The Influence of Accreditation on College and University Institutional Behavior

By

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I am most grateful to my family, friends and my instructor for facilitating me in carrying out this project. Without their support and guidance, this work would not have been possible.

DECLARATION

I declare that this piece of work represents my own research based on the secondary and primary data analysis which has not been submitted previously.

ABSTRACT

The aim of this study is to investigate how accreditation on college and university influence the intuitional behavior. The research will employ constant comparative method by using the qualitative interview survey method. The sample will include the senior representatives of the selected institutions out of which two will be those receiving high accreditation rating and two showing lack of accreditation and reaffirmation. This research will provide a useful insight into understanding the role of evaluation and in ensuring the success of an academic institutions and facilitating the students and the community as a whole.

Table of Contents

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTII

DECLARATIONIII

ABSTRACTIV

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION8

1.1 Introduction of the Study8

1.2 Statement of the Problem9

1.3 Research Questions10

1.4 Research variables11

1.4.1 Dependant Variables11

1.4.2 Independent Variable11

1.5 Purpose of Study11

1.6 Theoretical Framework12

1.7 Significance of Study14

1.8 Summary17

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW18

2.1 Introduction18

2.2 Historical Overview19

2.3 Definitions20

2.4 Accreditation Milestones21

2.5 Accreditation23

2.6 What is SACS-COC?25

2.6.1 Phase 1: Construction of a Base of Understanding (Building a Foundation of Understanding)27

2.6.2 Phase 2: Initial Review of the Documentation27

2.6.3 Phase 3: Review site Bid Committee (On-Site Review by a Candidacy Committee)28

2.6.4 Phase 4: Revision in Situ Accreditation Committee (On-Site Review by an Accreditation Committee)28

2.7 Accreditations and Its Impact on Higher Education29

2.7.1 Socio-Political Context31

2.7.2 Governmental Context31

2.8 Evaluation of the Impact Assessment of Accreditation32

2.8.1 Variables and Indicators for Impact Assessment33

2.9 Process of Accreditation34

2.9.1 Requirements Application35

2.9.2 Compliance with the Core Requirements35

2.9.3 Compliance with Comprehensive Standards36

2.10 The Quality of an Institution and Accreditation37

2.11 The Accreditation Criteria38

2.12 Reasons of the Failure of Accreditation39

2.13 The Purpose of Accreditation42

2.14 Summary43

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY45

3.1 Overview of the Chosen methodology45

3.2 Justification for Using the Qualitative Constant Comparative Method46

3.3 Benefits of Using the Qualitative Interviews46

3.4 Data Collection48

3.5 Sampling48

3.6 Selection of the Institutions and use of pseudonyms49

3.6.1 High Rating Institutions49

3.6.2 Low Rating Institutions50

3.7 The Interview Process52

3.7.1 Recording data52

3.7.2 Transcribing Interview data53

3.7.3 Coding Interview Responses53

3.7.4 Reporting Results55

3.8 Designing Instrument to Collect Data55

3.9 Ensuring the Validity and Reliability of the Instrument56

3.10 Tackling with Interview Research Bias57

3.11 Ethical Considerations58

3.12 Documentation analysis to facilitate the Primary Research59

3.12.1 Documentation for Review59

3.12.2 Public Documents59

3.12.3 Archival Documents60

3.13 Possible Limitations61

REFERENCES62

APPENDIX69

Interview Questions69

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Introduction of the Study

Education is a fundamental pillar of human development, through which every nation in their culture deepens for the training of professionals in order to develop science and technology. Education systems are immersed in intrinsic and individuals of each society; so therefore, these constitute a sub-system of the socio-cultural system of each nation, which is moved by the dynamic interaction of institutions seeking to socialize knowledge. In order to raise the quality of education and to achieve the higher standards of delivering quality education, Institutions and students must start from the evaluation as key to achieving excellence, and as pre-accreditation activity are understood ...