Why Accreditation Matters to Students
Watch this video from the Association of Specialized & Professional Accreditors
Earning a degree is a significant achievement and an important investment in your future. Since so much of your future success depends on your educational foundation, the quality of the education you receive makes a big difference.
Earning a degree from an CIPS accredited program:
- Verifies that the quality of the educational experience you’ve received meets the standards of the profession.
- Increases and enhances employment opportunities.
- Permits and eases entry to a technical profession through licensure, registration, and certification.
- Establishes eligibility for many federal student loans, grants, and/or scholarships.
You should be aware that not all programs at every college and university are accredited. Make sure that the program you’re interested in is CIPS accredited.
How Do You Know?
CIPS accreditation provides the best proof possible of a program's quality: the opinions of professionals already working and teaching in that program's area.
Every program that CIPS accredits can be found on the Accredited Programs Page.
What CIPS Accreditation Assures
Senior professionals from academe and industry carry out every aspect of CIPS accreditation. Because they know their profession's dynamic and emerging workforce needs, they review academic programs to ensure these programs provide students with the technical and professional skills they need to succeed.
A CIPS accredited program assures prospective students that:
- the institution is committed to improving their educational experience
- the program is committed to using best practices and innovation in education
- the program is guided by its industry, government, and academic constituents through formal feedback
- the program considers the students' perspective as part of its continuous quality improvement process
Informational videos courtesy of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA)
Making a Difference Around the World
CIPS has helped pave the way for graduates of accredited programs to work globally. CIPS is a signatory to international agreements that ease the way for graduates of accredited programs to practice internationally.
Seoul Accord
International Professional Practice Partnership
Beware of Diploma and Accreditation Mills
The number of fake or unaccredited institutions and programs is rising dramatically. These organizations, also known as diploma mills, often offer high-cost, low-effort degrees. Businesses and the government are examining employees' credentials more thoroughly to ensure their earned degrees are valid and not fraudulent.
Watch CHEA's short video on how you can avoid being fooled by an accreditation or diploma mill.
