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relientk
Joined: 28 Nov 2005
Posts: 3
Location: Colorado
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 Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2007 2:31 am Post subject: Online Vs. Traditional Degrees |
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Hello Everyone,
My question is are online college degrees such as University of Phoenix online accepted overseas (especially Japan) for teaching ESL? Or is only the traditional college degrees accepted? Thanks. |
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GambateBingBangBOOM
Joined: 04 Nov 2003
Posts: 2021
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2007 6:59 am Post subject: |
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From my experience in Japan, I would say that if it is a solid university with traditional programmes that is accredited, then it would be accepted, but really, initial training and first undergraduate degrees that were by distance will be frowned upon.
However, accoprding to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Phoenix
| Wikipedia's article about University of Pheonix wrote: |
UOP is regionally accredited by the The Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.[2] In British Columbia, the University of Phoenix was accredited by the Private Post-Secondary Education Commission (PPSEC) in 2002. That agency is now called the Private Career Training Institutions Agency (PCTIA).
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That means it is accredited in BC in the exact same way as private schools from which you can get TESOL 'Certifi-kits' ("Act now while quantities last and get a free, free * * * * F R E E * * * compass!" types of schools, not university linguistics departments), bartending, beautician schools, etc. NOT UNIVERSITIES and NOT COLLEGES.
It also says,
| Wikipedia's article about University of Pheonix wrote: |
Criticism
The University of Phoenix has vocal critics among its alumni, students, and employees. Some have created critical web sites[4] such as UoPexperience.com.
The main points of criticism include:
The coursework is widely perceived as trivial, non-challenging, and non-educational[4][5].
That UoP's tuition cost is grossly disproportionate to the educational value it gives to its students, as compared with community colleges and other educational options.[6]
That a degree from UoP is seen by employers as inferior, and that students graduate only to find that their degree doesn't get them the jobs they hoped it would[5]. According to the Online University Consortium, a 2003 study of HR professionals indicated that "the majority of the HR professionals surveyed would select a job candidate with an online degree from a traditional school such as USC or University of Michigan over a job candidate with a degree from an organization such as the University of Phoenix"[7]. The UoP's perceived balance between value to students and profits to shareholders is a major element of criticism. Critics cite that the recent success UoP has seen on Wall Street has come directly at the expense of a declining quality of education to students[6][8]. They note that they believe people don't have a problem with a university making a profit as long as it is delivering a good value to its customers.
That UoP accepts enrollment from anyone, such as first-time college students whom UoP caters to, even if UoP is not suitable for them.[6][8] This is seen as favoring profits over education.
That UoP doesn't have qualified professors or teachers, but rather, facilitators, which encourage students to teach each other.[4][8] Critics contend this issue is exacerbated by UoP's willingness to enroll anybody regardless of background, pointing out that being taught by "just anybody" is no replacement for traditional classes with a professor.
In a response to the New York Times article by Sam Dillon which was a source for some of the criticism cited in this section, University of Phoenix posted a rebuttal on its website.[9]
[edit] Controversies
[edit] Faculty
Many members of the academic community and employers consider UOP's faculty to be too "come-and-go" and nomadic.[4][10] Approximately 95% of UOP faculty are part-time compared with an average of 47% across all universities, with most holding full-time day jobs within the fields that they teach.[4]
[edit] Lack of AACSB accreditation
In November 2006, Intel Corporation decided to exclude over 100 colleges who lacked the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) accreditation from its tuition reimbursement program, including University of Phoenix, saying it lacked "top-notch accreditation."[11][4][12] Additionally, there have been published reports that Procter and Gamble and other companies[13] will not hire graduates of non-AACSB-accredited programs. Intel acknowledges that UOP is regionally accredited but an Intel manager is quoted as drawing a distinction of "highly accredited" and clearly excluding the University of Phoenix from it.[10][4] John J. Fernandes, the AACSB's president, said the University of Phoenix has never applied for membership. He feels that their chances of acceptance would be low because they have a "lot of come-and-go faculty".[4][10][5]
[edit] Graduation and retention
When calculated by the federal standard used by the Department of Education, UOP's overall graduation rate is 16%, which when compared to the national average of 55% is among the nation's lowest.[4] The federal standard measures graduation rates as "the percentage of first-time undergraduates who obtain a degree within six years"[4]. The number is significantly lower at its Southern California campus (6%) and its online programs (4%).[4] University of Phoenix published a response[9] acknowledging the 16% graduation rate but took exception to the Federal standard used to calculate the rate, noting that the rate is based upon criteria which includes only 7% of UoP's student population. The institution publishes its own nonstandard graduation rate of 59% to account for its large population of non-traditional students.[4]
[edit] Federal investigations and lawsuits
In September 2004, the university paid a settlement of $9.8 million to the United States Department of Education for alleged violations of the Higher Education Act provisions which prohibit distributing financial incentives to admission representatives.[14][15][16][17][18]
A federal whistle-blower/false claims lawsuit accusing the university of fraudulently obtaining hundreds of millions of dollars in financial aid was filed in 2003 and is currently pending.[6][4][19][20] The university receives more federal student financial aid than any other university in the United States, receiving $1.8 billion in federal student aid in 2004-5.[4] The lawsuit was dismissed by the federal district court and then reinstated by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. The Supreme Court declined to hear University of Phoenix's appeal of that decision.[21][22] The federal district court in Sacramento refused the university's motion to dismiss the case on the grounds that an "alternate remedy" had already been achieved by the aforementioned $9.8 million settlement. That court set the case for trial in September 2009.[23]
The university paid $3.5 million in back wages owed to 1,700 workers related to overtime pay and exemption status given to its recruitment advisers, under a settlement reached in July, 2004 with the United States Department of Labor.[24][25]
The university is being sued by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for alleged religious discrimination favoring Mormon enrollment counselors.[26]
The university settled allegations by the United States Department of Education for $6 million dollars in March 2000 pursuant to a ruling by government auditors that the university's teaching schedule fell short of the minimum time required to qualify for financial aid because it wrongfully included study group meetings among students as instructional hours. The auditors also ruled that the university erred in including cost-of-living expenses for some students when determining financial need.[27][4][6]
The aforementioned settlement with the United States Department of Education came less than a year after that agency ordered the university to pay $650,000 for failing to promptly refund loans and grants for students who withdrew.[6] |
Often people apply for their first job in Japan from their home country and that means dealing with people who almost definately know what's what with post-secondary education- especially in a country where non-accredited 'universities' exist, and in all likelyhood they will not accept it because it basically comes across as doing what it can to avoid the dreaded designation of 'life experience' degree without actually being a Khao San Road Special.
Corporations that are actually in Japan may or may not know (and may or may not care) but the reputable ones that hire outside of the eikaiwa circuit will likely care, and likely not accept it- especially given the relative amount of competition for the better jobs. |
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fat_chris
Joined: 10 Sep 2003
Posts: 3198
Location: Beijing
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| Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2007 10:22 am Post subject: Rising from the ashes? |
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Why anyone would even consider dealing with University of Phoenix in any way is beyond me.
My two farthings...
Regards,
fat_c |
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Gordon
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 5309
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2007 12:42 pm Post subject: |
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| That and the fact, U of P is darn expensive. It is a joke. |
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relientk
Joined: 28 Nov 2005
Posts: 3
Location: Colorado
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| Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2007 2:20 pm Post subject: |
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| Thanks for the heads-up guys. Especially GambatteBBB, for the very thorough response. Something to think about for sure. |
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