European university accredited MBA ?

Discussion in 'Business and MBA degrees' started by Andrewtx, Apr 24, 2014.

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  1. Andrewtx

    Andrewtx New Member

    I'm looking for a list of European universities with an accredited MBA degree in the US.

    How do i know if a European university is properly accredited by the U.S. department of Education ? What kind of accreditation or accrediting agencies are considered to be valid ?

    For the record, i want to move to France or Sweden and i would like to know if a university like HEC Paris or Stockholm School of Economics are accredited and recognized in the U.S

    Thx a lot for you answer, i don't understand a thing about accreditations as I've only just started looking into it!
     
  2. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    A few background items:

    1. The U.S. Department of Education doesn't accredit schools, even in the U.S. Accreditors in the U.S. are private organizations. Those accreditors that are recognized by CHEA are the ones that matter.
    2. Few European institutions will have accreditation from U.S.-based organizations. Those that do are likely to have programmatic accreditation of their business programs through AACSB or ACBSP.
    3. What you really seem to want, I think, are schools in France or Sweden that are properly recognized there and that preferably have accreditation from the organizations most common in Europe, which are AACSB, EQUIS, and AMBA. You may be interested in Grenoble, in France, for example.
     
  3. CalDog

    CalDog New Member

    It's true that the US Dept of Education (USDoE) doesn't accredit schools directly -- but they do recognize institutional accreditors, who accredit schools. And recognition by USDoE is more meaningful than recognition by CHEA, for two reasons:

    (1) If a school is accredited by a USDoE-recognized agency, it qualifies for federal financial aid -- which in the US is generally needed to attract students. If a school is accredited by a CHEA-recognized agency, that's nice, but it doesn't mean anything else. So USDoE recognition is essential, while CHEA recognition is voluntary and optional.

    (2) Many well-known "national accreditation" agencies are recognized by USDoE, but not by CHEA. Examples include the American Bar Association (ABA), the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges (ACCSC), the Council on Occupational Education (COE), and the New York State Board of Regents (NYS).

    So it's entirely possible for a US school to be "legit", while totally lacking accreditation from any CHEA-recognized agency. Examples include Rockefeller University (NYS), California Western School of Law (ABA), Everest College (ACCSC), or the Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training (COE).

    The importance of USDoE recognition is implicitly acknowledged by CHEA itself. CHEA maintains a list showing how CHEA recognition compares to USDoE recognition.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 24, 2014
  4. CalDog

    CalDog New Member

    Furthermore, the CHEA "database of Institutions and Programs Accredited by Recognized United States Accrediting Organizations" includes schools that are accredited by USDoE-recognized organizations -- even in cases where those organizations are not recognized by CHEA.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 24, 2014
  5. Andrewtx

    Andrewtx New Member

    European university accredited

    Thx a lot for your help.
    Based on your answers I made some research and it seems that the AACSB accreditation is better recognized than the ACBSP one.

    However, I can't seem to find neither of them on the list of accrediting agencies recognized by USDoE. They are recognized by CHEA.

    Does USDoE recognize European university accredited by an organization which is also recognized by CHEA ? it seems that AACSB was formerly recognized by USDoE but not anymore.

    I found a list of universities accredited by AACSB in France:

    • Audencia Nantes School of Management
    • EDHEC Business School, Lille and Nice
    • EMLYON Business School
    • ESC Rennes School of Business
    • ESCEM School of Business and Management (Tours-Poitiers)
    • ESCP Europe
    • ESSEC Business School School of Business
    • Grenoble Ecole de Management
    • Groupe ESC Clermont Graduate School of Management
    • Groupe Sup de Co La Rochelle
    • Groupe Sup De Co Montpellier
    • HEC School of Management, Paris
    • IESEG School of Management
    • INSEAD
    • KEDGE Business School
    • NEOMA Business School
    • SKEMA Business School
    • TELECOM School of Management
    • Toulouse Business School - Groupe ESC Toulouse

    For some reason i can't find any Swedish universities with an accreditation from AACSB or ACBSP.

