| The Council and/or AVMA staff offers reasonable consultation to any college with special needs concerning Reasonable Assurance, Provisional Accreditation (preaccreditation), and Accreditation. Procedures for Reasonable Assurance evaluations are identical to steps 1-6 and 8 of the "Procedure for Accreditation Evaluation." Reasonable Assurance is not a preaccreditation action by the Council on Education and does not confer accreditation of any kind on a developing college.
Upon request, reasonable assurance evaluations and site visits for proposed programs are conducted essentially the same as evaluations for established accredited programs. The self-study report, the site visit, and the report of evaluation address the standard requirements based on plans and existing resources such as budget, facilities, faculty, and administration. A Reasonable Assurance evaluation is based on planned action and preliminary arrangements so long as the Council deems the implementation of such planned actions to be reasonable, pragmatic, and feasible within an appropriate time frame.
A veterinary college is considered eligible to apply for a letter of Reasonable Assurance if the parent institution:
- is accredited by regional or national institutional accrediting body recognized by the USDE (except Canada where the institution must be recognized by the appropriate federal or provincial body)
- is legally authorized to confer a professional degree, and
- employs a veterinarian as a full-time dean of the college of veterinary medicine
A formal letter of application from the dean and/or chief administrative institutional officer must be submitted to the AVMA Council on Education to begin the process of obtaining a letter of reasonable assurance.
Once a college is granted Reasonable Assurance a liaison committee shall be appointed by the COE chair. The committee will be composed of up to five COE members to create continuity and structure during the accreditation process. This committee is charged with creating and maintaining a direct line of communication between the COE and the college. If the accreditation process advances to a comprehensive site visit, then one to two members of this liaison committee will be appointed to the comprehensive site visit team to promote efficiency and continuity.
The college must submit a self-study document as outlined in the Policies and Procedures of the AVMA Council on Education manual (most recent edition) that addresses each standard. Through its self-study, the college must address business and educational plans. Programs must address each Standard by carefully describing how compliance with that Standard will be assured. The self-study document and information gained on site are the basis for the reasonable assurance evaluation by the Council, and a decision to grant Reasonable Assurance is made by the full Council. A college that fails to be granted Reasonable Assurance following an evaluation by the COE may not apply for reconsideration for 12 months after the date of the Council's decision.
A college granted Reasonable Assurance must offer admission to and matriculate its first class of students within three years. A college that delays offering admission to and matriculating its first class beyond three years must submit a new formal letter of application to the AVMA COE.
If a college granted Reasonable Assurance is making adequate progress in complying with the Standards, Provisional Accreditation may be granted to that college on the date that letters of acceptance (admission) are mailed to members of the initial class. Following granting Provisional Accreditation status and during the first semester of the second year of the initial class matriculation, a comprehensive site visit is conducted to determine whether the program is making progress in complying with the Standards. The Report of Evaluation from that site visit will clearly describe and identify compliance and/or non-compliance with each Standard at the time of the site visit. If the Council determines that deficiencies are severe and compliance with the Standards is unlikely, the college may be placed on Terminal Accreditation. If the Council determines that the program is making reasonable progress in
complying with the Standards, Provisional Accreditation may be continued.
A focused site visit may be conducted at any time during the developmental period (i.e., period of granting Reasonable Assurance to granting Full Accreditation). A comprehensive site visit is conducted during the second semester of the fourth year of the initial class matriculation. If the Council determines that the college is in compliance with each Standard, Full Accreditation will be granted. Programs that make reasonable progress in complying with the Standards during the developmental period may have Provisional Accreditation status extended (but not for more than five years); or, the college may be placed on Limited Accreditation if it meets the requirements for that accreditation status; or, if the Council determines that deficiencies are severe and compliance with the Standards is unlikely, the college may be placed on Terminal Accreditation. Programs placed on Terminal Accreditation are required to follow the procedures outlined for Terminal Accreditation status to protect the interests of enrolled students.
The full Council utilizes the self-study, site visit findings, and Report of Evaluation to determine the appropriateness of granting Reasonable Assurance, Provisional Accreditation, or Full Accreditation status.
When Reasonable Assurance or Provisional Accreditation are granted, interim reports are required at six-month intervals to monitor the program's progress in complying with the Standards. In particular, changes in business or educational plans must be addressed in detail.
Provisional Accreditation status may remain in effect no more than five years if the program complies with the necessary requirements. Reasonable Assurance or Provisional Accreditation status may be withdrawn at any time during the developmental period if the Council determines the college is unlikely to comply with a Standard(s). In the latter case (withdrawal of Provisional Accreditation status), the college may be placed on Terminal Accreditation.
The Council has no mechanism for providing assistance to developing colleges outside the US or Canada; Reasonable Assurance process and Provisional Accreditation status are limited to United States and Canadian veterinary colleges.
Decisions on granting Reasonable Assurance, Provisional Accreditation or Full Accreditation status for site visits that occurred less than 90 days prior to the next scheduled COE meeting will usually be deferred to the following meeting. The Council meets twice annually.
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= AVMA/SAVMA Members Only
