Should I Continue DETC or Change RA

I am currently enrolled at a DETC accredited school attempting to complete a BS degree. I don't know why, but I am now having second thoughts as to the acceptance of a DETC degree. I have been employed in the law enforcement field for over 15 years and I'm beginning to move up in the ranks. I completed an AS degree through Excelsior, however, testing is not my thing. The course work at my current school is both challenging and interesting, mostly subject related, and I only need ten courses to graduate. The state of Florida effective this year provides salary incentive for law enforcement officers with a Bachelors degree from either RA, ACICS or any other recognized accreditation. In the past it was only RA or ACICS. Most of my co-workers however obtained their degrees through RA schools. I hope my future degree if I continue DETC will be accepted within my agency, without no one questioning it's validity.

 

Hi Manny,

If Florida will provide the salary incentive for a DETC school, and you're close to graduating, then I'd stick with the DETC school. You'll have a legitimately accredited degree.

Most likely, you'll be able to find a RA graduate school that will accept your DETC degree (Northcentral University comes to mind). Having a RA graduate degree, IMO, negates the undergraduate degree.

 

If you are worried about the acceptance of a bachelor degree from a school with national accreditation (NA / DETC) and are only 10 courses (~30 credit hours) away from completion you have at least two viable options.

1. Complete the BS degree and apply to graduate school and earn a MA or MS degree.

2. Transfer to a school with regional accreditation (RA) which accepts DETC credit transfers such as Southwestern College Online to complete your bachelor degree.

However, you stated "a Bachelors degree from either RA, ACICS or any other recognized accreditation". Thus, it seems reasonable that a nationally accredited degree would be acceptable. If in doubt, ask the human resources department of the organization.

The CHEA and USDE databases are excellent resources.

 

You should not be ashamed of, or concerned with pursuing your degree with a school that is accredited by the DETC. DETC, ACICS and RA are ALL recognized accrediting agencies with CHEA and the US Dept of Education.

You should read the history of the DETC and learn about how long they've been accrediting distance education programs.
(http://www.detc.org)

If your concerned with your employers acceptance of the DETC, just ask them. DETC is just as recognized as ACICS and RA. No accreditation has been proven or deemed to be better than the other.

 

That's not exactly true. My graduate program specified a RA undergraduate degree for admission, and just to check, I called them under an assumed name, pretending I had a DETC degree, looking for an admissions waiver. I was turned-down cold.

One legitimate accreditation may not be proven "better" than another, but acceptance certainly varies, which is all that really matters in the end.

 

This last statement is also wrong. DETC isn't "just as recognized" as RA. John Bear's survey of AACRAO members demonstrated that, as did my survey of HR professionals. Finally, we see a whole lot of anecdotal evidence--examples of employment situations where NA degrees are not acceptable--that belies the notion as well.

Everytime we get into these discussions, someone else wants to ring the "RA-or-no-way" bell. My comments about the limitations of a degree from a DETC-accredited school should not be interpreted as "RA-or-no-way." There's nothing wrong with getting a degree from an NA school. But don't overstate its value, and don't ignore its limitations. Finally, don't advise someone else to make that mistake.

 

Continue!

Manny, I would continue on. Bottom line is that you will have an accredited degree and one you can be proud of. There will always be discussions of whether RA or NA is better. Anytime someone puts down NA to me I say well you paid for mine with your tax dollars. I just completed my AAS in Criminal Justice with Ashworth and transferred my credits to Southwest (another DETC school).

The military paid for mine through DANTES and now I'm using my G.I. Bill. Without these types of schools it would be impossible for me to further my education. I've been in recruiting for over ten years now, and I'm sure there are those out there that can verify the hours we work, not to mention the current world affairs.

 

Manny00,

There are several points to consider prior to making a decision regarding completing the DETC degree or transferring to an RA program.

1) You mention that "testing is not my thing". Is this issue holding you back from pursuing an RA degree?

2) You note that most of your colleagues are obtaining their degrees from RA schools. Knowing the poitical climate of your organization, do you have objective indication that this factor may negatively impact on any future prospective job opportunities/promotions because of the possible belief of your seniors that a DETC degree is not on par with one from an RA school?

