The costs of institutional accreditation: a study of direct and indirect costs

2012-06-26This mixed methods study investigated the direct and indirect costs of institutional accreditation and the differences in those costs between types of institutions. Accreditation Liaison Officers (ALOs) at four-year institutions from three of the six regional accrediting agencies were surveyed. Statistically significant differences were discovered between the means of direct costs by Carnegie classification but not by accrediting region, whereas statistically significant differences were discovered between various means of the different categories of indirect costs by both Carnegie classification and accrediting region. Indirect costs were monetized and combined with direct costs to determine a cumulative cost. Thus a per-institution average of $327,254 (when calculated by accreditation region) and $341,103 (when calculated by Carnegie Basic classification) was identified for a total institutional expense to the higher education community in excess of $660 million per seven to 10 year review cycle. Additionally it was determined that the indirect costs amount to roughly four times the direct costs. Despite the high costs of accreditation more than three times as many ALOs believed the costs of accreditation to be justified than those who did not believe them to be justified. It was also possible to develop a general profile of the ALO as a highly committed and capable individual who is often overwhelmed professionally and sometimes even personally by the demands of accreditation. This has important implications for institutional administrators in determining what constitutes adequate support for this person in both money and time resources made available for the execution of his or her responsibilities