What education providers need to know

Yes. Woolf is an accredited higher education institution in Europe, issuing degrees under the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS) - the world’s most widely recognized accreditation system. As part of the European Higher Education Area (EHEA), Woolf degrees are generally recognized across 49 member countries and beyond, including Canada and the United States. Credential assessment agencies consistently evaluate Woolf’s master’s degrees as equivalent to local degrees. This includes in the United States, where Woolf is designated as equivalent to a regionally accredited university, and Canada, where Woolf is recognized as a university for purposes credit recognition, immigration, and citizenship. As a collegiate institution, all Woolf member colleges benefit equally from its accreditation.

No, Woolf does not sell or provide accreditation as a service. Instead, Woolf operates as a collegiate higher education institution. Collegiate universities have been around for over a thousand years (examples include Oxford and Cambridge). Each member college is like a department of the Higher Education Institution and must meet and maintain Woolf’s rigorous academic and operational standards.

Woolf Labs is a separate company that supports the academic mission of Woolf the accredited higher education institution. Woolf Labs is dedicated to helping Woolf grow its global mission by supporting the creation and success of new colleges within Woolf. When a private company, R&D organizations, or academic nonprofits seeks to sponsor the creation of a college at Woolf, then Woolf Labs facilitates this process. All Woolf colleges are an integral part of Woolf and share the same address with Woolf (except in cases where Woolf may open a campus location with regulatory approval). College sponsors are just that, and should not be confused with the Woolf college.

No, Woolf is not an accrediting body. Woolf is an accredited higher education institution. Like Oxford, our internal organizational units are called colleges, and like Oxford, the college is named on the degree certificate. All Woolf colleges operate with specific academic freedoms – e.g., to propose new degrees, new faculty members, and manage student recruitment. All Woolf degrees and colleges adhere to the same strict quality assurance policies and comply with European higher education standards. All faculty members at all Woolf colleges are members of the Faculty Council.

College sponsors may propose the creation of a new college, and recruit and propose faculty or students. Within this framework, Woolf’s colleges (like colleges at Oxford), maintain specific academic freedoms, including the proposal of new degrees and curriculum, and the college conducts all teaching and grading, and manages the social life of their members.  Woolf’s central administration (in which the Faculty participates) maintains continuous monitoring and control over the admissions and ongoing status for faculty, students, and curriculum – this includes student admissions, progression, and the graduation lifecycle. Read more on this in our QA Policy.

Woolf is accredited within the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) and operates under the authority of the Malta Further and Higher Education Authority (MFHEA). This accreditation ensures that Woolf degrees meet the European Qualification Framework (EQF) and ECTS standards, making them widely recognized across Europe and beyond.

Woolf degrees are accredited within the European Higher Education Area (EHEA), and are recognized in 59 countries (see here). Degrees accredited within this system are recognized internationally. However, final recognition depends on local regulations, credential evaluation agencies, and institutional policies in each country. Many countries, including the United States and Canada, have recognized Woolf degrees through official credential evaluation processes.

To establish a member college at Woolf, institutions must have an academic board led by at least two PhD holders who oversee curriculum and recommend students for graduation. Faculty members must hold master’s degrees or higher, or have a minimum of five years of industry experience in their field. Additionally, the institution must meet Woolf’s degree standards, typically offering bachelor's or master’s programs, with the smallest accredited qualification being a European Award of at least 75 hours of structured learning.

No, there is no distinction between online and on-campus degrees in terms of accreditation within Europe. Degrees awarded through online programs are held to the same academic and regulatory standards as traditional, in-person degrees under the European Qualifications Framework (EQF) and European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS).

Woolf’s accreditation and degree programs are officially listed with European regulatory bodies operating under the European Standards and Guidelines (ESG 2015). You can discover more about our accreditation processes here. For example, the Master of Science (MS) degree is listed on the official website of the Malta Further and Higher Education Authority (MFHEA), which operates under the Erasmus+ Program of the European Union. You can review Woolf’s accreditation details at Woolf’s official accreditation page.