7-Steps nationally accepted NAAC Assessment and Accreditation Process can be described as

• HEIs registration in the NAAC website
• Institutional Information for Quality Assessment (IIQA) submission
• Self-Study Report (SSR) submission on acceptance of IIQA (On rejection, an institute has 2 attempts to RESUME the IIQA form within 1 year)
• Data Validation & Verification (DVV) Process
• Preparation towards the Student Satisfaction Survey (SSS)
• Peer Team Visit (PTV)
• NAAC announces the Institutional Grading

Majorly there are 4 steps in which the entire NAAC Accreditation process is done, which are as follows,

• Institutional Information for Quality Assessment (IIQA) submission
• Self-Study Report (SSR) submission
• Data Validation & Verification (DVV) Process
• Peer Team Visit (PTV)

Once the final decision is given by NAAC, the Accreditation details for the respective university/ college can be viewed at NAAC Official website (www.naac.gov.in). The information is made available to the Government, UGC and any other agencies on request.

The Accreditation details are also displayed at official website of respective university/college. The public disclosure should reflect the spirit of the entire report and the outcome should not be distorted in any communication/documentation by that university/ college.

NAAC Accreditation is the certification of quality for five years.

Cycles in NAAC Accreditation?
The Assessment and Accreditation (A&A) have outlined well-strategized Quality Initiatives, Quality Sustenance and Quality Enhancement measures that keep NAAC’s vision focused and intact.

When an institution undergoes the accreditation process for the first time it is referred to as cycle 1 and the consecutive five year periods as cycle 2, 3 etc.

The process in each cycle is similar except that from cycle 2, the frame of reference includes the impact of the last assessment and the consequential quality improvement as reflected in the Annual Quality Assurance Reports (AQAR) submitted over the 4-year post accreditation period.

This means:

Cycle 1 :

• If an Institution gets into NAAC grade for the first time.
• This cycle has focus on assessment and the seven criteria.

Cycle 2-4 :

If the Institution has reappeared for NAAC for the second time, and it goes on to Cycle 3, Cycle 4.
These require below listed:

• Internal Quality Assurance Cell (IQAC) should be functional
• Timely submission of Annual Quality Assurance Reports (AQAR)
• Institutions to submit Institutional Information for Quality Assessment (IIQA), during the last 6 months of validity period subject to the fulfilment of other conditions specified by NAAC from time to time for the purpose.
• Submission of Letter of Intent (LOI), six months before the expiry of the accreditation status.
• The rest of the steps are the same as the first cycle.

Validity period of NAAC Accreditation:
The accreditation given by NAAC is usually valid for a period of five years from the date of approval by the Executive Committee (EC) of NAAC.
Institutions which have secured the highest grade consecutively in the previous two cycles of accreditation and continue to do so in the 3rd cycle will be eligible for extension of validity from 5 years to 7 years