Univ of Phoenix IT program

Discussion in 'IT and Computer-Related Degrees' started by Mr. Engineer, Apr 13, 2004.

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  1. Mr. Engineer

    Mr. Engineer member

    I have one thing to say about the UoP on-site IT program: It sucked! I cannot speak for every campus, but the San Jose campus (in the heart of the Silicon Valley) was ill prepared with the degree, provided zero computer support (the only had one network connection in the class, we had to bring our own router). Most of the instructors were marginal (the VB and V C++ instructors had never coded in their assigned language).

    If I had to do it all again, I would have gone to DeVry. They have a pretty good combo IT program which allows you to take your business and applications classes on line and the important IT classes (programming, etc) in the classroom with real equipment.

    Does anyone else have the same experience with UoP's on-site IT program? Is the on-line program any better? What about other distance and on-line IT degrees? Did you feel that you learned enough to perform the basics (to get your foot in the door) -- or was it set up for IT professionals already employed who merely wanted thier BS degrees?

    Thanks!
     
  2. atraxler

    atraxler New Member

    Mr. Engineer,

    I graduated from UoP with a BS in IT (Online, 2002) and had a very good experience. Before I enrolled I had 15 years of experience in “IT” and, with all honesty, I was not expecting to learn anything new. To my surprise, some of the classes were very helpful and helped me earn a promotion at work.

    The program assumes you are employed and have some experience, so I would say that it is oriented to working adults already employed in the field who need a credential to improve their career chances, earn promotions, acceptance to graduate school, etc. I would not recommend this program for someone new to the field (just trying to get an IT job) because a lot of the assignments draw from experiences in your work environment.

    Other than the price, the frequent personnel changes and some free riders on my learning teams, I have no complains about UoP. I had one instructor that was awful, a couple that were excellent, the majority was average… just like at the institutions I had previously attended.

    The degree has met my needs: my employer has no reservations about it and I was recently accepted to grad school with this degree (MBA program, local B&M school).
     
  3. Randell1234

    Randell1234 Moderator

    I took two classes at a UoP campus and the first one was a 300 level class and was so basic that I had trouble staying awake. When I transfered the credits to COSC they wanted to give me 100 level credit for it; I was able to get 200 level credit but it still hurt because I was counting on that class to be an upper level.

    The other class I took, 400 level, was great. It was Managing Projects or something like that.

    I heard many students complain that the future classes offered were datatbase classes and programming classes but the classrooms do not have computers. How pathetic is that, you learn about programming but never actually program.

    I was happy that I only planned to take two classes and transfer them to COSC to get my BS. Although I did like the classroom setting, I would have been really unhappy spending 17K on a BS in IT, saying I included five programming classes (computer and web) and I never actually had a computer in the class to program anything.
     
  4. Mr. Engineer

    Mr. Engineer member

    DeVry has a better IT program hands down. Costs a bit more, but at least you get the programming training.

    atraxler stated that UoP's IT program "assumes" that you have IT experience. If that is the assumption, then it sure isn't sold in that manner. If they really want to bring some legitimacy, they need to provide more teaching and less fluff (IMHO).

    I winged my way through VB and V C++. I had some team members that had programming experience. I had the writing expertise so it was a good tradeoff. Good thing I didn't have to count on any real programming training or I would be out of luck.
     
  5. atraxler

    atraxler New Member

    I should clarify that my statement is my own perception, based on what I experienced in the program. Phoenix does not say you need to have IT experience, per se. This is what they say (emphasis added):

    I agree with your comments on the VB and C++ classes (and also the DBM classes in my specialization). If you do not have any VB or C++ experience, a 5-week class will not do much for you. In my opinion you will learn something, but you will not be proficient.

    In my case, I have been programming in VB and C++ for a long time. In the Advanced VB class, I spent about 25 hrs to complete one of the weekly assignments... and I knew what I was doing. Most students struggled with the assignment and could not get it done in the time allowed. This is what leads me to believe the program assumes some level of experience in the field. There was, of course, a guy that claimed no prior VB experience and his code was flawless... he was between jobs at the time and was dedicating 40 hrs a week to the class. Obviously, that guy was the exception, not the rule.

    On a different topic... your sig says "summa." Is UoP now bestowing Latin Honors? I graduated with a 3.85 GPA and my diploma simply states "Graduated with Honors," no Summa or Magna Cum Laude :confused:
     
  6. mcjon77

    mcjon77 Member

    If you are saying that there was no computer lab for students to use when they were not in class, I would have to say that the campus doesn't appear to be fully prepared to offer IT training.

