One of the most sought after accreditations for schools in Healthcare Management and Administration is Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH). A degree from a CEPH accredited program means that your degree will be highly regarded by future employers.
What is CEPH
CEPH stands for the Council on Education for Public Health Accreditation and it is a member of the Association of Specialized and Professional Accreditors (ASPA). ASPA is the organization responsible for monitoring the quality of specialized and professional higher education programs and schools to ensure that the higher education system in the United States continues at the highest standard possible. With a mission to “lead and foster innovation in quality improvement. CEPH assures quality in public health education and training to achieve excellence in practice, research and service, through collaboration with organizational and community partners.” State and federal government play a role in coordinating higher education opportunities in the states and to assure that state and federal funding for higher education is used appropriately. The true focus is on the quality of institutions and their programs. Each review takes many months to accurately ensure that institutions and programs are always involved in improvement of educational quality.
What is the difference between Regional and CEPH accreditation?
There are several important distinctions between regional accreditation and CEPH accreditation:
- A university may have regional accreditation (this applies to the entire university or college)
- A university or college may not have CEPH specialized accreditation (this applies to public health degree programs only)
- Regional accreditation focus is on issues affecting the entire university, not the specific curriculum of public health or other specialized programs.
- CEPH is the only organization recognized by the US Department of Education to accredit public health schools and programs.
What Degree Programs Does CEPH Accredit?
CEPH accredits Schools of Public Health and their Public Health Programs. There is a separate list of criteria regarding accreditation standards for each of the programs. The major difference between the standard for schools of Public Health is that they generally offer more areas of concentration or specialization and degree offerings than other programs. All schools of Public Health are required to offer their Master of Public Health degree in the five areas of public health knowledge defined as core areas: Biostatistics, Epidemiology, Environmental Health Sciences, Health Services Administration and Social and Behavioral Sciences.
What Are CEPH‘s Accrediting Criteria?
There are many criteria ensuring that the higher education system in the US remains among the best in the world. Both State and Federal government play important roles for coordinating higher education opportunities in the states to assure state and federal funding for higher education is used correctly. At the individual campus level, accreditation takes many months and a large part of that process is ensuring that institutions and programs are providing quality education. Some of the processes include:
- Evaluation request by the university or college
- Internal review to check for program effectiveness in strength and areas that may need improvement.
- External reviews by peer reviewers for analyzing self- study documents and conducting on-site evaluations regarding any issues raised in the self- study
- Public Comment to receive input from general public during the process of accreditation
- Report by the evaluation team
- Agency Review and Accreditation Decision
- Implementation where non-compliance with acceptable standards is found
- Ongoing Review with reviews reports from the institution or program ensuring the institution maintains compliance with standards
- Fair Process with accreditation guided by published procedures
- Attention to the Public Interest to ensure that accreditation addresses the public’s interest that institutions meet determined standards of integrity.
How Can I Find Out If My Program is CEPH Accredited?
There is a list available of all accredited Universities and Colleges and the programs that have been accredited or are in the process of review for accreditation by the Council on Education for Public Health Accreditation (CEPH) and can be verified by contacting them at:
Council for Education for Public Health
1010 Wayne Avenue
Suite 220
Silver Spring, MD 20910
Phone: 202-789-1050
Fax: (202) 789-1895
When searching for the right degree program to help you achieve your academic and career goals accreditation is very important. Knowing that your degree is from an accredited school and program ensures that your degree will be highly respected by potential employers. A Degree in Healthcare Management from a CEPH accredited academic program will help create many opportunities for future employment.
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