International Institutional Accreditation Standards
Standards for Institutional Effectiveness, Educational Quality and Continuous Improvement
The Accrediting Council for International Schools and Colleges (ACISC) establishes institutional accreditation standards for evaluating educational institutions within an international education environment. The standards provide the foundation for institutional self-evaluation, documented evidence, external evaluation, professional review, accreditation decisions and continuing accreditation.
ACISC accreditation examines the institution as an integrated educational organization. Evaluation therefore extends across institutional mission and governance, academic and educational effectiveness, institutional capacity, student experience, integrity and accountability, and continuous improvement.
The standards connect institutional purpose with measurable educational practice and documented evidence, providing a structured basis for determining whether an institution demonstrates the capacity, systems and educational effectiveness required within its applicable accreditation scope.
Six Core Dimensions of ACISC Institutional Accreditation
ACISC organizes institutional accreditation around six interconnected dimensions. Each dimension addresses a substantive area of institutional operation while contributing to an integrated assessment of educational effectiveness and institutional capacity.
Institutions demonstrate conformity through documented policies, institutional records, academic evidence, operational evidence, performance information and other materials relevant to their mission, educational provision and accreditation scope.
Mission & Governance
Institutional mission, educational purpose, governance, leadership, organizational responsibilities, accountability and decision-making structures.
Academic & Educational Effectiveness
Programs, curriculum, teaching and learning, educational objectives, learning outcomes, assessment, student achievement and program effectiveness.
Institutional Capacity
Faculty, qualified personnel, facilities, technology, information resources, administration, financial resources and operational capacity.
Student Experience
Admissions, advising, student services, learning resources, progression, completion and the institutional learning environment.
Integrity & Accountability
Institutional information, policies, ethical practices, evidence, institutional responsibility and accountability to stakeholders.
Continuous Improvement
Institutional assessment, evidence-based review, improvement priorities, implementation, monitoring, evaluation and institutional development.
Institutional Mission, Governance and Leadership
An accredited institution maintains a clearly defined educational mission supported by governance and leadership structures appropriate to its purpose, institutional type, educational activities and operating environment. Institutional authority, accountability and responsibilities should be identifiable through documented governance arrangements.
Governance and leadership should support educational effectiveness, institutional integrity, responsible decision-making, appropriate oversight and sustainable institutional development.
Mission & Purpose
The institution maintains a defined mission that communicates its educational purpose, institutional identity and intended educational contribution.
Governance
Governance structures establish appropriate institutional authority, oversight, responsibilities and accountability.
Leadership
Institutional leadership provides direction and supports effective academic, administrative and operational management.
Decision-Making
Institutional decisions follow identifiable processes and are supported by appropriate information, evidence and authority.
Organizational Structure
Roles, responsibilities and reporting relationships are defined sufficiently to support effective institutional operations.
Accountability
Governance and leadership maintain responsibility for institutional performance, educational effectiveness and applicable accreditation requirements.
Academic and Educational Effectiveness
Educational effectiveness is central to institutional accreditation. Institutions should demonstrate that educational programs are purposefully designed, appropriately delivered, systematically assessed and reviewed using evidence concerning student learning and program performance.
The institution should establish educational objectives and learning outcomes appropriate to the level, purpose and nature of its educational provision and maintain processes for evaluating whether those objectives are being achieved.
Academic Programs
Programs are structured around defined educational purposes, requirements and intended outcomes appropriate to their educational level and field.
Curriculum
Curriculum content, sequence, depth and learning activities support the stated objectives and outcomes of the educational provision.
Teaching & Learning
Instructional practices support student engagement, learning and achievement within the institution’s educational model.
Learning Outcomes
The institution defines appropriate learning outcomes and establishes methods for evaluating student achievement.
Assessment
Assessment methods are aligned with intended learning outcomes and provide evidence concerning student learning and educational effectiveness.
Program Review
Educational programs are reviewed using relevant evidence to identify strengths, performance issues and opportunities for improvement.
Institutional Capacity and Resources
Institutions should demonstrate sufficient human, academic, technological, physical, administrative and financial capacity to support their mission and educational provision. Resources should be appropriate to the institution’s size, delivery model, student population and approved accreditation scope.
Faculty
Instructional personnel possess qualifications and experience appropriate to their assigned educational responsibilities.
Professional Personnel
Administrative and professional personnel possess appropriate competence for their institutional responsibilities.
Learning Resources
Students and faculty have access to resources appropriate to educational programs and learning requirements.
Technology
Technology systems appropriately support instruction, administration, communication, records and applicable educational delivery.
Facilities
Physical or virtual learning environments are appropriate to the educational activities and institutional model.
Administration
Administrative systems support effective institutional management and delivery of educational services.
