Accreditation and State Authorization

Overall University Accreditation

University of the Sciences in Philadelphia is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education:

3624 Market Street, 2nd Floor West
Philadelphia, PA 19104
267-284-5000
http://www.msche.org/

Middle States Commission on Higher Education is an institutional accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation.

Individual College and Program Accreditation and Certification

Doctor of Pharmacy

The Doctor of Pharmacy degree program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE). The ACPE is an autonomous and independent national agency whose board of directors (the decision-and policy-making body) includes pharmacy educators, pharmacy practitioners, state board of pharmacy members/executives, and public representation. A three-membered public interest panel also provides public perspectives in the policy and decision-making processes of accreditation. ACPE's offices are located at:

135 South LaSalle Street, Suite 4100
Chicago, IL 60603
312-664-3575
Fax: 866-228-2631
www.acpe-accredit.org

Doctorate in Occupational Therapy

The Doctorate in Occupational Therapy (DrOT) program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE). The agency is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. ACOTE can be contacted at:

ACOTE
c/o Accreditation Department
American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA)
4720 Montgomery Lane, Suite 200
Bethesda, MD 20814-3449
301-652-6611 extension 2914
www.acoteonline.org

Master of Occupational Therapy

The Master of Occupational Therapy (MOT) program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE). The agency is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. ACOTE can be contacted at:

ACOTE
c/o Accreditation Department
American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA)
4720 Montgomery Lane, Suite 200
Bethesda, MD 20814-3449
301-652-6611 extension 2914
www.acoteonline.org

Doctor of Physical Therapy

If needing to contact the program/institution directly, please call 215-596-8677 or email l.packel@usciences.edu. The Doctor of Physical Therapy Program at the University of the Sciences is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE), 1111 North Fairfax Street, Alexandria, Virginia 22314; telephone: 703-706-3245; email: accreditation@apta.org; website: http://www.capteonline.org.

BS in Chemistry, Biochemistry and Pharmaceutical Chemistry

BS degrees offered through the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry are certified by the American Chemical Society (ACS), provided students include in their program specified chemistry electives.

Office of Professional Training
American Chemical Society
1155 16th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036
202-872-4589
www.acs.org

Biochemistry

The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB) has accredited the undergraduate biochemistry program. ASBMB accreditation recognizes undergraduate biochemistry and molecular biology programs whose features and infrastructure fulfill the basic expectations of the society. Accreditation provides access to an independently developed and scored examination for assessing student performance, and gives students the opportunity to have their degree certified by the ASBMB.

11200 Rockville Pike, Suite 302
Rockville, MD 20852-3110
240-283-6600
www.asbmb.org

Medical Laboratory Science

The program in medical laboratory science is affiliated with hospital programs that are accredited by the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences (NAACLS).

5600 North River Road
Suite 720
Rosemont, IL 60018-5119
773-714-8880
www.naacls.org

Graduate Professional Physician Assistant Studies

Accreditation Status

Accreditation Review Committee on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA) has accepted the voluntary withdrawal of the PA Program at the University of the Sciences from the ARC-PA accreditation process effective February 22, 2017. The PA program will remain on Accreditation-Probation until it has completed teaching out currently enrolled students – but no later than June of 2019. The PA program will not accept any new students for enrollment. Specific questions regarding the Program and its plans should be directed to the Program Director and/or the appropriate institutional official(s).

12000 Findley Road
Suite 275
Johns Creek, GA 30097
770-476-1224
www.arc-pa.org   

Undergraduate and Graduate Business Programs

BS and MBA programs in Pharmaceutical & Healthcare Business are accredited by the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP) .

11520 West 119th Street
Overland Park, KS  66213
913-339-9356
www.acbsp.org

Undergraduate Exercise Science & Wellness Management Program

The Exercise Science & Wellness Management program (BSHS) is accredited by the National Wellness Institute (NWI). The accrediting agency can be contacted at:

PO Box 827
1300 College Court
Stevens Point, WI 54481 
715-342-2969
www.nationalwellness.org

State Authorizaton

University of the Sciences, established as an institution of higher learning in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is an authorized Pennsylvania degree-granting institution.

State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement

Pennsylvania is a member state of the State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (SARA), and University of the Sciences (USciences) is approved as a SARA participating institution.

The State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (SARA) is a voluntary agreement among its member states that establishes comparable national standards for interstate offering of postsecondary distance education courses and programs. The advantage for students is that SARA makes it easier for them to participate in online educational courses and programs that are offered by authorized colleges and universities located outside of a student's state of residence. As a SARA participating institution, USciences is authorized to provide distance education to students who reside in another SARA member state. Presently, 49 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico are SARA members (only California is not a member). More information about SARA can be found at www.nc-sara.org.

Although the USciences health professions degree programs are not distance education programs (e.g., occupational therapy, pharmacy, physical therapy), provisions of SARA facilitate the placement of enrolled students at experiential learning (e.g., clinical) sites located outside of Pennsylvania. However, it is important to note that each state has the legal authority to independently determine its requirements and processes for professional licensure, and SARA has no effect on such requirements/processes nor does it provide reciprocity for professional licensure requirements in any state or territory. It has been determined that graduates of the USciences Master of Occupational Therapy (MOT), Doctor of Occupational Therapy (DrOT), Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD), and Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) Programs presently meet the respective educational eligibility requirements needed to pursue professional licensure in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. It is important to also note that:  1.) the educational eligibility requirements necessary to pursue professional licensure in a given state are subject to change; and, 2.) states often have other eligibility requirements, in addition to education, that must be satisfied in order to seek professional licensure. For additional information regarding SARA and professional licensure requirements, contact the Office of the Provost (215-596-8865).