The University of Oregon was first accredited by the NWCCU in 1918. The UO underwent its last decennial accreditation review in 1997.

Accreditation by a postsecondary regional accrediting agency qualifies institutions and enrolled students for access to federal funds to support teaching, research, and student financial aid. The Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU) is an independent, non-profit membership organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) as the regional authority on educational quality and institutional effectiveness of higher education institutions in the seven-state Northwest region of Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Washington.

Institutional accreditation applies to the university as a whole, not individual programs or units within the institution. Specialized accreditation for certain professional schools and individual educational programs is granted by a number of national organizations, each representing a professional area such as business, law, engineering or nursing.

The evaluation process for accreditation includes the following steps:

1. A representative of the Commission conducts a preliminary visit on campus 18 to 24 months before an evaluation committee visit.
2. The institution analyzes itself through a self-study. Approximately four to six weeks prior to the evaluation visit, the print and electronic copies of the self-study report are mailed to the evaluation committee and to the Commission office.
3. Professional colleagues from other member institutions and appropriate agencies study the institutional self-study report, visit the campus as an evaluation committee, and prepare a written report of its findings.
4. A draft report of the evaluation committee's report and findings is prepared and sent to the institution's chief executive officer who is given an opportunity to correct errors of fact before the final report is prepared.
5. The committee's final report is submitted to the Commission Office. The Commission Office provides the institution's chief executive officer with a copy of the final version of the evaluation report.
6. If it so chooses, the institution may provide the Commission with a written response to the evaluation committee report.
7. The Commission reviews the institutional self-study report, the evaluation committee's written report, the institution's written response to the evaluation committee report (if submitted), verbal statements of the evaluation committee chair and the institution's chief executive officer, and the evaluation committee's confidential recommendation in taking action on the accreditation status of the institution.
8. The institution continues to consider and act on the results of its own self-study and the advice received.

For more information on the accreditation process please consult the NWCCU website.

Note: Excerpted from the Accreditation Handbook, NWCCU, 2003 Edition, pp 1-14. www.nwccu.org