2011 Standards for Accreditation

The Standards for Accreditation are an articulation by the higher education community of what a college or university must do in order to deserve the public trust. They also function as a framework for institutional development and self-evaluation.

Covering eleven areas of institutional academic and administrative operations, the Standards are largely qualitative, in keeping with their need to apply to a variety of institutions with different missions.

Standard 1:  Mission and Purposes
Standard 2:  Planning and Evaluation
Standard 3:  Organization and Governance
Standard 4:  The Academic Program
Standard 5:  Faculty
Standard 6:  Students
Standard 7:  Library and Other Information Resources
Standard 8:  Physical and Technological Resources
Standard 9:  Financial Resources
Standard 10:  Public Disclosure
Standard 11:  Integrity

The Standards are fully updated at least every ten years, with the participation of member institutions, to reflect the Commission's heightened emphases and to anticipate future directions of the higher education community. At the five-year point in that cycle, they undergo a mid-course revision, with changes and clarifications based on the experience of institutions and the Commission in using the Standards.