Virginia College

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by LawMan1, Nov 15, 2004.

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  1. LawMan1

    LawMan1 New Member

    I did a search here and on google, but was unable to come up with good info on this school, Virginia College, www.vconline.com.
    What I do know: The school is Nationally Accredited, has I think, four bricks and mortar campuses, and is a "career college" for adults. The website reeks of vagueness. I was wondering if anyone on the board has ever taken classes from this school, or knows anyone that has.
    Just looking at the site, it reminds me of all the for profit schools. It doesnt mention tuition, learning methodology, or any other details.
    The school does offer a Masters in Homeland Security, completely online. It is elegible for federal loans, which is a major plus.

    Any former or current Virginia College students please reply with your thoughts.

    P.S Is it odd that Virginia College, which has 3 brick and mortar campuses, has no connection to the state of Virginia? The campuses are in Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, and Texas.
     
  2. LawMan1

    LawMan1 New Member

  3. Alex

    Alex New Member

    It's hard to tell much from their website- looks like they really want you to talk to them on the phone in order to get information.

    Their Homeland Security program is very new, and it centers around IT security. If that's your interest, you might want to compare the Virginia College program with others, such as those offered by University of London, Capella University, or American Military University.

    http://www.londonexternal.ac.uk/postgraduate/holloway/info_security/index.shtml

    http://www.capella.edu/schools_programs/technology/masters/information_security.aspx

    http://www.apus.edu/AMU/Academics/SubPrograms.aspx?paid=2008

    AMU is nationally accredited, and it was offering homeland security related degrees even before 911.

    If you're more interested in areas of homeland security other than IT, you might consider a degee in emergency management, criminal justice, or (my favorite) public health. There are various distance master's programs related to all of these fields.

    Virginia College may have a very good program- just be sure to compare it to other alternatives so you can find the best fit.

    Good luck,

    Alex
     
  4. beachhoppr

    beachhoppr New Member

    I live in Birmingham, AL where Virginia College is located. Their MBA is ACICS accredited. The only program the VC offers that warrants real respect is Culinard, their $30,000+ culinary arts program. It's highly regarded and a very nice facility (I checked it out a couple months ago). Most anything else they offer is mediocre as best as I can tell. They do have a sort of used car sales type of mentality around here. While certainly not very respected, they are not a complete joke.
     
  5. clichemoth

    clichemoth New Member

    Went there for a time before transportation problems led me to transfer to Kaplan . . .

    They're completely legit for what they do, AFAIK, but the Southern Institute for Interior Design (which pre-dated VC by about 60 years before they bought it) and Culinard (any Birminghamians on here ever tried Mizan Plaz? You should, the food is excellent if you're into fusion cuisine. May have been part of SI before VC bought it, also) are given far more respect than the general programs. . . Mostly because of those awful commercials.
     

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