DETC is considering accreditation of doctoral degrees. Hopefully, this includes Ph.Ds as well as DBA's. Anyone with any speculation or knowledge? The policy draft does not say.
The proposed standards out for comment allow for DETC to authorize pilot programs and would give the executive director authorization to seek an expansion of authority from the Department of Education to cover doctoral degrees, including PhD’s. Even assuming that the standards are adopted in January there is no guarantee that the Commission would authorize any PhD pilot programs. Just because they have the authority does not mean it would be exercised immediately. I look for the Commission to move slowly on pilot programs. (Just my opinion with no inside information whatsoever.)
Thanks David. I agree with you fully. As much as I'd like to see some positive action on DETC doctorates in the short run, I think prudence, accountability and, of course, the latest rancor on degree mills echoing in Congress will probably slow matters somewhat. Just my opinion. The unfortunate thing about the controversy is that some legitimate, unaccredited schools got branded as degree mills. If I'm not mistaken, Bob Jones University, Cambridge and Oxford are not accredited as well.
But those are bad examples. Those schools never get mixed in with the diploma mills, and it is a mistake when those promoting unaccredited DL schools use them as examples. Cambridge and Oxford have the advantage of going first--educational systems were established later. Even still, Henry III may have issued Cambridge's charter. And the licensing of its doctors to teach elsewhere also came from royal decree. Big Government was involved even then! Bob Jones? Again, not the archetype for the kinds of schools discussed here. They reject regional accreditation because of the requirements placed upon them related to equal treatment under the law. But we hear they're applying for TRACS accreditation, and will likely get it. Schools like these are universities. Many unaccredited schools are not, despite their invocation of the word in their titles. It is unfortunate that some legitimate, unaccredited, DL schools get lumped in with the diploma mills. But there is a simple solution, one which CCU and others are attempting to employ: become accredited.
Oxford and Cambridge are British universities and American accreditation doesn't apply to them. But both of these schools obviously do have the British equivalent of accreditation. You can find the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education's reviews of both universities posted here: http://www.qaa.ac.uk/revreps/inst_index.asp
