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June 17, 2024

Since 1913, CU Boulder has been accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC). Our continued accreditation with HLC is a hallmark of the high-quality education we provide. While the accreditation process has changed over the last century, accreditation remains a unique opportunity for continuous self-examination of the institution's strengths and challenges—and a chance to gain thoughtful observations from other leaders in higher education. 

CU Boulder’s last full accreditation review concluded in March 2020. In June, the university submitted its Year 4 Assurance Argument Filing to the HLC. In this filing, we provided evidence of our continuous growth and improvement as an institution and our continued commitment to providing our students with a high-quality education.   

This filing also included updates on two areas of follow-up from our 2020 review: to design and implement a common curriculum that defines the learning experience and intended learning outcomes for all CU Boulder undergraduates, in alignment with the Academic Futures strategic initiative; and to create a cross-campus plan for the assessment of student learning. The university has made significant progress in both of these areas since our last accreditation review, and we look forward to receiving feedback from HLC reviewers this summer.

A draft of the assurance filing, prepared by university leadership, staff, faculty and students, was provided to campus for review and comment. The comment period is closed.

CU Boulder is also the home of several programs and colleges that hold specialized or programmatic accreditation. Accreditation activities through our institutional and programmatic accreditors allow CU Boulder to reflect on ways we can improve to best meet the needs of our students and our mission and to make public how well, and in what ways, we as a university accomplish our goals. These efforts at CU Boulder are led by subject matter experts at the college and program levels. At the institutional level, CU Boulder's accreditation efforts bring together diverse views, evidence and projects from the entire campus to document our continued compliance with accreditation standards and criteria and to articulate our goals. 

As good stewards in higher education, CU Boulder is proud to continue this tradition of high standards for continuous institutional improvement that benefits our students, faculty and staff, and impacts our state and the world.

Justin Schwartz, Chancellor, University of Colorado Boulder