I am new to this site and have browsed to learn much. I have a bachelors and two masters from Florida State University, and currently work full-time with some travel. I have been searching for reasonably priced distance learning PhD programs in the human services arena. The "Big Three" (Excelsior, Charter Oak, and Thomas Edison) have been mentioned in many posts, but I note that two (Excelsior and Charter Oak) do not offer PhD level degrees (that I could find). I have a lot of respect for Excelsior's approach and costs, but lament their lack of a PhD or other Doctoral option. Could anyone here tell me who the big three are for distance learning or short residency Doctorates? I am really looking for an institution that will recognize my large volume of graduate level credit (around 100 cr hours) and not force me to take too many additional courses prior to the dissertation. Thank you. -Orgaknight- BS (Social Science) Florida State 1989 MSW (Social Work) Florida State 1996 MPA (Public Administration) Florida State 2003
Actually, none of the "big three" offer doctoral programs. Regarding DL doctoral programs, what is your definition of "big three"? And in which area(s)? It matters. In no particular order, some of the more popular ones (domestic) discussed here: Walden University Nova Southeastern University University of Phoenix Capella University Northcentral University Touro University International CIIS Saybrook Fielding Union
The big three do not offer PHD's It appears you desire what is known as a PHD by research. The accredited schools which offer them at a reasonable cost are overseas. At the lower end of the scale are the South African universities (UNISA, Free State, DIT, etc.) where one can be had for about $1500 - $2500 per annum. Usual time to completion 2-3 years. A little higher up on the scale of cost are Australian (USQ, Sturt, etc.) universities which appear to have a total cost of $10-$15k and usual time to completion of 3 or more years. There are further opportunities in Europe which can run as much as $10k per annum (Grenoble, Leicester, London, etc.). These are all rough figures but do approximate what you can expect. To better advise you, the members on this board would need to know your field of study; your budget; and what you plan to do with the credential.
Big 3? Thanks for your response, Rich. I am looking for a PhD or other Doctorate in the human services area generally or specifically in Social Work or Public Administration. I am still struggling over the distance learning vs residence based learning value of the degrees. I am looking in the hope of someday teaching at a public university. I believe in the value of distance learning and other non traditional appoaches (I earned a 4th of my bachelors through Clep Exams), but they are still stigmatized in academia. I wonder if any of you folks out there, who have earned a distance learning doctorate, have found teaching jobs at universities in the U.S.? I am glad to see this forum and growing interest in distance learning. Mark Holtzclaw BS (Social Science) Florida State 1989 MSW (Social Work) Florida State 1996 MPA (Public Administration) Florida State 2003
Several People on this Board.... are doing PHD's in SW or DSW's. Look for Jack Tracey and Dr. Gina. Jack is doing his through an SA school and Gina through a stateside school. Social work is a program with a large amount of practicioners looking to obtain PHD's so getting one while working should not be difficult (beyond the normal difficulties of obtaining a PHD, that is!). If you desire to use it in academia IMHO you would be better served trying to find a local established university with a program designed to train working professionals. It is not impossible to teach full time with a non-traditional degree but it is far from easy. There are a few professors on this site (Andy Borchers) who could advise you on that. I would guess you would also look for the proper professional accreditations. That seems to be a concern for some friends of mine seeking MSW's.
Re: Big 3? Teaching full-time with a DL credential is possible (I'm living proof of that), but Chris is right to suggest that there can be challenges. Before I started a DL doctorate as a prep for teaching I'd do a couple of things: 1. Try teaching as an adjunct. There is no sense in earning a PhD to teach - and then find out you don't like (or can't) teach. Also, by working as an adjunct you can get a feel for the local market for faculty. My first full time teaching job came at a school that I had taught adjunct at for 7 years. I found a fair number of teaching opportunities in the business field, but as for social work - I don't know how easily one can find a spot. 2. Carefully check out local, on-ground programs and all DL options. I know it may be fashionable to be a "virtual" student - but if there is a local on-ground program that will yield a better accepted credential - why not? On the alternative options front, a friend of mine was considering Capella for a doctorate in education, but was concerned about reputation - then he found the University of Nebraska had a DL doctorate. He's going for Nebraska. Why not? Rather than spend a lifetime explaining how Capella is just as good as .... he can say - "I graduated from the University of Nebraska". I bet he'll have a lot less explaining to do. As for residency - I'm a big fan of actually going to class with peers. I'm not big on programs that are 100% remote. That's my opinion - but at least for me (an my learning style), I gain a lot from being with faculty and peers. Regards - Andy
Thanks Thanks to all for the feedback. I will continue to research and hopefully move forward. -Mark-
I am still struggling over the distance learning vs residence based learning value of the degrees. I am looking in the hope of someday teaching at a public university. I believe in the value of distance learning and other non traditional appoaches (I earned a 4th of my bachelors through Clep Exams), but they are still stigmatized in academia. >>>>. This is my concern, which is why I chose to get a distance Bachelors but followed it with a brick and mortar Masters and now am applying for a traditional phD or EdD. Gibson
You can also go the short residency route which most of the doctoral programs we consider DL offer. Touro and NCU are exceptions in this regard. Also, many of the so-called traditional doctorates can be done in a short residency format. My mother-in-law earned her Ed.D. in this fashion. She attended weekend classes at a satellite branch 200 miles away from the main campus. She did her dissertation by going to the main campus for periods of time where she maintained an apartment and could get her residency in -- in the meantime she continued in her job. In comparison many of the Nova programs require attendance at cluster sessions that are in various parts of the country. The difference is that you do not need to come to campus to write your dissertation. An exception to this are the Nova School for Computer and Information Sciences (SCIS) programs offered by Nova. The SCIS cluster and weekend sessions must be taken on campus. Nova also offers the full residential program of study if this is what you want to do. John
