Liberty University's School of Business programs receive ACBSP accreditation

Accreditation of the top international business schools. For example, Imperial College School of Business (in the UK) made the following announcement last year:

ACBSP is certainly active internationally, and it undoubtedly serves a valuable purpose to the institutions that it accredits. However, the best-known business schools across the world are typically accredited by AACSB, AMBA, and/or EQUIS instead.

 

This should be the consensus.

 

I was specifically thinking about traditional, tenured faculty positions at B&M schools. Such jobs (which tend to pay well and offer guaranteed lifetime employment) are obviously very attractive to many people, so they tend to be competitive. And AACSB degrees tend (in my experience) to have a distinct advantage over non-AACSB degrees in competitive hiring situations. However, there is no central database of business school faculty credentials, so there is no way to conclusively "prove it".

If we were to consider all business school faculty -- including part-time adjuncts and those at online schools -- then admittedly the conclusion might be different. In recent years, there has been rapid growth in part-time, non-tenured faculty positions, and these are much easier for non-AACSB grads to get.

 

Liberty University requires group projects and their customer service is dreadful. I often find it hard to believe this is a Christian college. I considered going there, but that's out of the window. Too much drama.

 

They're of a Southern variety of Protestantism, of which many would find a tendency toward gossip-worthy exploits among adherents. If you consider the words "televangelist" and "Southern" together, you may find scandal trailing not far behind.

I've actually heard lots of good things about the school, but at moments I'm concerned they're selling out their Christian legacy to grow their programs.

 

You’re correct Steve…

Business Education Week
Volume 2 Number 14 Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs December 10, 2004

ACBSP announces joint initiative with European Council on Business Education (ECBE). During meetings held in Krakow, Poland, on November 27-28, the Board of Directors of the European Council on Business Education (Ecbe.net) approved a Memorandum of Understanding with ACBSP. Previously approved by the ACBSP Board of Directors, the memorandum is part of the outreach by ACBSP to similar organizations throughout the world (see next article).
The memorandum implements the following initiatives:
• ECBE accredited schools will be provided an accelerated process to achieve ACBSP accreditation. ACBSP accredited schools will be provided an accelerated process to achieve ECBE accreditation. One school from each organization has been invited to pilot test these accreditation procedures.
• Schools seeking simultaneous ACBSP and ECBE accreditation can accomplish this with a single accreditation visit by a joint team of evaluators from each organization.
• Both ECBE and ACBSP will designate representatives to serve in leadership positions within the other organization.
• ACBSP and ECBE will cooperate in the development of an international federation of similar organizations to be created in 2005.
• ECBE and ACBSP will seek opportunities for bilateral linkages between member schools.

http://c.ymcdn.com/sites/www.acbsp.org/resource/collection/2A0A2855-182A-4417-8275-7F12466F76D3/BEW--December_10,_2004.pdf

 

It's true that there is a "Memorandum of Understanding" between the European Council for Business Education (ECBE) and ACBSP. However, the MoU encourages, rather than restricts, each agency from accrediting schools on the other agency's "turf". The idea is that American schools with ACBSP accreditation can easily get additional accreditation from ECBE, and that European schools with ECBE accreditation can easily get additional accreditation from ACBSP.

The MoU was signed in 2004, but I'm not sure how successful it has been. There are hundreds of ACBSP accredited schools in the US that would potentially be eligible for ECBE accreditation. However, there only appear to be two US school that actually hold double ACBSP/ECBE accreditation: Tiffin University (Ohio) and Southern New Hampshire University. Presumably Liberty University could get ECBE, now that they have ACBSP. But most ACBSP schools in the US don't seem to be interested.

There are a number of European schools with double ECBE/ACBSP accreditation, such as Siberian State Aerospace University (Russia), Horizons University (France), the University of Maribor (Slovenia), University American College Skopje (Former Yugloslavian Republic of Macedonia), and SMC Swiss Management Center. However, they generally aren't well-known names.

 

Horizon is not accredited in France yet it has ACBSP. That is one of the reasons why I am not so excited about Liberty and ACBSP. ECBE is even more obscure. In Europe it is EQUIS and AMBA.