The U.S. Department of Education moved toward a sweeping accreditation overhaul through the negotiated rulemaking process, aiming to shift accreditation from checkbox compliance to measurable student outcomes. Reforms would require accreditors to focus on graduation rates, licensure results, post-graduation employment, and economic returns. Officials also proposed restrictions on accreditor relationships with trade associations, including prohibitions on shared personnel, equipment, or infrastructure, alongside disclosure requirements. The draft framework also targets the structure of the accreditation market by eliminating a two-year wait that effectively blocks new accreditors from seeking federal recognition. Student-facing changes include transfer-credit provisions, an area where critics say current systems too often limit students’ ability to move between institutions with predictable credit acceptance.