schools

The above accrediting agencies cover the geographic regions within the United States

Functions of Accreditation

1. Verifying that an institution or program meets established standards;
2. Assisting prospective students in identifying acceptable institutions;
3. Assisting institutions in determining the acceptability of transfer credits;
4. Helping to identify institutions and programs for the investment of public and private funds;
5. Protecting an institution against harmful internal and external pressure;
6. Creating goals for self-improvement of weaker programs and stimulating a general raising of standards among educational institutions;
7. Involving the faculty and staff comprehensively in institutional evaluation and planning;
8. Establishing criteria for professional certification and licensure and for upgrading courses offering such preparation; and
9. Providing one of several considerations used as a basis for determining eligibility for Federal assistance.

The Accrediting Procedure

1. Standards: The accrediting agency, in collaboration with educational institutions, establishes standards.
2. Self-study: The institution or program seeking accreditation prepares an in-depth self-evaluation study that measures its performance against the standards established by the accrediting agency.
3. On-site Evaluation: A team selected by the accrediting agency visits the institution or program to determine first-hand if the applicant meets the established standards.
4. Publication: Upon being satisfied that the applicant meets its standards, the accrediting agency grants accreditation or pre-accreditation status and lists the institution or program in an official publication with other similarly accredited or pre-accredited institutions or programs.
5. Monitoring: The accrediting agency monitors each accredited institution or program throughout the period of accreditation granted to verify that it continues to meet the agency's standards.
6. Re-evaluation: The accrediting agency periodically reevaluates each institution or program that it lists to ascertain whether continuation of its accredited or pre-accredited status is warranted.

The Types of Accreditation
There are two basic types of educational accreditation, one identified as "institutional" and one referred to as "specialized" or "programmatic."

Institutional accreditation normally applies to an entire institution, indicating that each of an institution's 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.

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Specialized or programmatic accreditation normally 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 stand alone in their operations. Thus, a specialized accrediting agency may also function in the capacity of an institutional accrediting agency. In addition, a number of specialized accrediting agencies accredit educational programs within non-educational settings, such as hospitals.

The U.S. Department of Education does not have the authority to accredit private or public elementary or secondary schools, and the Department does not recognize accrediting bodies for the accreditation of private or public elementary and secondary schools. However, the U.S. Department of Education does recognize accrediting bodies for the accreditation of institutions of higher (postsecondary) education. If an accrediting body which is recognized by the Department for higher education also accredits elementary and secondary schools, the Department's recognition applies only to the agency's accreditation of postsecondary institutions.

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.

It’s never too late to take the first step towards a higher education.  You deserve it.

 

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