Accreditation is the independent, third-party evaluation of a conformity assessment body (such as
certification body
Professional certification, trade certification, or professional designation, often called simply ''certification'' or ''qualification'', is a designation earned by a person to assure qualification to perform a job or task. Not all certifications ...
, inspection body or laboratory) against recognised standards, conveying formal demonstration of its impartiality and competence to carry out specific conformity assessment tasks (such as certification, inspection and testing).
Accreditation bodies are established in many economies with the primary purpose of ensuring that conformity assessment bodies are subject to oversight by an authoritative body. Accreditation bodies, that have been peer evaluated as competent, sign regional and international arrangements to demonstrate their competence. These accreditation bodies then assess and accredit conformity assessment bodies to the relevant standards.
An authoritative body that performs accreditation is called an '
accreditation body
Accreditation is the independent, third-party evaluation of a conformity assessment body (such as certification body, inspection body or laboratory) against recognised standards, conveying formal demonstration of its impartiality and competence to ...
'. The
International Accreditation Forum
The International Accreditation Forum, Inc. (IAF) is the world association of Conformity Assessment Accreditation bodies and other bodies interested in conformity assessment in the fields of management systems, products, services, personnel and oth ...
(IAF) and
International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation
The International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation or ILAC started as a conference in 1977 with the aim of developing international cooperation for facilitating trade by promotion of the acceptance of accredited test and calibration results. ...
(ILAC) provide international recognitions to accreditation bodies. There are many internationally recognized accreditation bodies approved by the IAF and ILAC.
The Emirates International Accreditation Centre (EIAC) is the largest accreditation body in Middle East region, whereas in South Asia the
Pakistan National Accreditation Council
The Pakistan National Accreditation Council (PNAC) ( ur, ) is a department subordinate to the Ministry of Science and Technology of the Government of Pakistan, of which Fawad Chaudhry is minister from 18 April 2019.
Formation and Objective
The ...
(PNAC) and
(NABL),
Quality Council of India
The Quality Council of India (QCI) was set up as a public private partnership model on the model existing in Netherlands at the time, where although the NAB was not owned by the government, yet it was supported by it and was exceedingly used as a ...
(QCI) are the largest. In East Asia, the China National Accreditation Board is the largest, while the
United Kingdom Accreditation Service
The United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) is the sole national accreditation body recognised by the British government to assess the competence of organisations that provide certification, testing, inspection and calibration services. It ...
(UKAS) is the largest in Europe. The
National Association of Testing Authorities
The National Association of Testing Authorities, Australia (NATA) is the recognised national accreditation authority for analytical laboratories and testing service providers in Australia. It is an independent, not-for-profit organisation, governe ...
(NATA) and the
Joint Accreditation System of Australia and New Zealand
Joint Accreditation System of Australia and New Zealand (JAS-ANZ) is an independent, third party accreditation body that provides internationally recognised accreditation services.
JAS-ANZ was established by International treaty titled ''Agreeme ...
(JAS-ANZ) being the largest in the Oceania region, with the
South African National Accreditation System
The South African National Accreditation System (SANAS) is the official accreditation body for South Africa. Founded in 1996, SANAS is headquartered in Pretoria, South Africa. SANAS accreditation certificates are a formal recognition by the G ...
being the largest in Africa.
For most of the accreditation schemes,
international standard
international standard is a technical standard developed by one or more international standards organizations. International standards are available for consideration and use worldwide. The most prominent such organization is the International Or ...
s issued by the
International Organization for Standardization
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO ) is an international standard development organization composed of representatives from the national standards organizations of member countries. Membership requirements are given in Ar ...
(ISO) are used.
Fields involved
Accreditation processes are used in a wide variety of fields:
*
Accredited investor
*
Accredited in Public Relations
The Accreditation in Public Relations (APR), Accreditation in Public Relations and Military Communications (APR+M), and Certificate in Principles of Public Relations are voluntary certifications in the USA for persons working in the field of public ...
*
Accredited registrar
* Construction
*
Diplomatic accreditation
A letter of credence (french: Lettre de créance) is a formal diplomatic letter that designates a diplomat as ambassador to another sovereign state. Commonly known as diplomatic credentials, the letter is addressed from one head of state to anot ...
*
Educational accreditation
Educational accreditation is a quality assurance process under which services and operations of educational institutions or programs are evaluated and verified by an external body to determine whether applicable and recognized standards are met. ...
**
Higher education accreditation
Higher education accreditation is a type of quality assurance process under which services and operations of post-secondary educational institutions or programs are evaluated to determine if applicable standards are met. If standards are met, accr ...
