Middle States Commission on Higher Education Catalog Accreditation Requirements
December 15, 2017
Are you beginning your accreditation process with the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) for the first time? Or are you preparing for a periodic review to your accreditation? Either way, we’ve compiled a list of the requirements for the college catalog with the MSCHE.
About MSCHE
The MSCHE is recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education to conduct candidacy status for higher education institutions in:
- Delaware
- The District of Colombia
- Maryland
- New Jersey
- New York
- Pennsylvania
- Puerto Rico
- The U.S. Virgin Islands
Understanding the Catalog Requirements for the Accreditation Readiness Report
For the MSCHE Accreditation Readiness Report you will be required to submit your catalog in its most recent version. This will be attached in the appendix (0-B) of your report.
As a part of Standard 6: Integrity, you must, “demonstrate evidence of a particular fundamental element”. There are various elements including three that are specific to the catalog. Be prepared to show examples of each of the following:
- Reasonable, continuing student access to paper or electronic catalogs
- When catalogs are available only electronically the institution’s web page provides a guide or index to catalog information for each catalog available electronically
- When catalogs are available only electronically, the institution archives copies of the catalogs as sections or policies are updated
In addition to these requirements, Standard 11: Educational Offerings, necessitates providing graduation requirements either in an appendix (11-B), or directly in the catalog. You must also provide an appendix (11-C) with information on any existing, new, or planned programs that are not in the catalog you provided.
Locations or Publications Where Policies Can Be Found
The overall accreditation process for MSCHE can be found here. Within this process, and as a part of your application, you will download the Accreditation Readiness Report, which you will fill out, including the catalog requirements above.
Accreditation Readiness Report
As a part of the application process to MSCHE you will be required to fill out an application readiness report. If you are simple preparing for review or a change you only need to update the document to reflect the changes to your institution.