Academic accreditation is a peer review process that aims to assure academic quality and accountability and to encourage improvement. Accrediting agencies develop evaluation criteria and conduct peer evaluations to assess whether or not those criteria are met. There are two basic types of educational accreditation, one identified as “institutional” and one referred to as “programmatic.”
The United Arab Emirates University (UAEU) was established by the founding President of the UAE, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan (Federal Law 4 of the year 1976). This Federal Law gives legislative authority to the UAEU to develop and deliver degree programs, and award degrees, and defines the University Council as the ultimate approval body.
In 2013, the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research charged the Commission for Academic Accreditation (CAA) with the responsibility for regular institutional accreditation of the public tertiary institutions in the UAE, in addition to its role in licensing of private institutions operating in the UAE.
The 2023 Standards of Accreditation consist of four broad, holistic statements that reflect widely accepted good practices in higher education. WASC institutions are diverse in terms of mission, character, and type. The Standards are broad enough to honor diversity, respect institutional mission, and support institutional autonomy.
The terms “specialized accreditation,” “professional accreditation,” and “programmatic accreditation” have the same meaning. Each of these terms means that a specific program within a college has earned an accreditation from a non-profit international accrediting organization. International programmatic accreditation is an honor to a program. It communicates to current students, prospective students, and professionals in the field that a particular program has been examined by its peers and found to of high quality.
