I have some questions concerning UNISA that I am hoping this board can resolve for me: 1) I have heard quite a few positive things about UNISA on this board. I didn't realize they were accredited by the DETC. What is the utility of a UNISA degree here in the U.S.? (undergraduate) 2) The UNISA website is quite confusing. Can anyone tell me the number of courses needed for a BA and the associated costs and fees? Thanks.
Also to add to Pugbelly's Question: * Can you complete a Phd entirely by DL? If this has been answered, kindly direct me to the thread so that I may view it * Is there a contact in the United States? I think that I read that there is? Does he charge to be the go-between if you will? Thank you ...if this has been covered before...my apologies.
Also to add to Pugbelly's Question: * Can you complete a Phd entirely by DL? If this has been answered, kindly direct me to the thread so that I may view it * Is there a contact in the United States? I think that I read that there is? Does he charge to be the go-between if you will? Thank you ...if this has been covered before...my apologies.
Also to add to Pugbelly's Question: * Can you complete a Phd entirely by DL? If this has been answered, kindly direct me to the thread so that I may view it * Is there a contact in the United States? I think that I read that there is? Does he charge to be the go-between if you will? Thank you ...if this has been covered before...my apologies.
OK, so there's a bunch of questions. I'm not the best person to provide answers but in the absence of more qualified persons I will provide some info. Hopefully it will be countered if inaccurate. Q. Is it possible to complete a PhD program entirely by DL? A. Yes. But it depends on the Department. I initially contacted UNISA regarding a PhD in Social Work and was told that there were local internship requirements. Interpretation: no PhD entirely by DL. The deveil is ALWAYS in the the details. Your questions are too general to allow for specific questions. Q. Is there an American contact or go-between to help with admission issues? A. Yes. John Craparo. Do a search on this site for the email/website. (There's also a Canadian contact that seems to be more responsive.) Q. What is the utility of a UNISA undergraduate degree in the USA? A. If your grades are good I'll bet it'll get you into a a US grad school. Q. How many credits? How much money? A. This is too general a question. Which degree program are you considering. The info is in there. At the risk of seeming callous, dig it out. By the way, the cost is ridiculously inexpensive. How many credits? A whole bunch. How many can you handle in a year? My suggestion: go slow at first. Third world does not = easy/stupid. Good luck, Jack
Dr. Michael Esselen of ICA can assist you with your questions. He will provide you with answers on accreditation, DETC and UNISA's utility. This site is for both U.S. and Canadian students. http://www.iaci-canada.com/
John's website is http://www.aihec.com John is a great guy who has helped a lot of people in the past, but IMO he has really dropped the ball in regards to being the US contact for UNISA. His website promises an update for January 2003 (yes, 2003), and I've read numerous complaints about non-service from AIHEC. I'd really check with the Canadian contact first.
Dear pugbelly: Greetings. Some comments: Regarding question 1, it is probably worth keeping in mind that UNISA is a major foreign university (albeit in a less than major foreign country [no offense!]) that has acquired DETC accreditation in a [misguided?] attempt to attract, and to facilitate the enrollment of, American students. No matter what one thinks of UNISA, it is certainly misleading to consider it as just another DETC-accredited institution: for better or worse, they are hardly a typical DETC school. Regarding question 2, here are some links you might find helpful: UNISA: ------ "Enquiries & Registration": www.unisa.ac.za/default.asp?Cmd=ViewContent&ContentID=1481 "Study Information": www.unisa.ac.za/Default.asp?Cmd=ViewContent&ContentID=4 N.B. Near the bottom of the "Study Information" page, you will find links to UNISA's "Calendars". The "Calendars" contain everything one could want to know about UNISA, and several hundred pages more. <g> "Admission Requirements": https://sol.unisa.ac.za/quals/admission.html South African Qualifications Authority: --------------------------------------- (You will probably need to send your records of your American "qualifications" (education) to SAQA in order to have them evaluated. Their is a fee for this service, but, unless you need rush service, it isn't extremely expensive, and it only needs to be done once.) www.saqa.org.za/ South African Universities Vice-Chancellors Association: -------------------------------------------------------- (If your interested in general SA university entry requirements, you might want to look around here.) Home Page: http://www.sauvca.org.za/ "Types of certificates issued to holders of foreign qualifications": www.sauvca.org.za/mb/foreign/210546.htm "Admission of foreign school leavers": http://www.sauvca.org.za/mb/foreign/210547.htm "Presentation according to country where qualifications were completed": http://www.sauvca.org.za/mb/foreign/210550.htm (You'll probably want to select "USA" from the list at the bottom of the page.) Technikon SA: ------------- TSA is now a college under the aegis of UNISA. They offer similar, but less spiffy "BTECH" (Bachelor) degrees in a vanity of subjects. Since you're keen on an SA education, you might want to look around TSA, too. http://www.tsa.ac.za/welcome.htm XE.com "Independently Ranked as the World's Favorite Currency Site" ------------------------------------------------------------------- www.xe.com (You can learn the current "SA Rands" to "US Dollars" exchange rate here.) After reading the relevant bits of the calendars and exploring UNISA's web site, most of your questions should be answered. For the remaining questions, just email UNISA (see web site). Although some have complained of not receiving a reply, I got one within a few days. If possible, you may wish to try to contact them between registration cycles, when they are (presumably) busiest. When dealing with UNISA, you need to keep in mind that you are dealing with a massive, inflexible bureaucracy, much like your local city/state college, except that UNISA is being inundated with students but not with money. (Keep in mind that you are reading the opinions of a person 8,000 miles away from his nearest UNISA campus: my information may not be completely accurate. <g>) If you want swift, obsequious service, UNISA *isn't* for you! If you can't be cheerful, pleasant, and excessively understanding -- and I know you can! <g> -- you really need to go elsewhere! Good luck! Cordially, Richard Kanarek "TSA's most distant distance learner!"
Re: Re: UNISA Questions I agree with most of your post, except for the description of the bureaucracy as "massive". Unisa's administration is amazingly small, especially for a university with over 100,000 students. That's a major part of the problem - they don't have much time to spend on applicants who don't neatly fit into their everyday workflow.
