WGU: public or private?

Anybody knows?

WGU: http://www.wgu.edu

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Jonathan Liu
http://www.geocities.com/liu_jonathan/distance.html

 

Hello. Has anyone used their assessments? Please comment. Hille

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It appears that WGU was registered as a non-profit private corporation in the state of Utah http://www.wgu.edu/wgu/about/BYLAWS.doc

 

Hi Hille,

1. I was the first person ever to sit a WGU graduate exam (domain exam) on Dec 2 1999.
2. I am no longer a student at WGU.
3. WGU is now a candidate institution for regional accreditation.
4. Many other things may have changed since this missive was first posted.
5. NO new learning is required to earn the master's degree.I can tell you I attended no classes and any knowledge I had in the subject examined, I possessed prior to entering the program. The only study I did leading up to domain exam was in the form of some light revision.

6. I wrote the brief below in late December 1999

This article is one students perspective of WGU, and, in particular,
WGU's only master's program, the MA in Learning and Technology (MALT).
It has been written in response to recent enquiries in AED about WGU
and their MALT program.

I am one of The Faithful where competency based degrees are concerned,
and I entered the MALT program rather than competing traditional DL
programs, specifically to be part of, and to experience, this (for the
U.S. at master's level) pioneering effort.

90% of the time when students in a particular program post to this
newsgroup, it is either to defend or to praise their program or the
administering institution. This is not one of those posts.

Nor is this a bitch session.

I have a good relationship with WGU staff and have no particular axe
to grind. I obviously have an interest in promoting WGU and the MALT
program in particular, but feel it important to be as objective as I
can be if others are to derive any benefit. There is much detail I
have not included in order to keep the thing to a reasonable length.


1)
Would you recommend the MALT program?

No, not at this time.

a - Even though the program officially started in August 1999, it is
still very much a work in progress. Vital elements required by
learners in any program, especially competency based programs, have
been slow into production. Most importantly, getting WGU to
supply details of exam scoring rubrics, example exam questions,
and referenced/recommended reading lists, has been like pulling
teeth. These materials are coming online at this moment, but
content and production values remain, in my view, inadequate.


b - WGU's long term viability depends upon building and maintaining an
adequate customer base. They have refused to release (at least to
me) figures for the total number of students enrolled in WGU
programs. Additionally, there is evidence indicating that, in the
case of the MALT program, nearly all students may be in receipt of
state funds. In the first cohort of the MALT program there were 51
students. Some research indicated Utah, under pressure from the
Governor, had bankrolled 50 state employees* to enroll in the
program. So, of those initial 51 students, it could be that WGU
only attracted one learner to the program on a competitive basis
(namely me). An additional 60 students have joined the program
from Washington State, and they too are in receipt of special
state subsidies** exclusively targeted at the WGU MALT program.

Recent posts quoting The Chronicle of Higher Education (from
John Bear) have suggested WGU's total enrollment at around 200
students. If the estimate is at all accurate, this means well over
half of WGU's paying customers are enrolled in the MALT program,
and quite possibly all of these learners, with one exception (me),
are subsidized in whole (Utah) or in part (WA) by a special and
perhaps one-off, handout.

To survive, WGU must become competitive in the market place. There's
no evidence to date that it has done so, and no indication (by way
of increased enrollment of non specially-subsidized students) that
it is likely to do so. If prospective students or their employers
are to make a reasonable decision of whether or not to spend their
dollars at WGU, they must be able to assess that institution's long
term viability. WGU's total enrollment figures are essential data
in making that determination. I believe that withholding that
information from prospective customers is unethical.


c - My overall impression of the WGU is that it has been poorly led and
that it is unsure of how to implement its vision. Individual staff
members are bright and very much oriented towards servicing their
clients needs. However, just as it is possible to have a team of
talented footballers who cannot perform in a match due to lack of
a cohesive strategy, weak tactics, and poor coaching, so too, an
organization can fail to deliver the goods for lack of effective
leadership and proper training. WGU *is* improving, but slowly.
It still has a long way to go.


d - WGU is not (currently regionally) accredited. See later.


e - The competition in this discipline is strong. The University of
Missouri, Columbia, offer an M.Ed. in Instructional Technology
which mirrors the WGU program. The cost is around $6200, and
includes instruction (which of course, the WGU offering does not).
It is unlikely any eyebrows would be raised where one to offer a
UM M.Ed. degree in application to (say) a Ed.D. degree sometime
down the road. The same cannot be said for the WGU MALT. It is
unknown how prospective employers or admissions officers will view
WGU's pioneering efforts.

