Accreditation is a way to enforce education quality. In the United States, accrediting agencies work with the Department of Education to review post-secondary education programs and ensure quality control. These agencies assess student services, courses, educational resources, and faculty experience. Accreditation allows students to transfer credits and sit exams for post-graduate programs. Grand Canyon University accreditation is regional, so students can use credits earned at that university to transfer or gain admission to other accredited institutions.
There are three main types of accreditation in the US.
1. Regional Accreditation
Regional accreditation is the most common type to receive. Accreditation agencies break up the US into six regions. All accredited schools in one region are evaluated according to the standards of the regional agency. For example, Grand Canyon University accreditation professionals include regional peer reviewers in order to ensure the university continually meets current educational standards.
2. National Accreditation
Some accreditation agencies do offer national accreditation. This type of accreditation is common for for-profit institutions, as well as career-based institutions, like technical colleges and vocational schools. Credit transfer tends to be an issue between regionally and nationally accredited institutions. Generally, nationally accredited schools accept credits from other nationally accredited schools, but not from regionally accredited ones. The same can be said for regionally accredited institutions.
3. Specialized Accreditation
Also called programmatic accreditation, this type of accreditation is meant for specific degree programs offered by a freestanding educational institution, rather than a department within a larger institution. Programs eligible to receive specialized accreditation include legal, healthcare, humanities and performing arts. This type of accreditation typically applies across the US for the institution’s program.
Accreditation is an important aspect of quality assurance in higher education. When you’re looking into higher education, it can be a good idea to check the accreditation statuses of schools you’re interested in.
