- Accreditation
Accreditation is a process in which is
certification of competency, authority, or credibility is presented.Organizations that issue
credential s or certify third parties against official standards are themselves formally accredited by accreditation bodies (such asUKAS ); hence they are sometimes known as "accredited certification bodies". [ [http://www.ams.usda.gov/lsg/arc/ARC1012.pdf#search='Accreditation%20of%20certification%20bodies' USDA ISO Guide 65 Program Accreditation for Certification Bodies] , US Department of Agriculture,Agricultural Marketing Service , August 9, 2007] The accreditation process ensures that their certification practices are acceptable, typically meaning that they are competent to test and certify third parties, behave ethically, and employ suitablequality assurance .One example of accreditation is the accreditation of testing laboratories and certification specialists that are permitted to issue official certificates of compliance with established standards, such as
physical , chemical, forensic,quality , andsecurity standards. [ [http://www.fsc.org/en/about/accreditation/accred_certbod Accreditation of Certification Bodies] , Forest Stewardship Council website (accessed January 25, 2008)]Accreditation processes are used in a wide variety of fields:
*
Accredited investor
*Accredited in Public Relations
*Accredited Registrar
*Diplomatic accreditation
*Email sender accreditation
*Professional certification
*Healthcare
**International healthcare accreditation
**Hospital accreditation
**Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations
**Trent Accreditation Scheme
**United Kingdom Accreditation Forum
*Educational accreditation
**List of recognized accreditation associations of higher learning
**Regional accreditation (United States)
**Accreditation mill
**List of unrecognized accreditation associations of higher learning
**List of unaccredited institutions of higher learning See also
*
Accreditation Council "(disambiguation)"
*Authentication
*Certification
*Verification and Validation
*Homologation
*International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation
*Quality assurance
*Standards organization
*Validation
*Deutsches Institut für Bautechnik References
External links
* [http://www.european-accreditation.org European co-operation for Accreditation] - a member of
International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation
* [http://www.iasonline.org/ International Accreditation Service] - a subsidiary ofInternational Code Council
* [http://www.ioas.org/ International Organic Accreditation Service]
* [http://www.qualityresearchinternational.com/glossary/accreditation.htm Analytic Quality Glossary: Accreditation]
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