What is Accreditation? Accreditation is the voluntary, nongovernmental system of evaluation used in North America to protect the public interest and to verify the quality of services rendered by a variety of different types of service organizations and institutions. In the higher education sector, accreditation assures that postsecondary educational institutions and their units, schools, or programs meet appropriate standards of quality and integrity. It also helps institutions and their component units improve the quality of education they offer. At the postsecondary level there are two types of educational accreditation: institutional and specialized. Institutional accreditation evaluates the institution as a whole. Six regional associations and six national associations restrict their activities to institutions of a particular type. Specialized accreditation evaluates professional and occupational education at the unit or program level. It is conducted by specialized accrediting bodies generally established by national professional organizations in such fields as journalism, law, medicine, social work, and teacher education. Specialized accreditation is both a process and a condition. The process entails the assessment of the program's quality and the continued enhancement of the program's operations through compliance with specified professional standards. The condition provides a credential to the public-at-large, which attests that a program has accepted and continues to fulfill its commitment to educational quality. Both the process and the condition provide benefits to a variety of publics. These publics include students, program faculty, institutional administrators, program graduates, professionals in the field and the consumers of professional services. The American Library Association is a leading force in accreditation, providing opportunities to practitioners, educators and the public for input into the setting of standards for master's level programs of education in the field of Library and Information Studies (LIS). the Office for Accreditation provides planning and leadership in the national and international accreditation arenas, and is the authoritative source for the profession and public on LIS accreditation. Copyright © 2000, American Library Association.       Secular schools seek secular education, and sacred schools receive sacred accreditation by their own Ministries, Synagogues and/or other religious Accreditation Agencies. Religious institutions need no secular accreditation because they do not offer secular degrees since secular and religious interests are different and have separate realms of jurisdiction. Secular accreditation agencies in turn are recognized by governmental agencies. They trace their authority back to the capitol of a country, like Washington, D.C. Religious accrediting agencies are recognized by various religions jurisdictions which have no supreme central office here on earth, as their authority is founded on spiritual grounds. The State or any civil government is not superior to the Church/Religion The Church/Religious body does not need approval from the secular world. Civil authorities should not be dictating standards of Religious education, in much the same way as a police officer would not be directing the worship of Yahwah. Theological Seminaries and Yeshivas should not be accredited by accrediting associations that are "recognized" by an agency of the federal government, because it is contrary to the principle of "Separation of Church and State." A Netzarim or Religious educational institution securing accreditation from an association which is controlled by a governmental agency is an unholy union as Ya'acob(James) 4:4 says, "Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with Elohim?"

 

The Truth About

Accreditation

in US Colleges and Universities

By Dr. Richard J. Hoyer

Myth 1: It must be accredited to be Legitimate.

Laypersons and professional alike have been brainwashed to think that to have a legitimate college or university degree, it must be accredited. The average person and most professionals have no idea what accreditation is, they believe or have been told through out the years, that accreditation equals a legitimate degree. This is not true! In fact it takes four years for a college to become accredited, making it technically impossible to disallow unaccredited schools. With this mindset, no new college or university could ever open.

Myth 2: The degree must be a US Department of Education Recognized degree.

This falsehood is where people believe a degree must be recognized by the US Department of Education. The US Department of Education does not, and has never had a responsibility to recognize college or university degrees. There are Regional, National and Professional accrediting agencies, which are non-governmental, non-profit, peer review, third party organizations that the US Department of Education recognizes for the purpose of federal tuition loans. This has nothing to do with making the college or university legitimate. Again, not true!

Myth 3: Foreign degrees are not valid in the US and are inferior in quality to US degrees.

This falsehood is actually funny, that a degree earned outside of the United States are not as good, or not as legitimate as a regionally, national or professional “accredited” US degree. Not true! Most foreign countries require that all colleges and universities be licensed, registered and/or accredited by the Ministry of Education (a government agency), which in most cases, is much more stringent that our non-governmental accrediting process. Foreign university administrators laugh at our regional accreditation process.

