Accreditations & recognitions
We at Bluffton University work to provide an enriching collegiate experience that prepares “students of all backgrounds for life as well as for vocation.”
While the true measure of our success is in the success of our graduates, it is rewarding when our efforts are recognized by outside organizations.
Accreditations
Bluffton University is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission (HLC), a regional accreditation agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education, and is a member of the North Central Association, 312-263-0456.
Bluffton has been continually accredited by the HLC since 1956.
Education
Bluffton’s education department is accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) and approved by the State Department of Education of Ohio for the preparation of teachers at the initial and advanced levels in the regular academic fields and in specialized fields. In fall 2018, Bluffton received full accreditation with no areas for improvement or stipulations cited.
Social work
The social work program is accredited by the Council on Social Work Education at the baccalaureate level. At the last review, Bluffton’s social work program received re-accreditation through 2029.
nursing
The BSN program was granted a full five-year accreditation by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education in 2023. Bluffton’s first group of traditional undergraduate BSN students completed their studies in May 2022. Benefits of the accreditation status extend to both nursing graduates as well as current Bluffton nursing students.
Music
Bluffton University has been an accredited institutional member of the National Association of Schools of Music since 1968.
Master of Dietetics
Bluffton received candidacy accreditation from Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND) in 2022.
Master of Social Work
The MSW program is approved by the Ohio Department of Higher Education and the Higher Learning Commission. The program is in pre-candidacy for accreditation with the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). The MSW program expects to be granted candidacy in the 2023–24 academic year.
Recognitions
U.S. News & World Report
The 2020 edition of the U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges guidebook ranks Bluffton
in the top tier in the “Best Regional Colleges” listing. Bluffton has made the U.S.
News rankings top tier for two decades.
More about U.S. News...
Affiliations
The university is an institutional member of
- Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Ohio
- Council of Independent Colleges
- Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference
- National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities
- Mennonite Education Agency
- National Collegiate Athletic Association (Division III)
- Ohio Foundation of Independent Colleges
- OHIOLINK
- American Association of Colleges of Teacher Education
