In higher education, accreditation involves an external quality review process that scrutinizes universities, colleges, and educational programs to ensure that the education provided meets acceptable quality levels. Often considered the gold standard for institutions, the accreditation process originated in the US and quickly moved beyond American borders. Specifically, the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) has moved to provide ‘legitimacy’ to universities in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region. Using Q methodology, this study examines faculty and administrators' perceptions regarding CAEP accreditation of a College of Education (CED) in the GCC. The results identify an apparent discrepancy among participants’ perceptions regarding the CAEP accreditation’s advantages and disadvantages, procedures and requirements, and impact on faculty and administrators’ workload and agency.

在高等教育中，认证涉及外部质量审查过程，该过程对大学，学院和教育计划进行审查，以确保所提供的教育达到可接受的质量水平。认证过程通常被认为是机构的黄金标准，其认证过程起源于美国，并迅速超越了美国的边界。具体而言，教育者准备认可委员会（CAEP）已采取行动，为海湾合作委员会（GCC）地区的大学提供“合法性”。本研究使用Q方法，研究了教职员工和管理人员对海湾合作委员会教育学院（CED）的CAEP认证的看法。结果表明，参与者对CAEP认证的优缺点存在明显的差异，