State Authorization Leaders,
As the weather warms up and spring semester winds down, we wanted to provide you with some important state authorization updates:
NC-SARA Reporting
Thank you for your outstanding effort to review and return placement data for the annual required NC-SARA report. Submission of this report is essential to maintaining The Ohio State University's NC-SARA membership, which enables our authorization in 48 SARA member states and districts. We appreciate your diligent work, and value your feedback.
If your college has not yet returned the requested data, please do so as soon as possible. Feel free to contact us if you have questions about the data or if you would like to discuss the report.
International Authorizations
Authorization to enroll students living outside the U.S. in distance education programs has been a continued topic of discussion in state authorization networks.
The University Professional and Continuing Education Association, or UPCEA, recently presented a webinar on the topic of international authorization. Aaron Lacey, a partner at Thompson Coburn, recommended developing a risk portfolio for online enrollments rather than attempting to complete a country-by-country survey of regulations.
For example, enrolling students internationally in 100% online non-licensure programs is considered a low institutional risk. Risk increases when:
- A program includes an on-ground placement
- Recruiters travel to a foreign location
- Physical presence is established in another country
- A program leads to licensure or certification
Programs that lead to licensure involve the highest level of risk. It is essential to work with regulators in that country to ensure that a licensure program meets foreign licensure requirements. Lacey also said that institutions must disclose the licensure status prior to enrolling international students in a licensure program.
It is advised that institutions engage an attorney who is located in the foreign country before enrolling foreign students in a program with a high level of risk. An attorney in the foreign location will be best equipped to research foreign laws and regulations, and to navigate foreign regulatory agencies and approval processes.
Our team is continuing to monitor international authorization news and we are partnering with the Office of International Affairs to prioritize international issues as they arise.
For disclosure templates, restricted country lists, and more information on international authorizations, please visit the faculty and staff state authorization webpage.
As always, thank you for your support. Please contact us if you have any questions or comments!
Leslie Weibush & Lisa Siefker
State Authorization
Office of Distance Education and eLearning
ODEE-stateauth@osu.edu | odee.osu.edu | @OhioStateIT
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