Triple Accreditation, Triple the Legwork

Triple accreditation is the term used among Master of Business Administration (MBA) schools around the world. An MBA school withtriple accreditation carries accreditations from:

·         The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), based in Tampa, FL with 727 accredited institutions.

·         The Association of MBAs (AMBA), based in London, the U.K. with 225 accredited institutions.

·         European Quality Improvement System (EQUIS), based in Brussels, Belgium with 156 accredited institutions.

Of the 1,108 MBA schools accredited by these bodies, only 68 carry all three accreditations. The largest share of these triple-accredited schools are located in the U.K., with 20 schools, followed by France with 11. In North America, Canada and Mexico have two triple-accredited schools each, but none in the United States (despite the AACSB being based in Florida).

Triple accreditation, of course, means triple the legwork that must be done. Accrediting bodies must coordinate with one another, sharing information regarding new applications and renewals. Given the distance between the offices of these accrediting bodies, it’s safe to say that they do their work digitally for accuracy and convenience.

Requirements for accreditation, for instance, must not be in conflict with the respective standards of each accrediting body. The lack of a systematic workflow can throw the entire process into disarray. Even with advanced accreditation management systems, the process can take as long as weeks due to the attention to detail the process requires.