Over the years, the Student Loan Ranger has offered a range of data points that students and their families should consider when deciding on college. Comparing a school’s default rate, average debt levels and graduation rates are just some of the things students should look at when determining which school might give them a better path to success and a good return on investment.
Another important but often overlooked aspect of an institution’s value is accreditation. Accreditation is a process in which accrediting agencies assess the quality of education that higher education institutions offer and ensure they meet certain standards.
[Discover how to tell if an online program is accredited.]
Many consumers are under the incorrect assumption that the federal government is responsible for accrediting colleges and universities. In fact, accreditation is just one part of a three-pronged approach to school oversight:
— The Department of Education has regulatory oversight responsibility for the way schools handle federal student aid funds and to ensure equal access to education.
— Individual states ensure that schools comply with the state’s consumer protection laws and authorize the schools to operate in that state.
— The accrediting agencies ensure that the schools or their programs meet certain levels of quality.
While the Department of Education has no real authority over the robustness or content of schools’ programs, it does have some indirect authority. For schools to receive federal financial aid funds, they must have a Department of Education-recognized accrediting agency accredit them. If the agency isn’t up to par, then the schools using that agency can’t receive aid — and most schools require federal aid to attract students.
The Department of Education recently voted to cease recognition of one large accrediting agency due to a series of complaints related to the agency’s oversight and other practices. Once the decision is finalized — and if the court doesn’t block the decision — schools using this agency will have 18 months to find new accreditation or risk losing their eligibility for federal student aid.
Lost federal aid can hurt the schools’ current students. For example, students may have difficulty finding schools willing to accept the credits from an institution that lost its accreditation and failed to find new credentials, leaving them with student debt and no degree.
[Here’s what to know if your college loses federal funding.]
What Accreditation Means to Students
Understanding accreditation and how schools’ accreditation is viewed can help students and their families as they evaluate whether their school of choice is a good financial fit for their current and future economic situation. Remember, just because schools are accredited doesn’t mean they are eligible to receive federal financial aid funds — as previously stated, schools must use one of the Department of Education’s approved accrediting agencies. Students should keep this list on hand as they review their college choices.
Students also need to understand that not all accreditation is considered equal. Regional accrediting agencies are generally considered more robust than national accrediting agencies. In general, regionally accredited schools tend to be academically oriented rather than trade oriented. Regionally accredited schools, including state schools, also are more likely to be nonprofit.
[Consider these Best Value Schools.]
Certain accrediting agencies also review different aspects of schools. Institutional accrediting agencies review the entire school, while programmatic or specialized accrediting agencies focus on schools’ particular areas of study, such as teaching or medical-related education.
Examples of specialized accrediting agencies include the American Bar Association and the American Academy of Forensic Science. The Council of Higher Education Accreditation maintains a full list of such accrediting agencies.
The type of accrediting agency that approves schools can be very important not only for the recognition but also for credit transfer. Institutions are much more likely to accept credits from schools with regional accreditation or specialized accrediting agency-approved programs. If students already have student loan debt from taking classes at one school, they certainly don’t want to incur more debt to take those same classes at a new school.
Students and faculty can also use accrediting agencies to help ensure schools are maintaining educational excellence and quality. All accrediting agencies maintain a complaint process that students and faculty can use to resolve education-related disputes with the institution or to notify the agency of an overall issue with the institutions or their programs.
Student loan holders with c omplaints specific to student loans or other federal aid, though, must file those concerns directly with the loan holder or the Department of Education.
Accrediting agencies play an important role in ensuring that students are receiving a quality higher education experience. As such, it is important for students and their families to understand this role and consider schools’ accreditation as an important data point when choosing a college.
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Consider School Accreditation When Determining a College’s Value originally appeared on usnews.com
