Simon Fraser University is vying to be accredited as a U.S. post-secondary school in a bid to both enter the NCAA and increase its status around the world.
SFU applied to the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities, which will review the university, in a process that will take up to seven years to complete.
SFU’s application, which initiated the process, was approved in January 2009.
The NCAA requires all its members to be accredited in the U.S., but K.C. Bell, SFU’s special projects director, said in a press release the desire for accreditation extends beyond athletics.
“A globally recognized guarantee of quality will increase SFU’s profile abroad and help us attract the best international students.”
“Canada is the only developed country that doesn’t have a national post-secondary accreditation system,” Bell added.
Several B.C. colleges have previously failed the U.S. process.
