New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE) is a non-profit, non-governmental membership organization. It relies on its members’ self-regulation, voluntary compliance with the Standards for Accreditation and a system of ongoing evaluation by peers. The Commission’s goal is to promote institutional improvement and public assurance of quality.
The Commission accredits a wide variety of institutions with different missions. Each institution is evaluated according to the Standards in light of its unique mission.
In applying the Standards, the Commission assesses the effectiveness of the institution as a whole. The Commission recognizes that some aspects of an institution are always stronger than others. Meeting the Standards does not guarantee the quality of individual programs, courses, or graduates, but serious weaknesses in a particular area may threaten the institution’s accreditation.
What the Commission discloses
The Commission understands that prospective students, their families, and members of the general public need information to make good decisions. The Commission provides information about the accreditation status of each institution (including for institutions on probation, the reasons for the probationary status), and its reviews of member and candidate institutions. That information is available on this website under “About Our Institutions.”
What institutions disclose
The Standards for Accreditation require that affiliated institutions make critical information readily available to the public in print and on their websites:
- Institutional mission
- Status as public or independent; not-for-profit or for-profit
- Any religious affiliation
- Educational goals
- Academic programs offered
- Faculty, their department or program affiliation and degrees (both full-time and part-time)
- Names and positions of administrative officers
- Names and principal affiliations of Board members
- Programs and services available at other locations
- Programs, courses, services, and personnel not available in a given academic year
- Degree requirements
- Requirements and procedures for admission
- Procedures for withdrawing from the institution
- Size and characteristics of student body
- Description of the campus setting and institutional learning and physical resources available
- Transfer credit policies
- List of institutions with which there are articulation agreements
- Student fees, charges, and refund policies
- Rules and regulations for student conduct
- Procedures for student appeals and complaints
- Academic policies
- Retention and graduation rates
- Licensure examination passage rates
- Mission-appropriate measures of student success
- Total cost of education, net price, availability of financial aid, and typical length of study
- Expected student debt on graduation
- Cohort default rates and loan repayment rates