Proprietary & For-Profit Schools

Pursuant to Maine Department of Education Rule Chapter 147, the DOE licenses privately-owned postsecondary schools in the State of Maine. Located on this website is the initial application to initiate a proprietary school as well as the renewal application. The license is valid from the 1st of January to the 31st of December. December 27th is the deadline for initial and renewal applications. Applicant institutions are encouraged to scan documents and send in PDF form to HigherEd.DOE@maine.gov in addition to mailing a hard copy along with fee to the DOE Office of Higher Education & Educator Support Services.

Initial Application

Download Application

• A completed initial application with supporting materials. 
• Licensing fee in the amount of $100.00 payable to the Treasurer, State of Maine 
• A valid surety bond in the amount of $20,000.00 
• Certificates of inspection 
• Financial Statements 
• Accreditation 
• Copy of School Calendar 
• Curriculum-showing the content of the subject(s) taught, the type of work or skills to be learned, equipment and instructional materials and library resources 
• Student Records-copies of forms used for student record maintenance  
• Admissions requirements-catalogs, advertisements, policy for admissions 
• Graduation Requirements-copy of the policy 
• Attendance Policy 
  • Standards of Progress 
  • Define the grading system of the school 
  • Indicate the minimum grades considered satisfactory and the minimum level of achievement necessary to graduate 
  • Describe the academic probation policy 
  • Indicate the readmission policy for students dismissed for unsatisfactory progress 
• Qualification of Instructors-a list of the school’s instructors by name, subject(s) taught, education/training, and experience must be submitted 
• Total cost 
  • Tuition and Fees 
  • Room and Board 
  • Other (specify) 
• Once all the materials have been received by the Maine Department of Education, the application will be reviewed to determine is if the school is approved for licenses. 

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Renewal Application Procedure (January 1 - December 31)

An updated proprietary school form for 2024 is now available for download at the linked file name below.
 

2024 Proprietary School License Renewal Application (PDF, 263.33 KB)

All applications must be mailed in hard copy along with application fee and required appendices. To achieve a faster processing time, applicant institutions are strongly urged to scan the materials prior to mailing and send materials in PDF form to HigherEd.DOE@maine.gov in addition to mailing a hard copy. This will allow the office to review materials without waiting for mail delivery times.

 

• The Maine Commissioner of Education has been legally authorized, as the State approving agent, to license all privately-owned business, trade or technical schools operating and/or soliciting in Maine. 
• This application must be complete and must be accompanied by the supporting information requested as well as proof of continuous bond coverage equal to the greater of 10% of the applicant’s gross receipts from tuition in the 12 months prior to the application for renewal or $20,000 

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2023 Proprietary Schools List

 

• 82nd Tactical Unit/ Protect Academy
• A+ Pet Grooming Academy
• Academy of Medical Professions
• Airlink LLC
• Bliss Living, LLC d/b/a Downtown Yoga And Healing Arts
• Bloom! School of Therapeutic Arts
• Career Management Systems Inc. d/b/a Spa Tech Institute
• Downeast Health Spa, Inc. d/b/a Downeast School of Massage
• Happy Paws Unleashed Grooming Academy
• Lincoln Technical Institute, Inc. d/b/a Lincoln Technical Institute
• Maine Instrument Flight
• MEMA Technical Education Center (MTEC)
• New England School of Clinical Hypnotherapy - (on-line school)
• New Hampshire Institute for Therapeutic Arts
• New World Ayurveda School (on-line school only)
• Northeast Technical Institute
• Northern New England Welding Institute LLC
• Novel Engineering- Technical Training
• Panacea Yoga Studios, LLC d/b/a Panacea School of Integrative Health
• Shelter Institute
• SoleWise School of Reflexology
• Therapeutic Bodywork Learning Center
• Tree of Life Day Spa, Inc. d/b/a Acadia School of Massage
• VTEC
• Weston Enterprises, Inc. d/b/a At-Home Professions
• Wooden Boat School
• Zardus Art of Massage - School of Massage, Inc.

For-Profit College and University Review

Since the enactment of §10706, for-profit schools that are eligible to distribute Title IV funding must complete the report based on the reporting criteria listed below and submit it to the Maine Department of Education by July 1st of each year.  The reports will be made public through this website.  Please know that for-profit institutions that do not participate in Title IV funding are exempt from generating the report. 

Reporting

A for-profit college or university shall report annually by July 1st to the Commissioner the following information in accordance with rules established by the Commissioner that ensure the information is provided in a manner that allows evaluation in accordance with the metrics established under subsection 3 of this statute.  

• The amount of funding, disaggregated by campus, spent on each of the following as compared with total spending by the for-profit college or university: 
  • Educational instruction; 
  • Advertising; and 
  • Executive salaries; 
• The percentage of those who graduated in the previous calendar year, disaggregated by campus and program, who have employment in the field of study; 
• The percentage of those who graduated in the previous calendar year, disaggregated by campus and program, who are employed 
• As reported to the United States Department of Education, the percentage of graduates who graduated in the previous 3 calendar years who received federal student loans and: 
  • The percentage of those who received such loans who have defaulted; and 
  • The percentage of those who received such loans whose loan balances declined in the 3 years after repayment first became due, excluding those graduates for whom repayment was deferred as a result of military service; and 
• The design and implementation of student support services, including the process by which student complaints are handled in a timely and effective manner and information on the number and nature of complaints received and the responses to those complaints. 

Evaluation of Report

The report will be evaluated with the following metrics to determine adequate educational standards that must be met by for‑profit colleges and universities and for proprietary schools that distribute Title IV funding.  The postsecondary institution must meet all criteria to receive a satisfactory score. 

Funding 

• The postsecondary institution’s report must demonstrate that spending on instruction is not less than 50% or more than 15% of its total spending on advertising.

Accreditation

• The for‑profit college, university, or institution must have the necessary accreditations to allow graduates to meet professional licensing or other career standards related to the educational programs for which degrees or certificates are granted. 

Student Support Services

• The for‑profit college, university, or institutions will be evaluated on the design and implementation of student support services, including whether the complaint process by which student complaints are handled is transparent, includes an appropriate official to receive complaints, and provides appropriate and timely responses to complaints. 

The for‑profit college, university, or institution must have the necessary accreditations to allow graduates to meet professional licensing or other career standards related to the educational programs for which degrees or certificates are granted. 

§10706-A. For-profit college and university review.

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The following are miscellaneous materials that may be needed for the application package.

For-Profit School-Blanket Bond - Download Form Form-link Chapter 147

See Chapter 147: Licensing of Privately Owned Business, Trade, and Technical Schools (Proprietary) for guidelines and rules.