By EdTech Current Editorial Team

The AIM rule opens the door to new accreditors, makes switching easier, ties quality to student outcomes and cost, and writes transfer-credit due process into federal rules.

The U.S. Department of Education published its final Accreditation, Innovation, and Modernization rule in the Federal Register on Oct. 30, a day after announcing it. The rule, known as AIM, takes effect July 1, 2027 . It changes how the federal government recognizes the agencies that accredit colleges, and through them, which institutions can draw on more than $100 billion a year in federal student aid. The rule makes it easier to start a new accreditor and to switch between accreditors. It requires accreditors to weigh student outcomes against what college costs, sets due-process rules for undergraduate transfer credit, and bars accreditors from enforcing what the department calls "illegal DEI" requirements. Under Secretary Nicholas Kent said the rule creates "a more competitive and transparent accreditation system" and that "accreditors have effectively served as a cartel to protect their interests," Higher Ed Dive reported . The department made no substantive changes from its August proposal, according to the Association of Governing Boards , despite roughly 7,000 public comments and opposition from…

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