The Foreign Service Journal, June 2010

many programs can end up being hybrids that require the physical pres- ence of the student at one or more points in the process. Some Foreign Service families posted overseas view such occasional residency require- ments as a great opportunity for a trip “home.” Those with jobs or other logistical issues, however, might find this a deal-breaker. Prospective students need to look very closely to make sure they fully understand the residential require- ments. Neal Makely, a Foreign Service spouse who took online class- es while posted to Monterrey and Tirana, says, “I took two semesters of rigorous biology classes. Each course required labs performed at home, as well as one lab on campus. Flying back to Virginia from Mexico for the lab added considerably to the cost of the course!” After narrowing down programs suited to the student’s goals, another consideration is the quality of course instructors. According to the 2008 Sloan Survey of Online Learning , up to 20 percent of educational institu- tions do not provide any training or mentoring for instructors. So while the instructor may be highly qualified to teach a particular subject, he or she may or may not have mastered the technological and social skills needed to teach from a distance. It is a good idea to address questions about the It takes some additional planning to assure success as an online student. 76 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / J U N E 2 0 1 0 S CHOOLS S UPPLEMENT Is Your School Accredited? B ecause there is no centralized accrediting system for higher education in the United States, colleges and universities are accredited regionally. Six independent regional accreditation boards evaluate for quality and conduct periodic assessments. There are two databases online to check to see if a school you are considering has region- al accreditation. Use the search pages at either the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (www.chea.org/search/ ) or the U.S. Department of Education (www.ope.ed.gov/accreditation/) . Keep in mind that it is entirely possible for an unaccredited institution to provide a quality postsecondary education (depending on your plans and needs). But accreditation assures that institutions of higher education meet acceptable levels of quality. This system also allows some credits to be transferred to other schools, and provides standards to qualify for admission to graduate programs. In addition, some employers do not consider unaccredited institutions to satisfy require- ments of job specifications. As a matter of fact, the state of Michigan publishes a list of many of those institutions deemed unacceptable for hiring purposes (www.michigan.gov/docum ents/Non-accreditedSchools_78090_7.pdf). For a list of such institutions, visit a site maintain- ed by the state of Maine: www.state.me.us/education/highered/Non-Accredited/non-accredited. htm. The six regional accrediting boards in the United States are: Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities North Central Association of Colleges and Schools New England Association of Schools and Colleges Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Western Association of Schools & Colleges There are also some national accrediting agencies, but nationally accredited schools pre- dominantly offer vocational and technical programs. Continued from p. 71