Accreditation:

This word is tossed around so readily within college education, what is it exactly and what impact does it really have? Simple terms please.

Well I’m so glad you asked. Without knowing what this really is and how it impacts you and your ability to get a job, it can be confusing.

Vital Tip:

In my experience with colleges most will tell you that they’re accredited. But without knowing the details behind their accreditation, and what questions to ask you may end up losing thousands of dollars and not know why.

How can this affect your wallet? Well to be honest if your school does not have the right accreditation you can be turned down for jobs, all the effort and money you’ve put into college will be of little use to you. Granted you’ll have the knowledge but if someone tells you that you cannot use it and work for them you might end up seeing red.

True Story: (all too often), one of the hardest things a student of mine would find out is that their associates degree was no longer valued.

They’d attended a school without knowing the differences between the various accrediting bodies. After graduation they’d secured an entry level job where they made a few steps upwards over the years.

Now the student is applying for a management position, or a higher paying job at the company. While they were in the review process for the new position, the boss looked into their degree per protocol and the school they’d graduated from to make sure that they had all the right formal education.

The result is that he or she tells my student that they need to finish their bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college. And that their initial college is nationally accredited, and the company no longer accepts this degree. The student can maintain their current position, but cannot move up.

Believe it or not it gets worse

They contact a college that they’ve found is regionally accredited and find out that they cannot just transfer the associate’s degree into the new college; they need to start all over!! The credits will not transfer.

Just imagine how angry you’d be if you didn’t know that there was a difference in the accreditation.

I can hear the tension in the question… Why?

Accreditation means that a school has agreed to be in compliance with those whom they’ve chosen to be regulated by. Meaning when the school is being established they choose who they want to have regulate them. When they are up to the agreed upon standards they have been accredited by that agency.

I bet you’re wondering how with all this regulation is it that some colleges can be a scam?

Accreditation is not required it’s voluntary, this is why there are diploma mills and scams out there because not every college is willing to be accredited and it’s not required. This is why it’s so very important to know what the accreditation of your school is.

This means that there is uniformity and quality in your education, so if you’re hired for a position say your degree is in business administration, your prospective employer will be able to rely on your degree to give you the skills for the Office Management job you’re interested in.

Bosses don’t like these surprises:

The last thing they want is to be surprised. The employer doesn’t want to expect things from you that you’re not trained in, and you don’t want them to expect things of you that you’re not able to do. This is why there are accrediting bodies and why some employers will not hire you if you don’t have a degree from the right school.

Regional accreditation is excellent, but to get this it means that the college is heavily regulated, and while this is great to make sure that all education quality is similar, it limits certain aspects of the college’s ability to make some of its own decisions. This accreditation is not easy to get, and can be challenging to maintain. But it’s recognized by basically every employer, and other colleges for transferring your credits.

National Accreditation; has a bit less regulation, still an excellent education, however, not every employer will recognize this type of accreditation.

Must know Questions to ask

A college can lose its accreditation so be sure to ask questions of the college like:

1. How often they’re reviewed? The less frequent the better, this means that they have established themselves as a college that will adhere to the requirements of the Accrediting body and thus have earned their trust and in turn they don’t need to be regulated as heavily.
2. Who does the reviewing; (what accrediting body) this will let you know what type of accreditation they have?
3. When their last review was and what were the results, are they in good standing, under review or on probation, meaning they’ve been given a set period of time to become in compliance before they lose their accreditation.

You can cross check this information by contacting the accrediting body and request the results.

Word to the wise: Find out what is acceptable in your industry before starting your degree, or if you’ve already begun your education, see if there is a way that your employer will work with you or if you need to transfer to a college that will meet their requirements. If you’re not currently working look into several companies you’d like to work for.

Let them know that you’d like to work for them and what to make sure that your education is in line for consideration by the company.

This has two benefits:

1. You’ll get a head start on making sure that you are not losing thousands of dollars on classes you cannot use.
2. You are letting prospective employers know that you are planning ahead; you are putting your name in front of them early. Now things may change that’s true but while you’re in college periodically contact the employers you are interested in and make sure that you are a candidate they will be interested in.

Okay so we’ve looked at the two biggest accrediting types now who does the regulating?

You have such excellent questions. J

Here is a list of several of the current accrediting bodies, these are the agencies that the school has chosen to be in compliance with.

Regional:

• MSA-The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools,- Accreditation of colleges in the middle states region (Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico).
• NEASC- The New England Association of Schools & Colleges, - Accreditation of colleges in the New England region (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont).
• NCA- The North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, - Accreditation of colleges in the north central region (Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, New Mexico, South Dakota, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Wyoming).
• NWCCU- The Northwest Commission On Colleges and Universities, - Accreditation of colleges in the north west region (Alaska, Idaho, Utah, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington.)
• SAC- The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, - Accreditation of colleges in the southern region (Alabama , Florida , Georgia , Kentucky , Louisiana , Mississippi , North Carolina , South Carolina , Tennessee , Texas , Virginia)
• WASC- The Western Association of Schools and Colleges, Accreditation of colleges in the western region.
• In the west there is also a separate accrediting body for community or junior colleges
• ACCJC- Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges

National:

There are several, here are the top five

• Distance Education and Training Council (DETC)
• Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools(ACICS)
• Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology(ACCSCT)
• Accrediting Council for Continuing Education and Training(ACCET)
• Council on Occupational Education(COE)

So now you know the mystery behind accreditation and how this can cost you money and possibly a job. Do research and make sure that this doesn’t happen to you.

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Thank you.

Sophie

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