Financial Capacity
Financial planning and resources support institutional operations and continuity of educational provision.
Operational Sustainability
The institution maintains operational systems and capacity appropriate to its mission, scale and educational commitments.
Student Experience, Support and Achievement
Institutional accreditation considers the student experience from admission through learning, progression and completion. Institutions should maintain student-facing systems appropriate to their educational model and provide information and services that support students in achieving their educational objectives.
Admissions
Admissions requirements and procedures are documented and appropriate to the institution and educational programs offered.
Student Information
Students receive appropriate information concerning programs, requirements, policies, services and institutional expectations.
Academic Advising
Students have access to appropriate guidance concerning their educational pathway and academic progress.
Student Support
Support services are appropriate to student needs, educational programs and modes of delivery.
Progression & Completion
The institution monitors relevant information concerning student progression, achievement and completion.
Learning Environment
The educational environment supports student participation, learning, safety and appropriate access to institutional resources.
Institutional Integrity and Accountability
Institutional integrity requires consistency between what an institution represents and what its evidence demonstrates. Institutions should maintain accurate information, documented policies, reliable records and responsible administrative and academic practices.
Information presented to students and stakeholders concerning institutional identity, accreditation, educational programs, credentials, admissions, fees, delivery methods and institutional services should be supported by current institutional records.
Accurate Information
Published institutional information accurately represents relevant educational and institutional operations.
Policies
Academic and administrative policies are documented, communicated and applied through appropriate institutional processes.
Records
The institution maintains appropriate records supporting academic, administrative and accreditation-related information.
Ethical Practice
Institutional operations reflect responsible educational and organizational conduct.
Institutional Responsibility
The institution accepts responsibility for representations, educational provision, operations and evidence submitted within the accreditation process.
Accountability
Institutional systems support accountability to students, stakeholders and applicable accreditation requirements.
Institutional Assessment and Continuous Improvement
Continuous improvement connects accreditation with ongoing institutional development. Institutions should collect and evaluate relevant evidence concerning educational effectiveness, institutional performance and student outcomes and use that evidence to establish and monitor improvement priorities.
The objective is not simply to document activity, but to demonstrate an institutional cycle in which evidence informs decisions, decisions lead to action and subsequent evaluation determines whether improvement has occurred.
Assess
Collect relevant information concerning institutional operations, educational effectiveness and outcomes.
Analyze
Evaluate evidence to identify performance, strengths, gaps, risks and improvement opportunities.
Improve
Establish and implement actions responding to identified institutional priorities.
Evaluate
Monitor implementation and determine whether intended improvements and outcomes have been achieved.
Standards Must Be Demonstrated Through Evidence
Institutional accreditation requires more than statements of policy or intention. ACISC evaluates the relationship between institutional representations, documented systems, educational practice and available evidence.
The type and volume of evidence may differ according to institutional mission, size, complexity, educational sector, delivery model and accreditation scope. Evidence should nevertheless be sufficiently relevant, current and organized to support evaluation against the applicable accreditation standards.
Governance Evidence
Governance documents, organizational structures, policies, responsibilities, meeting records and decision processes.
Academic Evidence
Program specifications, curriculum, course information, learning outcomes, assessments and academic review records.
Faculty Evidence
Qualifications, experience, assignments, professional development and other information supporting instructional capacity.
Student Evidence
Admissions, enrollment, advising, support, assessment, progression, completion and student-related institutional records.
Resource Evidence
Facilities, technology, learning resources, administrative systems and operational infrastructure.
Financial Evidence
Applicable financial planning, budgeting and resource information demonstrating institutional capacity and sustainability.
Outcomes Evidence
Learning outcomes, assessment results, progression, completion and other evidence relevant to educational effectiveness.
Improvement Evidence
Institutional assessment, action plans, implementation records, monitoring information and evaluation of improvement results.
Established Principles Across Accreditation Practice
ACISC’s institutional accreditation standards reflect substantive principles widely encountered across established accreditation and educational-evaluation practice: clearly defined mission and governance, educational effectiveness, qualified personnel, adequate institutional resources, student support, learning-outcomes assessment, documented evidence, institutional accountability and continuous improvement.
These principles can be observed in different forms across institutional accreditation environments associated with organizations such as HLC, MSCHE, NECHE, NWCCU, SACSCOC, WSCUC and ACCJC, and within specialized accreditation environments associated with ABET, AACSB, ACEN, CCNE, CAHME and LCME. CHEA and the U.S. Department of Education perform distinct functions within the U.S. accreditation environment.
ACISC develops, applies and maintains its own international institutional accreditation standards, evaluation procedures, accreditation decisions and continuing accreditation requirements. The purpose of studying established accreditation practice is to support a rigorous institutional framework appropriate to international education.
