Accreditation: Get Accredited - Part 5: Council on Accreditation Review

For renewing applicants, the categories of accreditation status are Full Accreditation, Probation, Accreditation Revoked and Reaccreditation-Pending.

Learn more about the types of reports that the Council might require.

Granting or Denying Accreditation

The AAHRPP Board of Directors has the ultimate authority to review all applications and site visit reports and determine the accreditation status of an Organization, subject to the right to appeal otherwise provided for in these Procedures.

The Board of Directors delegates to the Council on Accreditation the role, responsibilities, and authorities to facilitate the efficient operation of the accreditation program. The Council on Accreditation, comprised of experienced site visitors, reviews all site visit reports and makes a determination regarding accreditation status. The Council on Accreditation meets no less than four times annually.

Publication of Accreditation Status

AAHRPP publishes the name of the Organization, a short description of the Organization, its category of accreditation, and the date it was accredited. In addition, AAHRPP encourages the accredited Organization to publicize its accreditation with AAHRPP. When an Organization publicizes its accreditation status, it must specify its accreditation category.

AAHRPP does not release information about an Organization that is in the process of seeking accreditation or that has been placed in the Accreditation-Pending or Accreditation Withheld categories.

AAHRPP does not release information about an Organization that is in the process of renewing its accreditation or that has been placed in the Reaccreditation-Pending category. An Organization that is placed in the Reaccreditation-Pending category remains on the published list of accredited Organizations. Once the Council makes a final accreditation determination, the Organization remains on the published list if reaccredited.

From the published list of accredited organizations, AAHRPP removes the name of an Organization placed on Probation or that has Accreditation Revoked. AAHRPP only releases information that the Organization is not in one of the two categories that hold accreditation status and refers inquirers to the Organization in question.

Certificates of Accreditation

AAHRPP issues a Certificate of Accreditation to each Organization that receives Full Accreditation or Qualified Accreditation. If an Organization has its accreditation revoked, the Certificate of Accreditation must be returned to AAHRPP. Organizations that are placed in Accreditation-Pending are not entitled to receive Certificates of Accreditation.

Display or use of any outdated, revoked, defaced, or fraudulent AAHRPP certificate or of facsimiles that might deceive or mislead prospective participants, sponsors, or other persons, is considered a serious offense with the potential for harming the public confidence in research and the research protection system. Appropriate legal action may be taken by AAHRPP based on the facts of any such deception.