Accreditation

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In systems engineering accreditation is the formal certification that a model or simulation is acceptable for use for a specific purpose. Accreditation is conferred by the organization best positioned to make the judgment that the model or simulation in question is acceptable. That organization may be an operational user, the program office, or a contractor, depending upon the purposes intended.^[1]

Accreditation is a process in which certification of competency, authority, or credibility is presented.

Organizations that issue credentials or certify third parties against official standards are themselves formally accredited by the standards bodies; hence they are sometimes known as "accredited certification bodies".^[2] The accreditation process ensures that their certification practices are acceptable, typically meaning that they are competent to test and certify third parties, behave ethically, and employ suitable quality assurance.

One example of accreditation is the accreditation of testing laboratories and certification specialists that are permitted to issue official certificates of compliance with established standards, such as physical, chemical, forensic, quality, and security standards.^[3]

Accreditation processes are used in a wide variety of fields: