As I have mentioned previously, you should always choose a school that is recognized by employers and by colleges and other schools. One form of recognition is accreditation at the regional or national level. Unfortunately, just as there are fake online schools, so, too, are there fake accreditors. The following accreditors are the ones acceptable to Best Online High Schools and to most schools and employers:

• Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC)
• Northwest Accreditation Commission (NWAC)
• Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS)
• Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (MSA)
• New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEA)
• North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA)
• AdvancED
• CITA
• Distance Education & Training Council (DETC)

AdvancED is actually a consolidation of the pre-college divisions of two regional accreditors (NCA and SACS). CITA was acquired by AdvancED in 2008.

DETC is a national accreditor. In one of the oddities of accreditation, often regional accreditation is viewed as a higher form of accreditation. True or not, it is a good idea to check with your college or employer of choice to see if DETC accreditation is acceptable.

So what does accreditation look like on websites. You will still see some sites that list CITA when they actually mean AdvancED. It’s not unusual to see the same with SACS or or NCA. Not to worry, though. At this time, all of those, in a sense, mean the same thing.

One additional note: the NWAC is the new name for the Northwest Association of Accredited Schools.

Importantly, if you are not sure about an accreditor, post a comment to this post and we are glad to help. It can be confusing.