Accreditation
UMUC Is Regionally Accredited
University of Maryland University College is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, 3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104 (267-284-5000), one of the six regional accrediting agencies recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. UMUC is governed by the University System of Maryland Board of Regents and certified by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia.
Program Accreditation
Master of Business Administration
University of Maryland University College has received specialized accreditation for its MBA program through the International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education (IACBE), located in Lenexa, Kansas, USA. The following business degree programs are accredited by IACBE:
Master of Business Administration (MBA)
UMUC’s MBA program provides information about academic quality and student achievement in its Annual Report to IACBE.
Master of Distance Education
UMUC's Master of Distance Education program is accredited by the European Foundation for Management Development–Technology-Enhanced Learning (EFMD CEL), Swiss Centre for Innovations in Learning, University of St. Gallen, Dufourstr 40a, St. Gallen CH-9000, Switzerland.
EFMD is a global organization devoted to the continuous improvement of management development; CEL accreditation is awarded to programs that have achieved the highest international standard in technology-enhanced learning within the field of management education.
Accreditation Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is accreditation?
A. Accreditation publicly demonstrates that an organization is of an acceptable institutional quality. Once an organization opens itself to outside examination, a regional or national accrediting body reviews specific standards and criteria and offers the institution opportunities for self-improvement. The Council on Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) and the United States Department of Education (USDE) evaluate and recognize accrediting bodies that meet their standards.
Q: What is the difference between regional and national accreditation?
A. Regional accreditation is only available to select institutions in specific regions of the U.S. There are six regionally accrediting bodies that are recognized by the U.S. Department of Education; the accrediting body that is authorized for Maryland and surrounding states is the Middle States Commission on Higher Education. Awarding of regional accreditation is based on a process of peer review by faculty and administrators from similar institutions. Regional accreditation is the older of the two systems and has historically been held by universities and colleges, both public and private, that offer a wide breadth of programs. All of the institutions within the University System of Maryland, including UMUC, are regionally accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.
National accreditation is also based on a peer review process, and is provided by accrediting agencies that are generally single-purpose, or narrow in scope, or vocational in nature. For example, there are accrediting agencies for cosmetology programs, faith-based institutions, law programs, medical programs, and so on. National accreditation for the institution as a whole is usually not held by large public colleges and universities, but they may have specific programs that are nationally accredited. For example, the University of Maryland – Baltimore is regionally accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, but also holds specialized national accreditation for its professional programs in law, dental, physical therapy and so on.
