Prior to the accreditation site visit, the institution prepares a narrative Assurance Argument describing how it meets each of the five Accreditation Criteria. The text of the Assurance Argument is limited to 35,000 words.
To demonstrate or further support the claims made in the Assurance Argument, the institution uploads supporting documents to an online Evidence File. Examples of evidence might include:
- Mission statements and strategic plan implementation
- Assessment reports and program review documents
- Financial records
- Minutes from meetings of governing boards and decision-making groups
- Materials submitted to and received from specialized accreditation organizations or state agencies
The Assurance Argument and Evidence File are completed fully online in the HLC Assurance System, and made available to the Peer Review team several weeks prior to the site visit.