Why Study at an Accredited English Language Program or School?

The decision to study English in the United States is a big one, and with that decision comes many questions. The primary question is where to go to study. This may depend on whether your goal is to improve your English before going on to a college or university or whether it is to improve your English for professional or personal purposes. Whatever the reason, going to an accredited program or language institution will help you be confident that it offers a quality learning experience.

A CEA accredited site has been reviewed to determine how well it meets the CEA Standards for English Language Programs and Institutions. CEA accredited programs and institutions have met the following requirements:

• They have a published mission that guides activities, policies, and allocation of resources.
• They have in place formalized plans to continually review and revise programs and services.
• They have a curriculum focused on meeting the assessed needs of students. They maintain an effective system for initial placement and assessing enrolled students to monitor progression from level to level.
• They maintain experienced, professionally qualified faculty that are committed to teaching.
• They have facilities and administrative and fiscal resources to provide an excellent learning environment.
• They provide a wide array of student services—ongoing orientation; academic personal, visa, and immigration advising; and social, recreational, and cultural activities.
• They are pledged to use ethical recruiting practices; all promotional literature has been deemed to be accurate and complete and to fully inform students of what benefits they will receive from their tuition.

CEA does not recommend or endorse individual schools. Please use the website for each accredited program or language institution on CEA's Directory of Accredited Sites to contact the school directly. Representatives who work at each accredited school can tell you more about their mission and admission requirements.