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Accreditation:

• Quality Indicators
  
• Quality Standards
  
• Fees and Benefits
  
• Accredited Institutions
  
• Accreditation Process 
  

The Accreditation Process

Any educational institution that intends to earn the accreditation status from the World Association for Distance Education must demonstrate compliance, through the application for accreditation (Self Assessment Report), with the education quality standards set forth by the World Association for Distance Education

1. Consideration of eligibility

Accreditation focuses on distance higher education institutions. An eligible member must be any kind of organization, entity or company properly authorized to conduct higher educational teaching and certification, to award postsecondary degrees, certificates or other educational or professional credentials.

The entities eligible for accreditation must prepare individuals to achieve competencies and attain the educational qualifications necessary to begin functioning in a specific occupation. In other words, they must prepare individuals in a branch of knowledge, science, art or business that has application in a specific occupation, usually requiring significant specialized training, or profession.

2. Application for Accreditation

The World Association for Distance Education has prepared an application for accreditation that will guide the applicant institutions in the preparation of the Self Study Report and the required documentary evidence. The applicant may download and print this application for accreditation, then fill it out and finally send it out to the WADE Secretary by email (doc or pdf formats are accepted).

This application is a legally binding contract between the World Association for Distance Education and the applicant institution that states the rights and obligations of both parties.

The World Association for Distance Education will not start any accreditation process without the corresponding application. The applicant institution may submit the application for verification of its accreditation eligibility without including any fee. Once the WADE Secretary confirms the eligible options, the applicant institution is entitled to pay the corresponding fee.

to Receive the Application for Accreditation (Self Assessment Report) send it out to the WADE Secretary by email, secretary@wadedu.org

3. Fees

The institution of distance education applying for accreditation to the World Association for Distance Education must pay the accreditation fee once the eligibility has been confirmed by the WADE Secretary, and before any actual evaluation of the accreditation process starts.

4. Evaluation process

World Association for Distance Education Secretary will distribute the application for accreditation and attached documents to an available member of the commission for the assessment of how each standard is addressed by the applicant educational institution. Each standard is graded in a 0 to 4 scale.

The evaluation of each standard is graded according to the following scale:

4 (Outstanding - No need for improvement)

3 (Standard - May improve)

2 (Acceptable but requires improvement)

1 (Insufficient - Not meeting the minimums)

0 (Failed to comply with this requirement)

5- Interview or site visit

If deemed necessary, the commissioner may require an interview with the appointed representative of the applicant educational institution or arrange a site visit from a member of the commission. This action is usually scheduled if the material provided by the applicant is insufficient for a clear judgment, or for further clarification about specific accreditation standards. The travel costs and expenses related to the interview or site visit will be paid by the applicant educational institution. The interview or site visit goals, schedule and budget will be settled in advance by the World Association for Distance Education Secretary in consultation with the applicant. Usually one day interview or visit will be enough to resolve any concerns.

6- Announcement

The World Association for Distance Education Secretary will communicate the results of the initial evaluation results status to the other members of the Commission. The other members of the Commission have 12 days since the announcement to review and amend the conclusions and grades of the initial accreditation report.

7- Conclusion

The World Association for Distance Education Secretary will communicate the results of the accreditation status and any grade amendments from the other commissioners to the president of the WADE. The president will review the accreditation report to resolve any discrepancies that may have occurred during the standards grading. The final grades of the accreditation report are endorsed by the president of the World Association for Distance Education.

The WADE Secretary will inform the new applicant distance educational institution of the conclusions of the accreditation report and will provide suggestions, if applicable. In the case that full accreditation is gained, the World Association for Distance Education Secretary will send the corresponding accreditation diploma.

In any case the detailed accreditation report is always sent to the applicant.

The resulting average will determine the accreditation status:

• Full accreditation (Final average ranging 3,0 - 4,0)

Requires re-accreditation review every five years.

• Conditional accreditation (Final average ranging 2,0 - 2,9)

This is a one year long temporary status. The educational institution must undergo a new re-accreditation review within 12 months of conditional accreditation. If full accreditation is not achieved in this review, the accreditation status will be denied.

• Denial of accreditation (Final average ranging 0,0 - 1,9)
  

The Commission will explain the reasons for the denial. The accreditation fee is not refundable in this situation. Any educational institution in this case may reapply for accreditation after a 12 months period.