The idea is that professionals in a given field are best able to judge a program's educational quality. For instance, law schools are accredited by the American Bar Association and library schools are accredited by the American Library Association. Individual professions-such as nursing, dentistry, and psychology-are covered by their own specialized agencies. In many cases, attending a program that is recognized by the right agency is a prerequisite for obtaining a job in fields such as psychology, law, and healthcare.
Many programmatic accreditors such as the APA require that accredited programs be housed in an institutionally accredited school. Programs may be offered that are judged by these specialty bodies, without necessarily possessing institutional accreditation.
For instance, continuing education programs within non-educational settings such as hospitals may be accredited by a specialized accreditation agency. Such courses may count professionally towards professional certifications or state licenses but will not transfer for college transfer credit. Similarly, if a specialty body accredits a program at a school, but the school itself is not institutionally accredited, the program may have professional value, yet credits will not transfer and students may not be able to receive federal financial aid.
Since professional requirements vary, it is crucial to find out what accreditation is necessary for a given career. No matter what vocation a student chooses, it is wise for her to become familiar with the professional requirements in the field. Tools for investigating professional accreditation requirements include:.
With a little research into accreditation, students can be assured of taking the right steps towards a rewarding career. Department of Education Back To Top. You have done your research. You know how important accreditation is to your educational experience, and you are determined to find out if your school of choice is accredited before you commit to a program. But there are dozens of different accrediting organizations. Does it matter what agency accredits your school?
After all, accreditation is accreditation, right? Unfortunately, that is not quite true. The organization that accredits a college, university, or vocational program is a major indicator of educational quality. Your school must be evaluated by a recognized accrediting agency in order for you to get your money's worth. But with so many accrediting agencies including fraudulent "accrediting agencies" with official-looking websites how can you tell what to look for when you decide what school to attend?
First of all, you need to know whether to find a school that has regional accreditation or national accreditation. Department of Education does not accredit schools itself, but it does recognize certain accrediting agencies. You can check the DOE database for specific information on an accrediting body. You can also use the CHEA Council on Higher Education Accreditation as a source of information; however, if your school is not accredited by an organization recognized by the Department of Education, you will not be eligible for financial aid, and you may have other difficulties, such as transferring credits or obtaining professional licenses.
The information below applies to institutional rather than programmatic accreditation; even if your school as a whole is accredited by one of these agencies, you would still need to make sure that your professional program is recognized by the appropriate state licensing bodies and professional associations.
Regional accrediting organizations assess public and private institutions of higher education, including distance education programs offered by these institutions. Although the accrediting agencies are regionally based, each one is widely recognized. There are also additional institutional accrediting agencies that are recognized by the U. Students should be aware that while most nationally accredited institutions will accept transfer credits from regionally accredited institutions, the opposite is not true.
A student who earns an associate's degree from a nationally accredited school, for example, may not be able to transfer any credits to count towards a degree at a regionally accredited school. Always check individual school policies if you plan to transfer schools later in your educational journey. Note that the information in this article may be subject to change - for instance, if an accreditor changes its name - so always check the U. Department of Education database to be sure that your school is properly accredited, and discuss your plans with an admissions officer at your school, or the school to which you plan to transfer.
Article Resources: The U. The benefits of having a degree in the job market are tremendous. For many jobs, having a degree is necessary to be hired at all, or to be promoted beyond a certain level. The benefits of higher education are projected to increase in coming years. However, it cannot be just any degree.
Connect with a community of peers, and find a program that will allow you to continue your education in a fast and flexible way. How Does College Accreditation Work? Top Online Programs Explore programs of your interests with the high-quality standards and flexibility you need to take your career to the next level.
The first step to accreditation is to identify which accreditation credential to obtain. Department of Education recognized accrediting bodies, some are more prestigious than others, due to their more rigorous accrediting standards. For the most part, the more prestigious the accreditation, the higher standards the school must meet. Then there's the fact that a school can get programmatic accreditation for its individual programs, even if the school itself is already accredited.
Once a school chooses which accreditation it wants, it must identify and satisfy the eligibility requirements. During this time, it may be in candidacy status. This means the school is not yet accredited, but it's on its way to meeting the requirements for accreditation. During the candidacy status, the school will submit large amounts of paperwork and documentation to show it does qualify for accreditation.
This will include information about its faculty, the financial viability of the school, class syllabi, graduation requirements, degree requirements and samples of student work. The next step is the evaluation, where commission members will review the school's accomplishments and characteristics to determine if accreditation is warranted.
This will usually include both document review and an on-site visit of the school's campus and facilities. Finally, a decision is made. Until a decision is made, the school will be under the continuous obligation to provide updates on its academic and financial status.
Should the school become accredited, it will have to renew its accreditation periodically, typically every few years or so. Will be ineligible to receive state or federal financial aid, including grants and loans. Will be ineligible to receive most private forms of financial aid, especially scholarships. May have employers disregard or simply ignore any academic credential that came from the unaccredited institution. Will be attending an educational institution that cannot receive any federal or state funding to help support the school.
May not have the academic credits earned at the unaccredited school be accepted by another school when transferring or applying for admission. May open themselves up to the potential for criminal prosecution or civil liability for the unauthorized practice of a particular profession. Very similar name and website appearance to a well-known and accredited school, as if the questionable school is trying to confuse prospective students.
Other schools and employers located in the same region have never heard of the school. Has a pending accreditation status, with no estimated date for when accreditation should be obtained.
Promises degree completion in an unusually short period of time. Unusually high or low tuition rates. A flat tuition rate, regardless of a student's course load. Automatic acceptance into the school. Promotional information appears very "salesy.
He has presented or co-presented workshops on online education, Title IX, assessment and other educational topics.
We won't sell or give away your info, ever. This is for new article notifications and major announcements only, promise. Let us know below. This does not add you to an email list. This is for contacting us about adding a new college topic only, promise. What does it mean if my college is unaccredited? There may be many different reasons, but there are two common ones. Lewis University College of Lake Cou University of Redla English Language In Missouri Southern S View all.
Schools Resources Blog. When your school has no accreditation. Date Of Birth. Gender Female Male. Phone Number. Messaging App Username. When do you plan to begin your program of study?
Field of Study choose a degree level first. Tuition Funding Source select My parents and family will be funding my education I will be paying for my own education I will be sponsored by my government or company My family cannot afford to pay for my entire education, so I will be looking for other ways to fund my tuition I don't know.
Test Score. Other Comments or Questions in English. Please fix the following errors:.
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