South Dakota Secretary of State
Agency Contact
Additional Contact
Secretary of State Contact
1: Important Agency Information to Note
Indicate the types of institutions that your agency authorizes.
- Note: Some agencies may refer to out-of-state public institutions as “private colleges” in their law. If this is the case for your agency, please select “public, out-of-state degree granting institutions” for purposes of this Guide so that the out-of-state public institution will find appropriate information.
- Note: If your agency is a coordinating board, your agency may have one division with some authority such as program approval over in-state public institutions that are established per statute, which is structured differently than another division of your agency with state authorization authority over non-public institutions that they “license” pursuant to different statute(s).
_X__ Public, in-state degree granting institutions
_X__ Public, out-of-state degree granting institutions
_X__ Private, in-state, not-for-profit degree granting institutions
_X__ Private, out-of-state, not-for-profit degree granting institutions
_X__ Private, in-state, for-profit degree granting institutions
_X__ Private, out-of-state, for-profit degree granting institutions
_X__ Public, in-state, non-degree granting institutions
_X__ Public, out-of-state, non-degree granting institutions
_X__ Non-degree, not-for profit institutions
_X__ Non-degree, for-profit institutions
____ Religious institutions
____ Tribally-controlled institutions
____ Federal Institutions
_X__ Municipal institutions
- For example, an agency may require an institution apply for licensure for institutional approval and also require the institution to apply for specific program(s) approval.
_X__ Institution
_____ Program
_____ Both
This authorization process/fee is only for institutions who have a physical presence in the state.
2: Authorization of Distance Education
- Meaning as example, the state regulates an out-of-state institution for merely enrolling a student into a distance education program
- Meaning as example, a solely online program that does not have any internships and practicums
No
Online programs with no physical presence in the state do not undergo a formal authorization process. However, per SDCL 13-49-27.1, all institutions offering degrees in the state must:
- Be accredited through a regional or national institutional accrediting agency OR be actively seeking accreditation from a regional or national institutional accrediting agency for a period of no more than five years,
OR;
- Be participating in any federal financial assistance program authorized by Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965.
Religious institutions that offer credit or degrees solely for the purpose of conferring status or authority within that religion are exempt from these requirements.
3: Accreditation by an Accrediting Agency Recognized by the U.S. Department of Education
Yes
Accreditation by an accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education required for:
__X__ Public, out-of-state degree granting institutions
__X__ Private, in-state, not-for-profit degree granting institutions
__X__ Private, out-of-state, not-for-profit degree granting institutions
__X__ Private, in-state, for-profit degree granting institutions
__X__ Private, out-of-state, for-profit degree granting institutions
__X__ Public, in-state, non-degree granting institutions
__X__ Public, out-of-state, non-degree granting institutions
__X__ Non-degree, not-for profit institutions
__X__ Non-degree, for-profit institutions
__X__ Religious institutions
__X__ Tribally-controlled institutions
__X__ Federal Institutions
__X__ Municipal institutions
All institutions must be accredited from an accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department of Education as a regional OR national institutional accrediting agency. Institutions operating under an affiliation agreement whose terms make an accredited postsecondary institution responsible for awarding academic credit and educational credentials to its students and maintaining transcripts are also eligible for authorization in the State.
4: Physical Presence Policy
Physical Presence in South Dakota is defined as “the ongoing occupation of a physical location in South Dakota for instructional purposes or the maintenance of an administrative office to facilitate instruction.
The following activities DO NOT trigger physical presence in South Dakota:
- Delivery of distance education courses online, through correspondence or broadcast;
- Advertising;
- Recruiting;
- Contractual arrangements to acquire goods or services, including education or examination proctoring services, with institutions or businesses physically located in South Dakota;
- Courses delivered on military installations by an accredited institution limited to active and reserve military personnel, dependents of military personnel, and civilian employees of the military installation;
- Field trips;
- Operation of a server or other electronic service device;
- Short courses (twenty classroom hours or less, or the equivalent thereof);
- Courses for which fewer than 25% of the class requirements take place in a setting where the instructor and students physically meet together;
- Experiential learning opportunities, such as a clinical, practicum, residency, or internship, if the offering institution has already obtained all the necessary professional and licensure approvals necessary to conduct the learning opportunity in the state, and that only ten students from each institution are physical present simultaneously at a single field site.
Does a virtual clinical / internship trigger the requirement for authorization with your agency?
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5: Application Process
The application process is only for institutions who wish to have a physical presence in South Dakota. Those institutions will fill out the form on the Secretary of State’s website, and submit the completed form to the address or email indicated on the form, along with the initial $500 filing fee. The institution must renew their authorization annually, and the renewal filing fee is $250.
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6: Fees Associated with Authorization
Yes. For institutions wishing to have a physical presence in South Dakota, there is a $500 initial filing fee. Annual renewal filing fees are $250.
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Indicated on the applications at this link: https://sdsos.gov/general-information/postsecondary-education/Application.aspx
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7: Surety Bonds
No
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8: Student Tuition Recovery Fund
No
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9: Tuition Refund Policy
South Dakota does not have a state-specific tuition refund policy.
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10: Reporting
There is no reporting requirement.
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11: Enforcement
There are no listed consequences.
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12: Student Complaints - Non-SARA Participating Institutions
Per SDCL 13-48-40, The Office of the Attorney General, Division of Consumer Protection, shall review and act on any complaint concerning postsecondary institutions providing educational programs at physical locations in the state, including, as necessary requirement a postsecondary institution to cease its operations in the state. (“Complaint” is defined as an allegation that a postsecondary institution does not meet the requirements of SDCL Chapter 13-48; or an allegation raised by a student that a postsecondary institution does not meet standards established by the institution’s accrediting agency.) The attorney general shall refer the complaint to the institution and provide the institution with no less than thirty days to respond to the matters set forth in the complaint, including an opportunity to demonstrate any actions the institution has taken or plans to take in response to the complaint, and to consider whether the complainant has exhausted all available administrative remedies within the institution’s policies and procedures. In administering the requirements of this section, the attorney general may refer a complaint to an institution’s accrediting agency for review and investigation, with the accrediting agency providing a report of the agency’s investigation to the attorney general for further disposition.
Students enrolled in 100% distance education programs would refer those complaints to the home state of the institution, as that state would have jurisdiction over the institution.
Complaints are handled through the South Dakota Attorney General’s office, not the South Dakota Secretary of State’s office. That does not change based on the type of institution.
- Contact Name – Marty Jackley
- Title – Attorney General
- Agency – Office of the Attorney General, Division of Consumer Protection
- Address – 1302 E. Hwy 13, Suite 3, Pierre, SD 57501-8053
- Email – n/a
- Phone – 1-800-300-1986 (In-State Only); 605-773-4400
- URL - https://consumer.sd.gov/
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13: Records Retention
There is no process within the Secretary of State’s office. SOS relies on the teach-out procedures from HLC, which indicates where records are sent.
They would need to contact HLC since Secretary of State’s office does not deal with retention of records
Agency Name
Contact Person
Contact Phone
Contact Address
Contact Email
Contact website
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14: Additional Information
As stated previously, South Dakota is unique in that non-SARA authorization and SARA authorization are handled by two different entities, and that distance education outside of SARA is not heavily regulated, as no formal authorization or registration is required.
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Please note: There could be additional state agencies with oversight of activities of your institution.