Good news for DL / DETC

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by dlady, Jul 14, 2006.

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  1. dlady

    dlady Active Member

    I am a VP for a large Fortune 100 company, and I thought I would pass along what I consider a piece of good news for DETC and DL programs.

    Our HR department (now called Talent Relationship Management, go figure), published a change to the tuition reimbursement policy last month. The policy used to favor B&M AND exclude anything non-RA for reimbursement.

    The new policy SPECIFICALLY says that DL is fine and accreditation from an organization recognized by the Department of Education is fine.

    If this pace continues, I’d say in another 10 or 15 years, the old NA / RA debate may be moot..

    DEL
     
  2. eric.brown

    eric.brown New Member

    Thanks for sharing this...I've noticed a similar change in companies in the tech/telecom sector. Many still prefer RA, but a few have started to add not distinguis between RA & DETC.
     
  3. little fauss

    little fauss New Member

    I'm sorry, but this just can't be true, you must be a fraud.

    No VP of an F100 could possibly say such a thing. I've already been told by an absolutely infallible source (our good and departed friend Kalos) that no real company--least of all a prestigious F100--would ever accept DETC education as valid. Simply does not happen, not for tuition reimbursements, not for hiring purposes. Nothing, do you hear me? Nothing!

    The only possible use of a non-RA "bottom-feeding" degree, even a PhD, is to qualify you to flip burgers or work for Wienerschnitzel.

    Hey, Kalos told me so!

     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jul 14, 2006
  4. eric.brown

    eric.brown New Member

    Re: Re: Good news for DL / DETC

    Thanks for the laugh little fauss :D I just hope that the original poster can read the sarcasm into your post as I did :)
     
  5. dlady

    dlady Active Member

    Ah a prankster… :)
     
  6. PhD2B

    PhD2B Dazed and Confused

    Re: Re: Re: Good news for DL / DETC

    Kalos' dismissal is DI's loss. ;)
     
  7. mbaonline

    mbaonline New Member

    I am also a VP with one of the largest US banks and our reimbursement also includes both RA and DETC schools. Policy covers any member of ACE www.acenet.edu with no distinction.
     
  8. jagmct1

    jagmct1 New Member

    Hi DEL,

    Thank you very much for sharing that information. I think many companies agree that as long as your degree is accredited by a recognized accreditor through the U.S. Department of Education and CHEA, your degree is recognized for promotions and/or tuition reimbursement. There's simply no reason why it shouldn't.

    Here's a simple theory of why "RA only" has evolved over time.

    RA accredits B&M schools and has been doing so for about 100 years or so. Their forte was and still is the traditional classroom setting.

    DETC has been accrediting distance education schools and has been doing so for 80+ years. Their forte is correspondence / distance education.

    If you were to map out the guidelines and procedures for accrediting either an RA or NA school, you'd probably find the standards equally stringent.

    RA has some accreditation standards that don't apply to DL (i.e., dorms, physical size of library, % of full time faculty). In the NA world, these standards don't apply, yet some people equate this as sub-standard.

    The reputation of a school is not based on who it's accredited by. It's like saying WASC is the gold standard for RA accreditation because they accredit Standford or that the New England Association is the TRUE gold standard because they accredit Harvard. Standford and Harvard earned their Ivy League title over the years and it had nothing to do with the fact that they earned RA accreditation.

    When RA started losing students to the non-traditional NA schools, they needed to do something about it. So, they implemented DL accreditation standards (probably taken from DETC) and started accrediting DL schools. Then, they took it one step further and tried an anti-competitive tactic by stating that RA was the golden standard and NA was sub-standard. They did this by not accpeting NA credits for transfer, which equated in the public's eye as being lesser in quality.

    I'm a graduate from an NA and RA school and now enrolling into a RA doctorate program. I found myself more academically challenged at the NA school than any RA school I ever attended.
     
  9. friendorfoe

    friendorfoe Active Member

    I work for the biggest employer of all, the Federal Govt. and they make no distinction (for the most part) between NA and RA as long as the Dept. of Ed approves, you're good.
     
  10. tscalzitti

    tscalzitti New Member

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Good news for DL / DETC

    I will never understand why someone who appears to hate DL is on a DL board, but then again I don't understand a lot of people and the things they do.
     
  11. pugbelly

    pugbelly New Member

    Agreed.
     
  12. pugbelly

    pugbelly New Member

    I am a VP of a national property management firm located in the DC area...not fortune 500, but a large, growing company. This echos what I have been saying for years. I am SO happy to seer others with first hand experience posting in confirmation. The NA vs. RA gap was never as wide as many thought as far as acceptance, with the exception of jobs that require licensing. The NA/distance education stigma is far greater in the academic world than the real one.

    Pug
     
  13. pugbelly

    pugbelly New Member

    Re: Re: Good news for DL / DETC

    One quick note of correction here. NA schools have dorms and physical libraries too. The DETC schools do not, but there are other national accrediting bodies recognized by CHEA and USDE...the ABHE, ATS, TRACS, ACICS, etc.

    Pug
     
  14. TCord1964

    TCord1964 New Member

    To be honest with you, I was blissfully unaware of the whole NA vs. RA debate prior to joining this board. I just don't encounter it in the "real world". When I tell people I am studying marketing online, they simply ask where I am going to school. When I say Penn Foster College, they either say "oh, ok" or "where are they located?" Only one person has ever asked me if the school is accredited, and their concern was not whether it was regionally or nationally accredited, but simply "accredited".

    Let's face it: not too many people are really aware of the difference between the two modes of accreditation, except for those who frequent boards like this one, or who happen to be in accademia.
     
  15. Ted Heiks

    Ted Heiks Moderator and Distinguished Senior Member

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Good news for DL / DETC

    Kalos was dismissed? I thought he just abandoned us because he was just too good for all them ignurnt fools at degreeinfo who actually think dl is a good thing! :D
     
  16. dl_mba

    dl_mba Member

    Lots of VP's on the board.. Thats a good sign.

    I am a founder/CEO of an upcoming company.

    I would hire both DETC or RA degree holders as long as they can pass our interview process and do a good job.
     
  17. PhD2B

    PhD2B Dazed and Confused

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Good news for DL / DETC

    I think he was actually banned. This post says is all.

    Like tscalzitti put it, "why [would] someone who appears to hate DL [be] on a DL board?" If you aren't a fan of DL, then this board is not for you.
     
  18. Abner

    Abner Well-Known Member

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Good news for DL / DETC


    Oh yes Ted. As Kalos put it, this is a "Academic Ghetto". I'm sure you are throwing gangs signs right now Ted. :)



    Abner :)
     
  19. Abner

    Abner Well-Known Member

    Re: Re: Good news for DL / DETC

    Good one Little Fauss! :)


    Abner :)
     
  20. Ted Heiks

    Ted Heiks Moderator and Distinguished Senior Member

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Good news for DL / DETC

    Oh, no! Now the Tedmeister is a gang warlord of degreeinfo! :confused:
     

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