The Ultimate Guide to Accreditation for Master’s Students

Regional accreditation is given to colleges and universities by one of several gold-standard accrediting organizations. For a school to achieve regional accreditation, it must meet a peer-reviewed quality requirement standard. The Council of Regional Accrediting Commissions (C-RAC) is composed of seven regional accrediting agencies recognized by CHEA and the U.S. Department of Education. The following accrediting bodies review the educational services, faculty and staff, course offerings, policies, and more of schools throughout the country and beyond.

• Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) – This organization awards accreditation to associate degree-granting institutions in career or technically oriented baccalaureate degrees to colleges throughout California, Hawaii, the Territories of Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Republic of Palau, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands.
• Higher Learning Commission (HLC) – The HLC awards accreditation to degree-granting institutions of higher education incorporated in or operating under federal authority in the United States. It includes associate, baccalaureate, master’s, or doctoral degrees (both research and professional).
• Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) – This commission awards accreditation to degree-granting institutions offering one or more postsecondary educational programs, including those offered via distance education, of at least one academic year in length at the associate or higher level in Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and any other geographic areas in which the commission elects to conduct accrediting activities within and outside of the United States.
• New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE) – NECHE awards accreditation to degree-granting institutions that offer associate, bachelor, master, and doctoral degrees that include in their offerings at least one program in liberal studies or another area of study widely available at the baccalaureate level of regionally accredited colleges and universities in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont, and internationally.
• Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU) – NWCCU offers accreditation to postsecondary degree-granting educational institutions in Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and internationally, and the accreditation of programs offered via distance education within these institutions.
• Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC)– This accrediting body awards accreditation to degree-granting institutions of higher education in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Latin America, and other commission-approved international sites, including programs offered via distance and correspondence education within these institutions.
• WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC) – WSCUC awards accreditation to degree-granting institutions of higher education in the U.S. and internationally that offer the baccalaureate degree or above.

National accreditation is typically awarded to for-profit and vocational, career, or technical programs. Most nationally accredited schools focus on career or religious education. This differs from regionally accredited schools, because national accrediting agencies don’t focus on the geographic location of the school. The accreditation process includes directly comparing schools against other similarly designed schools and evaluates the specific type of education these schools offer.

According to the Council for Higher Education Accreditation, programmatic accreditation focuses on a particular program in a subject, such as chemical engineering or business. The accreditation process varies depending on the specific educational criteria and standards for each program. Some individual professions, such as nursing, dentistry, engineering, and psychology, are covered by their own specialized accreditation agency. Most programmatic accreditors require that accredited programs be housed in an institutionally accredited school.

Business

• Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP) – This organization is recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). It accredits business, accounting, and business-related programs at the associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate degree levels worldwide.
• International Accreditation Council for Business Education (IACBE) – The IACBE is recognized by CHEA. It accredits business, accounting and business-related degree programs at the associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degree levels in institutions of higher education worldwide.
• If you plan to pursue a graduate degree in business, make sure your program is accredited through ACBSP or IACBE. Explore top-rated accredited programs for business that adhere to accreditation standards to excel your career.

Social Work

• Council on Social Work Education, Commission on Accreditation (CSWE-COA) – This accrediting body is recognized by CHEA. It accredits bachelor’s and master’s degree programs in social work in the U.S. and its territories.
• Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) – Recognized by CHEA, this organization accredits master’s and doctoral degree programs in counseling and its specialties that are offered by colleges and universities in the U.S. and throughout the world.
• If you plan to pursue a graduate degree in social work, make sure your program is accredited through CSWE-COA or CACREP. Explore top-rated accredited programs for social work that adhere to accreditation standards to excel your career.

Psychology

• American Psychological Association, Commission on Accreditation (APA-CoA)– Recognized by CHEA and USDE, the APA-CoA grants pre-accreditation and accreditation in the U.S. to doctoral programs in clinical, counseling, school psychology, (and combinations of two or more of these practice areas); doctoral internship programs in health service psychology; and postdoctoral residency programs in health service psychology.
• Association for Behavior Analysis International Accreditation Board (ABAI) – Recognized by CHEA, ABAI accredits degree programs in behavior analysis at the master and doctoral levels in institutions of higher learning in the U.S.
• Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education, American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (COAMFTE-AAMFT) – Recognized by CHEA, this body grants accreditation to master’s, doctoral, and post-degree clinical training programs in marriage and family therapy in the U.S. and Canada.
• Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) – This accrediting body is recognized by CHEA and accredits master’s and doctoral degree programs in counseling and its specialties that are offered by colleges and universities in the U.S. and throughout the world.
• Masters in Psychology and Counseling Accreditation Council (MPCAC) – Recognized by CHEA, MPCAC accredits counseling and psychology master’s degree programs located in regionally accredited colleges and universities that educate students in the science-based practice of counseling and psychological services.
• National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) – Recognized by CHEA, NASP accredits specialist-level degree programs and doctoral degree programs in school psychology. The degree program must be offered by a higher education institution that is located in the U.S. or its territories and is accredited by a regional or national accrediting agency recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation or the U.S. Department of Education.
• Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System (PCSAS)– Recognized by CHEA, this organization accredits doctoral training programs that grant Ph.D. degrees in psychology with a core focus on the specialty of psychological clinical science and that are housed in departments of psychology (or their equivalent) within accredited nonprofit, research-intensive universities in the U.S. and Canada.
• If you plan to pursue a graduate degree in psychology, make sure your program is accredited through one of the seven accrediting organizations above. Explore top-rated accredited programs for psychology that adhere to accreditation standards to excel your career.

