How do we know if a college is offering educational programs of good quality? Most people answer: accreditation. If a school is accredited that means that it is at least reasonably good — not a waste of time and money.

Sorry, but accreditation is vastly overrated. Accredited colleges and universities offer many low-quality courses and degrees. In today’s Martin Center article, I look at a recent study on the value of accreditation and conclude that we could drop it as the “gatekeeper” for federal student-aid money.

Accreditors have completely missed academic scandals such as the UNC fake courses to keep star athletes eligible to play and keep their stamp of approval on many schools with degree programs that don’t come anywhere near enabling their graduates to earn enough to cover their expenses. At the same time, the accreditation system inhibits innovation that might lead to big improvements in higher education.