Two months after a federal monitor’s report described “unethical” and “potentially illegal” activities at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, the public institution has been placed on probation by its accreditor for, among other things, the continued lack of an financial audit since last year. The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools made its decision as prosecutors continued investigations into allegations of sweetheart deals, financial mismanagement, and possible criminal misconduct at the health-sciences university (The Chronicle, April 25).

The university, which has been rocked by the ever-widening reach of such allegations for more than a year, must report back to the accreditor by October 15 and risks losing its accreditation if it cannot show that it is moving to comply with accreditation rules. A loss of accreditation would prevent the university from receiving federal student aid, a key source of revenue for most institutions.

An article in today’s Star-Ledger, a newspaper in Newark, N.J., has more on the story.