Any comments on Ashworth (graduate degree)?

Hi all
:wavey:

I just saw Ashworth's MSc mentioned in another thread and thought the price looked attractive so I took a look at their website.

Has anyone studied with them? What are they like and how is their reputation?

I'm asking because they do make it sound really easy on the website: only your Bachelor's required to apply, apply and start studying right away, very affordable, quick, they send all the books, etc. and especially: exams online??? How does that work???

If anyone has more details can you please share?

Thanks!

 

Review Ashworth thoroughly before making a decision. I believe they're the subject of some bad press recently.

 

Ashworth only holds national (DETC) accreditation and thus may or may not fulfill your needs. I would check with your employer and validate this type accreditation against your future plans (education required for professional certification, etc.) before committing to it.

Ashford.. they are regionally accredited, but as ITJD indicated, they're received some nasty (though some say biased) press lately. Again, I would validate before committing to it.

 

Thanks. I'm not really planning on studying with them, but I'm always on the lookout in case something interesting pops up. Sounds like in this case I shouldn't bother.

 

If one is looking for a quick and cheap nationally-accredited graduate degree, they'll fit the bill. If you are looking for an MBA, Aspen is cheaper.

 

so i was thinking of going into to Physical therapy training aid with Ashworth and was not sure if anyone has taken this course and has found work? I am 33 and have no desire to go back to school for 4 yrs when I see most kids are in debt from colleges and graduate without jobs and are in debt. I just need to get my foot in the door with a therapist and i think this would be the right way to go. Now a days it is not possible to go to school and maintain a full time job so that is why I choose online schools and the only ones that offer this course is Penn Foster and Ashworth and I wanted to speak to a Aid that has graduated from this course to get there take on it.

 

Such as? I can find no "bad press" on Google about Ashworth.

 

Yeah it's a worthless diploma mill with zero name recognition.

 

Ashworth is a nationally accredited school via DETC. Its degrees will serve in certain situations, but should not be considered useful in every circumstance.

 

I don't know much about PT except that it's one of those professions where a license comes in handy. I don't know anything about PT licensure laws but you'd want to check that out and then see if the Ashworth program would qualify you.

 

You really are an ogre. I'll take your word on the dumpy part.:lame:

 

Smh. That is false.

That may be true, but the same can be said for many of the thousands of schools in existence that no one's heard of and never will. In reality, having no name recognition may be better than being widely-known and largely disrespected like some well-known online programs.

 

In most states, you can obtain a license for "the Physical Therapist Assistant" wtih an Associates degree. I am not sure whether or not the degree must be from a RA institution. Many states are now requiring a DPT (Doctorate in Physical Therapy) to sit for the Physical Therapist license.

 

The degrees appear to be doing okay when talking to other grads and listening to AC's internal research (although that has to be taken with a grain of salt of course). The problem I read most often is that students don't research anything prior to getting into it. For example, I read one student exploding because he was denied a CPA exam seat with his Associate Accounting degree. Had he bothered to learn about the requirements for becoming a CPA in his state, he would've known that he needed a Bachelor's to be eligible...

I saw another guy complaining that he couldn't get a job in his state with his Medical Assisting Diploma. What he failed to do was find that his state required a certain amount of academic work (30 credit hours I believe) AND another amount of time doing hands-on training/volunteer work at a Medical practice. I could point out many more scenarios like this where students blow up at the school when it's their own fault for not researching what their field requires for licensing.

Now, just my opinion, but I think Ashworth gives too much regard to their diploma programs, and I find a number of them to be pointless to pursue unless only learning is your main goal (not that there is anything wrong with that of course). That culture probably remained from their PCDI days where the diploma programs were their #1 offering, but I honestly can't see anyone really getting a job with one of them. I mean, it may make you a tad more appealing for an entry-level job, but then you more than likely could get that job without the diploma since it's not actually a degree anyway.

 

Not necessarily. Vocational-technical training is still in demand, if the number of vo-tech schools in my area is any indication. Getting a degree is fine, but society still needs people to do the hands-on blue collar work, too.

 

Right, and I'm all for vocational training. But my point is that some of the diplomas specific to Ashworth's diploma program are unlikely to give you a much better chance at the careers they're created for. For example, I doubt their diploma in "Introduction to sales" will impress an employer much, if at all.

It just appears that a number of those diplomas are better suited for the goal of personal enrichment, which in and of itself is a good thing no doubt.

 

I think it depends upon the program, and what you plan to do with the diploma. The diploma programs worked out OK for this grad.

And this one.

 

I can't say that you're wrong but I'm not sure that you're right either. My thinking is this. You take two people (both currently unemployed) who are applying for that same sales position. They have the same amount of experience in relevant industries. They both interview well. One has earned a cert in sales and one has not. I'm giving the green light to the one who has shown some push, some initiative, someone who is trying to stand out, because they'll show those same qualities once they are on the job. In the present competitive job market where people are unemployed for months and months at a time, any advantage can be useful. This is especially true if you know how to market this advantage to prospective employers.

 

That's true.

Yeah, I saw those a while back. There are some other celebrities that have taken their programs, I can't remember them off-hand though. I remember Tyra Banks giving away scholarships to Ashworth College on her Talk Show back when it was on.

 

From that perspective, it would make sense. I guess the way I was looking at it was from the position that I see a lot of Ashworth students who post in their community or other places online have, which is: I get a diploma in a specific field, therefore I should be able to get--or deserve to get--a job in that field right after. It would be great if it worked out like that on average, but it's pretty common for the opposite to be the case, especially today. We've all met people who received education in a certain field and wound up never working in that field. Heck, I earned a tech degree in the 90's and I've never worked a single day in the field that degree is in.

I also think some of Ashworth's diplomas probably carry more weight than others when it comes to making an impression on employers. I'd imagine a diploma in Computer Programming or Property Management would do more for a student looking to get into those particular fields than some of the diplomas specific to other fields that they're offering.