The University College of the Caribbean (UCC) has received international institutional accreditation status from the United Kingdom-based Accreditation Service for International Colleges & Universities (ASIC).
ASIC is an independent body specialising in the accreditation of schools, colleges, universities, training organisations and online and distance education providers in the United Kingdom and overseas.
It is approved by the United Kingdom government as an accreditation agency, and is a member of the British Quality Foundation as well as the CHEA International Quality Group in the United States.
"I am pleased to inform you that it was recommended that the University College of the Caribbean be institutionally accredited," Professor John Wilson, head of accreditation at ASIC, advised in a recent letter.
Wilson said UCC "has many areas of strength and good practice and, in particular, has been awarded commendable grades overall and thus designated as an ASIC Premier Institution".
This decision follows a visit by an ASIC accreditation review team to Jamaica last October to assess the operations of UCC and its partner institution, the Caribbean School of Medical Sciences of Jamaica.
Professor Bernadette Warner, vice-president for academic affairs and internationalisation at UCC, in welcoming the attainment of ASIC accreditation, said it confirms that the institution meets high standards of education, welfare and good practice.
Professor Dennis J. Gayle, executive chancellor and interim president at UCC, said the international institutional accreditation status provided by ASIC "represented a well-earned accolade to the continuing quality assurance efforts of the UCC community".