Look For an Accredited Online College Degree
Filed Under Accredited Online College Degree
Why is it important that you study at an accredited college or university?
When you decide to earn an online college degree, a wide range of choices are open to you. One of the most important decisions is: “Which online school should I apply to?”
There’s an easy way to make this choice a little less complicated; stick to online accredited degree programs. If you get a degree from a school that is not accredited you’ll find that employers are unlikely to accept it as a qualification for jobs or promotions. Worse, it won’t qualify you for admission to further education.
OK, problem solved … I’ll just find an accredited online school for my degree program, right? Nope, not so fast. There are at least three types of accreditation available to online colleges in the United States, all of which mean something different.
Regional Accreditation
There are six regional associations responsible for accrediting colleges and universities in the United States, each of which covers a particular geographic area. These are:
- Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools
- New England Association of Schools and Colleges
- North Central Association of Colleges and Schools
- Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities
- Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
- Western Association of Schools and Colleges
You might call these the “gold medal” of accreditation; employers and graduate schools will all accept degrees from institutions with regional accreditation.
National Accreditation
You might expect national accreditation to be superior to regional; however, that is not usually the case. There are a great many national agencies that claim to offer accreditation, but only those recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and/or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation are accepted widely.
In the minds of many employers, both regional and national accreditation are acceptable. However, when it comes to transferring credits, and to graduate school admissions, online degrees from schools with national accreditation may not be accepted by other colleges or universities.
Specialized & Professional Accreditation
This third type of accreditation for online colleges and universities should be viewed as an addition to regional or national accreditation. Specialized and professional accrediting organizations certify that a given program is meeting academic standards for a particular profession. Examples of such accreditation include:
- Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology
- National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences
- National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission
and many others.
Research that Accreditation Claim
Whne you’re reading about an online college, look out for these phrases: “pursuing accreditation”, “licensed or registered”, “recognized”, “chartered”, “approved”, or “authorized.” When terms such as these are mentioned without a clear use of the word “accredited” you will definitely want to investigate further.
Be sure to choose an online accredited degree program and steer clear of online colleges and universities that lack either regional or national accreditation, and you’ll be sure of earning a degree that will advance both your education, and your career.
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