Do you know of anyone who has taken classes on one of the 'online universities' like University of Phoenix or Kaplan, that sort of place? A coworker is looking for personal opinions and experiences, wants to finish his degree. I told him I'd check around. Thanks!! Carol
UoP is much more expensive than other options such as Wake Tech. The courses are very time intensive as well (despite what the enrollment counselors say). Convenient? Yes. But very highly priced for a college degree that many large companies will see as sub-par. The university is just not well respected by employers right now.
BEWARE:Many of the On LINE ONLY colleges are very frowned upon by employers, thought of as Sub-par and well, just 'iffy'. If it is a REAL College (ie:real campus- real buildings, real daily in person classes) + on-line degrees that is a horse of a different color. When I worked for a not to be mentioned NC St. Lic. Board... the board did not OK any on-line course work - ever. A degree or just a class. Nope. Some may be fine - but some are only diploma mills; you pay the big $$$ and ta-da here's your degree.
Hubby has done Phoenix on line for years. His company reimburses him if he gets good grades. I think it is pretty pricey, but he likes how the classes are. The company has a financial cap, so he only takes one at a time.
You have to be careful when it comes to online schools...accreditation is a big thing...depends on what your field is!
I received my masters as well from UOP in 2007. If I had to do again I would go to the Raleigh campus instead. Why, degrees in these accelerated programs are very much team-based. And when you are in a totally virtually setting, team members find it all too easy to ride the backs of others. It wasn't until I was half way through the program that I found out you can put your own team together if you find others who want to do the same and your advisors will work to make it happen. This isn't openly advertised but it is an option. But as for me personally, I would not take the term “convenient” literally. It is a very time consuming program, and until you’ve experienced it you will not completely understand what I am saying. But nothing is perfect and the traditional “brick and mortar” programs are just not an option for the older working adult (IMO).
Yes I have two friends who have graduated from Phoenix. One of them graduated with her BA and the other got her BA and then went on and just finished her Masters. They both have said wonderful things about this system. I have another friend who is currently enrolled with Kaplan and from what he says he really likes it. Both are pricey! Anyway, I have another friend who is currently enrolled with ECU's online program and she is very pleased with the cost and classes. I've been looking at getting another degree and I'm thinking I may go this route. If my company will stop signing me up for our on online learning system. This occupies a lot of my time right now passing these classes that are job specific and now they've went and signed me up for a certification series that is entirely online and will take a good 6 months to complete, so my personal plans have had to be put on hold for a bit.
Most of your major universities are going this route, the future market place for education is to offer online degrees for your working adults. I have a neighbor that teaches at NCSU (I forgive him for this because he's a nice guy) and their looking very hard into this market. UNC offers classes online as well. Truly does depend on the degree and field your in as to how the job market/future employers will respond to any online degree from schools such as Kaplan etc.
I've been taking classes at UoP since 2004 and can echo the sentiment of Apple Fritters. The courses are just 5 weeks in length, so they move fast. You have to understand thay they accomplish in 5 weeks what colleges do in 15 weeks in a normal semester. The teams concept that UoP uses can suck at times if you have slackers in your group and team assignment usually account for 30% of your grade. They are pricey as well at $1507 per class (that's what my company pays). I wouldn't worry about the level of respect companies give to an online degree as I work for a very large, major company whose managers respect that fact I'm still pursuing a degree at 41 years old. Companies might frown on the cost, but I can assure you that the material covered is college material covered at a very rapid pace. Scott
You're correct Shawk22 as for not worrying about the credibility of some online programs. I was fortunate in that my employer paid for everything. I did not have to worry about being allowed only a certain amount of funding per year like so many of my fellow classmates. The support that my employer extended alone made me see the credibility of UOP's program. IF my employer, who has a significant presence in RTP, supported the program, I knew it was a good decision for me to go. I also feel that you get out what you put into these accelerated programs. Some feel that you are paying for a diploma, but depending on your area of discipline, a "paid for" diploma is worthless. So I doubt that many employers view the successful completion of these programs as such. But you know; it's funny how some are quick to question the validity of these programs when accelerated programs for executives have been around for ages. For example, some "traditional" universities have an Executive MBA program which allows credit for work experience and it's a week-end program. I doubt that these programs are even as grueling as others because these Execs have tremendous job responsibilities which I imagine leaves them very little time for academia. I think it just comes down to personal opinion.
I pursued and completed my BSBA at University of Phoenix in 2006. I enjoyed it very much. Like others have mentioned, the courses are challenging because you have to cover 15 weeks of material in 5 weeks. However, I very much liked the system that UOP has used and is currently using (much improved). After completing my BSBA in 2006, I decided to try another route for my MBA - deciding to go with Strayer University. I would not recommend this university at all. I enrolled in my first course and after I was enrolled I received very little guidance from counselors or instructors. They didn't seem to have the level of support like UOP did. Needless to say, I'm now back at UOP trying to complete my MBA - I have just five classes left...As others have said, be prepared to deal with team members who will leave the bulk of work on you because they are just trying to ride through on your efforts. However, at this level (MBA), this problem does not seem as evident. Hope this helps...
