Program has changed requirements.

Hello,

I'm in a distance ed health program that has twice changed the requirements for certification. It hasn't been an easy program, there was a lot of work to do which is great, but the resources were rather dated or new agey. Now, the program requires an externship and a case study method for the required thesis. This wasn't required when I applied, nor has there been any notification of the change, but apparently this is new. When I signed on, I really think they were trying to get anyone and everyone into the program. One really should be a health care professional already; I'm not. I don't have clients that I can use for a case study thesis. Even if I did, this self-paced, take-as-long-as-you-want program suddenly has a deadline. With the new requirements, I won't be able to meet the deadline, and anything I do with "volunteers" would be fraudulent, imo. Not sure what I should do - ask for partial refund, cut my losses and take it as a "learning" experience (no pun intended). Any suggestions?

 

I can't speak for certifications but most degree programs use the catalog in effect when you started the program.

 

This is true in most cases, unless the state discipline licensing agency or the discipline accrediting agency changed the requirements and has forced the school to comply. This is, unfortunately, most common with health care regulatory and accrediting bodies. In those cases, the agencies involved unfortunately will not accept the prior catalog argument.

 

Have you talked with the director of the program personally? I imagine they might be able to work something out with you.

 

I've been trying to reach the director. Voicemail is full and I just keep getting a emails from a student services rep repeatedly telling me that the thesis project must be done with the topic they provide, with three case studies. That's how they do it now and that if I check my materials, that's what they've always done (makes no sense). The case studies must be supervised by the school. I have searched my materials and looked over my emails from when I was discussing admission with them and this is not the case. They DID change the essay requirements (there are about 27 essays required). When I started the program, we had to post our essays on their private forum. I noted student's essay style had changed and were much longer and when I inquired, I learned the requirements had been changed months prior; if I hadn't inquired, I wouldn't have known. Then the forum disappeared and no one answered phone calls or emails for weeks about that and when they did, they said there was a virus in it. Then they got a Facebook page. Very few people are on it, though the director at one time claimed there were hundreds of students and she was reviewing thousands of essays. Staff turnover has been tremendous.

Regarding the thesis, however, in my initial discussions I was told, on the phone, there was the option of doing a research paper or a case study style paper. The provided materials also state this. I told them I would probably do the research since I was not a health care professional. Students were also allowed to choose a topic. I was hoping to have this program done by 12/31/10 but they never got back to me on my topic choice and then I got the email about starting an externship and a deadline. I haven't replied to them now for the past day. Just trying to figure out what to do.

 

Unfortunately, that is no longer true, I was in the IE/OR program at Colorado State, and they changed the requirements on me three times. The last was adding a required course to be offered every other year, and the first round would be in two months.

Sticking to the catalog also doesn't hold if the courses have changed.

 

The director did email today and she said she doesn't know what the problem is since all these changes were completed by the time I started the program in 2008. The problem it, I started the program in 2007. It also turns out the materials I received were no longer in use as of 2005, so I received outdated study materials. I'm awaiting her reply to my email now pointing all this out.