Breining Institute Accredited (BIA) Programs: Independent review of higher and continuing education addiction studies programs.
Breining Institute, which has evaluated higher education and training programs in addiction studies since 1986, has reviewed and accredited over 400 programs which offer qualifying education for a candidate to test for the Registered Addiction Specialist (RAS) Credential, offer qualifying continuing education (CE) for the renewal of addiction professional certifications issued by Breining Institute, or both.
BIA programs, identified in the Provider Number, may include one or more of the following:
CW = Conferences / Workshops
EC = Employer in-house trainings
HE = Higher Education
HS = Home Study
The CW, EC and HS designations relate to CE courses, and do not necessarily qualify as the primary formal education required for earning initial RAS Credential. If you have questions as to whether a specific course will meet the formal education requirement for initial professional certification, please contact Breining Institute.
The institutions of higher education listed (identified with the suffix “HE” at the end of the Provider Number) offer educational programs that meet or exceed the formal education prerequisite – minimum 155 hours of alcohol and other drug abuse studies – for the nationally-recognized RAS credential. BIA accreditation is not required for the education obtained from regionally accredited institutions of higher learning to be considered as satisfying the formal education requirement for initial certification as an RAS, but such accreditation is provided as a courtesy to RAS candidates who are contemplating obtaining education from one of these pre-approved and BIA-accredited institutions. The education obtained from these institutions also qualifies as continuing education hours for the renewal of addiction professional certifications issued by Breining Institute.
It is understood that the Breining Institute Accredited (BIA) program approval represents a determination that the courses submitted for approval will satisfy one or more of the education subjects required for either initial certification or renewal of the Registered Addiction Specialist (RAS) credential. It is also understood that this accreditation relates to the educational program, not the institution (institutional accreditation or approval is obtained from governmental agencies or regional accreditation agencies that have been approved by the United States Department of Education).