It is important to note that national accreditation is widely regarded as a less rigorous standard than regional accreditation. As such, the vast majority of regionally accredited colleges or universities will not accept transfer credits or recognize degrees earned from nationally accredited schools.

Later, in 2015, the International Accreditation Organization (IAO) was shut down. According to Al-Fanar Media and the New York Times, IAO was owned and operated by AXACT Corporation, a Pakistani group investigated for its involvement dealing with selling fake diplomas and diploma mills. IAO resurfaced in 2017.

When you graduate and look for a job, employers take into consideration the school you attended and if it is accredited by a reliable agency. If your degree is from an institution that has questionable accreditation, employers will question the validity of your degree and your potential as a good job candidate.

Below is the list of top accreditation councils in India as per different field of study:

• UGC (University Grants Commission)
• AICTE (All India Council for Technical Education)
• AIU (Association of Indian Universities)
• ICAI(Institute of Chartered Accountants of India)
• ICSI (Institute of Company Secretaries of India)

NBA accredits technical programmes, such engineering and management programmes, while NAAC accredits general colleges and universities. NBA is a full member of the Washington Accord.

Instead of the National Board of Accreditation (NBA), engineering colleges in India will now be accredited by the IIT Foundation for Accreditation and Assessment (IFAA).

Get a Job. Whether you have an associate degree, a bachelor’s degree or higher from a nationally accredited school, you can still get a rewarding career position if you do your homework.

Current Accreditation Status Harvard University is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education (formerly the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Inc.).

While there is a clear difference between regional and national accreditation, it does not necessarily mean that one is better than the other. Regionally accredited colleges are generally considered to be more elite than nationally accredited colleges, but it of course depends on what you want to study.

The three most popular “national” college accreditation agencies recognized by CHEA are:

• Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges & Schools (ACICS)
• Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges (ACCSC)

Regional Accrediting Organizations

• Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) Western Association of Schools and Colleges.
• Higher Learning Commission (HLC)
• Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE)
• New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE)

These agencies include the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO), the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA), the American Medical Accreditation Program (AMAP), the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission/Utilization Review Accreditation Commission (AAHC/URAC), and the …

Regional Accreditation vs. Regional accreditation offers greater prestige and wider acceptance. Many employers prefer or require job candidates from regionally accredited schools, particularly for specific professions like education, social work, and engineering.

Some schools list all of their accreditations on one convenient page, but some universities list accreditation by degree on individual program sites. If you can’t find information about accreditation on your program’s website, then contact that program’s coordinator to check if your school maintains accreditation.

A foreign degree is acceptable in the United States if it meets the following requisites: Foreign degree comes from a highly regarded university in that foreign country. The graduate has met all the prerequisites in the university applied for the desired career or major.

Accreditation protects the interests of students, their parents, the academic institutions themselves, and potential employers, by ensuring that the educational programs offered have attained a level that meets or exceeds standards that were developed by experts in the field.

An accredited degree is recognized for meeting specific educational standards, which have been set by an accrediting agency. Choosing an accredited degree ensures its acceptance by other recognized institutions and organizations and potential employers.

Using a diploma from an unrecognized institution to obtain employment or for any other purpose is illegal in some states. Criminal penalties may apply should such a degree be fraudulently presented in lieu of one from an accredited school.

Not all degrees are accredited, particularly if it’s not necessary for career progression. Accreditation is usually required if there’s a specific professional qualification in the industry you wish to work in, such as engineering, architecture, medicine, accounting/finance, etc.

National Accreditation. There are three types of accrediting bodies: regional, national, and programmatic. Public and private four-year institutions are accredited by seven regional bodies, each of which maintains standards for a specific geographical area.