The Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing is the national accrediting body for nursing education in Canada. In 1987, the organization accredited its first undergraduate program. Since then, the accreditation of nursing education programs in Canada has become a core function of CASN, which reviews over a dozen schools every year.
Accreditation promotes excellence and is recognized worldwide as an important, objective method to assess professional education programs. It identifies strengths and opportunities for improvement that can guide decision making. The process provides administrators and faculty with information regarding areas that require development, modification, and/or resources.
The program of accreditation sets forth overarching quality dimensions, standards, descriptors, and key elements against which internationally educated nurse bridging programs are assessed while also incorporating flexibility regarding the organizational structure and curriculum. This flexibility enables programs to be autonomous in their academic perspectives and responsive to their regional, social, professional, and institutional contexts.
The CASN accreditation program is built on the original philosophy and approach of previous programs. It undergoes regular review and enhancement. This is consistent with a constant quality improvement approach. Recent changes to the accreditation program accommodate evolution of distance education, collaborative partnerships, virtual reviews, and new program models within a new framework and with expanded standards.
For more information on our accreditation program, please contact Joni Boyd <jboyd@casn.ca>.
Achieving Eminence through ExcellenceWith over 130 schools of nursing in Canada offering entry-to-practice pre-licensure education, increased government demands for student admissions, and higher nursing student enrollment than ever recorded, formal recognition that your program meets national standards of excellence is paramount.
Your school produces nursing graduates that possess an in-depth theoretical and scientific foundation, strong clinical reasoning skills, solid clinical judgement, honed technical skills, compassion, caring, and emotional resilience. Your faculty work tirelessly to maintain the high-quality of nursing education that Canada is known for worldwide.
Accreditation lets the world know that an institution meets or exceeds quality standards and is accredited by a recognized national agency like the Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing (CASN). Accreditation tells nursing students and the public that a program has undergone a rigorous self-evaluation and an independent, objective peer appraisal of the overall educational quality. As a voluntary but challenging process that reveals strengths in your program and more importantly, areas to focus on, CASN’s Accreditation seal means your program meets high academic standards and your school is engaged in a process of continuous quality improvement.
Let’s talk about your school, your students, where you are in terms of accreditation, and how we can work together to help your program stand out from the crowd! Call 613-235-3150 x 124 or email Joni Boyd <jboyd@casn.ca> today! Joni is CASN’s very knowledgeable and helpful Managing Director of Accreditation.
