Nursing School Accreditation

Earlier almost all nurses gained their experience on the job at work in hospitals, which was the only education received, until the 1950s. The modern day courses offering nursing programs with accreditation are a major revolution in the education, most aspirants prefer these programs now.

Nursing accreditation is the process of granting nursing schools the permission to run a particular course in that institution by a foreign organization. It indicates that the institution meets the requirements set by eclectic regional or national accrediting institutions. Requirements may vary widely according to the course from particular course; clinical experience gained from the course and even class size. These organizations assure the prize and integrity of baccalaureate, post-graduate, and residency programs in nursing. Any College or university with the accreditation by a national accrediting organization is considered as a standard college. If the college meets the specified standards, they are qualified for the accreditation by the organization. The nationally accredited colleges have state of the art facilities for the course duly inspected by the national accreditation organizations.
Unites States of America’s US department of educations directly doesn’t accredit any educational institution or a program of any organization. Instead a special organization has been established under the name of U.S Secretary of Education for the purpose. This organization publishes the list of all accredited and approved institutions and the programs offered in the United States according to the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended. U.S. Secretary of Education has approved few organizations as national accreditation organizations. A few among the organizations that have been approved for national level accreditation of Nursing Colleges are the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE), Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education (CAHME), American Association of Nurse Anesthetists Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs (CoA-NA), National Association of Nurse Practitioners in Women’s Health, American College of Nurse-Midwives etc.

Any nursing school must re-apply for the accreditation process, which may be time consuming, as it is required to show that the organization continually meets with the standards of the accreditor. This helps the organization retain its reputation in the field. Many regional accrediting organizations are present that accredit the nursing courses and colleges. However national accreditation is considered a standard one for professional courses like nursing programs. As the process of accreditation includes many factors, programs that aren’t accredited might not have good programs. For instance they may not provide a stringent educational experience compared to the accredited programs. Choosing a non accredited program runs a risk in terms of employment. Potential employers always choose accredited programs to the ones not accredited.
Hence any student aspiring to have a seat in a nursing college should inquire about the accreditation and if accredited, which organization has accredited the college and whether the organization is a national, state or regional organization. It would always be wise to seek admission in a nationally accredited college as they comply with the national standards.