Applying Institutional Standards Across Fields of Education
The institutional framework can be applied to institutions operating in different educational and professional environments. The nature of evidence considered may therefore reflect the educational field while preserving ACISC’s institution-wide accreditation approach.
Engineering & Computing
Evidence may address curriculum structure, technical competencies, laboratories, faculty expertise, assessment, educational outcomes and continuous improvement.
Business, Management & Accounting
Evidence may address curriculum relevance, academic leadership, faculty capacity, learning outcomes, assessment and program effectiveness.
Healthcare & Nursing Education
Evidence may address qualified personnel, educational resources, clinical learning arrangements, competencies, student assessment and educational outcomes.
Medical Education
Evidence may address educational objectives, curriculum, teaching, clinical education, assessment, faculty resources and institutional effectiveness.
Technical & Vocational Education
Evidence may address occupational standards, practical learning, competency assessment, instructor qualifications, facilities and workforce-oriented outcomes.
CME & CPD
Evidence may address educational needs, learning objectives, professional relevance, instructional quality, participation, assessment and continuing improvement.
How the Standards Connect to an Accreditation Decision
ACISC standards operate within a complete institutional accreditation process. They provide the reference point for institutional self-evaluation and evidence, guide external evaluation and professional review, and support the formal accreditation decision.
Standards
ACISC establishes the institutional expectations against which the institution is evaluated.
Self-Evaluation
The institution evaluates its operations and educational effectiveness against applicable standards.
Evidence
Institutional representations are supported through organized and relevant documentation.
Evaluation
Evidence and institutional practices proceed through the applicable external evaluation process.
Professional Review
The institutional accreditation record and evaluation findings proceed through professional review.
Decision
The authorized accreditation process determines the applicable institutional outcome.
Status & Scope
The resulting record identifies the institution’s applicable accreditation status and approved scope.
Continuing Accreditation
The institution continues to demonstrate applicable standards throughout its accreditation period.
Accreditation Standards Continue After the Initial Decision
ACISC accreditation standards remain relevant throughout the accreditation period. Institutions holding ACISC international institutional accreditation continue to maintain applicable standards, institutional evidence, educational effectiveness and current information concerning their approved accreditation scope.
Continuing accreditation may involve institutional reporting, monitoring, review of material changes, evidence updates, periodic evaluation and other applicable accreditation processes.
Continuing Institutional Responsibilities
Maintain applicable accreditation standards
Maintain institutional evidence
Monitor educational effectiveness
Assess learning outcomes
Maintain qualified personnel and resources
Keep institutional information current
Address applicable institutional changes
Maintain approved scope information
Participate in applicable monitoring and review
Demonstrate continuous improvement
Institutional Standards Readiness
Institutions preparing for accreditation should begin by examining their mission, governance, academic systems, resources, student experience, institutional evidence and continuous-improvement processes against the applicable ACISC standards.
Review
Study the applicable accreditation standards and identify institutional responsibilities associated with each dimension.
Map Evidence
Connect each standard with policies, records, data, academic materials and other institutional evidence.
Identify Gaps
Determine where institutional systems, evidence or educational practices require development before evaluation.
Improve
Address identified priorities through documented institutional action and responsible implementation.
Self-Evaluate
Prepare an evidence-based institutional assessment addressing applicable accreditation standards.
Prepare for Evaluation
Organize evidence and institutional personnel for the applicable external evaluation and professional review process.
From Standards to an Institutional Accreditation Record
When institutional accreditation is awarded, the resulting ACISC record connects the institution with its accreditation status and approved scope. This creates a verifiable relationship between the institution evaluated through the accreditation standards and the resulting accreditation decision.
Users can search ACISC institutional records to examine available information concerning accredited institutions, accreditation numbers, current status, approved scope and applicable educational provision.
Explore the ACISC Institutional Accreditation System
International Accreditation
Understand ACISC’s institution-wide approach to international accreditation.
Framework & Protocol
Review how standards, evidence and institutional evaluation connect within the accreditation framework.
Accreditation Cycle
Follow institutional accreditation from application through continuing accreditation.
Council Decision
Understand the relationship between evaluation findings and formal accreditation decisions.
Status & Scope
Understand how accreditation decisions connect to institutional status and approved scope.
Recognition
Explore ACISC accreditation within the wider international accreditation and recognition environment.
Institutional Accreditation Grounded in Standards and Evidence
ACISC accreditation standards establish a structured foundation for evaluating educational institutions through governance, educational effectiveness, institutional capacity, student experience, integrity, accountability and continuous improvement.
The standards connect institutional self-evaluation and documented evidence with external evaluation, professional review, accreditation decisions, defined accreditation scope and continuing institutional responsibility.