In April 2021, The New England Commission of Higher Education has determined that the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik is eligible to proceed with an application for candidacy for accreditation within two years. USEK is scheduled to undergo its candidacy visit November 9 - 12, 2022.

A determination of eligibility is not candidacy or accreditation, nor does it indicate a likelihood of eventual accreditation.

Questions about eligibility and the accreditation process should be directed to the President of the Commission.

The New England Commission of Higher Education
301 Edgewater Place, Suite 210
Wakefield, MA 01880, U.S.A.
Direct line to Commission offices: (781) 425-7785
E-mail: info@neche.org
Website: www.neche.org

In September 2009, USEK has completed an Institutional Evaluation Program conducted by the European Association of Universities (EUA) and became the first university in the Middle East that conducts such an evaluation programme.

The Institutional Evaluation Programme (IEP) is an independent membership service of the European University Association (EUA), the representative organization of universities and national rectors’ conferences in 47 European countries. IEP is a full member of ENQA (the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education) and is listed in EQAR (the European Quality Assurance Register for Higher Education). Created in 1994, IEP ensures that higher education institutions gain maximum benefit from a comprehensive evaluation conducted by a team of experienced higher education leaders. To date, IEP evaluation teams have carried out nearly to 400 evaluations and follow-up evaluations of diverse higher education institutions in 45 countries worldwide.

This evaluation programme conducted lasted for an entire year. Following the auto-evaluation phase which extended over more than 6 months, USEK hosted, twice, a team of 5 experts from the EUA. The experts did not only evaluate the action plan and the applied practices inside the university, but they have also met the majority of officials, a group of students, as well as different stakeholders involved in the university community (Director of Higher Education in Lebanon, representatives of NGOs and associations, entrepreneurs, etc.).

See more: Press conference

Conducting a European Institutional Accreditation at USEK was to assure that the university is in a continuous process of improvement and that strategic vision and practices meet the European standards.

The European Institutional Accreditation was initially granted to USEK in December 2012 for a five-year period and in June 2017, the Accreditation Commission of evalag officially reaccredited USEK, thus re-awarding the evalag international label for Institutional Accreditation for another five years until 2022.

The German institution, evalag EVALUATIONSAGENTUR BADEN – WÜRTTEMBERG. evalag is an active member of ENQA (European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education), EQAR (European Quality Assurance Register), CEENQA (Central and Eastern European Network of Quality Assurance Agencies in Higher Education), DeGEval (Gesellschaft für Evaluation e.V., German Evaluation Society), and INQAAHE (International Network for Quality Assurance Agencies in Higher Education).

evalag is known as a centre of competence for quality assurance and enhancement and a source of support for higher education institutions and other scientific institutions, with commitment for good quality in teaching and learning, research and other services.

See more:

Institutional Reaccreditation Assessment Report

Press conference – Initial accreditation 2012

In 2015, USEK became the first university in Lebanon and the region to gain accreditation for its student support services, which aims to ensure its commitment to offer high quality services to its students for their welfare on campus, and ultimately for supporting them in their learning, career and life goals.

The student support services at USEK have successfully gained the matrix accreditation, confirming that all areas of the services provided by the following offices met the matrix standard, recognizing that the University is committed to provide students with 360-degree services and support:

• Admissions Office
• Registrar Office
• Student Affairs Office
• Financial Aid Office
• International Affairs Office (international students’ services)
• Careers Services Office
• USEK Counseling Center (UCC)
• Institutional Research and Assessment Office (previously Quality Assurance and Institutional Effectiveness Office)

Moreover, USEK offers well-established effective partnerships and networks that support and bring added value to the services offered, empowered by the commitment of the staff who provide an impartial and relevant service to students.

The matrix standard is a unique quality standard established in the UK as a means for organizations to assess and measure their advice and support services, which ultimately sustain individuals in their choice of career, learning, work and life goals.

The accreditation was initially obtained in July 2015 following a 3 day on-site assessment visit undertaken by Assessment Services Ltd, during which the matrix assessor had individual and group meetings with the University administration, directors and staff of the concerned offices, students, and external partners such as schools and employers.

The reaccreditation visit was held in July 2018 for another three years. Annual Continuous Improvement Checks are conducted to confirm that the University is successfully maintaining the Matrix Accreditation.

Applied and Natural Sciences

Two Science Programs are accredited by the Applied and Natural Science Accreditation Commission of ABET, http://www.abet.org, the global accreditor of college and university programs in applied science, computing, engineering, and engineering technology.

These programs are listed as follows:

Faculty of Arts and Sciences:

• Actuarial and Financial Mathematics (BS)

Higher Institute of Nursing Sciences affiliated to the School of Medicine and Medical Sciences:

• Nursing Sciences (BS)

Computing Programs

Two Computing Programs are accredited by the Computing Accreditation Commission of ABET, http://www.abet.org,the global accreditor of college and university programs in applied science, computing, engineering, and engineering technology.



