Accredited in America
In the United States colleges and universities are not accredited by the Secretary of Education but by accrediting agencies. In turn, there is a list of accrediting agencies that are recognized by the Secretary of Education (a list of state-recognized agencies is provided at the Department of Education’s website). If an accrediting agency is not recognized by the Secretary of Education it means that the schools accredited by this agency are not eligible to receive federal funding or participate in federal-related programs.
So what do these agencies do? They are there to help you, the consumer, in your decision, because they basically tell you if the program of studies or the institution in general meet the high standards that an educational institution should have. Therefore the first question you should ask a college in Greece is “Which accrediting agency are you recognized by?” Once you know the accrediting agency you should ask to see the last review and their standards of quality or just contact the accrediting agency and find out a little bit more about the school. Then, you should find out a little bit more about the accrediting agency. If the accrediting agency is recognized by the Secretary of Education, you should be fine, but if it isn’t, proceed cautiously.
Accredited in Greece
Private colleges and universities have been operating in Greece for a couple of decades now and although they are allowed to operate, their degrees are not recognized by the Greek state, therefore excluding its graduates from the public job sector. This is happening because of a conflict with the Greek constitution that mandates free education for all citizens. However, this part of the Greek constitution now also strongly conflicts with the European Union laws, therefore Greece will have to recognize private college degrees sooner or later despite public resentment.
For degrees earned at universities in a foreign country, there is an agency in Greece known as DOATAP that is responsible for evaluating such degrees and validating their compatibility with degrees granted by state universities in Greece. This “translation” of your foreign degree may be a long and arduous process that may not always have the expected results from the applicant.
DOATAP, however, can only recognize degrees from foreign universities in foreign countries. For example, there are universities in America that also have a campus in Athens for studying abroad. If, as a student of such a university, you get your degree in America and the majority of your program of studies is done there, DOATAP can help you. But if your program of studies is mostly done in the Athens campus (of the same university), then your degree cannot be accredited in Greece.
Professional Rights of Graduates of American Universities in Greece: Without recognizing your degree, the Greek government has passed a law recognizing your professional rights in Greece (so, for example, if you study law here at an American University you now have the opportunity to actually practice it legally).
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