A Self-Study Forum is an excellent opportunity to dive deeper into the Standards and Criteria. During this 2 day workshop, the ACEN Directors will help you to prepare for your peer review, while also helping you earn continuing education units.

The ACEN Directors will review all of the ACEN Standards and assist you in gaining a deeper understanding of each Criterion within the Standards. The goal is to support nursing faculty and administrators with demonstrating compliance and provide guidance for writing the Self-Study Report for individual programs in preparation for an ACEN site visit. The Self-Study program includes more time spent on the Standards, more real-life examples, and more interactive guidance, especially with Standard 4 Curriculum and Standard 5 Outcomes.

Self-Study Forums are beneficial for nurse administrators, faculty, and staff of ACEN-accredited programs, or Candidate programs, as well as anyone considering ACEN accreditation. The best way to set your program up for accreditation success is to involve as many people as possible early in the process.

While forum attendance is beneficial at any stage of the accreditation process, the most benefit can be gained by attending two to three years prior to the next scheduled site visit. Seating for forums is limited, and representatives from ACEN-accredited programs and Candidate programs receive preference. For programs in Candidacy, it is recommended that program representatives attend as soon as possible after Candidacy status has been attained. Non-accredited programs that are interested in pursuing ACEN accreditation can also be accommodated on a space available basis.

You can expect to see the following benefits from Self-Study Forum attendance:

• In-depth analysis and application of the Standards and Criteria
• A deeper understanding of the Self-Study Report expectations
• Demystification of the accreditation process and Peer Review
• Participation in networking opportunities
• Earning of continuing education units

The target audience is the nurse administrators and program coordinators of currently-accredited ACEN programs with fewer than three years of experience in the role, the nurse administrators and program coordinators of programs with candidate status, or the nurse administrators and program coordinators of programs that recently obtained ACEN accreditation.

The Program Administrators Workshop does not address the same topics as the ACEN Self-Study Forum. Those also interested in learning about the development of a Self-Study Report, preparation of a Follow-Up Report, or information related to an onsite accreditation review should register separately for the ACEN Self-Study Forum.