These programs are listed as follows:

Faculty of Arts and Sciences:

• Computer Science (BS)
• Information Technology (BS)

Engineering Programs

All the Engineering undergraduate programs at USEK are accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, http://www.abet.org, the global accreditor of college and university programs in applied science, computing, engineering, and engineering technology.

These programs are listed as follows:

School of Engineering:

• Agricultural Engineering (Engineering Diploma)
• Biomedical Engineering (BE)
• Chemical Engineering (BE)
• Civil Engineering (BE)
• Computer Engineering (BE)
• Electrical and Electronics Engineering (BE)
• Mechanical Engineering (BE)
• Telecommunications Engineering (BE)

To know more about ABET, please click on the following link: Why Accreditation Matters

USEK WINS THE #ABETCONFIDENT VIDEO CONTEST 2018

Based on the initiative of the ABET Accreditation Committee at the University, USEK students and graduates from 9 computing and engineering programs have participated in #ABETconfident video competition that aims to capture the confidence that students have in their ABET-accredited education. On February 23, 2018, the students submitted their video #USEK_ABETconfident.

ABET congratulated USEK for winning the contest and expressed the jury’s appreciation for preparing a great video and for involving students from different programs who have successfully shown their #ABETconfident perspectives.

On March 8, 2018, USEK celebrated this achievement in the presence of the Vice-President for Community Life, the Provost (Head of the ABET Accreditation Committee at USEK), the deans of concerned academic units, members of ABET Accreditation Committee, students, faculty and staff.

By winning this contest, the #USEK_ABETconfident video was displayed at the 2018 ABET Symposium held on April 12 and 13, 2018 in San Diego, in the presence of hundreds of participants from around the world, including 4 student representatives and a faculty member from USEK.

In June 2017, eight Social Sciences and Humanities programs received the International Accreditation by the Accreditation Commission of evalag, EVALUATIONSAGENTUR BADEN–WÜRTTEMBERG

evalag, known as a center of competence for quality assurance and enhancement and a source of support for higher education institutions and other scientific institutions, with commitment for good quality in teaching and learning, research and other services.

Faculty of Arts and Sciences:

• Education – Basic Education (BA)
• History (BA)
• Journalism and Communication (BA)
• Language and Literature (BA) Emphasizes: Arabic, English, French
• Modern Languages and Translation (BA)
• Philosophy (BA)
• Psychology (BA)
• Social Sciences (BA)

See more:

Social Sciences and Humanities Assessment Report

Master OF ARCHITECTURE - 2019

The term “International Certification” identifies a program as comparable in educational outcomes in all significant aspects to a program accredited by the NAAB in the United States and indicates that it provides an educational experience meeting acceptable standards, even though such program may differ in format or method of delivery. The designation is valid for six years beginning 1 January of the year in which the final visit (Visit 3) took place. In order to maintain the designation, the program must be visited again in the sixth year of the designation.

Schools with programs identified as holding NAAB International Certification are not formally “accredited” as that term is used with reference to programs in the United States and may not refer to their programs as “accredited” by the NAAB. However, students who graduate from internationally certified programs are able to apply for individualized review of their credentials on an expedited basis for purposes of the Educational Evaluation Services for Architects program administered by the NAAB on behalf of the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards.

The Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, School of Architecture and Design has received the International Certification designation from the National Architectural Accrediting Board for the following professional degree program:

Master of Architecture degree (193 semester credit hours) – 2019

SEE MORE:
- Decision Letter
- USEK Architecture Program Report (APR) for Visit Three
- NAAB Visiting Team Report (VTR) for USEK Visit Three
- NAAB 2012 Conditions for Substantial Equivalency
- NAAB 2013 Procedures for Substantial Equivalency

By decision of the French Minister of Culture on April 24, 2018, the Diploma of Master of Architecture awarded by USEK’s School of Architecture and Design is recognized as being equivalent to the French Diploma in Architecture. This recognition was renewed on April 14, 2021, for a period of five years as of the academic year 2020-2021.

The French Diploma in Architecture allows its holder to practice as a salaried architect in France and offers the opportunity to enroll in the training course for “the training of the graduate architect to provide services in person”. This training provides those who undergo it with the opportunity to be enrolled in the registry for exercising the profession as an independent architect.

USEK BUSINESS SCHOOL IS CURRENTLY ENGAGED WITH THE AACSB accreditation process UNDER THE UNIVERSITY’S MISSION TO PURSUE EXCELLENCE AND CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT THROUGHOUT ALL ITS PROGRAMS. .

AACSB stands for the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business - the global association of leaders in education and business, dedicated to supporting and advancing quality business education worldwide.

In 2019, the Undergraduate Medical Education Program Offered by the School of Medicine and Medical Sciences was granted full accreditation for six years, effective from January 2019 until December 2024, after being successfully evaluated by the Association for Evaluation and Accreditation of Medical Education Programs (TEPDAD).

This recent success follows the Basic Medical Education: World Federation for Medical Education (WFME) Global Standards for Quality Improvement awarded in 2015.