About WSCUC

     WSCUC (the WASC Senior College and University Commission) is a California nonprofit public benefit corporation established for the purposes of accrediting senior (bachelor's degrees and above) colleges and universities.  Its genesis lies in the Western College Association, founded in 1924.  WSCUC was formed on July 1, 1962, to evaluate and accredit schools, colleges, and universities in California, Hawaii, Guam, American Samoa, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of Palau, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.  Today WSCUC accredits institutions located anywhere in the United States and around the world.  WSCUC is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as a reliable authority concerning the quality of education provided by member institutions of higher education offering baccalaureate and post-baccalaurate degrees (WSCUC 2023 Handbook).

Standards

From the WSCUC 2023 Handbook of Accreditation:

• Standard 1: Defining Institutional Mission and Acting with Integrity
• Standard 2: Achieving Educational Outcomes and Student Success
• Standard 3. Assuring Resources and Organizational Structures
• Standard 4: Creating an Institution Committed to Quality Assurance, Institutional Learning, and Improvement

Core Competencies

The WSCUC 2013 Handbook listed five core competencies:

• Critical Thinking
• Information Literacy
• Oral Communication
• Quantitative Reasoning
• Written Communication

Fresno State has assessed one of these five core competencies annually, on a rotating basis, since the 2016-17 academic year.

 

Resources