School Accreditation

Accreditation is a complicated subject. Any school can claim it's accredited because the use of that word is not regulated. This can make choosing an accredited online school a difficult thing. To find a legitimate online accredited school, you should look for one that is accredited by an agency that follows generally accepted standards. Throughout the United States, there are certain criteria that most agencies agree with, making it easier for you to find an accredited online school. A reputable accredited online school would be one that is recognized by the Council on Higher Education in Washington, D.C., the U. S. Department of Education and one other relevant national education agency. A good resource can be found here at the Department of Education's website:

www.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/index.html

An online accredited school is one that has received a validation from impartial experts saying the school in question has been found worthy of approval. Accreditation is a voluntary process and it is done by private, nongovernmental agencies. Because of this, accreditation agencies have proliferated and not all of them are legitimate and recognized.

If you want to receive a degree from an accredited online school, you should make sure that you know who is accrediting the school and if they are qualified to make that assessment. For a school to receive accreditation, it must go through a process that can take several years.

What accreditation bodies evaluate

When an accrediting agency is evaluating a school, criteria such as the following are considered: faculty, facilities, equipment and supplies; fiscal and administrative capacity; student support services, program length, tuition and fees in relation to academic objectives and credit received; student achievement; student loan repayments; student complaints; compliance with student aid rules and regulations; admission practices, grading practices, as well as advertising and publicity.

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