Membership in the Middle States Association includes a commitment to continuous self-improvement through self-study and review by peers. Colleges and universities become members of Middle States upon accreditation by the Commission.

Middle States accreditation is an expression of confidence in an institution’s mission and goals, its performance, and its resources. Based upon the results of an institutional self-study and an evaluation by a team of peers and colleagues assigned by the Commission, accreditation attests the judgment of the Commission that an institution has met the following criteria:

·         that it is guided by well-defined and appropriate goals;

·         t hat it has established conditions and procedures under which its goals can be realized;

·         that it is accomplishing its goals substantially;

·         that it is so organized, staffed, and supported that it can be expected to continue to accomplish its goals; and

·         that it meets the standards of the Middle States Association’s Commission on Higher Education.

The key document developed by the Commission to guide institutions through the application for accreditation and re-accreditation is Characteristics of Excellence in Higher Education. The fourteen standards in this document reflect indicators of quality that are appropriate for institutions of higher education and are the basis for judging institutional effectiveness. They identify an institution’s mission, goals, and objectives as guideposts for all aspects of the accreditation protocol.

The initial accreditation process involved five distinct stages that culminated in the announcement, in June 2004, that the  Middle States Commission on Higher Education had accredited AUB .