Accreditation

Accreditation & Quality

A formal quality-assurance process in which an external authoritative body evaluates an institution or program against established standards and grants recognition if those standards are met.

Accreditation can be institutional (covering a whole college or university) or programmatic (covering a specific course of study). It is usually time-bound and renewed through periodic re-evaluation.

Examples include NAAC and NBA in India, ABET in the United States, and bodies operating under mutual-recognition agreements such as the Washington Accord. Accreditation status influences funding, autonomy, reputation and student choice.

Related Terms
NAAC (National Assessment and Accreditation Council)
An autonomous body in India that assesses and accredits higher education institutions as a whole, evaluating overall quality across teaching, research, infrastructure, governance and outcomes.
NBA (National Board of Accreditation)
An Indian body responsible for the accreditation of specific professional and technical programs, particularly in engineering, management, pharmacy and architecture.
Washington Accord
An international agreement, first signed in 1989, providing for the mutual recognition of undergraduate engineering qualifications among its signatory bodies under the International Engineering Alliance.
ABET
A US-based accreditation body for engineering, computing, technology and applied-science programs, and a signatory of the Washington Accord.
AICTE
The All India Council for Technical Education, the regulator of technical and management education in India.