BYU Accreditation

BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY

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BYU prepares detailed report for accreditation

The university community spent much of 2004 and 2005 preparing data and information preparation for a visit from the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities in April of 2006. The self study is available in the left-hand menu below.

For more information on the accreditation process and requirements, you can download this set of PowerPoint slides from a presentation given by Dr. Al Johnson from the NWCCU. The slides are also availiable in PDF format for online viewing.

SELF-STUDY MENU

Contents
Committees
Executive Summary

1. Institutional Mission
2. Educational Program
3. Students
4. Faculty
5. Library and Information Resources
6. Governance and Administration
7. Finance
8. Physical Resources
9. Institutional Integrity

Complete Report

Northwest Accreditation team visits BYU campus April 5-7

A delegation representing the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities visited BYU's campus April 5-7, 2006, to review the university's application for reaffirmation of accreditation. The university has been accredited continuously since 1923.

Led by Dr. Stephen J. Reno, chancellor of the University System of New Hampshire, the 14-member review team held three open meetings for faculty, students and staff and met with university leadership and with heads of the committees that studied the nine areas required for accreditation.

After more than two years of preparing for this visit, BYU shared with the team results of the university’s Self-Study, prepared by the nine committees and submitted to open meetings and an open comment period on campus.

The Self-Study is summarized in a 255-page report, which is available in the left-hand menu of this page titled "Self-Study Menu." The menu at the left provides access in PDF format to the report chapter by chapter or to the complete report (7 MB). Hard copies are available at the Harold B. Lee Library reserve (circulation desk) or in the offices of deans, directors, and department chairs.

This is the final version of the report. More.

Accreditation essential, says President Samuelson

During his Annual University Conference Address Aug. 23, 2005, President Cecil O. Samuelson gave faculty and staff an update of activities related to BYU's accreditation review scheduled for Spring 2006.

"In many ways, especially coming now, this BYU accreditation process provides a road map for where we have been, where we are and where we plan to be inasmuch as we are asked to evaluate ourselves on such important areas as institutional mission, planning and effectiveness, educational program, students, faculty, library and information services, governance and administration, finance, physical resources and institutional integrity," said President Samuelson.

He continued: "I invite you to read and comment on our BYU Accreditation Self-Study -- both so we will receive your input and so you will be knowledgeable about its contents if a visiting site team should ask you about it!" More.

What is Accreditation?

The NWCCU Accreditation Handbook (2003 edition) states:

Accreditation is a process of recognizing educational institutions for performance, integrity, and quality that entitles them to the confidence of the educational community and the public. In the United States this recognition is extended largely through nongovernmental, voluntary institutional or professional associations that have responsibility for establishing criteria, visiting and evaluating institutions at their requests, and approving those institutions and programs that meet their criteria.

Institutional accreditation is granted by a regional accrediting agency within a scope of authority approved by the U.S. Department of Education. Institutional accreditation applies to the college or university as a whole, not individual programs or units within the institution.