Harding maintains specialized accreditation for its programs as appropriate to its educational purposes and has more than 50 degrees/majors offered by colleges, departments and programs that have specialized accreditation. These programs all benefit from the rigorous program review requirements in the accreditation process which are based on national standardized outcomes.
(The first date listed recognizes the first year of accreditation. The second date recognizes the most recent accreditation.)
COLLEGE OF ALLIED HEALTH
Communication Sciences & Disorders
Occupational Therapy
- The entry-level occupational therapy master’s degree program has applied for accreditation and has been granted Candidacy Status by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), located at 6116 Executive Boulevard, Suite 200, North Bethesda, MD 20852-4929. ACOTE’s telephone number c/o AOTA is (301)652-AOTA and its web address is www.acoteonline.org. The program must have a preaccreditation review, complete an on-site evaluation, and be granted Accreditation Status before its graduates will be eligible to sit for the national certification examination for the occupational therapist administered by the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT). After successful completion of this exam, the individual will be an Occupational Therapist, Registered (OTR). In addition, all states require licensure in order to practice; however, state licenses are usually based on the results of the NBCOT Certification Examination. Note that a felony conviction may affect a graduate’s ability to sit for the NBCOT certification examination or attain state licensure. NOTE: Students must complete 24 weeks of Level II fieldwork within 12 months following completion of the didactic portion of the program.
Physical Therapy
Physician Assistant
- The Accreditation Review Commission for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA) has granted Accreditation-Continued status to the Harding University Physician Assistant Program sponsored by Harding University. Accreditation-Continued is an accreditation status granted when a currently accredited program is in compliance with the ARC-PA Standards. Accreditation remains in effect until the program closes or withdraws from the accreditation process or until accreditation is withdrawn for failure to comply with the Standards. The approximate date for the next validation review of the program by the ARC-PA will be September 2024. The review date is contingent upon continued compliance with the Accreditation Standards and ARC-PA policy (2005, 2014).
COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES
Department of Art, Architecture & Design
Department of Behavioral Sciences
Department of Engineering & Physics
- The Bachelor of Science program in biomedical engineering is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, https://www.abet.org, under the General Criteria and the Program Criteria for Bioengineering, Biomedical and Similarly Named Engineering Programs (2005,2018).
- The Bachelor of Science program in civil engineering is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, https://www.abet.org, under the General Criteria and the Program Criteria for Civil and Similarly Named Engineering Programs (2020).
- The Bachelor of Science program in computer engineering is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, https://www.abet.org, under the General Criteria and the Program Criteria for Electrical, Computer, Communications, Telecommunication(s) and Similarly Named Engineering Programs (2005, 2018).
- The Bachelor of Science program in electrical engineering is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, https://www.abet.org, under the General Criteria and the Program Criteria for Electrical, Computer, Communications, Telecommunication(s) and Similarly Named Engineering Programs (2005, 2018).
- The Bachelor of Science program in mechanical engineering is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, https://www.abet.org, under the General Criteria and the Program Criteria for Mechanical and Similarly Named Engineering Programs (2005, 2018).
Department of Family & Consumer Sciences
- The Master of Science in Applied Dietetics Program at Harding University is a candidacy program seeking accreditation by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND) for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (Address: 120 South Riverside Plaza, Suite 2190, Chicago, IL 60606-6995, Phone: 800/877-1600, ext. 5400, E-mail: ACEND@eatright.org, Website: www.eatrightpro.org/acend) (process began in 2021).
- The Child Life undergraduate program is endorsed by the Association of Child Life Professionals (ACLP). ACLP defines endorsement of academic programs in child life as an assurance that a program meets the standards and requirements set forth in the Standards for Academic and Clinical Preparation Programs found in the most current Official Documents of the ACLP. Students graduating from an endorsed program will still need to complete an eligibility assessment with ACLP, but will not need to have each course reviewed as endorsement signifies inclusion of all areas of the coursework requirements. Eligibility to sit for the Certified Child Life Specialist (CCLS) certification exam depends on successful completion of both the eligibility assessment as well as clinical experience requirements (2019, 2019).
- The Family Life Education undergraduate program is approved by the National Council on Family Relations as meeting the Standards and Criteria required for the Provisional Certified Family Life Educator (CFLE) designation (2003, 2023).
Department of Music
COLLEGE OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
- The following business programs at Harding University are accredited by the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs: BBA Accounting, BBA Finance, BBA Information Systems, BBA International Business, BBA Management, BBA Marketing, MBA, MSIS, BBA-MBA Dual Degree, and BBA-MSIS Dual Degree (1992, 2021).
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
- The Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), a specialized accrediting body recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA), has granted accreditation to the following programs in the Professional Counseling Program in the College of Education at Harding University: School Counseling (M.S.), Marriage, Couple, & Family Counseling (M.S.), and Clinical Mental Health Counseling (M.S./Ed.S.) (2015/2023/2017, 2023).
- The International Coaching Federation (ICF) has granted accreditation to the Harding University Graduate Certificate in Executive and Workplace Coaching Program in the College of Education (2023).
- Harding University has state approval from the Arkansas Department of Education - Division of Elementary and Secondary Education to offer professional education programs for educator licensure or endorsement. Copies of approval letters for the individual programs of study are on file in the College of Education.
COLLEGE OF NURSING
- The baccalaureate degree in nursing, master's degree in nursing and post-graduate APRN certificate program at Harding University are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, 655 K Street, NW, Suite 750, Washington, DC 20001, 202-887-6791 (2016, 2022); and are approved by the Arkansas State Board of Nursing (ASBN) University Tower Building, 1123 South University Ave., Suite 800, Little Rock, AR 72204-1619, 501-686-2700 (1977, 2019).
COLLEGE OF PHARMACY
HARDING SCHOOL OF THEOLOGY
