• Degree descriptions
• The Bologna declaration
• Accreditations

School accreditations

Quality assurance programmes – which ones do you need to know about?

An accreditation assures that a school or programme holds certain standards, i.e. that the institution meets criteria that are defined in the accreditation scheme. Consequently, the set of criteria determines the relevance of the accreditation.
There are several accreditation schemes for management education. The most well known in Europe are EQUIS, AMBA and AACSB (see below).

Important:

• Some organisations award accreditations for specific programmes, while other award accreditations for the school as a whole.

• If a school is not accredited, it does not automatically mean that it is of low standard. Accreditations are very expensive and some high standing institutions simply do not have the budgets and time for the schemes.

• Some schools are members of the accreditation organisations, but are not accredited. It's important to notice the difference.

EQUIS

EQUIS is a respected quality assurance scheme run by the European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD does also award accreditations to schools outside Europe). The scheme is a voluntary system which means that schools apply for assessment and accreditation. The total cost of accreditation (if the school is successful) is € 31,200. A majority of the schools listed on MasterGuide.org have been awarded EQUIS accreditation:

EFMD website (with list of accredited schools)

AMBA

The London based Association of MBAs awards accreditations to specific MBA programmes. The scheme is highly recognised in the industry. List of accreditation criteria and accredited programmes can be found on the website http://www.mbaworld.com/

The schools listed on masterguide.org that offer AMBA accredited MBA programmes are:

AACSB – The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business

AACSB is based in the U.S.and runs an accreditation scheme that currently comprises 480 accredited members. Website: www.aacsb.edu

The schools listed on MasterGuide.org that hold AACSB accreditation are:

EDHEC

ESADE

ESCP-EAP

HEC

HHL - Leipzig Graduate School of Management

IE Business School

RSM- Erasmus University

University College Dublin

University of St. Gallen

University of Warwick

Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School