Education

• Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) – Recognized by CHEA, CAEP accredits educator preparation providers (EPPs) that offer bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral degrees, post-baccalaureate, and other programs leading to certification, licensure, or endorsement in the U.S. and internationally.
• Montessori Accreditation Council for Teacher Education (MACTE) – Recognized by The U.S. Department of Education, MACTE accredits certification programs based on the evidence schools have that prepare competent, caring, and qualified professional Montessori educators and hold the capacity to monitor and improve their program’s quality.
• National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) – Recognized by CHEA and U.S. Department of Education, NCATE accredits teacher education programs in U.S. colleges and universities.
• National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) – Recognized by CHEA, NAEYC accredits programs at the associate, bachelor’s, and master’s degree levels that prepare candidates to work in the early childhood education profession. The degree program must be offered at an institution of higher education that is located in a U.S. state, district, or territory and currently accredited by a regional or national accrediting agency recognized by the CHEA or the U.S. Department of Education.
• Teacher Education Accreditation Council (TEAC) – Recognized by CHEA and the U.S. Department of Education, TEAC accredits undergraduate and graduate professional education programs to assure the public about the quality of college and university programs. The education program, not the college, school, department or other administrative unit of the institution, receives TEAC accreditation.
• If you plan to pursue a graduate degree in education, make sure your program is accredited through one of the accrediting organizations above. Explore top-rated accredited programs for education that adhere to accreditation standards to excel your career.

Engineering

• Association of Technology, Management, and Applied Engineering (ATMAE)– ATMAE is recognized by CHEA and accredits associate, bachelor’s, and master’s degree programs in technology, applied technology, engineering technology, and technology-related disciplines delivered at national or regional accredited institutions in the U.S.
• If you plan to pursue a graduate degree in engineering, make sure your program is accredited through ATMAE. Explore top-rated accredited programs for engineering that adhere to accreditation standards to excel your career.

Institutional accreditation involves assessing and accrediting an entire college or university. This may involve confirming if the school at large has sufficient educational resources, such as libraries and journal subscriptions, student services, qualified faculty, and policies that adhere to a specific set of requirements and guidelines. It usually also requires a record of successful post-graduate students from the college. Institutional accreditation also makes it easier for graduate students to transfer between institutions and receive federal financial aid. Employers usually give preference to applicants who have graduated from schools that have this type of accreditation.

One of the easiest ways to check a school’s accreditation status is to use the U.S. Department of Education’s database. Here you’ll find a list of nationally recognized institutions that are validated as accredited. You can also search for a specific school you’re interested in and get results showing the name of the accrediting agency and the date of accreditation.

Each of the seven regional accrediting agencies also have their own website where you can check if your school or institution is listed. The same is true for all national accrediting agencies. You can scroll through each accrediting agency’s directory of schools and institutions that they have granted accreditation to. This is a great and easy way to verify if your school is accredited through a verified accreditation agency. CHEA also has a full directory of CHEA and USDE-recognized accreditation organizations that link out to a directory of schools and programs that are accredited.

Another easy method to check if your school is accredited is to browse the school’s website. Most schools will include accreditation information on their website to proudly show prospective students their higher standards of education and research criteria. You can often find this information on the home, about, or academics page of a particular school or program’s website.

While transferring credits to an accredited institution may not be the easiest option, it could end up being worthwhile to your overall quality of education. Most regionally and nationally accredited institutions won’t take credits from an unaccredited institution, so courses will often have to be repeated. While this will cost more time and money, you’ll be learning in an enhanced and quality educational environment that will set you up with the skills and knowledge you need to excel in your career. This is the fastest and easiest route to getting an accredited degree.

Have you considered continuing your education? If you have a bachelor’s degree from an unaccredited institution, you can pave the way to your career success by obtaining a master’s degree from an accredited institution. Look at your options for adding accredited courses on top of your education alongside your already enrolled unaccredited program. This will help you enhance the value of your degree.

If you hold a degree from an unaccredited school, some professional organizations may still accept and recognize your education if you meet certain requirements. This could include completed internships, completed or current relevant field work outside of the classroom, and more.

While obtaining an accredited degree is highly recommended and can help place you in your desired field of work, some career paths may have alternative paths to advancement and opportunities. Careers in specific trades or vocations – like construction, electrical, forestry, and culinary – usually don’t require an accredited degree or license but instead rely on experience and apprenticeships.