34 C.F.R. § 602.16 Accreditation and preaccreditation standards.
Title 34 - Education
(a) The agency must demonstrate that it has standards for accreditation, and preaccreditation, if offered, that are sufficiently rigorous to ensure that the agency is a reliable authority regarding the quality of the education or training provided by the institutions or programs it accredits. The agency meets this requirement if— (1) The agency's accreditation standards effectively address the quality of the institution or program in the following areas: (i) Success with respect to student achievement in relation to the institution's mission, including, as appropriate, consideration of course completion, State licensing examination, and job placement rates. (ii) Curricula. (iii) Faculty. (iv) Facilities, equipment, and supplies. (v) Fiscal and administrative capacity as appropriate to the specified scale of operations. (vi) Student support services. (vii) Recruiting and admissions practices, academic calendars, catalogs, publications, grading, and advertising. (viii) Measures of program length and the objectives of the degrees or credentials offered. (ix) Record of student complaints received by, or available to, the agency. (x) Record of compliance with the institution's program responsibilities under Title IV of the Act, based on the most recent student loan default rate data provided by the Secretary, the results of financial or compliance audits, program reviews, and any other information that the Secretary may provide to the agency; and (2) The agency's preaccreditation standards, if offered, are appropriately related to the agency's accreditation standards and do not permit the institution or program to hold preaccreditation status for more than five years. (b) If the agency only accredits programs and does not serve as an institutional accrediting agency for any of those programs, its accreditation standards must address the areas in paragraph (a)(1) of this section in terms of the type and level of the program rather than in terms of the institution. (c) If none of the institutions an agency accredits participates in any Title IV, HEA program, or if the agency only accredits programs within institutions that are accredited by a nationally recognized institutional accrediting agency, the agency is not required to have the accreditation standards described in paragraphs (a)(1)(viii) and (a)(1)(x) of this section. (d) An agency that has established and applies the standards in paragraph (a) of this section may establish any additional accreditation standards it deems appropriate. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1099b)
Title 34: Education
PART 602—THE SECRETARY'S RECOGNITION OF ACCREDITING AGENCIES
Subpart B—The Criteria for Recognition
Required Standards and Their Application
§ 602.16 Accreditation and preaccreditation standards.
