Accreditation by the AVMA Council on Education (COE) represents the highest standard of achievement for veterinary medical education in the United States. Institutions that earn accreditation confirm their commitment to quality and continuous improvement through a rigorous and comprehensive peer review.

Accreditation is a process by which an educational institution or program submits to a voluntary, non-governmental review to determine whether it meets accepted standards of quality. Within veterinary medicine, the AVMA CoE develops standards and conducts reviews of DVM or equivalent educational programs. An institution or program is considered fully accredited when it is found to meet these standards (see the COE accreditation process for more information).

Graduation from an AVMA CoE accredited institution is a prerequisite for licensure for professional practice through the majority of state licensing boards in order to meet the educational prerequisites.

In brief, AVMA accreditation of veterinary medical programs and institutions assures:

• prospective students that they will meet a competency threshold for entry into practice, including eligibility for professional credentialing and/or licensure;

• employers that graduates have achieved specified learning goals and are prepared to begin professional practice;

• faculty, deans and administrators that their programs measure satisfactorily against national standards and their own stated missions and goals;

• the public that public health and safety concerns are being addressed; and

• the veterinary profession that the science and art of veterinary medicine are being advanced through contemporary curricula.

The LSU School of Veterinary Medicine has been continuously accredited by the AVMA CoE since the School was established.  The maintenance of accreditation requires an Annual Report to the AVMA CoE relative to program status, and a site visit by the AVMA CoE every seven years.

The site visit for the LSU SVM is scheduled from Sunday, September 30^th through Thursday, October 4^th.  The SVM will host a Site Visit Team of eight individuals who will examine our facilities and engage the faculty, students and others to verify and supplement information presented in the self-study report.  Many in the SVM will be involved and it is important for those individuals to understand and appreciate the process and be informed about the standards of accreditation.  Accordingly, links to the following information are provided:

• Accreditation Policies and Procedures of the AVMA Council on Education (COE) available at COE accreditation process. Sections of that document to focus on include:

• The Standards of Accreditation are re-formatted and available here.

• The Self-Study Document prepared by the SVM for the site visit is available here.

• Section 13 of the Policies & Procedures Manual, “Site Visit Agenda,” is provided here.  Importantly, this section provides an overview, and the goals for each scheduled meeting.

• The itinerary for the LSU’s Site Visit is provided in two formats: (NOTE:  Development of LSU’s itinerary was guided by the Chair of the site visit team and departs somewhat from the “Site Visit Agenda” provided above)

• • An “expanded version” which includes the goals for each of the meetings, and

• • A “spread sheet version” which is condensed.

• Note about Confidential Meetings with the Site Visit Team is available here.

09/10/12