What Is Accreditation And What Does It Mean?
By Richard Orr in Online Degrees / Mon February 23, 2009
As you are probably aware, studying a degree that is accredited is important to ensure you get a meaningful learning experience, and also to give future employers confidence that you have had a high quality education. If an institute has accreditation it means the teaching methods, coursework, etc have been approved by an accreditation body.
In the U.S. there are three types of accreditation bodies you should take notice of for an MBA.
1. Regional accreditation agencies for the U.S. - there are six regional accreditation agencies (recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) and United States Department of Education) which accredit institutes, including those that offer online delivery. I believe these offer the most weight in terms of acceptance when transferring to another institute, or by a future employer.
2. Distance Education Training Council (DETC) also recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation and United States Department of Education. However some institutes accredited by the said regional agencies may not recognize degrees only accredited by DETC. Check with the school that you intend to study at to make sure that your degree is easy to transfer, should you ever need to do this, and also that employers will accept it.
3. AACSB accredit business and accounting schools and programs, including MBAs.
In the UK, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and also in other countries, the Association of MBAs accredit MBA programs. Also EQUIS accredit intuitions offering management and business programs.
From my experience in the UK, accreditation by the Association of MBAs gives weight to your MBA, so we imagine it's the same with the AACSB in the U.S.