IEEE’s Role in ABET Accreditation Programs Explained

There is a misconception among some that IEEE accredits engineering programs in the United States, but that is the responsibility of ABET.

The global, nonprofit agency accredits academic programs leading to degrees in specific disciplines. It does not accredit the institution, school, college, department, facilities, courses, or faculty—only specific academic programs.

IEEE and other professional organizations help evaluate programs for ABET, but they do not have the authority to accredit programs themselves.

There are 34 organizations, including IEEE, that are ABET members and assist the nonprofit with setting policy, developing strategy, and conducting accreditation activities worldwide.

IEEE’s partnership with ABET began in 1932 with an IEEE predecessor society, the American Institute of Electrical Engineers. AIEE, along with six other engineering organizations, founded the Engineers’ Council for Professional Development, which evolved into ABET.

Today more than 4,770 programs at 930 colleges and universities in 42 countries and regions are accredited by ABET. IEEE serves as the lead society for 877 of the programs.

The evaluation structure

IEEE and the other professional societies provide ABET with volunteer program evaluators. The evaluators are assigned to visit educational institutions that seek accreditation. The evaluators provide assessments based on specific criteria developed in collaboration with ABET and the societies. Evaluators must have experience in industry, academia, or government.

Once IEEE volunteers have five or more years of experience serving as a program evaluator, they may be nominated to serve on the IEEE Committee on Engineering Technology Accreditation Activities (CETAA) or the IEEE Committee on Engineering Accreditation Activities (CEAA). IEEE Educational Activities supports these committees, and all of IEEE’s responsibilities with ABET. After spending two to four years on one of the committees, a volunteer may be nominated to serve on one of ABET’s commissions, giving them the opportunity to serve as a team chair.

“Years of developing and leading undergraduate electrical and computer engineering programs, including preparing for ABET accreditation reviews, led me to believe that becoming an ABET program evaluator would be a great way to learn new ways to improve the quality of our own programs while also assisting others.” —Victor Nelson

Each accreditation visit is led by a team chair, who is the primary point of contact for an institution whose programs are being evaluated. The term for the position is typically five years, with the option to serve a three-year term on the executive committee of ABET’s Engineering Accreditation Commission (EAC) and Engineering Technology Accreditation Commission (ETAC).

There are about 380 IEEE evaluators, 26 of whom are currently serving as IEEE commissioners on ABET’s EAC and ETAC.

Become a program evaluator

The CETAA and CEAA choose new program evaluators annually. The number of applicants selected varies from year to year to ensure there are enough evaluators available for future accreditation visits.

For the 2025–2026 academic year, IEEE received 126 applications for the EAC and the ETAC. Applications were received from 24 countries, with 105 from academia and 21 from industry or government.

Victor Nelson, an IEEE life senior member, has been a program evaluator for more than two decades. He is a professor emeritus of electrical and computer engineering at the Ginn College of Engineering at Auburn University, in Alabama. Nelson’s service as an evaluator was recognized with the 2024 IEEE EAB Meritorious Achievement Award in Accreditation Activities. The award was established in 1984 to recognize “efforts to foster the maintenance and improvement of education through the process of accreditation.”

“Years of developing and leading undergraduate electrical and computer engineering programs, including preparing for ABET accreditation reviews, led me to believe that becoming an ABET program evaluator would be a great way to learn new ways to improve the quality of our own programs while also assisting others,” Nelson says. “My 23 years of conducting ABET reviews have more than confirmed that belief and have been incredibly rewarding.

“As a program evaluator, I have had the privilege of studying and visiting programs around the world, and I never fail to be impressed with and learn from the efforts and achievements of the many students and faculty in those programs.

“I always feel a sense of pride in being able to make modest contributions to improving the quality of engineering education through the accreditation review process.”

To learn more about why accreditation matters, read “How IEEE Ensures Quality in Engineering Education,” published last year in The Institute.

To become an IEEE program evaluator, apply here.