The U.S. Secretary of Education is required by statute to publish a list of nationally recognized accrediting agencies that the Secretary determines to be reliable authorities as to the quality of education or training provided by the institutions of higher education and the higher education programs they accredit. The Secretary only evaluates accrediting agencies that apply for recognition, and certain criteria for recognition that are unrelated to the quality of accrediting activities limit the scope of the Secretary's recognition activities.

Note: The U.S. Department of Education does not have the authority to accredit private or public elementary or secondary schools, and the Department does not recognize accrediting bodies for the accreditation of private or public elementary and secondary schools. However, the U.S. Department of Education does recognize accrediting bodies for the accreditation of institutions of higher (postsecondary) education. If an accrediting body which is recognized by the Department for higher education also accredits elementary and secondary schools, the Department's recognition applies only to the agency's accreditation of postsecondary institutions.

Most institutions attain eligibility for Federal funds by holding accredited or preaccredited status with one of the accrediting agencies recognized by the Secretary, in addition to fulfilling other eligibility requirements. For example, accreditation by a nationally recognized institutional accrediting agency enables the institutions it accredits to establish eligibility to participate in the Federal student financial assistance programs administered by the U.S. Department of Education under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended.

The commissions of the institutional (regional and national) accrediting agencies that are recognized by the Secretary have no legal control over educational institutions or programs. They promulgate standards of quality or criteria of institutional excellence and approve or renew membership of those institutions that apply for meet their accreditation and standards or criteria.

The Accrediting Agency Evaluation Unit

The Accrediting Agency Evaluation Unit has been established within the Department of Education to deal with accreditation matters. Located in the Office of Postsecondary Education, the Unit carries out the following major functions with respect to accreditation:

1. Conduct a continuous review of standards, policies, procedures, and issues in the area of the Department of Education's interests and responsibilities relative to accreditation;
2. Administer the process whereby accrediting agencies and State approval agencies secure initial and renewed recognition by the Secretary of Education;
3. Serve as the Department's liaison with accrediting agencies and State approval agencies;
4. Provide consultative services to institutions, associations, State agencies, other Federal agencies, and Congress regarding accreditation;
5. Interpret and disseminate policy relative to accreditation issues in the case of all appropriate programs administered by the Department of Education;
6. Conduct and stimulate appropriate research; and
7. Provide support for the Secretary's National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity.

The Recognition Process for Accrediting Agencies

The recognition procedures for accrediting agencies are set forth in subpart B of part 602. Other information related to an agency's application for recognition is provided below.

The Application for Recognition

Accrediting agencies desiring to be recognized by the Secretary of Education must apply for recognition and must demonstrate their compliance with the Criteria for Secretarial Recognition (34 CFR Part 602). An agency's application for recognition generally consists of a statement of the agency's requested scope of recognition, evidence of the agency's compliance with the criteria for recognition set forth in part 602, and supporting documentation.

There is no standard application form to be used by agencies applying for recognition. Rather, an agency's application for initial recognition or renewal of recognition consists of a narrative statement, organized on a criterion-by-criterion basis, showing how the agency complies with the Criteria for Secretarial Recognition. For many recognition requirements, the narrative statement need consist only of a brief narrative demonstrating how that the agency complies with a particular requirement. This statement must, however, be accompanied by clearly referenced supporting documentation demonstrating that the agency meets the requirement. For example, Section 602.15(a)(6) of the regulations requires an agency to have clear and effective controls against conflicts of interest or the appearance of conflicts of interest by the agency's board members, commissioners, evaluation team members, consultants, administrative staff, and other agency representatives. The agency's narrative statement addressing this issue might simply be a statement that the agency's policies against conflicts of interest may be found in a particular policy document. The agency would have to submit a copy of that document and identify the pages on which the relevant policies were located. The agency might also choose to include a copy of the minutes of a meeting at which an agency representative abstained from voting because of a conflict of interest to demonstrate that it adheres to its written policies.

For other recognition requirements, because of their nature, the brief narrative statement, with supporting documentation, is insufficient to demonstrate compliance. In these cases, the agency's narrative statement should provide sufficient information to demonstrate that the agency's policies, standards, procedures, and practices comply with the requirement. For example, Section 602.21 of the regulations requires that an agency maintain a program of review designed to ensure that its criteria and standards are valid and reliable indicators of the quality of the education or training provided and are relevant to the education or training needs of affected students. As this requirement is fundamental to sound accreditation practices, the agency's narrative statement would have to describe in depth the processes the agency uses to review and update its criteria and standards, the tests it uses to determine their adequacy and relevance in evaluating educational quality, as well as the results of those tests, and how it determines they are relevant to the needs of affected students. The agency would also have to provide relevant supporting documentation, such as policy statements pertaining to its review program for validating and updating its standards, surveys and the results of those surveys, the constituencies involved in the review process, etc. The agency's statement and documentation would need to establish that the program of review is comprehensive; occurs at regular, yet reasonable, intervals or on an ongoing basis; examines each of the agency's standards and the standards as a whole; and involves all of the agency's relevant constituencies in the review, affording them a meaningful opportunity to provide input. The agency would also need to establish that it has the requisite procedures in place for timely changing its standards in response to the results of the review.