***
ACGME
The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) is the body responsible for accrediting all graduate medical training programs (i.e., internships, residencies, and fellowships, a.k.a. subspecialty programs) for physicians in the ...
(USA)
***
***
****
Accreditation mill
An accreditation mill is an organization that purports to award educational accreditation to higher education institutions without having government authority or recognition from mainstream academia to operate as an accreditor. Implicit in the term ...
****
List of unaccredited institutions of higher learning
This is a list of colleges, seminaries, and universities that do not have educational accreditation. In many countries, accreditation is defined as a governmental designation.
Degrees or other qualifications from unaccredited institutions may ...
**
Pre-tertiary education accreditation
Pre-tertiary-education accreditation is a type of quality assurance process used in the United States under which services and operations of pre-tertiary schools and educational institutions or programs are evaluated by an external body to det ...
*
Email sender accreditation Sender accreditation is a third-party process of verifying email senders and requiring them to adhere to certain accreditee usage guidelines in exchange for being listed in a trusted listing that Internet Service Providers (ISPs) reference to allow ...
* Food safety
**
Global Food Safety Initiative The Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) is a private organization working as a "Coalition of Action" from The Consumer Goods Forum (CGF) bringing together retailers and brand owners (manufacturers) from across the CGF membership operating as multis ...
Health & Safety Compliance (UK)* Healthcare
American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgery Facilities**
Accreditation Commission for Health Care The Accreditation Commission for Health Care (ACHC) is a United States non-profit health care accrediting organization. It represents an alternative to the Joint Commission and CHAP, The Community Health Accreditation Program.
ACHC was established ...
**
Electronic Healthcare Network Accreditation Commission
** Emirates International Accreditation Centre (EIAC)
**
International healthcare accreditation
Due to the near-universal desire for safe and good quality healthcare, there is a growing interest in international healthcare accreditation. Providing healthcare, especially of an adequate standard, is a complex and challenging process. Healthcar ...
**
Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities
The Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) is an international, non-profit organization founded in 1966 with the assistance of Mary E. Switzer, then U.S. Social and Rehabilitation Services commissioner. For some institution ...
**
Hospital accreditation
**
Joint Commission
The Joint Commission is a United States-based nonprofit tax-exempt 501(c) organization that accredits more than 22,000 US health care organizations and programs. The international branch accredits medical services from around the world. A majori ...
(USA)
**
United Kingdom Accreditation Forum The United Kingdom Akkreditering Forum (UKAF), founded in June 1998 by a group of leading healthcare accreditation organisations, is a London-based network of healthcare accreditation organisations formed with the intention of sharing experience re ...
*
Information assurance Information assurance (IA) is the practice of assuring information and managing risks related to the use, processing, storage, and transmission of information. Information assurance includes protection of the integrity, availability, authenticity, ...
*
Personal trainer accreditation
*
Professional certification
Professional certification, trade certification, or professional designation, often called simply ''certification'' or ''qualification'', is a designation earned by a person to assure qualification to perform a job or task. Not all certifications ...
*
Systems engineering
Systems engineering is an interdisciplinary field of engineering and engineering management that focuses on how to design, integrate, and manage complex systems over their enterprise life cycle, life cycles. At its core, systems engineering util ...
*
Translating
Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''transl ...
and
interpreting
Interpreting is a translational activity in which one produces a first and final target-language output on the basis of a one-time exposure to an expression in a source language.
The most common two modes of interpreting are simultaneous inter ...
**
(Australia)
* Sustainability
** Sustainable
Forest management Forest management is a branch of forestry concerned with overall administrative, legal, economic, and social aspects, as well as scientific and technical aspects, such as silviculture, protection, and forest regulation. This includes management for ...
such as the
Forest Stewardship Council
The Forest Stewardship Council A. C. (FSC) is an international non-profit, multistakeholder organization established in 1993 that promotes responsible management of the world's forests via timber certification. It is an example of a market-ba ...
(FSC)
**
Sustainable fishing
A conventional idea of a sustainable fishery is that it is one that is harvested at a sustainable rate, where the fish population does not decline over time because of fishing practices. Sustainability in fisheries combines theoretical discipl ...
such as the
Marine Stewardship Council
The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) is a non-profit organization which aims to set standards for sustainable fishing. Fisheries that wish to demonstrate they are well-managed and sustainable compared to the MSC's standards are assessed by a te ...
