Washington Accord

Accreditation & QualityPolicy & Regulation

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.

Under the accord, an engineering degree accredited by a signatory body in one member country is recognised as substantially equivalent to those accredited by signatory bodies in other member countries, supporting the international mobility of engineers.

The accord is built on outcome-based education, requiring accredited programs to demonstrate that graduates attain defined competencies. In India, the NBA is the signatory body, which is why NBA-accredited engineering programs carry international recognition.

Related Terms
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.
ABET
A US-based accreditation body for engineering, computing, technology and applied-science programs, and a signatory of the Washington Accord.
OBE (Outcome-Based Education)
An educational framework in which curriculum, teaching and assessment are all organised around clearly defined learning outcomes, shifting the focus from inputs delivered to competencies demonstrated.
AICTE
The All India Council for Technical Education, the regulator of technical and management education in India.
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.