Accreditation is the system used in the United States to determine if institutions of higher education meet acceptable levels of educational quality. It is a system of peer evaluation, whereby those who have been awarded accreditation, meet a set of criteria imposed by the recognized accrediting body.

Regional or Institutional Accreditation
There are six regional accrediting bodies, responsible for accrediting institutions of higher education incorporated within their regional boundaries. Regional accreditation looks at the college or university as a whole. KYSATS recognizes all these Educational Institutions as University level Higher Education Institutions.

Regionally accredited Education Institutions can be found using the following website links:

• Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools- Commission on Higher Education (MSA-CHE) (www.msache.org)
• Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU) (www.nwccu.org)
• North Central Association of Colleges and Schools- The Higher Learning Commission (NCA-HLC) (www.ncahigherlearningcommission.org)
• New England Association of Schools and Colleges- Commission on Institutions of Higher Education (NEASC-CIHE) (www.neasc.org)
• Southern Association of Colleges and Schools- Commission on Colleges (SACS) (www.sacscoc.org)
• Western Association of Schools and Colleges- Accrediting Commission for Senior Colleges and Universities (WASC-ACSCU) (www.wascweb.org)