When you want to work with people affected by emergency situations, you should look for a degree program with emergency management accreditation. As this is still a relatively new field, you’ll find just a few dozen programs of this type across the country. Students who graduate from accredited programs learn how to develop management plans for earthquakes, fires, hurricanes and other natural disasters. They also learn how to anticipate problems and both lead and control those working with and under them.
Resource: Top 10 Emergency Management Bachelor’s Degrees Online 2016-2017
What is Accreditation?
As a high school student, you might not know what accreditation means. The most common type is regional accreditation, which usually comes from a regional branch of a national organization or agency. This gives a college or university the right to offer degree programs and bestow degrees on graduating students. It also allows schools to accept federal funds and give students the right to get federal financial aid. Program accreditation is a type of accreditation that applies to a program in a specific topic like psychology, nursing or law. Emergency management accreditation is a type of specialty approval.
How Does It Work?
Colleges seeking approval from a regional or specialty organization usually need to meet some basic requirements. Those schools must first apply and then wait for the organization to do its own research and background checks. The organization will often look at financial aspects, including the amount of donations the college receives every year and how much money it has on hand to cover its operating and overhead costs. Organizations may also look at the requirements that students must meet to graduate, whether the college was accredited by other organizations, the job placement rates among graduates and the histories or backgrounds of its instructors.
Who Accredits Emergency Management Programs?
According to the National Governors Association, the Emergency Management Accreditation Program (MAP) started in 2001 and was the hard work of several organizations, including the National Emergency Management Association (NEMA). NEMA now works with FEMA and the EMI to provide approval for college programs in the United States. These organizations both grant approval the first time and grant renewals to schools that continue meeting its base requirements. Colleges usually need to reapply every 10 years and go through a new investigation period before it can continue saying that it is accredited.
How Can You Find Out About Accreditation?
If you enroll in a management program that does not have EMI approval, you risk graduating and having problems finding a job. Employers know that this approval means that you gain the knowledge necessary for working in disaster relief situations. The best place to find the information that you need is on the United States Department of Education website. The Department of Education lets you look at the status of every college in the country. Not only can you find out if a program is accredited, but you can also find out when it comes up for renewal, if it is currently on probation or if it had any accrediting problems in the past.
Not all colleges prepare students as well as the next. That is why you should see if the college that interests you is accredited or not. EMI is the primary organization responsible for granting emergency management accreditation to programs that help students best prepare for future success.