Recognition explained

“Recognized” can mean four different things. Here is what each label on this site covers, what it does not, and where to check the official position.

Four separate kinds of recognition

Each kind is recorded separately, with its scope, its source and the date we checked. One does not imply another.

Institutional recognition: The institution is recognized, licensed or accredited by the relevant national authority or accreditor. This does not by itself cover every campus or partner-run program.
Authority to award the qualification: Authority to confer a degree at this level. Check which institution confers the degree you would receive.
Program accreditation: A specific program is accredited by a quality or industry body. Check the scope: campus, level and dates.
Professional association membership: Membership of an association. Membership is not accreditation.

A record states what it covers: which institution, which campus, which level, and for what period. We never extend it automatically.

Another campus. Recognition of an institution does not automatically cover a branch campus or a campus in another country.
A partner or teaching provider. If one institution teaches and another confers the degree, the recognition that matters most for the award is that of the institution conferring it, and the teaching provider’s own status is shown separately.
Another country. A degree recognized where it was awarded is not automatically recognized elsewhere. Each country, employer, professional body and receiving university decides for itself.
A similar name. A bachelor’s degree in one country is not assumed to equal a bachelor’s degree with the same name in another. We show the official award title as published and do not convert it.

Every program shows where you study, who teaches and who awards the degree, because these can differ.

Awarded by the institution itself: The institution is itself degree-granting and confers this degree.
Awarded by a partner institution: A different university or body confers the degree. Check that institution’s recognition and whether it covers the campus where you will study.
Jointly awarded: Two institutions confer the award together.
Taught by the provider, validated by another institution: The listed institution teaches the program; another university validates the curriculum and standards.
Awarding arrangement not stated: The official pages do not say who confers the degree.

Verified in an official record: The institution, award or program appears in a regulator’s, accreditor’s or awarding body’s own register or document that we consulted, and the record is cited with its date.
Stated by the institution: The institution says it holds this status on its own website, but we could not confirm it in an official record. Treat it as a claim to check with the body concerned.
Not verified: We could not establish the status from a record or from the institution. It is flagged for review. This is not a negative finding.
Sources conflict: Sources disagree. Both are shown and the record is flagged for review.

It is not a quality score or a ranking. Rankings are not recognition.
It is not a promise of admission, a visa, funding, credit transfer, an internship or a job.
Association membership is not accreditation.
Institutions and sponsors cannot buy or award themselves a status. Only research and editorial review set it, with an audit trail.

The official position always comes from the relevant authority in the country concerned, not from this directory.

The national authority or register for higher education in the country where you will study. We link to the register we used on each record; where a register could not be reached, the record says so.
For recognition of a foreign qualification in another country, the national information centre for academic recognition. The ENIC-NARIC networks list these centres.
The UNESCO Global Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher Education sets common principles for fair recognition between states that have ratified it; it does not make any individual qualification automatically recognized.
For immigration, the immigration authority of the destination. See our destinations guide.

Last updated 19 October 2026.