AACRAO Confirms Credibility/Recognition of Potchefstroom University Degrees

In regard to the inquiry of one poster, who stated that some of the South African degrees were not recognized outside of South Africa, a recent e-mail to AACRAO revealed the following:

"Potchefstroom University is recognized by the Ministry of Education of South Africa. Thus, the degree conferred would be from a recognized institution which is comparable to a regionally accredited institution in the United States."

Jane Funaki, Manager
Office of International Education Services
AACRAO
One Dupont Circle, NW
Suite #520
Washington, DC 20036
202-296-3359
[email protected]

The same would hold true for the other universities which comprise the university system of SA, e.g., Unisa, U Pretoria, etc.

Russell

 

Not to say they have the utility or value of an RA degree of coarse.

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Best Regards,
Dave Hayden

 

I'd say they have more utility than an RA degree in South Africa, and less utility than a RA degree in the States. Provincialism is like that. But the AACRAO, the most reliable (and probably most often used) service to establish the legitimacy of foreign credentials, accepts Potch as RA-equivalent. That's as much recognition as anybody can promise.


Peace,

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Tom Head
www.tomhead.net

 

Not to say they don't either. Depending on the field and what you intend to do with the degree, it may well have more value than a degree from one of the non brick & mortar DL schools in the US. For instance, a very well respected foreign school may pull more weight in some cases in academia than an Argosy, University of Phoenix, Walden or Capella degree. I am not saying it will just that it may. I think if I were looking at a doctorate in a theological discipline from the Union Institute and one from PUCHE and I were hiring faculty I may give more weight to the PUCHE degree.

North

 

That's a very good point.

Because I haven't really seriously considered a U.S. doctoral program since 1998, I've been wary of recommending non-U.S. schools too highly -- I feel like I'm feathering my own nest. But certainly there is no reason to think that a viable non-U.S. doctorate will in any way be less marketable than a viable U.S. doctorate.


Peace,

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Tom Head
www.tomhead.net

 

Tom,

Why have you dropped U.S. programs from your consideration? (Just curious)

- Ellis

 

I think that the marketability argument (US vs. non-US) could also be expanded to include perceptions among RA schools. A Duke MBA is going to be more marketable than, say, the same degree from from Baker College (MI). Both are RA, however, Duke is much more visible and well known.

The marketability of any degree, among equivalent schools (whether RA/RA or US RA/non-US equivalent), depends heavily on criteria such as: visibility of school, how well known the school is, supply and demand of a particular degree, HR people, etc. The issue is that of meeting the accepted standard of credibility/recognition, which is RA or its non-US equivalent.

Russell

 

While I think your point that a non-US degree may in certain situations have as much or more value than a US RA degree, for most US students the RA degree is going to have much more utility. Aa was pointed out a University of London degree may provide more utilty than a University of Phoenix degree.

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Best Regards,
Dave Hayden

 

I am sorry for the disjointed post. I definately hit reply too soon. Guess I should wake up before posting.

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Best Regards,
Dave Hayden

 

A ridiculous post. No knowledgeable person would laugh at a UoL degree while any knowledgable person would laugh at a UoP degree.

 

EXACTLY. All things equal, you will be better off in the US with a US degree. However, when you are comparing Potch with Nova, Walden, Capella, etc., you are not comparing like with like.

 

Potchefstroom University is a 131 year old brick-n-mortar institution, located in the city from which it derives its name. PU has over 15,000 students, nearly 500 full-time faculty (as well as numerous part-time), and 13 accredited schools, which are basically extension sites for their degree programs. The majority of the student body is residential.

 

That's a pretty strong statement. UoP certainly has had some questions raised in regards to tuition, and in some cases academic rigor. However, being an RA school, I don't think any knowledgable person would "laugh" at a UoP degree, outside the ivory tower of academia.

UoP has found its niche, providing very flexible educational programs to career-minded adults who, for the most part, have no interest in teaching or research. BTW, I have no connection whatsoever with UoP.

Just curious, but if a knowledgable person would laugh at a UoP degree, what would that knowledgable person do when faced with a Columbia State degree? Go into cardiac arrest?

Bruce

 

I suppose that's true. Potchefstroom is a South African Afrikaans medium university that offers English language degree programs in Christian theology through GST. Nova is a large 'bricks and mortar' Florida university whose offerings, both on and off campus, focus on entirely different professonal subjects.

Which one would be a better choice would depend on what one wants to study, I guess. And on how one wants to study those things. Nova offers two extension clusters located within commuting distance of me, which is attractive.

I'm sure that the same kind of considerations apply to Walden and Capella. Each is a specialty institution. They are viable choices if they offer what a student wants, but of less use if they don't.

 

Actually, my point was not referring to subjects studied but quality / perceived quality of the schools. You cannot compare medium south african public universities with speciality for profit american schools... Potch wins. Now if you were comparing Potch with a better US public university... now perhaps we have like with like.

 

'Perceived' by whom? Reputation is a fluid thing. I'm sure that Potchefstroom is a fine university, but most Americans have never heard of it. It's an Afrikaans-language university located halfway around the world in a country most of us don't follow too closely.

But that's not the point. The point is that if you want to study Christian theology, Potchefstroom/GST is a better choice than Nova, if only because of the fact that Nova doesn't offer that subject. But if you want to study education by DL, then Nova is a better choice than Potchefstroom because Nova specializes in that subject.

In judging which school is "better", you *have* to look at it subject by subject. Just because some person subjectively feels that one institution is more prestigious than another doesn't mean that the favored school is always a better choice for everyone.

Cal Tech is more prestigious institutionally than San Francisco State, but SF State is a better choice than Cal Tech in classical archaeology.

Of course we can compare them. You are doing it right now. But if we want to raise the issue above mere matters of personal aesthetic taste, we can only compare them in fields where they go head to head in the same subject. And then only if we can give reasons why one particular program is preferrable to the other. On the graduate level that gets complicated fast, since we are talking about specialties offered, faculty interests, subtle differences of approach and orientation, delivery methods, program mechanics, residence requirements and all the rest. It becomes a matter of personal fit between student and program.

I think that this group is probably most useful giving people information and letting them make up their own minds.

 

I will bring this home to you.

Some of the "comparisions" you speak of are like comparing Harvard Business School with Phoenix Community College... you say that, since they both offer business programs, that they are comparable... I say that they are totally different types of institutions and, although they may appear to offer the same topics, are dramatically different.