    For example, I looked at Jönköping International business school's website and found a page saying that the AACSB accreditation approval process was in progress. Does this mean this university isn't accredited in Europe and doesn't have any accreditations ?

    I would like to get a list of Swedish universities with accredation recognize by USDoE. Do any of you have access to that type of information by any chance?

    Thank you very much!
     
  6. Jonathan Kenigson

    Jonathan Kenigson New Member

    I have studied extensively in Europe and occasionally at business schools (University of Wales, Anglia Ruskin University of Cambridge) and can assure you that very few European business schools pursue or desire to pursue such certification as you desire. In Europe (as in most of the world), universities are "accredited" directly by the relevant ministry of education; there are few (if any) third-party accreditation agencies that serve the purpose of regional accreditation in the USA. Here is my advice to you:

    (1). If you absolutely need a specific programmatic accreditation for your degree that exists only in the USA, you need to attend a U.S. university. This is absolutely true regarding any business program, and especially any engineering or medical program.
    (2). Accreditation of universities is done by non-profit agencies in the USA. The government has nothing to do with this process. In Europe, entire universities are entirely regulated by federal governments whose various ministries of education decree whether the university is valid or not by charter.
    (3). You may not need the specific programmatic accreditation that you've mentioned. European business degrees are accepted by top employers in the USA all the time. Here is the criterion you need to look for: If you graduate from a program that: (1). Is recognized by the authorities of the country in which it is located; (2). Typically, is valid for use in the civil services of such country; (3). Is from a country with established standards for educational rigor (any European country would very likely qualify), then your degree will very likely be treated as duly accredited in the USA.
    (4). To make this determination, you need to run your degree through a credential evaluation service like WES, which is the industry standard. You can pre-evaluate credentials with WES.

    Transfer of post-secondary qualifications between Europe and the USA\Canada is generally painless, provided such qualifications were recognized by the Ministry of Education of the relevant country at the time the degree was awarded.
     
  7. Ian Anderson

    Ian Anderson Active Member

    I also studied and worked in the UK. This lack of interest might be because, at least in the UK, professional society affiliation, is more important. In engineering there are Charted Engineers. There are similar affilliations for many other professions. For example my nephew is a BM but his pride is affiliation with the Royal College of Radiologists.
     
  8. Lerner

    Lerner Well-Known Member

    Some professional and specialty accreditation agencies choose not to have direct US DOE listing, some such as ABET even dropped their listing with US DOE.

    They usually accredit programs and not Institutions , so ABET in majority of cases accredits programs at Regionally Accredited universities.

    For example if you want to evaluate your degree in UK unless US university is RA in USA NARIC UK will not evaluate it as equivalent to UK degree.

    European University I think not all centers have what is equivalent to Institutional Accreditation and that may present a problem.

    Degree in USA will be considered accredited.
    I don't know how will NACES services will evaluate the degree.
     
  9. Jonathan Kenigson

    Jonathan Kenigson New Member

    Yes, sir, I agree with you. I believe that such qualifications would be fairly easily accepted in the USA because they are duly recognized in the UK. Certainly there are programmatic accreditors in the UK; qualifications which are awarded by programs so affiliated should be recognized the world round. Of course, for regulated professions like radiology and medicine, I would assume some bridging course would be necessary, and likely examinations.
     
  10. Andrewtx

    Andrewtx New Member

    european university accreditation

    Thanks a lot for your help everyone!
    You have raised some interesting (but quite complicated) points about accreditation.
    So, if I understand.. European university accreditation is quite independent from the US accreditation process. I should try focusing on local accreditation. Then it would seem that the whole accredited / not accredited issue is not the most important thing to consider when looking for a European university.

    So how am I supposed to choose a European university? What should be my criteria (other than accreditation)? Do you have any specific advice if coming from the USA?
     
