Official Site of The State of New Jersey

Licensure is an authorization or approval based on the regulations set forth in N.J.A.C 9A:1.

Accreditation is a voluntary process in which educational institutions are evaluated by a peer review board according to set standards and maintained to ensure a high level of educational quality. The OSHE does not provide accreditation to institutions.

No, however, unaccredited institutions should seek accreditation within the three years of the initial licensure. Please refer to N.J.A.C 9A:1.

Yes, licensure is required for both in-state and out-of-state institutions.

The application process involves submitting a completed application as one electronic document (separate attachments and hard copy documents will not be accepted). Then, a review process is conducted which may include a site visit by both the Licensure Office and the New Jersey Presidents Council (NJPC). If approved, candidates will receive a formal letter from the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education.

For information on how to submit a petition and guidelines

There are no deadlines to complete the licensure petition. Institutions can begin the process and take the necessary amount of time to complete the petition. Institutions should submit their petitions at least one year (1) prior to the requested date of implementation

The Licensure Annual report is an assessment intended for all institutions to complete in reference to Title 9A, Chapter 1: Licensure Rules in satisfying the annual report requirement as part of maintaining Licensure petitions. For more information about the annual report, please refer to N.J.A.C 9A:1

This assessment is to be completed, submitted electronically as one cohesive document and accompanied by the appropriate fee by the 31st of August annually to OSHE. Newly licensed institutions within three months (May-August) of the report year are not required to submit the annual report? Please visit Licensure Forms to download the full report.

The Office of the Secretary of Higher Education (OSHE) has implemented a fee schedule effective April 11, 2022.

Licensure petition submissions are not considered complete until the submission fee has been received. All checks should be made out to Treasury, State of New Jersey. The licensure petition will be rejected if submission fee has not been received by 5pm prevailing Eastern Time on the 10th day of call of business of submitting the petition.

For more information, please visit

Institutions must prepare the petition based on the regulations N.J.A.C. 9A:1 and submitted electronically as one cohesive fillable petition. Petitions submitted with separate attachments will not be accepted. All submissions can be submitted via email or electronic document transfer service (Drop Box, Google Docs, etc.). Licensure petitions will not be reviewed or considered until the appropriate fee has been received.

For information on how to submit a petition and guidelines

Petitions that are submitted correctly and accompanied by the appropriate fee will first receive a facial review by the Licensure Office. Once the office deems the petition complete it will go to a 30-day comment period where institutions in the state will have the opportunity to respond. The petitioning institution will have the opportunity to respond to the comments following the 30 days. OSHE may determine that a Site Visit and/or consultant report is required. Once the consultant report is completed the petition will be forwarded to the NJPC for review and recommendations. The final review and determination will then be conducted by the Secretary and a decision will be provided in writing.

For a full breakdown of the petition process

Once your institution has been approved for licensure, re-licensure occurs 3 years after the first initial approval and 5 years thereafter. Institutions should petition for re-licensure at least eight (8) months prior to expiration. Please refer to N.J.A.C 9A:1 for additional details.

If your institution is interested in adding additional degree programs to your current offerings after you have successfully been licensed you will need to submit a New complete licensure petition accompanied by the appropriate fees. . Please review N.J.A.C.9A:1-2.10 through 2.14.

Any licensed New Jersey institution that wishes to offer an academic degree program that surpasses their institution’s mission will need to follow the processes outlined by the Academic Issues Committee (AIC). This process will include a review by the AIC, the NJPC and OSHE. Once the review is concluded, recommendations will be brought to the Secretary and a determination made. For more information about exceeding programmatic mission, please visit the Programmatic Mission section.

Out of state institutions that wish to offer NJ residents credit bearing courses or degrees that DO NOT have a physical presence in NJ are NOT required to seek licensure. In-State institutions please refer to N.J.A.C 9A:1-7.1.

No, a private institution cannot both offer non-degree career courses or programs authorized by another state agency and be licensed by OSHE to offer college-level courses and academic degree programs in the state of NJ. Visit the Department of Labor.

Out-of-state Institutions that are only wishing to offer 100% distance learning courses/programs and NOT have a physical presence in NJ are exempt from submitting a petition.

There is no application to request an exemption. If you are unsure, please contact us.

For questions or additional information about the licensure process, please complete the inquiry form.

For questions or additional information about Academic Degree Program Review process, please complete the inquiry form.