It is important to keep in mind that DETC degrees are not generally perceived as being commensurate with RA degrees no matter that some posters on this forum hold otherwise. Secondly, even though the policy of your organization currently allow for DETC degrees you need to be aware that regardless of what is written, supervisors hold private biases and perceptions that MAY not look favorably on DETC degrees.

It is obvious from your post that you are not exactly comfortable with proceding with your DETC program. Therefore you need to acknowledge and "listen" carefully to these feelings. It would also appear that you need to assess the political reality in which you work to determine if coworkers with RA degrees may have an advantage in terms of future promotional opportunities over an employee with one from a DETC program.

 

In re-reading this, I wanted to clarify something. By "mistake" I don't mean that enrolling in a DETC-accredited degree program is a mistake. The mistake I was referring to is telling other people that there is no difference when there obviously is.

As for whether you should switch, that is a highly personal decision. The downside to having a degree from a DETC-accredited school vs. the cost, time, hassle, etc. of backtracking and finishing an RA program.

If this was a decision about accredited vs. unaccredited, I'd give you a black-and-white answer: switch. That's because the unaccredited degree might not only fail you in some situations, it could actually hurt you more than if you had no degree at all. (See all the cases of public consternation over such folks.) But there's no shame at all in having a degree from an NA school, and there is a great deal of "upside," just not as much as one from an RA school.

I'm more inclined to suggest you stay with it, enjoy the benefits the degree brings you, and make different decisions in the future. But only you know the real answer.

Good luck with your decision.

 

Re: Re: Should I Continue DETC or Change RA

Exactly the reason I suggested she might want to consider transferring her DETC credits to Southwestern College Online as they accept nationally accredited credit hours/courses. In any event, she has to feel comfortable with the decision of whether to graduate with an NA or RA degree.

Obtaining a written copy of the organizational policy regarding acceptable accreditations and having that document signed-off by the head of HR and perhaps her current manager would help set her mind at ease.

 

This issue goes beyond "enjoying the benefits the degree brings you" because, in fact, a DETC may not lead to any benefits or meet the standard that would enhance Manny's standing in relation to his peers for promotional opportunities within his organization. This is especially relevant due to the fact that many of Manny's coworkers are pursuing RA degrees and in this very competitive job market every additional asset an employee has only serves to raise the "bar" in their favor.

Based on the data presented by Manny00 it appears that any decision he makes has to encompass his understanding as to the rationale for his coworkers' decision to pursue RA degrees rather than completing an "easier" DETC degree program. In fact, they may be aware of the recognition value and benefit of an RA degree versus a DETC diploma and Manny needs to determine if this issue is of sufficient relevance to necessitiate his transferring to an RA degree progam.

 

Re: Re: Re: Should I Continue DETC or Change RA

You are on the right track about corroborating the policy regarding these degrees, etc. The only problem is that regardless of policies, when confronted with making hiring decisions, many HR and senior personnel make selections on covert biases, feelings, belief systems that will not be transparent and can be rationalized and defended in spite of written policy!

Hypothetically when presented with two candidates with the same qualifications for a job, an employment decision may be based on criteria factors unrelated to the actual job requirements such as their level of physical attractiveness, personality characteristics they do and don't like, etc. This is why it is important in a very competitive job market, at the minimum, to possess credentials that do not raise a red flag, for example, a state approved degree, that may adversely effect the perceptions of those in power to make critical decisions that can seriously impact on ones' career. Within the general employment market an RA degree is looked upon with significantly more credibility than one that is DETC.

That is why I suggested that Manny "scope" out the political and unspoken bottomline within his work context to determine whether there is any real benefit in obtaining an RA degree rather than on completing his current DETC program..

 

Let's get real. How can you justify a statement of "....a DETC may not lead to any benefits." This is a ridiculous statement and simply not true. The times where a DETC degree maybe questioned by someone who does not understand accreditation is far and few between.

Honestly, who really cares whether you're degree is accredited by NA or RA. It's accredited and recognized by CHEA and US Dept of Ed.