(MSC)
** Sustainable
aquaculture
Aquaculture (less commonly spelled aquiculture), also known as aquafarming, is the controlled cultivation ("farming") of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, mollusks, algae and other organisms of value such as aquatic plants (e.g. lot ...
such as the
Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC)
**
Sustainable tourism
Sustainable tourism is a concept that covers the complete tourism experience, including concern for economic, social and environmental issues as well as attention to improving tourists' experiences and addressing the needs of host communities. Su ...
such as the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC)
Accreditation standards
Many accreditation bodies, such as the UKAS, EIAC, EGAC, PNAC, IAS, NABCB operate according to processes developed by the ISO as specified in
ISO/IEC 17011
ISO/IEC JTC 1, entitled "Information technology", is a joint technical committee (JTC) of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). Its purpose is to develop, maintain and p ...
.
Accredited entities in specific sectors must provide evidence to the accreditation body that they conform to other standards in the same series:
*
ISO/IEC 17020
ISO/IEC JTC 1, entitled "Information technology", is a joint technical committee (JTC) of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). Its purpose is to develop, maintain and p ...
: "General criteria for the operation of various types of bodies performing inspection" (2012)
*
ISO/IEC 17021-1: "Conformity assessment. Requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of management systems" (2015)
*
ISO/IEC 17024
ISO/IEC 17024: Conformity assessment - General requirements for bodies operating certification of persons is an International Standard which specifies criteria for the operation of a personnel certification body (also known as a 'certification ...
: "Conformity Assessment. General requirements for bodies operating certification of persons" (2012)
*
ISO/IEC 17025: "General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories" (2017)
See also
Accreditation Auditing Practices Group*
Authentication
Authentication (from ''authentikos'', "real, genuine", from αὐθέντης ''authentes'', "author") is the act of proving an assertion, such as the identity of a computer system user. In contrast with identification, the act of indicati ...
*
Certification
Certification is the provision by an independent body of written assurance (a certificate) that the product, service or system in question meets specific requirements. It is the formal attestation or confirmation of certain characteristics of a ...
*
Certification and accreditation
Certification and accreditation (C&A or CnA) is a process for implementing any formal process. It is a systematic procedure for evaluating, describing, testing, and authorizing systems or activities prior to or after a system is in operation. ...
*
Homologation
Homologation (Greek ''homologeo'', ὁμολογέω, "to agree") is the granting of approval by an official authority. This may be a court of law, a government department, or an academic or professional body, any of which would normally work fr ...
*
Quality assurance
Quality assurance (QA) is the term used in both manufacturing and service industries to describe the systematic efforts taken to ensure that the product(s) delivered to customer(s) meet with the contractual and other agreed upon performance, design ...
*
Standards organization
A standards organization, standards body, standards developing organization (SDO), or standards setting organization (SSO) is an organization whose primary function is developing, coordinating, promulgating, revising, amending, reissuing, interpr ...
*
Verification and validation
Verification and validation (also abbreviated as V&V) are independent procedures that are used together for checking that a product, service, or system meets requirements and specifications and that it fulfills its intended purpose. These are ...
;International agencies
*
International Accreditation Forum
The International Accreditation Forum, Inc. (IAF) is the world association of Conformity Assessment Accreditation bodies and other bodies interested in conformity assessment in the fields of management systems, products, services, personnel and oth ...
(IAF)
*
International Certification Accreditation Council
The International Certification Accreditation Council (ICAC) is an alliance of organizations dedicated to assuring competency, professional management, and service to the public by encouraging and setting standards for License, licensing, certific ...
(ICAC)
*
International Council on Educational Credential Evaluation
The International Council on Educational Credential Evaluation, commonly known as ICECE, is an international NGO closely affiliated both with UNESCO and the Council of Europe. Its main objectives include research related to international higher edu ...
(ICECE)
*
International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation
The International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation or ILAC started as a conference in 1977 with the aim of developing international cooperation for facilitating trade by promotion of the acceptance of accredited test and calibration results. ...
(ILAC)
;National agencies
*
Department of Defence Information Assurance Certification and Accreditation Process
*
Deutsches Institut für Bautechnik
Deutsches Institut für Bautechnik (DIBt) is a technical authority in the construction sector. The Institute carries out its activities on the basis of an agreement concluded between the Federation and the German federal states (Länder). Its mos ...
References
External links
Asia
* https://eiac.gov.ae/
* https://www.cnas.org.cn/
* http://www.pnac.gov.pk/
National Accreditation Board for Certification Bodies (NABCB)
International Organization for Standardization
Americas
ANSI Accreditation ProgramsInternational Accreditation ServiceStandards Council of Canada (SCC)Accreditation Canada
Europe
European co-operation for Accreditation
{{Authority control
Quality assurance