MSCHE 2026
About Middle States
The Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) is a voluntary, non-governmental, membership association that defines, maintains, and promotes educational excellence across institutions with diverse missions, student populations, and resources. Because MSCHE is an institutional accreditor, we examine institutions as a whole rather than specific programs within institutions. MSCHE provides education, quality assurance, and other services to members.
For more information, visit the The Middle States Commission on Higher Education website.
What MSCHE Does and Who it Serves?
MSCHE conducts accreditation and pre-accreditation (candidacy status) activities for institutions of higher education in Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and any other geographic areas in which the Commission elects to conduct accrediting activities, including the evaluation of distance education and correspondence education programs offered at those institutions. MSCHE accredits institutions across the United States as well as globally
Accreditation Status:
- Accreditation Reaffirmed Until 2026 (Updated July 2022
MSCHE 2026
Drexel has begun the process of accreditation review in preparation for the creation of a new self-study document and a site visit for the 2026-27 academic year. This initiative will include a comprehensive review of the university which will lead to the composition of a self-study that shows how Drexel complies with all seven of the MSCHE standards. The co-chairs are looking for volunteers to be a part of the seven working groups.
Working Group Information and Timeline
The working groups will be composed of 5-10 faculty and staff members and will be led by a faculty and staff co-chair. Those co-chairs will also be a part of the MSCHE 2026 Steering Committee. The working groups will meet on a regular basis to make decisions and distribute the workload. Though the gravity of the work may seem daunting, the time commitment for the committee will be very similar to any other Drexel committee.
Here are some of the working group responsibilities:
- Develop research questions to guide the evaluation process
- Create an outline and the narrative of the chapter
- Collect evidence to support the narrative
- Share best practices and potential areas of concern
- Seek feedback and make revisions
- February 2025: Finalize steering committee and working groups
- April 2025 - MSCHE Liaison Visit: will speak with Drexel Stakeholders about the Self-Study Design Template
- Fall 205 - Chapter outlines due
- March 2026 - Draft chapters due
- April/May 2026 - Revisions and re-write
- June/July 2026 - Self-Study shared with Drexel Community
- September 2026 - Finalize Self-Study and upload to the MSCHE portal
- November 2026 - Site visit with peer evaluators
FAQ and the MSCHE Standards
Why are we conducting an accreditation so soon after the 2022 review?
- A federal regulation states that any college or school that undergoes a certain type of complex substantive change review with their institutional accreditor will be immediately put back into self-study. The merger with Salus University fits into that category and will require a review before what would have normally been the 2030-31 academic year.
Is this a full review or will it only be about the merger with Salus University?
- While the merger will be a part of the evaluation, this will be a full accreditation from the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.
Will the process be any different this time?
- The process will largely be the same as in 2022 utilizing the organization strategies, processes and technology that was successful before. The main difference will be the members of the steering committee as well as the working groups. Some of the content will, of course, be different as well considering the changes since 2022 and also the plans for the near future.
What is a Self-Study?
- A self-study is a 100-page narrative document that addresses all of the seven MSCHE standards in specific chapters. This document will be the basis for the external reviewer's evaluation. YOu can find the Drexel 2022 self-study within DrexelOne.
What is a Site Visit?
- A site visit is a three-day visit to campus by peer evaluators from other colleges and universities within the MSCHE region in which Drexel stakeholders answer questions about the self-study and Drexel processes and policies.
What is the Self-Study Design Template?
- The Self-Study Design Template (SSD) is a document that is created in the beginning of the process that provides details and context for the process of the self-study review at the university.
What will the composition of the peer review team?
- The peer evaluators will consist of about seven staff and faculty members from other colleges and schools from within the universities that have Middle States as their institutional accreditor. The team lead will be either a president or a provost.
The MSCHE Standards and a brief sentence description.
Standard I: Mission and Goals:
- How do the mission and goals as well as the strategic plan guide all facets of the Drexel University.
Standard II: Ethics and Integrity:
- How do we display ethics and integrity throughout all university operations including ensuring that Drexel is a welcoming place to all students, staff and faculty.
Standard III: Design and Delivery of the Student Learning Experience:
- How does Drexel organize and deliver the academic experience to students?
Standard IV: Support of the Student Experience:
- How does Drexel support students throughout the whole lifecycle including admissions and post-graduation?
Standard V: Educational Effectiveness: Assessment:
- How does Drexel evaluate student learning?
Standard VI: Planning, Resources, and Institutional Improvement:
- How does Drexel determine how to use it resources and how does it measure whether or not it is effective?
Standard VII: Leadership and Governance:
- What does the leadership structure look like and how do they interact?