Streamlining accreditation: a cross-disciplinary analysis

Area of Science:

• Higher Education
• Professional Education
• Accreditation Systems

Background:

• Accreditation of professional education programs aims to enhance educational quality.
• Understanding the impact of accreditation components is crucial for optimizing its effectiveness and cost-efficiency.
• Significant resources are invested by programs in accreditation processes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify common and variable components in accreditation standards and processes across seven professional education disciplines.
• To understand how accreditation's positive impacts on education quality are achieved.
• To inform reforms for improved cost-effectiveness and reduced accreditation burden.

Main Methods:

• Thematic analysis of accreditation standards and processes.
• Cross-disciplinary comparison across business administration, computer sciences, engineering, nursing, pharmacy, dental, and medical education.

Main Results:

• Common themes in accreditation standards include 'Student', 'Curriculum', 'Program Resources', and 'Program Management'.
• Themes like 'Institution' and 'Learning Environment' were not universally shared, indicating potential areas for standardization.
• Accreditation processes showed similarities but varied in intensity, affecting program workload.

Conclusions:

• Core accreditation standards and processes have been identified.
• Opportunities exist to streamline accreditation by simplifying non-essential standards and optimizing process intensity.
• Reforms can enhance cost-effectiveness and reduce program burden while maintaining educational quality.