Zayed University Faces Loss of Middle States Accreditation

Zayed University, in the United Arab Emirates, faces the loss of its U.S. accreditation unless it can show the Middle States Commission on Higher Education why the accreditor should not withdraw its approval.

A statement from Middle States Monday said that Zayed must show why its accreditation should not be withdrawn. It did not say why the institution faces that demand, but notes that the reasons for a show-cause order can include failure to make sufficient progress toward compliance, demonstrating a lack of integrity that could harm students, or facing imminent closure. (Note: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that Middle States had asserted that Zayed faces imminent closure. Inside Higher Ed regrets the error.)

Officials at Zayed provided a statement Wednesday that said: "Zayed University underwent an MSCHE self-study evaluation earlier this year. The MSCHE Commission concluded ZU was compliant with 11 out of 15 requirements of affiliation and 5 out of 7 standards. The Commission provided the university with additional time to submit additional necessary documents to show cause by 1 March. We have already taken action to address most of the issues raised by the visiting team, and we are in the process of addressing the rest of the issues. We remain accredited whilst this process is still going on and are confident that the accreditation will be renewed.”