Prospective college students often gloss over the word ‘accredited’ when they’re looking for a college. But with the transfer rate at over 50 percent according to the U.S. Department of Education, it could be the word that means the most in all of the higher ed jargon students have to wade through. Accreditation indicates a school hold’s themselves and their students to a higher standard. Students should check to make sure their university is on the Department of Education's list before attending or transferring to or from that school whether it’s an online school, a traditional small college or an Ivy League university.