If an agency's application for recognition does not make specific reference to the following documents and does not include them as supporting documentation for one or more of the recognition requirements, the agency must include them as additional supporting documentation:

The agency's accreditation standards and procedures

The agency's policies and procedures

The agency's most recent externally audited financial statement

Published lists of accredited schools or programs

Self-study guidelines

Guidance aid training materials for visiting team members

Sample completed self-study reports

Sample site visit reports

Sample institution responses to site visit reports

Sample minutes of decision meetings

A list of all complaints received by the agency against an accredited program during the six-month period immediately preceding the agency's submission of its application for recognition, together with a summary of the issues involved in each complaint, the agency's disposition of that complaint, and the current status of the complaint, if it is not resolved by the time the agency submits its application

The agency's constitution and by-laws.

Note: it would be helpful if the samples provided by an agency for items 7-10 above referred to the same institution(s) or program(s).

Copies of the Application

An agency's application for recognition plus three copies should be submitted to the Accrediting Agency Evaluation unit (AAE) at the address below. Only the original of bulkier exhibit items, such as self-study reports or team reports, need to be submitted with the petition; there is no need for three copies of these items.

Accrediting Agency Evaluation
Accreditation and State Liaison
U.S. Department of Education
1990 K Street, NW, #7126
Washington, DC 20006-8509
Telephone: (202) 219-7011

Time Frame for Submission of an Application

Application for Initial Recognition

AAE accepts applications for initial recognition at any time. To receive consideration at a particular meeting of the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity, an agency seeking initial recognition must submit its application at least six months in advance of that meeting. Consideration of the agency's application at the first Advisory Committee meeting that occurs after the six-month time frame is not guaranteed, however, as Department staff may need more time to complete its independent evaluation of the agency and to observe at least some of the agency's site visits and decision meetings, as required by Section 602.31(b)of the regulations.

An agency considering applying for initial recognition is encouraged to contact AAE as early as possible to discuss its possible application and to afford Department staff the opportunity to observe its site visits and decision meetings. Because observation of an agency's site visits and decision meetings by Department staff is a critical component of the review of the agency's application, it is imperative that an agency seeking initial recognition submit a list of scheduled site visits and decision meetings with its application for recognition. If an agency does not provide Department staff with an opportunity to observe an adequate number of site visits and decision meetings (typically 2-3 of each) before the Advisory Committee meeting at which the agency requests consideration of its application, Department staff may recommend that the agency's application be denied.

Agencies seeking initial recognition are reminded that recognition by the Secretary is not a prerequisite for an agency to function as an accrediting body, i.e., an agency does not have to obtain recognition before it begins to accredit institutions or programs. Rather, recognition is granted by the Secretary to an agency that meets certain Federal eligibility requirements and can demonstrate compliance with all of the criteria for recognition, establishing through its accrediting actions and decisions that it is a reliable authority regarding the quality of education offered by the institutions or programs it accredits. In general, a new accrediting agency will need to have had at least two years' experience functioning as an accrediting agency - establishing standards, evaluating institutions or programs for compliance with those standards, and making accrediting decisions based on those standards - before it submits its application for recognition. In addition, a new agency will need to be mindful of the recognition criterion requiring it to establish that it has gained wide acceptance of its standards, methods of evaluation, and accreditation decisions, as required by Section 602.13 of the regulations. Department staff will also consider whether the new agency has been organized under conditions that reasonably ensure its stability and permanence.

Application for Continued Recognition

Agencies that have been granted recognition by the Secretary are notified by the Secretary, each time recognition is granted or renewed, of the expiration date of their recognition period. They should plan to submit their application for renewal of recognition approximately six months in advance of the spring or fall meeting of the Advisory Committee that precedes the expiration date. AAE usually notifies agencies a year in advance of the Advisory Committee meeting at which their renewal application is to be considered and informs them of the date by which their application is due to AAE. In the same notice, AAE also requests a schedule of the agencies' site visits and decision meetings for the upcoming year in order to plan its observation of at least some of those activities, as required by Section 602.31(b) of the regulations.

Hearing Before the Advisory Committee

When Department staff completes its evaluation of an agency's application for recognition, the agency's application is placed on the meeting agenda of the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity. In preparation for the meeting, the Advisory Committee is provided with the accrediting agency's application and supporting documentation, the Department staff analysis of the application, all information relied upon by Department staff in developing the analysis, any response by the agency to the analysis or third-party comment, any Department concurrence with or rebuttal to the agency's response, and any third-party information the Secretary receives regarding the agency.

The Advisory Committee meets at least twice a year to review applications for recognition submitted by accrediting agencies. The usual times for the Committee meetings are spring (May-June) and fall (November-December). Although each member of the Advisory Committee receives every Department staff analysis of an application for recognition and all the other materials mentioned in the preceding paragraph, the Executive Director of the Advisory Committee usually assigns two or more Committee members to serve as principal readers for each application.

An agency that applies for recognition is invited to make an oral presentation before the Advisory Committee. The Advisory Committee also hears oral presentations from Department staff and from third parties who request to be heard.

The Advisory Committee conducts its business in public, and a transcript of the proceedings is made. After each meeting, the Advisory Committee's recommendations concerning recognition are forwarded to the Secretary, who makes the final determination regarding recognition.  An appeal process is available to any agency that disagrees with the Advisory Committee's recommendation on the agency's application.

Expansion of Scope

An application for expansion of an agency's scope of recognition may be included as an integral part of an application for renewal of recognition or it may be submitted separately. If expansion of scope is sought prior to the agency's next regularly scheduled review, agency personnel should consult with AAE staff concerning the application format.