    If, however, you are saying that there were no computers in the classroom where you were listening to lectures, my only response would be that this seems to be the norm. Most of the schools I've seen don't have many computer clesses in the lab. It is up for the sudent to work on the computer in his own time. I've probably taken about 20 CS courses in my life, and almost only 3 were held in classrooms that had computers for students. In on case, it was held there simply because it was the only room availilble. We never used the computers for class, we only used it to check email when the prof wasn't looking :D .

    My first programming course was taught in a standard classroom. I thought there should have been computers in the class so we could do stuff in class. My teacher explained that it was are job to work on the computers on our own time. He had so much information to present that having computers in the class would have slowed things down.

    Of the two other classes that ocaissionally had class in the computer lab, one was a BASIC intro to PCs and the internet. That class required computers in the class becuase people needed a lot of hand holding.

    The other class was a DBMS class that had us in the Lab for about the last third of the semester. My personal opinion, and those of other students, was that this greatly slowed the class down. Now, rather than absorbing info at a rapid rate, we had to spend most of our time on the computer, spending class time dealing with setup and configuration issures that could be explained in a booklet.

    Note that these are all good universities. No degree or deploma mills. All of them were very well respected schools.

    Jon
     
  7. Alnico

    Alnico New Member

    I just bailed from UOP and headed back to Exclesior next VA quarter. UOP did not give me favorable matriculation of previous military AND professional experience. It took 6 month for them to get me matriculated. They were not willing to waive the requirements for an Introductory computer class despite documented experience AND ICCP examination, etc.

    I only hope the 9 credits I earned at UOP can be applied to a degree from Excelsior.... Hope I needed those.

    UOP's learning team model had me pulling the load for my entire team more often than not...despite having 3-5 team members.

    ...cost was too high also....
     
  8. Mr. Engineer

    Mr. Engineer member

    atraxler
    You are correct, UoP only says "Honors" for anything above a 3.75. I received a 3.9 which for most colleges would be a Summa.

    UoP didn't have a computer lab either in the lecture room or anyplace else. They had a small study area with "computers" (most high schools had more updated versions). Other than that, nothing was hands on for the San Jose campus. Funny, we were within spitting distance of Intel, Cisco, and other high tech areas but the IT program was fairly low tech. But, alas, I got the legitimate degree. Now I just have to get into a decent MBA program either at CSUDH or SJSU. We shall see.
     
  9. atraxler

    atraxler New Member

    Thanks for the clarification, Mr. Engineer. It would be nice if they would put summa/magna on their diplomas.

    UoP has two locations in Houston, and I don't know if they have a computer lab or not. It would not surprise me at all if they do not have one...

    Good luck with your MBA; I'll start the first week of May.
     
  10. jimnagrom

    jimnagrom New Member

    I have taught at DeVry - you're in for a surprise. :)
     
  11. Mr. Engineer

    Mr. Engineer member

    Re: Re: Univ of Phoenix IT program

    Did you have a problem with DeVry? Please explain. My wife is in the BS Tech Management program. The only thing I don't like it about it is the lack of cooperation and assistance from the staff at the Fremont facility. I had to teach her how to write in MLA format. UoP has an entire class just on writing and presenting in MLA and UoP format (something that should have been done at DeVry)

    Hey - Predator is on FX! Cool!

    Later..
     
  12. Ike

    Ike New Member

    Re: Re: Re: Univ of Phoenix IT program


    Only a few months ago, “Me Again” bashed and vilified UoP endlessly until he took a few online courses from Northcentral University (NCU). He now suggests that UoP standards are unarguably higher than those of NCU.
    How did you arrive at the conclusion that DeVry programs would have been better for you? You stated that professors at DeVry were not able to teach your wife how to use MLA properly. What made you conclude that these professors would have helped you master VB and VC++ programming? Have you taken any DeVry online course?

    Note: I am neither an alumnus nor a student of University of Phoenix.
     
  13. Mr. Engineer

    Mr. Engineer member

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Univ of Phoenix IT program

    I was referring to the B&M UoP and DeVry. UoP is set up as a business college and in my opinion, has no business moving into the tech sector until they are set up for that (something which they are not for either the B&M or On-line programs). DeVry, on the other hand, is a tech college that moved over into Business (something that is easier to accomplish). If you go to any B&M DeVry, you will see state of the art computer systems, networks, etc. (something that no bay area UoP campus possesses).

    On-line might be very different -
     
  14. me again

    me again Well-Known Member

    Hey, how'd I get dragged into this thread? :confused:

    Now that you mention it, does Northcentral University Online have academic standards? :eek:
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 20, 2004
  15. Ike

    Ike New Member

    How would I know? :confused: Although NCU did not work for you, some NCU students nevertheless have something positive and good to say about the school. One man's meat in this case has turned out to be another man's poison.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 20, 2004
  16. Ike

    Ike New Member

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Univ of Phoenix IT program

    I have never taught for both schools, so I don't have enough facts that will help me critic their academic standards.
     

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