PPE Students

Postsecondary schools certified to operate in Virginia fall into a variety of categories: nonprofit or proprietary; degree-granting or non-degree, vocational; and in-state or out-of-state. Postsecondary schools in Virginia may be large, serving thousands of students and providing instruction in a multitude of areas, or small schools providing vocational training in specific areas like massage therapy or dental assisting. These private universities, colleges, career colleges and vocational schools provide educational instruction to more than 40,000 residents of the Commonwealth of Virginia on a full-time or part-time basis annually.

Benefits of Attending a SCHEV-Certified School

SCHEV’s Private Postsecondary Education (PPE) unit oversees private postsecondary institutions that operate in Virginia and are subject to certification. This oversight provides a set of protections for students before they enroll, while they are in their programs, and when schools or programs close.

1. Protections before enrollment

Regulated schools must provide clear information and disclosures so students understand what they are signing up for, including:

• Written enrollment agreements that describe the program, tuition and fees, and program length.
• Refund and cancellation policies.
• Grievance and complaint procedures.
• Relevant information about licensure or certification outcomes, where applicable.
• Information about transferability of credits, when relevant.
• For out-of-state institutions with a physical presence in Virginia, assurance that credits earned at Virginia locations will transfer to the institution’s principal campus or another branch as part of the same program.

Regulated schools are also subject to limits on misleading advertising and representations, including how they describe their status and relationship with SCHEV.

SCHEV’s website provides information on regulated institutions so students and families can verify that a school is subject to state oversight and has met baseline standards to operate in Virginia.

2. Protections during enrollment

During a student’s program, PPE requirements help protect both students’ finances and the quality of their education:

• Minimum standards for refund and cancellation policies, including full refunds in defined early periods and tiered refunds thereafter.
• Requirements that most regulated schools maintain a surety instrument (such as a bond or letter of credit) to protect unearned tuition if the school fails to deliver instruction or closes unexpectedly.
• A formal complaint process that allows students to bring concerns to SCHEV if they cannot be resolved at the institutional level.
• Academic and operational standards related to faculty qualifications, appropriate credit and curriculum requirements for degree programs, and adequate facilities and instructional resources.
• Periodic visits to operational schools to review compliance, including instructor qualifications, records maintenance, and adherence to regulatory standards.

3. Protections when schools close or programs are discontinued

If a regulated school closes or discontinues programs, PPE requirements provide additional protections:

• A structured closure process, including notification to SCHEV, plans for teach-out or transfer options, and clear communication to students.
• Requirements for permanent academic records, including transcripts, to be preserved by the institution, its successors, or an approved custodian so students can continue to access them in the future.
• Access to the Student Tuition Guaranty Fund (STGF) in certain circumstances, providing refunds of unearned tuition when certified schools close.
• Support for affected students through information on transfer opportunities and, in some cases, transfer fairs or coordination with receiving institutions.

Certification Standards for Schools

Certified schools are required to meet minimum standards designed to protect students and their investments in higher education. Those standards include, but are not limited to:

1. Faculty must possess appropriate credentials in the discipline being taught. 
2. Elective and required courses are offered in a schedule and in a sequence that enables both full-time and part-time students to complete the program in a reasonable period of time.
3. Institutions have a continual curriculum development plan, ensuring programs offered are relevant to the current employment market and which measures the school’s effectiveness in adequately preparing students to gainfully enter the workforce upon graduation.
4. Assurance that courses offered conform to state, federal, trade or manufacturing standards of training for those occupational fields in which established standards exist.
5. Availability of student completion/graduation information, as well as placement information for certain institutions, upon request.
6. Availability of policy documents that define the minimum requirements for admission, as well as describe the school’s transfer policy, refund policy, students’ rights and responsibilities, and the grievance policy.
7. Disclosure of information related to financial aid programs, school accreditation status, requirements for satisfactory program completion, and tuition, fees and other related charges.
8. School maintains records that demonstrate that it is financially sound, exercises proper management, financial controls and business practices, and can fulfill its commitments to education or training.
9. Faculty are accessible to students for academic or course advising at times outside of the course’s regularly scheduled class hours.
10. Access to a library with a collection, staff, services, equipment and facilities that are adequate and appropriate for the purpose and enrollment of the school.