Dyesebel L. Chinayo | Gerardo Tumbaga
Accreditation is a driving force for quality assurance of educational institutions. This study used a descriptive qualitative design to elicit the ideas, insights, and experiences of the stakeholders of the School of Criminal Justice and Public Safety of the University of Baguio on accreditation. There were 18 stakeholders who voluntarily responded to the questionnaires containing six open-ended questions. The study revealed that the respondents regard accreditation as the ultimate measure of quality education. The respondents identified the following as the primary benefits they derive from accreditation: improvement of facilities and equipment, improvement of qualifications of teachers and other employees, and other similar related developments and improvements. The respondents identified good performance in the board examination and employability of their graduates as evidences of the quality of education they give to their students. However, there were no evidences to link accreditation to these outputs of quality education. The participation of the faculty in the accreditation was in the preparation and submission of documents. Participation in the interview, dialogue, and conferences were also noted as the significant role of the stakeholders of the SCJPS. Accreditation is beneficial to the school since it was contributory to the attainment of Center of Excellence of the Bachelor of Science in Criminology, and the autonomous status of the University.