The application must be submitted to the Chair of the Accreditation Committee of the SSC electronically as a PDF file with a separate Word form listing the courses at accreditation@ssc.ca.
Demonstration of internal support
An application for accreditation of courses or programs is usually sponsored by a Department. The application should have the demonstrated support of at least three faculty within the Department (e.g., cosigning the application), and the support of the more senior administration (e.g., the Dean should also cosign the application). As there is little or no financial costs to accreditation, lack of support by members internal to the Department, or more senior administration, would not be desirable.
Documentation required
The application for accreditation of courses should consist of a single PDF document with:
a) a covering letter;
b) copy of letter of support from Department and Dean;
c) a checklist showing which courses will be used for which module and the proposed minimum level of achievement expected;
d) copies of course outlines and final exams (if possible);
and the list of courses in separate WORD form.
The education requirements for the A.Stat. designation have been grouped into modules. A module may or may not be equivalent to a particular course offered by a Department. The Department will ensure that their documentation makes it clear which module is covered by which course.
For each module (particularly for the statistical and probability modules), a copy of the official detailed course outline showing topics covered in the course and the textbook used, and a sample final exam (if possible) should be submitted. Some of the courses may not be taught by the sponsoring department, e.g., calculus and linear algebra, computing, or communication skills. In these cases, the Department should review these courses on a regular basis to ensure that they meet the needs of the department.
Departments are requested to set the standards for using a course towards accreditation HIGHER than the minimum standard for a pass at their institution, e.g. a minimum of B- (70%) in each course. The reason for a minimum standard higher than university minimum is because it does not serve the Statistical Society of Canada well to have students with bare pass representing statisticians across Canada. Applications will be reviewed on a case by case basis, with compensating indicators of achievement being assessed.
As noted earlier, departments may not have a formal course in written communication skills. Alternate mechanisms are available such as final term papers, co-op reports, etc that are reviewed by the department as part of the student’s degree program.
The course requirements for a substantive area outside of statistics can also be met in a variety of ways. For many degree programs, this would correspond to a minor. Most minors are acceptable (e.g. minors in operations research, combinatorics, actuarial science, arts, business, engineering, etc would be acceptable). Other alternatives include a co-op work term in lieu of a course, two 2-course minors, work experience in a job that has a substantial statistical component, i.e. roughly four months of work will substitute for one course in a substantive area. A student could also meet this requirement based on work experience after degree completion, say a minimum of a year at a work place in a job that has a substantial statistical component. In these cases, it will be the applicant’s responsibility to provide documentation on their A.Stat. application.
Length of accreditation
Successfully accredited suites of courses shall maintain their status for five years from the date that accreditation was awarded by the SSC.
At the end of the five-year period, a new application should be submitted in full. The resubmission will help Departments avoid drift in the courses and its standards and to update their program as courses change over time.
Suites of courses need not be accredited in lock-step, i.e. application for courses may be submitted at any time, but departments are encouraged to accredit and re-accredit courses together.
Revoking of accredited status
The Board of the SSC (upon recommendation from the Accreditation Committee) may revoke accredited status at any time. Normally, the Department involved would be invited to make a submission to the Board before such a decision is made.