The Accredited Schools Online team is dedicated to providing trustworthy, unbiased, and insightful content to students and their families/guardians.
Our mission is to empower students to make decisions about their education journey by offering accurate and up-to-date information on accredited online and on-campus institutions.
Our Values
Editorial Integrity
Integrity is at the core of everything we do. We are committed to providing you with honest, objective, and transparent information. Experienced professionals help us with that by reviewing our content.
We do not accept payment in exchange for positive reviews or rankings, nor do we allow advertisers or school partners to influence our editorial content.
You can trust that our published resources and rankings are crafted without bias and vetted for accuracy.
Accreditation
Accreditation is a critical factor in evaluating schools and programs — it helps ensure that students receive a quality education and have the chance to qualify for federal financial aid.
We only feature schools and programs accredited by legitimate accrediting bodies, which are typically recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and/or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation.
It's also important that the accreditation process is transparent. We provide resources to help students understand the basics of accreditation, including what it is, how it works, and why it's important when considering which schools to apply to.
Inclusivity and Accessibility
We believe that education should be accessible to all students, regardless of their budgets, backgrounds, and educational experiences.
Accredited Schools Online is committed to creating unbiased content that reflects a variety of voices and addresses the needs of every student.
We rely on third-party anti-bias and DEI-focused reviewers to ensure our content meets those standards.
Our Process
Research and Sourcing
Our writers and reporters follow strict editorial guidelines and sourcing standards. We spend hours researching each piece and provide links to primary sources whenever possible.
We also periodically review and update our content to ensure it remains current and accurate.
At Accredited Schools Online, we consult authoritative sources, relying primarily on data from government resources and organizations with longstanding evidence of accuracy.
Specifically, we often turn to:
- U.S. Department of Education (ED)
- National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
- Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS)
- Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA)
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)
Expert Insight and Interviews
We go the extra mile to ensure our work is informed by real, experienced professionals. Our editorial process involves consulting experts to fill knowledge gaps and share firsthand experiences.
Our reporters interview subject-matter experts, educators, accrediting spokespeople, and real-life students. The resources we publish reflect the knowledge and authority of those who know the industry best.
Fact-Checking and Review Network
We are committed to providing accurate, thorough, and up-to-date information about schools and programs.
Our team consists of experienced writers, editors, and reviewers who are experts in higher education and/or a particular professional field of study. Before publishing, our content is reviewed by a member of our Integrity Network. We rely on their expertise to ensure our content is accurate, relevant, and unbiased.
Our work is reviewed by professionals with expertise in areas such as admissions, financial aid, anti-bias, and mental health. We also feature reviewers from specific industries, like social work, business, nursing, psychology, and computer science.