If you're worried about transfer issues, there's the CHEA/HETA agreement with 300+ RA schools accepting NA credits and degrees and the list continues to grow. Plus, future federal legislation (which looks like it will pass) will make it against the law to discriminate against the schools accreditor, so long as the accreditor is recognized the CHEA and US Dept of Ed.

If you're basing your future employment opportunities only on a college degree, you're not going to be very marketable. If some company out there does not accept my NA degree, it will be their loss, not mine. Again, these issues are few and far between. I believe the true indicator of success for DETC degrees is the graduates from DETC schools, not the opinionated individuals who believe a RA degree is worth more than a NA degree.

Let me ask you this. If a DETC degree is so questionable to it's value, why have over 120 million Americans enrolled into DETC institutions since the 1890s? To me, that's a pretty stong indicator of acceptance.

What about the famous DETC alumni like industrialist Walter Chrysler, Senators Barry Goldwater and Stuart Symington, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, WWI war hero Captain Eddie Rickenbacker, cartoonist Charles Schultz, South African President Nelson Mandella, playwright Clifford Odetts, and millions of other men, women and children. Dozens of entertainers, ice skating stars and tennis professionals earned their high school diplomas from DETC institutions.

Plus, a nich that the RA accreditors do not have is that the DETC accredits institutions all over the US and internationally as well. RA only accredits a REGION of the US and that's it. The DETC's region is the entire world. You do the math and let's see how the DETC will grow beyond the RA.

Sorry folks, you can have RA on the brain for the rest of your lives. I'm honored to be a graduate of a NA institution and wouldn't have it any other way. Readers of this fourm need to understand the value of a DETC school and not always read the undermining of national accreditors from the ill informed opinions of the self annointed experts.

 

Well fancy that!

I never knew that the United Kingdom (home of the regionally accredited Open University) was a region of the US.

I never knew that Canada (home of the regionally accredited Athabasca) was a region of the US.

Or Mexico, Kenya, Switzerland, Greece, Bulgaria, Italy, Rome, Lebanon or the United Arab Emirates for that matter.

I wonder when Austrlia will join and I become a citizen of the United States.

 

There is at least one instance when an RA masters degree does not trump any bachelors degree. In getting a California 30-day emergency credential for substituting in K - 8 in November 2001, the clerk at the County of Education had no interest in seeing any of my diplomas other than my regionally-accredited bachelors degree.

FYI,

Dave

 

Australia, not Austrlia (nor Austria for that matter).

 

RESPONSE: Your spirited defense does not change the facts. Quite frankly, if a DETC degrees serves or meets YOUR needs all the power to you! However, in general RA degrees remain the GOLD STANDARD no matter how much you rant and rave otherwise. This is not a matter of your opinion versus mine but is a fact. Providing anecdotal examples of some highly regarded people who allegedly obtained these degrees does not change these facts. In addition as noted by JAMEK you are grossly incorrect about the international openess to DETC degrees because many international universities are obtaining RA status. I'm sorry that this information may not make you a happy camper but the facts remain as they are. This is the reason why poster Manny00 raised his concern and his question is a valid one.

 

"Ill-informed" and "self-annointed"? You might want to take a look in the mirror. What possible qualifications do you have, other than having been a student? What research have you conducted? What research can you even cite? Where's your experience in this field that would trump all the information available that indicates you're grossly overstating your case?

Yes, anyone considering such a degree program should understand the value of a DETC-accredited program. But the real value, not some inflated impression left by an advocate who plays very loose with the few facts he or she offers.

 

Many RA graduate schools care quite a bit.

Jamie, no one is trying to say "RA or no way" or attempting to denigrate either your or your alma mater. It's just a simple fact that RA is more widely accepted than NA. That doesn't make NA schools bad, or their graduates less worthy, it's just an observation of fact.

 

I learn something new every day.

If one holds a DETC degree, they better hope that;

1) They don't live in California.

2) They have no desire to teach K-8.

3) They don't rely on an emergency appointment as a substitute to make a living.