Sorry, I tried to do a search on this topic but it seems it's not working. My daughter is taking the plunge to do an assocates degree in accounting through Thompson. I guess it's DETC accredited. And the price doesn't seem out of line. Does anyone have any comments, concerns, or success stories on Thompson. My concern at this point is that her options to transfer credits to other programs, especially RA, would be limited. Thanks for any feedback on this school.
Education direct Thomson Education Direct is DETC accredited, but their degree level courses have also been ACE reviewed. This makes transfer much easier. In addition, they are a candidate for Middle States (regional) accreditation. www.msche.org/Institutions_Directory.asp. In my view, Education Direct is a bargain.
An associates degree from Education Direct would probably transfer quite nicely into a number of RA BA/BS programs. In that sense, it's very similar (and priced similarly) to Ashworth College, which many consider to be Education Direct's direct competitor among the DETC-accredited AA/AS programs. Busho4's observation regarding Education Direct's ACE status -- as well as its impending regional accreditation -- is compelling and should not be dismissed as irrelevant. Where a DETC-accredited AA or AS degree might or might not be attractive to an RA BA or BS program, said AA or AS containing ACE-approved coursework can often tip it in. Couple that with impending regional accreditation, and suddenly the AA or AS in question becomes almost irresistable to most RA BA/BS programs as acceptable transfer credit. In that regard, in my opinion, Education Direct (of which I've never been a huge fan, I feel compelled to point out) really has it over Ashworth. And, yes, Education Direct is a bargain. But there are other bargains out there -- including some regionally-accredited ones -- too. Of course, if she's already gotten started at Education Direct, then fine; but if she/you haven't pulled the trigger yet, a bit more looking might produce an RA AA/AS distance learning program that will make both of you happy. That said, the Education Direct route is a pretty good one, price and most other things considered.
I'm a former student of Education Direct's Paralegal Program. Excelsior College (www.excelsior.edu) took all of my units for transfer. It is a good school, if she could do RA for similar price that is the route I would go. Otherwise, the credits are good-at some-schools, price is right and she will learn. I did. my .02 cents worth!
Well I appreciate the encouraging feedback. I think she's pretty well decided on this route, having faxed them some admissions data this afternoon. It sounds like she's made a good choice. Thanks folks!
Umm... having contributed, I hope, to your overall sense of satisfaction and happiness resulting from this thread, I'm starting to feel a little guilty about not hitting harder on the one point that you obviously already know: The fact that there are lots of RA BA/BS programs that will take a DETC-accredited AA/AS degree does not change the fact that I'm pretty sure you've already read around here, and that's that there will be many RA BA/BS programs that will not accept the Education Direct credential -- at least not until it's fully RA. Is it likely that your daughter will apply to one and end-up disappointed? Probably not... and even if she did, there are sufficiently other fish in the sea that said disappointment would probably dissipate quickly. Still, in the name of your/her eyes being wide open and all that kinda' stuff, make no mistake about it: It would be better if she could get an RA associates degree. It really would. That said, the fact that hers won't be, as a practical matter, probably won't really end-up hurting her. But just know that the limited utility of nationally-accredited (as opposed to regionally-accredited) degrees is real. Precisely how much less useful are the nationally-accredited degrees is not completely clear; and there seems hopeful, new evidence daily that more and more RA institutions are accepting NA credentials -- especially if said credentials are merely associates degrees. But do not assume that a nationally-accredited BA or BS would be equally acceptable to RA masters programs (in other words, your daughter's NA associates from Education Direct notwithstanding, make sure she gets an RA bachelors). At the risk of belaboring it, I'm just makin' sure all the bases are covered. Sorry if I'm telling you something you already know.
Thanks Gregg, I'm totally with you. Had she come to me at the get go I'd have advised the RA route. I'm just relieved that she apparently picked a fair school and that she stands a decent chance of getting her BA from a RA school should she want to go on. Her goal now is to learn accounting and it looks like this is a reasonable way to do it. I'm going to get her thinking on certifications next, CPA requires 150 hours so perhaps CMA and Enrolled Agent status.
