[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 34, Volume 3]
[Revised as of July 1, 2007]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 34CFR602.16]

[Page 202]
 
                           TITLE 34--EDUCATION
 
 CHAPTER VI--OFFICE OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION, DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
 
PART 602_THE SECRETARY'S RECOGNITION OF ACCREDITING AGENCIES--Table of 
 
                 Subpart B_The Criteria for Recognition
 
Sec. 602.16  Accreditation and preaccreditation standards.

    (a) The agency must demonstrate that it has standards for 
accreditation, and preaccreditation, if offered, that are sufficiently 
rigorous to ensure that the agency is a reliable authority regarding the 
quality of the education or training provided by the institutions or 
programs it accredits. The agency meets this requirement if--
    (1) The agency's accreditation standards effectively address the 
quality of the institution or program in the following areas:
    (i) Success with respect to student achievement in relation to the 
institution's mission, including, as appropriate, consideration of 
course completion, State licensing examination, and job placement rates.
    (ii) Curricula.
    (iii) Faculty.
    (iv) Facilities, equipment, and supplies.
    (v) Fiscal and administrative capacity as appropriate to the 
specified scale of operations.
    (vi) Student support services.
    (vii) Recruiting and admissions practices, academic calendars, 
catalogs, publications, grading, and advertising.
    (viii) Measures of program length and the objectives of the degrees 
or credentials offered.
    (ix) Record of student complaints received by, or available to, the 
agency.
    (x) Record of compliance with the institution's program 
responsibilities under Title IV of the Act, based on the most recent 
student loan default rate data provided by the Secretary, the results of 
financial or compliance audits, program reviews, and any other 
information that the Secretary may provide to the agency; and
    (2) The agency's preaccreditation standards, if offered, are 
appropriately related to the agency's accreditation standards and do not 
permit the institution or program to hold preaccreditation status for 
more than five years.
    (b) If the agency only accredits programs and does not serve as an 
institutional accrediting agency for any of those programs, its 
accreditation standards must address the areas in paragraph (a)(1) of 
this section in terms of the type and level of the program rather than 
in terms of the institution.
    (c) If none of the institutions an agency accredits participates in 
any Title IV, HEA program, or if the agency only accredits programs 
within institutions that are accredited by a nationally recognized 
institutional accrediting agency, the agency is not required to have the 
accreditation standards described in paragraphs (a)(1)(viii) and 
(a)(1)(x) of this section.
    (d) An agency that has established and applies the standards in 
paragraph (a) of this section may establish any additional accreditation 
standards it deems appropriate.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control number 
1845-0003)

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1099b)