Given the alternatives currently available and the risks inherent
in the WGU MALT route, if you have to "do it now", you may think
it prudent to look elsewhere in the first instance. When and if
WGU starts firing on all cylinders, the balance may flip in the
other direction.

2)
Who accredits WGU?

At the moment, WGU is unaccredited. The institution is due a candidacy
visit from regional accrediting agencies (via IRAC) in February 2000.

What is IRAC?


The Inter-Regional Accrediting Committee (IRAC) is a 16-member
committee formed in 1997, including the executive directors, from the
following four accrediting commissions:

Commission of Institutions of Higher Education - North Central
Association of Colleges and Schools;

Commission on Colleges - Northwest Association of Schools and
Colleges;

Commission for Community and Junior Colleges - Western
Association of Schools and Colleges;

Commission for Senior Colleges and Universities - Western
Association of Schools and Colleges.

3)
Does WGU's competency-based method of assessment mean I can complete
a master's degree quickly by passing a few multiple choice exams?

No. The master's degree requires successful completion of six area
competencies. Each competency domain requires passing a written
examination comprising a multiple choice section and two to four essay
questions. Requirements for each domain also includes submission of a
portfolio project. Other requirements include a final portfolio
project and an oral examination.


4)
What's the total cost WGU's Master of Arts in Learning and
Technology.

Enrollment $100
Initial academic assessment $250
Each competency domain $600

There are six competency domains, so total cost of the program is
$3600+$100+250 = $3950

The domain fees can be paid in two payments of $1500 each year,
reducing total cost to $3000+$100+$250 = $3350.

 

Citations omitted from the preceding article.


QUOTE:

"Some research indicated Utah, under pressure from the
Governor, had bankrolled 50 state employees* to enroll in the
program. So, of those initial 51 students, it could be that WGU
only attracted one learner to the program on a competitive basis
(namely me). An additional 60 students have joined the program
from Washington State, and they too are in receipt of special
state subsidies** exclusively targeted at the WGU MALT program."


*Initially this article http://utahonline.sltrib.com/1999/may/05201999/utah/106774.htm

Confirmed months later in this announcement http://www.wgu.edu/wgu/about/release32.html


** http://www.wgu.edu/wgu/about/release37.html


[Note: This message has been edited by tcnixon]

 

Thank you for the reply. I will keep checking the status of this school. There are some good schools that have articulation agreements with WGU. Thomas Edison caught my eye because my daughter and I are both graduates. Hille

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Hello Folks,

Here is some helpful information pertaining to WGUs accreditation.

News Brief - 6/13/01
Return to Press Releases
WGU Contact:
Amy Tejral
[email protected]

Western Governors University Earns Accreditation from the Distance Education and Training Council
SALT LAKE CITY - Western Governors University (WGU) announced today that the online, competency-based university has been granted accreditation from the Accrediting Commission of the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC).

"This is a tremendous milestone for WGU," stated WGU President Bob Mendenhall. "We are honored to have been accredited by the DETC and know that our students will value this significant endorsement from a nationally recognized accrediting organization." DETC Executive Secretary Michael P. Lambert added, "The accreditation of WGU is an historic moment for DETC. WGU is an outstanding institution that is blazing new trails for all of higher education, and DETC is proud to welcome WGU into its ranks."

Over the course of the past year, WGU conducted an extensive evaluation of the entire university and prepared a self-evaluation report for the DETC. DETC then sent out a team of national evaluators to conduct an onsite review of the university's operations. Based on this review process and the team's report to the Accrediting Commission, WGU was granted accreditation.

"This decision is yet another validation of WGU's competency-based degree programs and the quality educational opportunities this model offers to students," stated WGU Provost Chip Johnstone. "DETC accreditation opens the door for students with tuition assistance opportunities from the military, their employer, and from other financial aid programs to enroll at Western Governors University."

About DETC

The DETC serves as a clearinghouse of information about the distance study field and conducts accreditation reviews of prominent distance learning institutions throughout the world through its independent Accrediting Commission. The DETC was founded in 1926. The Commission was established in 1955 and gained federal recognition in 1959. The Council's goal is to promote sound educational standards and ethical business practices within the distance study field. The seven-member Accrediting Commission of the DETC is a nationally recognized institutional accrediting agency approved by the U.S. Department of Education and by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). Today, more than 2.5 million Americans are enrolled in DETC-accredited institutions.


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Greg

 

And yet, many may feel the important event likely to materially impact WGU's long-term credibility and augur well for the future utility of its degrees, is that it is a candidate institution for *regional* accreditation. When a student at WGU, I would not have felt unfulfilled had the University declined to seek DETC accreditation. Quite why it felt the need of both regional and DETC accreditation is not clear to me.

Sometimes less is more.