I have always been told that our School Catalog is our bible. I would be proactive and make sure we all had the current version available. Have everyone meet on a day that would work, after we all have had the time to re-read the catalog. We have the history of having created and revised the catalog together so we should have ample familiarity with it's content. To make sure that we are doing what we say we are doing.
JENNIFER,
It's great to hear this as I have seen too many school employees who are not familiar with the content of this critical document!
Traci Lee
Transparency and complying everyday with regulations is the best preparation for an audit. Do our best everyday and comply with regulations is key for the institution
Manuel,
Agreed - transparency and ongoing continuous compliance in daily practices is the best "preparation".
Traci Lee
I think its important to have every member of the staff and faculty involved in an internal audit, particularly in advance of an external audit. The catalog and most recently published compliance regulations should be checked against one another first to insure that all aspects of the requirements are covered within the school's policies. All files should have checklists so that they can be audited by any person who regularly submits information for those files. Every employee should have the ability to identify and request changes to their superiors and management should reward employees who find deficiencies/inconsistencies in either the wording, process or intent of the regulation.
What I would like to do in my new position as campus director is a common practice of internal sample auditing to train my staff to have 100% compliance. For example, every week I will request a sample of admissions files and do an audit of them personally. If I do see regular discrepancies that will notify me that there is a break down in a process that needs to be addressed. Hopefully with this common practice it will prepare our campus for any auditing visit.
Johanna,
Congratulations on your new position. I applaud your commitment to compliance and rectification of process concerns.
Traci Lee
First and foremost compliance is an everyday, every division necessity. However, If I was on the receiving end of an audit and it was an known audit I would ensure that all divisions were reporting up to compliance by reviewing placement reporting cohort data, FA refund and packaging data, and educational retention/completion data.
Shannon,
You highlight some key areas while also recognizing the importance to every department on an ongoing basis. Nice job!
Traci Lee
Hi Everyone,
we are still the very new kids on the block and have not had an audit yet... But, I am soooo impressed with all the information on this forum. I will use the advice I have read...couldn't get to all the posts, but the few I read are very insightful and attainable for me and my school. Thank you all!
Erica,
If there are specific topics you are seeking, I may be able to pull some info together for you if you couldn't see certain posts. Just let me know.
Traci Lee
I am taking this course in order to be proactive for a potential review. We are applying for DETC accreditation and will be reviewed as part of the application process.
In order to prepare for this audit, I downloaded the chart of the required disclosures and sent it to our Registrar and Director. I am the Dean. We are a small online school and the Director and Dean determine what is posted on our site. These people will each review the document and highlight whatever applies to our school. We decided to include required disclosures that will be relevant once we are accredited. I set a time frame of 2 weeks. Once the 2 weeks are over, we will create a page on our site/platform titled Required Disclosures. We will post all required disclosures on that page. Additionally, we will determine what information needs to be sent directly to our students. We will compile that information in a document and we will include it in our orientation package for new students.
There are many more ways to prepare for an audit. This is one aspect of an audit that I focused on - ensuring that we are compliant in posting all information that must be disclosed to students.
Chana,
The required disclosures is a good area to focus on - they have changed over time and there are many different items required. Note that some of the items require annual notification to students so, depending on program length, it may require an additional "push" of information to the student, beyond the initial notice during orientation. It sounds like you are doing a great job preparing - good luck with your accreditation!
Traci Lee
I usually always look at a previous years audit to get a grasp of what was done and not done before. I then review the checklist and make sure that all the documents are ready to be submitted. Having everything in categories for the auditor will not only expedite the process, but also gives the company a lot more control over the process.
Brian,
Great recommendation to review the previous year's audit report! I also concur with your approach to make things as organized for the auditor which demonstrates understanding of the process and helps in establishing the control. Excellent comments!
Traci Lee
If I knew I was about to be audited I would prepare by doing a few things.
1. I would try to get a copy of the audit criteria ahead of time.
2. I would them conduct an internal audit following those criteria to see where I was at that time.
3.Take corrective action in areas that I felt were non-compliant to ensure they were corrected, or in the process of being corrected, before the audit team arrived.
I feel that a lot of people then to be reactive instead of proactive when it comes to audits. It seems the best course of action would be to conduct internal audits on a regular basis. This could also reduce the stress associated with an external audit, because you know where you stand before the audit.
I completely agree with this statement. If everything is in compliance from the beginning, once audit arrives, there is much to stress about.
It's best to have internal audit where someone from your department review and audit your files prior a regularly scheduled audit.
Donald,
I completely agree with the benefits of being proactive! I know of a school that continuously maintains electronic files to be ready for a Dept of Ed Audit if an unannounced visit were to occur. It's impressive to see this kind of proactive efforts but, it is a major effort to maintain "just in case".
Traci Lee
As a school director, we receive audits annually unannounced from the state. Though they are general around the time every year, give or take a few weeks. This really helps us maintain a compliant set of records on a regular basis.
What we do to prepare is every student's folder will have a list and once information or documents are added the list can be checked off in the moment. Once all items are present, it will have a final check for all items. At the same time there is a binder we are required to give our auditor once they arrive. We keep the same binder and format every year so updating it becomes very simple and nothing is forgotten. A clear understanding of the requirements is really essential to be in compliance and be prepared for audits. Even though we strive to have all items updated on a daily basis, we will still do a final sweep of all documents once we know our audit time might be close.
