What is accreditation?
“Accreditation” is the primary means of assuring and improving the quality of higher education institutions and programs in the United States. Active for the past 100 years, this private, voluntary system of self-examination and peer review has been central to the creation of a US higher education enterprise that is outstanding in many respects.
From the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA), “Ten Ways in Which Accreditation Serves Students, Society, and the Public Interest”
What are the types of accreditation?
Institutional Accreditation
Colleges and universities belong to a national accrediting organization depending on the institutional type, and through this voluntary membership, they seek institutional accreditation. As membership organizations, the accrediting associations receive dues and governance from their members. Peer review is used as the mechanism to both assure quality and to improve institutions. Since the Higher Education Act of 1965, accreditation is required for institutions to receive federal financial aid. These institutional accreditors are overseen by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) and/or the Department of Education.
Specialized/Programmatic Accreditation
Some academic disciplines, especially those that are professional or pre-professional, have national accrediting bodies that monitor and accredit individual participating programs. Admissions to graduate schools and candidacy for licenses or other professional certifications may be limited to students who graduate from an accredited program.
State Authorization
Accreditation as described above differs from an institution being licensed or authorized to operate in a given state. According to the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA), “State approval to operate signifies that institutions have satisfied certain minimum requirements established by a state. Accreditation signifies that an institution has attained a threshold level of academic quality.”
The Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) maintains information about state approval and licensure. The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign appears on IBHE’s list of degree granting colleges and universities.
Accreditation at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign participates in institutional accreditation and some of its units and programs participate in specialized/programmatic accreditation . Please see the institutional accreditation site for verification of the university’s status with its institutional accreditor, the Higher Learning Commission.