Myth 4: If the college of university is not listed in my guidebook, it’s not legitimate.

Everyone and their brother has written their version of guidebooks. Just like my book: ''A College Degree in your Spare Time Through Distance Learning'' is my opinion and based on my research, so are the other guidebooks that are on the market. Again, not true!

Myth 5: A state licensed college or university is not legitimate without accreditation.

Not true! Many colleges and universities throughout the US receive state license or authority to grant degrees. Some are schools are exempt from licensing based on offering only religious degrees. Others decide that the regional, national or professional accreditation (peer review from a non-governmental, non-profit, peer review agency) is not needed. Each state has their own requirements for degree granting institutes.

Myth 6: An accredited college or university is just as inexpensive as non-accredited or foreign degree programs.

The average for regional, national or professional accreditation can cost from as little as $4,000.00 to as much as $100,000 a year. Who do you think pays for that great privilege of having a degree from an accredited college or university? You do! The cost of being accredited is hidden in your tuition fees. One school I used to list in my book went from a $5,000.00 total tuition to a whopping $27,000.00 for the same four-year program after obtaining their accreditation. Not true!

Myth 7: If an education evaluation firm says the degree is not equal to a US accredited degree, it is not.

Educational evaluation firms or agencies are private companies. The opinion that they provide in a written report is just that, an opinion. These firms or agencies are not the US Department of Education and are not a governmental agency. You could send your degree to three or four of these agencies and get two to three different opinion reports. There is also an educational evaluation membership organization that several of these private companies join to (pay membership dues). They attempt to give the impression that only their members are qualified to conduct educational evaluations. Again, not true!

Myth 8: Accreditation is the only true mark of obtaining a quality education.

Well, let’s think about that for a minute. All of the US public schools are accredited. Yet we are graduating 18 year olds who can’t make change without a calculator and can’t spell.

One man, who worked for me while I was in hospital administration, had a four-year degree from Bowling Green State University on an athletic scholarship. He asked me his first day on the job how to spell the word hospital. I pointed to the top of the report form he was filling out.

Myth 9: If my college or university belongs to several professional organizations, it makes my degree legitimate.

Any college or university can join professional and educational organizations simply by paying the necessary membership fees. It has absolutely nothing to do with legitimizing your degree. A perfect example is my membership in the American Bar Association, yet I am not a practicing attorney.

Myth 10: State Professional Licensing Boards and Professional Registrations Will Only Accept Regionally Accredited Degrees.

In many states this is true, however, there are exemptions from this requirement in some cases, and those with foreign and non-accredited degrees may only be required to obtain an educational evaluation from organizations like NAHE to satisfy the state requirements. Contact your state licensing board to get their exact requirements before enrolling in any degree program.

Myth 11: Any accreditation not recognized by the US Department of Education is useless.

Actually any third party review of a college or university is a good thing. But just remember, it is an opinion not a requirement and based on the peer review of self-established standards of a non-governmental, non-profit agency. It should not be confused with making that college or university legitimate. Reputation speaks volumes for the quality of a college or university. Many foreign Ministers of Education I have spoken to actually laugh about the US non-governmental accreditation process. The foreign accreditation requirements are much more stringent than the regional accreditation process.

SUMMARY

Accreditation in the United States began in the early 1960's as a means for educational institutions (colleges and universities) to demonstrate to the Federal government a basic level of quality in their institution and programs for the purpose of certifying eligibility to receive Federal funds, which include Stafford loans, grants, and research monies.

A non-governmental peer process of evaluation of post-secondary educational institutions and programs was established, developed and administered by private educational associations and commissions of regional or national scope.

The purpose for this short writing is to provide human resource managers and various other professionals with the cold hard facts about the accreditation myth that has been prevalent in our society. The findings from my research are not intended to belittle the importance of any third party quality review of a college or university program by any means. In fact, I am an accreditation evaluator for three such organizations. My only intention is to educate the general public.