Accreditation is a non-governmental system of academic review. It is a process which periodically evaluates and produces an independent judgement by peers about the extent to which an institution or program achieves its own educational objectives and meets the standards established by an Association.
Standards address operational and curricular issues fundamental to educational quality.
The granting of accredited membership by an accreditation commission signifies that an institution has successfully demonstrated compliance with the procedures, standards, and guidelines of the Association. Integral to this voluntary process is ongoing, regularized self-evaluation and peer review. Accreditation, in practical terms, is a stamp of approval, a sign that an institution ascribes to, believes in, and has met an external set of basic criteria for the programs it offers. In some cases, accreditation assists in the transfer of credits from one institution to another. In all cases, it indicates that threshold standards are adhered to in a fashion that provides a base of academic strength and operational integrity.