Welcome to City College's Middle States Re-accreditation web site.  We hope you find it valuable and we welcome your comments for changes and additions.

*FAQ's

1. What is accreditation?

Accreditation is a process of peer review that the educational community has adopted for its self-regulation since early in the 20th century. It is a voluntary process intended to strengthen and sustain the quality and integrity of higher education, making it worthy of public confidence. Institutions choose to apply for accredited status, and once accredited, they agree to abide by the standards of their accrediting organization and to regulate themselves by taking responsibility for their own improvement.

2. About the Middle States Association and the Middle States Commission on Higher Education

The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (MSA), established in 1887, is a nonprofit, membership association, dedicated to educational improvement through evaluation and accreditation. The Association's website is located at www.middlestates.org. The Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) was established in 1919.
It is a voluntary, non-governmental, peer-based membership organization dedicated to educational excellence and improvement through peer evaluation and accreditation. (See "Mission, Vision, and Core Values") MSCHE reviews institutions periodically through either on-site evaluation or other reports. Accreditation is continued only as a result of periodic reviews and evaluations through assessments of institutional achievements.

3. What Standards Must an Institution Meet to be Accredited?

In the Middle States region, accreditation is an expression of the confidence that the Middle States Commission on Higher Education has in an institution's mission and goals, its performance, and its resources. Based upon the results of an institutional review by a team of peers assigned by the Commission, accreditation attests to the judgment of the Commission that an institution has met the following criteria::

• that it has a mission appropriate to higher education;
  
• that it is guided by well-defined and appropriate goals, including goals for student learning;
  
• that it has established conditions and procedures under which its mission and goals can be realized;
  
• that it assesses both institutional effectiveness and student learning outcomes, and uses the results for improvement;
  
• that it is accomplishing its mission and goals substantially;
  
• that it is so organized, staffed, and supported so that it can be expected to continue to accomplish its mission and goals;
  
• that it meets the eligibility requirements and the standards for accreditation of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education;