Here is an excerpt from an especially timely as well as informative article written by for Irene White for Your Accreditation Advocate Blog, featured by the AccreditedOnlineColleges.com. Please check out the information about AccreditedOnlineColleges.com provided below, after the excerpt. To read the complete article, please click here.
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In his 2013 State of the Union address, President Obama outlined several proposals to reform and improve higher education, including putting the brakes on the spiraling costs of college tuition. One method for achieving this, an initiative that has resonated with students and parents alike, is to make a school’s participation in certain federal aid programs dependent on it being affordable and effective. This new form of accreditation, linked hand-in-glove with the Department of Education’s “College Scorecard” has received broad public support.
HOW ACCREDITATION WORKS NOW
Accreditation is a process through which private associations evaluate either an entire school or a particular program to ensure the education provided meets a high standard. The complicated process involves peer evaluation and significant data reporting by the institution to ensure necessary standards are met.
Criteria for accreditation differ depending on whether an entire college is seeking accreditation or just an individual program. Typical standards that must be met for an entire institution include:
o A well-articulated mission that guides the entire institution’s operations
o Integrity and responsibility in the administration of the institution
o High-quality education, guided by well-articulated goals
o Sufficient faculty, staff and resources to ensure a high-quality education
o Sufficient student support, in terms of infrastructure, technology, advising and guidance to ensure a high-quality education
o A well-functioning continuous improvement system of evaluation and assessment of teaching and learning
o Sufficient institutional resources and planning to ensure effective education
Depending on the field, the criteria for accreditation of a particular program may vary widely.
Nonetheless, any program will require the following standards to be met:
o A clear mission and plan for governing and administering the program fairly and effectively
o Curriculum that teaches core competencies and values to enable students to develop requisite knowledge and succeed in the field
o Diversity is fostered and the program is inclusive
o Sufficient faculty are employed to achieve the unit’s mission for teaching
o Faculty do scholarly research and engage in professional activities that contribute to advancement of the field
o Sufficient services are provided to ensure students complete the program in a timely fashion
o Sufficient resources are employed to achieve the unit’s mission
o Faculty engage in public service for the alumni and community
o Ongoing assessment and continuous improvement are woven into the program
Some are surprised to learn accreditation in the United States is performed by dozens of private associations, each specializing by type of institution, region or field. The U.S. Department of Education (DOE) does not accredit any institution, but remains involved. It publishes a list of reliable accrediting agencies and also maintains a database of accredited programs and institutions.
You may have noticed that financial responsibility and helping students reach their goals are both typically included in criteria for accreditation. In fact, institutions that wish to participate in federal financial aid programs must meet certain financial benchmarks. Schools that fail to meet and maintain these standards cannot offer their students federal aid.
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“Online colleges around the nation want to obtain an accredited status for many important reasons. A college’s academic reputation has a great deal to do with its accreditation status. Accreditation also ensures that graduates’ credits will transfer to other reputable colleges, as well as be accepted by potential employers. All in all, accreditation is a strong indication of a school’s credibility, academic reputation, and the quality of instructors. Some schools are not accredited because they are too new or do not want to be accredited. However, it is in your best interest to either choose an accredited school that will be recognized or closely investigate schools that are not accredited. Find out why they haven’t reached accreditation, if they are pursuing it, and if credits will transfer.
“AccreditedOnlineColleges.com can help you with this process. We’ve gathered in-depth information on top-ranked accredited online colleges and created a database search that helps you find a degree program that meets your degree level, category, and subject of interest. Here, you can also search between nationally and regionally accredited colleges and learn about the accrediting agencies that fall under these two categories.”
To contact Irene, please click here.