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Regional Accreditation vs. National Accreditation

Regional Accreditation vs. National Accreditation

Guide to Online Education > Online Education Trends > Hot Topics in Online Education > Regional vs. National Accreditation

It should be clear that anyone considering an online degree should stick exclusively to those from accredited institutions.

Using unaccredited credentials can be seen by potential employers and others as fraudulent, and in some states, it can even be against the law. But it's not enough just to decide to select only among accredited institutions, as accreditation in the United States is an extremely complex issue.

There is national accreditation, regional accreditation, and specialized accreditation. Confused?

Don't worry, we'll cover the basics, list some pros and cons, and soon you'll have the information you need to make the decision that's best for you.

The Basics of Regional and National Accreditation

There are many different legitimate agencies that accredit colleges and universities in the United States. They exist to provide schools or programs with regional accreditation or national accreditation. Less common, yet very important, is specialized accreditation, which we'll get to later.

Regional Accreditation

The regional accreditation agencies each cover a section of the United States, for example the New England Association of Schools and Colleges accredits institutions located in the six states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

The regional accreditation agencies are:

• Middle State Association of Colleges and Schools (Commission on Higher Education)
• New England Association of Schools and Colleges (Commission on Technical and Career Institutions and Commission on Institutions of Higher Education)
• North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (The Higher Learning Commission)
• Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges
• Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (Commission on Colleges)
• Western Association of Schools and Colleges (Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges and Accrediting Commission for Senior Colleges and Universities)

[Visit http://www.elearners.com/resources/agencies.asp for detailed contact information and links to Web sites.]

National Accreditation

National accreditation agencies, such as Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT), Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS), and
Distance Education and Training Council (DETC), to name a few, are different in that they accredit schools located within the United States, as well as some schools abroad.

Specialized Accreditation

Now, keep in mind that within an institution of higher education, there may also be accreditation of a particular program of study. This accreditation is called specialized accreditation.

For example, students studying towards specific professions like medicine, dentistry, nursing, law, or engineering (to name a few) generally need to graduate from an accredited program with specialized accreditation from the professional association for that particular field (i.e. American Medical Association [AMA] for medicine, American Dental Association [ADA] for dentistry, National Nursing League [NLN] for nursing, American Bar Association [ABA] for law, Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology [ABET] for Engineering) in order to receive a license to practice in the field.

What Regional and National Accredition Have in Common

Regional accreditation and national accreditation have a number of important things in common.

Both are a similar voluntary process through which a school undergoes a lengthy and detailed review of their programs, campuses, and educational delivery methods by the accrediting agency. All regional and national accreditation agencies are non-profit organizations. None are government agencies or for-profit companies.

Something else they have in common that is important to many students is that both schools that are regionally accredited and those that are nationally accredited may be eligible to offer federal financial aid to their students. Note that this doesn't mean that accredited schools automatically participate in Title IV federal student financial assistance programs, so be sure to ask your admissions counselor.

Differences Between Regional and National Accreditation

The first difference between the two types is one of geographic scope. In other words, like their names suggest, the regional accreditation agencies concentrate on a specific area of the country, while the national accreditation agencies are available to any interested institution.

Another difference is their history. The regional accreditation agencies started as leagues of traditional colleges and universities in a specific area. The national accreditation agencies started as associations of institutions with a common theme, and many served schools that were initially not colleges and universities at all.

In addition, several of the national accreditation agencies, such as the Association for Biblical Higher Education, Association of Theological Schools, and Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools, accredit faith-based schools. This is important, as the more religious national accreditation agencies are able to appeal to institutions that believe that accreditation from a secular organization would lead to unacceptable compromises in their religious teachings.

Issues to Consider

When deciding which type of accreditation is right for you, there are several issues you may wish to consider.

The main issue is the transferability of credits from one institution to another. While nationally accredited institutions will usually accept credit from regionally or nationally accredited institutions, regionally accredited schools often do not accept credit from nationally accredited institutions.

This also means that if you hold an associate's degree from a nationally accredited school, you may have to start over if you later decide to pursue a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited school. Similarly, if you hold a nationally accredited bachelor's degree, you may not be eligible to enter a master's program at some regionally accredited institutions. Considering that state colleges and universities are regionally accredited, and are an inexpensive local option for many students, this is definitely something to keep in mind.

Another important issue is cost. There are a few nationally accredited schools that are extremely inexpensive, and that low tuition rate can be enticing. However, there are also regionally accredited bargains out there for those who do their research.

The final issue to consider is acceptability by prospective employers. To be frank, most employers don't know the difference between the two types of accreditation. Usually, once they know that your credentials are accredited, they'll ask no more questions about it. If there are employers that are particularly appealing to you, or if you hope that your degree will lead to a promotion at your current job, it would be best to speak with Human Resources personnel and ask specific questions.

Do What's Best for You

So there you have it: the differences between regional and national accreditation. While many people have strong opinions on which is "better", remember that nothing is best for everyone – there's only the school and program that are right for you. Happy hunting!

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