FILING A COMPLAINT AGAINST AN ACCSC-ACCREDITED SCHOOL
A complaint may be filed by any party who believes that an accredited or initial applicant school is not in compliance with ACCSC requirements. Schools that are accredited by ACCSC are required to have a published procedure for handling student complaints. An overview of the Complaint Procedure is available here.
While it is not required for a student to file a complaint with a school to file a complaint with ACCSC, a school’s complaint process may lead to a more personal resolution of an issue.
Questions regarding ACCSC’s complaint process:
complaints@accsc.org
703.247.4516
COMPLAINT PROCESS
All complaints must be received by the Commission in writing. Review the steps contained in the ACCSC Complaint Form. Upon receipt of a complaint, the Commission will forward a copy of the complaint to the school for a response.
Schools are given a period of time upon receipt of the complaint to prepare a response addressing the alleged areas of non-compliance with the Commission’s requirements.
In all cases, both the school and complainant are notified of the final disposition of the complaint.
Although one possible outcome of the complaint process may be the resolution of a dispute between parties, the Commission does not act as an arbitrator or mediator and does not intervene in cases of disciplinary action or dismissal or review decisions in such matters as admission, grades, graduation, fees, and similar cases.
In reviewing the allegations and the school’s response, the Commission looks to determine whether a school is in compliance with the ACCSC Standards of Accreditation.