The National Accrediting Commission of Cosmetology Arts and Science (NACCAS) is an accrediting commission that accredits cosmetology

Cosmetology

Cosmetology is the study and application of beauty treatment. Branches of specialty including hairstyling, skin care, cosmetics, manicures/pedicures, and electrology....

 schools and beauty schools in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. It is considered an autonomous, independent accrediting agency, as well as a nonprofit

Non-profit organization

Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...

 Delaware corporation

Delaware corporation

The Delaware General Corporation Law is the statute governing corporate law in the state of Delaware. Delaware is well known as a corporate haven. Over 50% of U.S...

. The main office of NACCAS is located in Alexandria, Virginia

Alexandria, Virginia

Alexandria is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2009, the city had a total population of 139,966. Located along the Western bank of the Potomac River, Alexandria is approximately six miles south of downtown Washington, D.C.Like the rest of northern Virginia, as well as...

. NACCAS is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as a national agency for the institutional accreditation of post-secondary schools and departments of cosmetology arts and sciences, including specialized schools.

National Accrediting Commission of Cosmetology Arts and Sciences (NACCAS) History

The NACCAS began in 1969, but it changed its name and became NACCAS in 1981, after two accrediting agencies merged to form the COsmetology Accrediting Commission (CAC). Currently the agency accredits approximately 1,300 cosmetology school and beauty school institutions, affecting more than 120,000 students nationwide. The NACCAS scope of accreditation

Accreditation

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 accreditation bodies ; hence they are sometimes known as "accredited...

 includes more than 20 courses and programs of study related to the cosmetology arts and sciences.

Cosmetology School Accreditation Criteria

Beauty schools and cosmetology schools that are labeled "NACCAS accredited" must meet certain academic and institutional requirements established by the National Accrediting Commission of Cosmetology Arts and Sciences (NACCAS). Some factors for accreditation include: cosmetology school curriculum

Curriculum

See also Syllabus.In formal education, a curriculum is the set of courses, and their content, offered at a school or university. As an idea, curriculum stems from the Latin word for race course, referring to the course of deeds and experiences through which children grow to become mature adults...

, quality of education

Education

Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...

provided to students, facilities, staff and admission policies.