ACS Approval Program

CPARS Training

Find key dates and learn how to access and use the Chemistry Program Approval and Review System (CPARS) to complete reports for the ACS Approval Process.

Accessing CPARS

To access CPARS, each user must create an ACS ID and password.

CPARS Guide & FAQs
CPARS Sign-In Link (sign in with your ACS ID)
Link to create an ACS ID (if you do not already have one)
ACS Login Help Page
Retrieve an ACS ID username

Changing the Department Chair

Navigate to your institution's landing page in CPARS
Click on "Institution Details"
Click on "Add Chairperson"
Enter the first name, last name, and email address of new chairperson.

Report Availability

Periodic Reports - January 1 - June 30
Annual Reports - April 1 - August 31
Preapplications - May 1 - May 31 and October 1 - October 31
Applications - Upon approval of preapplication, typically due in June or December

Getting a Copy of Your Periodic Report

For reports submitted in or after Jan 2022

To get a user-friendly copy of your completed report, navigate to "Institution Details" from your home page.
Click on the “Submission History” tab and locate your periodic report.
Then click on “View my Submission.”
Choose “Download Report” to obtain a clean version of the report. If you wait until the reviewers have completed their assessment and submitted their review, and download the report at that time, then the entire review will be included in the report.

Already approved?

All ACS Approved Institutions submit an Annual Report each year and a Periodic Report every 6 years.

Annual Reports

Annual Reports for the 2024-25 academic year are due August 31, 2025.

Please report graduates from July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025.

Guides & Examples

Annotated guide (PDF) for completing the annual report.
Classifying courses for the annual report.

Periodic Reports

Periodic reports for 2025 are due June 30, 2025.

Programs with periodic reports due must still submit an annual report.

Guides & Examples

Annotated guide (PDF) to completing the periodic report.
Checklist of data needed to complete the periodic report.

Applying for the first time?

Preapplications

Programs interested in applying for ACS Approval start the process by completing a preapplication. Preapplications are available for submission from May 1 - 31 and October 1 - 31.