Has the collapse of ITT-Tech had unintended consequences for National Accreditation?

Discussion in 'Accreditation Discussions (RA, DETC, state approva' started by Bruce, Oct 10, 2016.

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  1. Bruce

    Bruce Moderator

    I was thinking the other day, after seeing so many advertisements from RA schools, looking to attract former ITT-Tech students; has this had a backdoor impact on the acceptance of NA credits and/or degrees?

    Based on the ads I've seen, these RA schools are willing to accept at least some of the ITT-Tech credits that the now school-less students have acquired, which makes me wonder if this will lead to a more general acceptance of NA credits?

    I've seen the Law of Unintended Consequences work in stranger situations.....
     
  2. Neuhaus

    Neuhaus Well-Known Member

    I don't think the collapse of ITT Tech will have lasting consequences in terms of NA acceptance. There are a few reasons:

    1. The bulk of the schools opening their arms to ITT Tech students may already have had a favorable view of NA credits even if those policies aren't publicly available. The only way to know for sure how a school will treat credits is to apply, send your transcripts and have the registrar evaluate them. Some years ago I contacted a few local schools and found that very few had an outright "No NA credits" policy. Most said they would review them. One, it was either King's or Wilkes, had an incredibly specific policy that wasn't published anywhere a prospective student could see. It amounted to GenEd courses (which they defined as being non-major specific) only transferring up to a max of 30.

    Schools like Bellevue might already have a favorable policy toward NA programs. Other schools, like AMU and Colorado Tech, have been known to accept either NA credits or NA undergrad degrees for admission to their grad programs.

    In other words, just because these schools all came out publicly to embrace ITT Tech...ummm...victims? Doesn't mean that they changed admissions policies on a dime. They just became more public about it.

    2. Admissions Standards vary from school to school and aren't typically consistent or, what most would consider, fair - There are credits that get lost in transfer even between two RA schools. Even if a school did make an exception for ITT Tech that doesn't mean that they intend to do so for any other NA school. They don't need to. They can pick and choose which, if any, credits they will transfer. Accepting ITT tech credits doesn't set a precedent that binds them to all NA schools forever.

    3. At best this would mean that ACICS schools had a leg up - I doubt any school is going to revisit how they treat DEAC and other non-RA accreditors based solely upon how they handle ITT Tech. Some schools, such as dual RA/ABHE, already have an established process for accepting non-RA courses that are either NA or FBA. Accepting ABHE credits doesn't mean that you are required to accept DEAC credits (and vice versa).

    Whenever a person is applying to an RA program from an NA program I always advise them to send the transcript. Even though the RA school would likely never know about it if you don't send it. Even if you're positive they won't accept a single credit in transfer. Just send it. You may be surprised.

    When I applied to Scranton's MBA program (RA/AACSB) they gave me credit for a Project Management Elective based upon my MSM from UMT (DEAC). It doesn't align with my chosen degree path so it won't help me. I could have switched concentrations and utilized it if that was especially important to me. But there's a situation where I never expected anything to transfer.
     
  3. Bruce

    Bruce Moderator

    Neuhaus, I agree on all points except perhaps 1; I know that my Associate's alma mater (Quincy College) was historically RA or the highway in regards to transfer credit, but they seem to have revisited it with the demise of ITT-Tech.

    As the old saying goes, the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Perhaps I'm way overthinking this, or being too optimistic, but I'm thinking that since some RA schools are willing to accept at least some credit from at least one ACICS-accredited school (defunct, at that), that has to bode well for other RA schools?

    ACICS has one foot in the grave, and the other on a banana peel, so my argument if I were a student with DEAC (or ACCSC, ACCET, TRACS, etc.) credits looking to transfer would be that my school's accreditor hasn't become a national punchline, so why are those credits acceptable, while mine are not?
     

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