The University of San Diego's electrical, industrial and systems and mechanical engineering programs are accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, Inc., the recognized accreditor of college and university programs in engineering. ABET accreditation demonstrates a program's commitment to providing its students with a quality education.

USD's Electrical Engineering program has been continuously accredited by ABET since 1992 with accreditation that covers all graduates of the program. The Industrial and Systems Engineering program has been continuously accredited by ABET since 2001 with accreditation that covers all graduates of the program. And the Mechanical Engineering Program has been continuously accredited by ABET since 2008 with accreditation that covers all graduates of the program.

Accreditation is a voluntary, peer-review process that requires programs to undergo comprehensive, periodic evaluations. The evaluations, conducted by teams of volunteer professionals working in industry, government, academe and private practice within the ABET disciplines, focus on program curricula, faculty, facilities, institutional support and other important areas.

One of the key elements of ABET accreditation is the requirement that programs continuously improve the quality of education provided. As part of this continuous improvement requirement, programs set specific, measurable goals for their students and graduates, assess their success at reaching those goals and improve their programs based on the results of their assessment.

In addition to providing colleges and universities a structured mechanism to assess, evaluate, and improve their programs, accreditation also helps students and their parents choose quality college programs, enables employers and graduate schools to recruit graduates they know are well-prepared, and is used by registration, licensure and certification boards to screen applicants.