  11. adaperry

    adaperry New Member

    European university accredited MBA

    Hey Andrewtx, having had the same questions myself you might want to look into the programmes themselves instead of focusing too much on the school's accreditation.
    A European university accreditation is not an issue once you are on the job market. Few (if any) employers will take accreditation into consideration so you might want to look for success stories of people who studied in the University you are exploring and try to find out the quality of the education rather than the administrative hassle some had to go through to become accredited.
    Also, what people tend to dismiss, is the importance of the life-long relationships you build while studying. So “who” goes to these schools might also be a matter to dig into.
    I think the most interesting question is: What are the most important criteria when selecting a European University? Its accreditation of its educational programmes?

    It’s my personal opinion and what essentially came out of my research, just hope it helps!
    Good luck in your research!
     
  12. Andrewtx

    Andrewtx New Member

    European University Accreditation

    Hi every body. Again, thanks for your inputs. Adaperry, your point is quite interesting.
    I was discussing this with my old guidance councelor and he did tell me that European University Accreditation is not the biggest issue to consider.
    It's a bit confusing because you would think that recruiters take it into account. What he was saying was that an accredited university (a european university more specifically) is complying with the national standards, but that it doesn't necessarily mean the quality of the education is superior.
    What I am doing now is researching for success stories and analysing the reputation of the school, rather than look at its accreditation status.
     
  13. major56

    major56 Active Member

  14. ambravarieur

    ambravarieur New Member

    Hi!
    I've been doing some research on the question of european university accreditation. Here are some useful resources:

    Swiss accreditation body: OAQ Falkenplatz 9 Postfach 7456 CH-3001 Bern

    Spanish accreditation: University of Madrid, Avenida del Valle, 34
    28003 Madrid, Spain: website contains useful info: spain.slu.edu

    German accreditation body: ANABIN > Kultusministerkonferenz – Zentralstelle für ausländisches Bildungswesen, Postfach 2240, D-53012 Bonn

    You may want to navigate on their respective websites or visit them if you are physically in one of those places. But as it was mentionned, I'm starting to doubt how valuable the whole accreditation process really is nowadays..
     
  15. statsman

    statsman New Member

    @Jonathan Kenigson: Thank you for the perfect summary.

    And in general, thank you all who participate in this thread. Among all the fuss going on about the issue of accreditation, mostly causing many people to get confused between the US and UK systems and programme based accreditation agencies, this thread can be a good source to calm down.

    Regards
     
  16. Andrewtx

    Andrewtx New Member

    Yes indeed thank you all for this great info !
    I don't know about Switzerland (CH) and Spain (ES), but I must admit the English and US issue has been raised a lot. I think that European University Accreditation is being streamlined under the Bologna agreements.
     
  17. Andrewtx

    Andrewtx New Member

    European University Accreditation in Scotland

    Hi everyone,

    I've recently heard about a new European University in Scotland and which will is offering online MBAs. it is the Edinburgh Business School of Heriot Watt University.

    They dont have the comonly discussed accreditation, but they seem to have a long standing history of respectable education.

    Does anyone know anything about the school by any chance ???

    Thanks in advance !
     
  18. major56

    major56 Active Member

  19. Johann

    Johann Well-Known Member

    It's not that new. I believe the program has been going since '97 - 17 years. From their page:

    "Edinburgh Business School (EBS) is the Graduate School of Business of Heriot-Watt University. Founded in 1997, the flagship programme is its world renowned MBA..."

    Discussed here at DI since 2001. Many, many threads. Well-regarded school.

    Johann
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 11, 2014
  20. Andrewtx

    Andrewtx New Member

    Wow ok thanks Johann!!

    So.. not to be the devil's advocate but.. wouldn't this beg the question of the validity of accreditation ? It is a well regarded school which isn't accredited. It's a bit confusing honestly.
     

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