Is this Day 1 CPT university legit? 3 steps to check if the university that offers Day 1 CPT programs is accredited.

Choosing a university for your Day 1 CPT program is a critical decision that can significantly impact your academic and professional future, particularly for international students navigating visa complexities. It’s paramount to select accredited universities to avoid potential complications, such as a Request for Evidence (RFE) when changing visa status from F1 to H1B. But what makes a school trustworthy? Here’s a detailed guide to help you verify the accreditation of institutions offering Day 1 CPT programs.

Understanding Regional Accreditation

Accreditation is a hallmark of academic quality and integrity, and selecting a regionally accredited institution ensures that the education provided meets rigorous standards. In the United States, regional accreditation is granted by bodies recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). These organizations assess colleges and universities based on stringent criteria, ensuring they meet high standards of academic excellence and operational integrity.

“The accrediting organizations identified in this directory are recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). Recognition by CHEA affirms that the standards and processes of the accrediting organization are consistent with the academic quality, improvement and accountability expectations that CHEA has established, including the eligibility standard that the majority of institutions or programs each accredits are degree-granting.”

quote from Regional Accrediting Organizations:

There are six regional accreditations in the US, as you can see from the map below.

Here are the names and their abbreviations:

1. Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU)
2. Higher Learning Commission (HLC)
3. WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC) & Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges, Western Association of Schools and Colleges (ACCJC)
4. Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC)
5. Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE)
6. New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE)

A Step-by-Step Guide on How to Find Out if A Day 1 CPT University is Accredited:

1. The simplest way to find out the accreditation of a university is to Google the following: “[school name] accreditation” The search result will show you the school’s current active accreditation, and you could look for if one of the regional accreditations is in the school’s list of accreditations.

For example, let’s try Trine University:

When we Google “Trine University accreditation”, here is the search result:

We can see that Trine University is accredited by Higher Learning Commission (HLC), which is one of the six regional accreditations. So Trine University can be considered trustworthy for international students who are considering pursuing day 1 cpt programs.

If you want to double-check, you can go to the Higher Learning Commission’s official website, and look up the school’s name, which is “Trine University” in this case. The search result on HLC’s official website came back that they did accredit Trine University, which means that in most cases, you can go to this school without concerning about the legitimacy of their programs.

Let’s see another example, when you Google “American National University accreditation”, the search result comes back like this:

It looks like this university doesn’t have any of the six regional accreditations. It means that this school might not be as accredited as the ones with regional accreditations, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that if you go to this school you will definitely have some problems. However, it could be seen as a red flag and our consultant would only recommend our students to choose the schools with regional accreditations.

Schools of Concern

Here is some of the schools that you need to pay extra attention to. We have seen some red flags in these universities and will warn our students to be careful if they would want to apply to any of these schools. Again, attending these schools will not necessarily result in problems in the future, but we advise you to be careful and do more research for the following schools.

1. International Technological University – Its WASC accreditation had been suspended and now the school is in the process of appealing and reapplying for its WASC regional accreditation.
2. American National University – No regional accreditation.
3. California Victor University – It is suspected to be fraudulent to its F1 students 
4. University of North America – It is accredited by ACICS as a for-profit university, but the US Department of Education has stopped approving the ACICS accreditation.
5. The University of Fairfax –No regional accreditation.
6. Infoserve Technologies Institute – It is suspected to be fraudulent to its F1 students 
7. Saint Peters University – In 2022, its Day 1 CPT MBA program was shut down all of a sudden with no sign or warning beforehand, which resulted in many students having to transfer to other schools or to other programs within the university.
8. Humphreys University – It is warned by WACS, but it has submitted a plan and promised to change for the better. It has expressed confidence that it will pass the inspection by WASC and lose the warning.
9. United States University – No regional accreditation.
10. Computer Systems Institute – No accreditation. Private for-profit school.
11. Stratford University – It is accredited by ACICS as a for-profit university, but the US Department of Education has stopped approving the ACICS accreditation.

How We Can Help

At CISI, a non-profit organization, we offer free and unbiased one-on-one consultations to assist you in navigating the complexities of choosing the right school and the right program. We promise to not charge any penny from our students and not recommend schools based on commission. We are only here to help because we have been there. Contact us via WhatsApp or email for personalized support and guidance. We also offer application fee waivers for most Day 1 CPT schools. Contact us today at [email protected] or WhatsApp (929)709-7841 to find out if we could at least help you waive your application fee!