Accreditation
I was surprised that accreditation was only voluntary. I thought that it was as important as licensure before taking this training.
I agree! I thought the exact same thing. Having an accreditation is a major plus.
You're right it is surprising and you would think with education being as valuable as it is institutions who advocate education would take the time to become acredited. Particularly if they truly have that students best interest at heart. Working at a former institution you would be surprised at the number of students who came in wanting to transfer; having completed what they thought was an Associates Degree only to find all of their time and effort wouldn't be taken into consideration.
I found that many people do not ever say it right. I like spending time explaining what accreditation means to potential students. I like for them to know that it is important for them to know how it affects them and their future. It helps me stand behind what I do knowing that I work for an organization that does not have to but knows the value of accreditation.
Accreditation is one of the most important facts to know, especially when you are talking to perspective students.
I felt the same way, it just seem to be something that is a safe gaurd for joe public. I wouldnt want to invest time and money into something go into and interview room and be told my degree isnt worth a dime.
I think that the problem is the public really doesn't know what accreditation means. I've had to turn away prospective students because their high school diploma came from an unaccredited source. I feel bad for these students because there is really nothing I can do. There should be some form of public education on the subject.
I thought the same, Ernest. One would think accreditation would be a requirement of any institution.
Yes, the hard part is telling a student that their school was unaccredited, especially their high school.
A lot of people just don't understand what accreditation is all about.
I'm sure you will have encounters with non accredited high schools and colleges in which students will have difficultly transferring those credits to schools like your own. I just feel bad for the students who attended those schools not knowing their efforts were for nothing.
I was under the same assumption. The school where I worked before was that way, but as I found out it is not true. Good to know.
Definitely agree. Throught most of my job shadowing, I have only heard one or two conversations that led to accreditation. The others never thought to even ask.
Although accreditation is voluntary, it definitely can be helpful for a school to have.
You're right. Where it was once the responsibitity of the students to insure that they were getting a quality education for their money, it is not the case today. Students as consumers have for the most part left the responsibility of ensuring quality up to Government entities, where it used to be independant accreditation councils.
I have been aware of the voluntary accreditation clause for a while. The nice thing about accreditation is this brings more validity to a program. Is also shows how going the extra mile will benefit not only the program but the student in the long run
I get a lot of questions regarding accreditation and I get a lot of students who tell me that they have gone to schools before that they didn't know were accredited and therefore, when they completed their programs, they weren't able to transfer their credits to any other institution. I think that accreditation is a very important part of the credibility of an institution.
Even though accreditation is voluntary, it still is important to add as much credibility to your institution as possible. Accreditation should also be an ongoing process to stay up with times and always looking for new and innovative ways for improving education.
I find that much of the general public does not know what accreditation means. They know it's important because they have heard people talk about it a lot but they don't have an understanding.
