Online High School Accreditation

Checking its accreditation could be the most important aspect in your decision-making on which online high school to attend. While non-accredited schools should be taken out of your list, not all accreditations are acceptable. The accreditation should include oversight and not just a license to do business.

What is accreditation? If the school meets the minimum criteria, it is given the accreditation. The accreditation is actually a safety mechanism to protect students, schools and employers.

Why is a proper accreditation important? This assures you of an online academy's quality and ensures that other schools and employers will recognize your diploma or the courses you have taken. Attending a fake school or a school that is not properly accredited may cost you jobs or opportunities to further your education.
How will you know if an online high school is properly accredited? There are some schools out there that go as far as making up their own fake accreditation. A fake accreditor may have misleading names that imply that it is a national or regional accreditor when it is not. It could also be that its website has too little information and does not include names or contact information aside from a phone number and email address.

You can go to the Council of Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) website to verify the accrediting agency used by the school is legitimate. The CHEA database includes a list of US accrediting organizations that are recognized either by the CHEA or by the US Department of Education or both. This includes any of the six regional accreditors, Commission on International and Trans-Regional Accreditation and the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC).

You should also consider the difference between a national (DETC) and regional accreditation. While employers accept both types, many regionally accredited schools do not accept transfer credits from DETC accredited schools. This is not a problem if you are studying for personal enjoyment, but if you are planning to further your education at a later date, you will be better off attending an online academy with regional accreditation.

Unaccredited programs and schools are a waste of your time and money. Moreover, diplomas or certificates from these sources are worthless if it costs you job or educational opportunities in the future. Whether you are attending an online high school or a brick-and-mortar institution, the proper accreditation ensures that you will be getting quality education.

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