Accreditation is the process by which schools are evaluated by an independent agency to decide if standards are being met. A school that is accredited insures a reasonable level of quality in education and services. All schools start out as unaccredited and operate this way for at least a year before they can apply for accreditation. Responsible accreditation agencies require this.

Once schools apply for accreditation they are subjected to an on-site visit and investigation of their operating procedures.

The standards measured by accrediting agencies include: the vision and purpose of the school, the school’s leadership, teaching methods, record keeping, and commitment to continuous improvement.

If the school is approved by the agency then a provisional accreditation is issued which is in place for one to three years. During the time of provisional accreditation, the school is required to make sure that all aspects of their operation meet the requirements of the accrediting agency.

Free World U has been granted provisional accreditation by the Northwest Accreditation Commission. This is a regional accrediting agency. Regional accreditation is a term that refers to six accrediting agencies that serve institutions in different geographical regions of the United States.

Regional accreditation is usually granted to non-profit institutions that are primarily focused on academics. National accreditation is granted to schools that are for-profit and offer vocational or technical programs.

Some regionally accredited colleges do not accept credits from nationally accredited schools. This is in part because regional schools see the national schools’ academic standards as less than what is required for regional accreditation.

Regional accreditation is universally accepted. It does not matter what region one’s school is accredited in, the accreditation is universal regardless of which regional agency provided the accreditation.

It is important when deciding what school you will attend that you make sure that the school’s accreditation is widely accepted by other schools so that there are no problems with transferring credits.