Touro or Walden for PhD

I am trying to decide between the PhD Business Admin at Touro or the Phd Applied Management at Walden. Can offer any feedback on either of these two schools? Thanks.

 

Is there any particular reason for not looking at Capella? I think you would find it to be equal with the ones you are listing and I know they are student friendly.

 

Hi!

I haven't completed ruled out Capella, but they seem to require more travel than Walden. In addition, I checked their schedule for the FOCUSED Seminars and I didn't see any in the Balto/DC area.

 

Capella

There are in fact focused and extended Capella seminars in the DC area. (Dulles Airport area).

Capella is a solid choice--it is not easy by any means.

I have two more courses, and then I'm doing my comp paper and dissertation.

With hard work, and a few miracles here and there, I'll be PhD by summer 2003.


Jim Marion


Pursuing Capella Phd, O&M, Information Technology Management Specialization

MBA, Heriot-Watt University, 1998
BSEET Grantham College of Engineering, 1994

 

Any reason for not considering Nova Southeastern? They've been in the business for quite a while. They have a large program with lots of options.

Regards - Andy

 

Re: Re: Touro or Walden for PhD

Some thoughts on this thread:

I like the look of Nova's programs. I'm actually considering the DIBA program. I'm not excited about the residency requirement and I would prefer the Ph.D. designation and focus though. Now that all these other doctoral programs are well known, no one seems to pick on Nova anymore.

Touro University International seems to have a good although new Ph.D. in Business Administration. I'm strongly considering this program. The faculty has a wired mentality and isn't hung up on on-campus residency. The tuition and fees are based on the number of classess, so one isn't penalized by the need to take one course in a quarter.

Capella has some good programs with varied specializations. I heard they now have over 700 active Ph.D. learners in the program. (Folks, that's a lot of research going on and what a cash cow...!) A big drawback is that the quarterly tuition makes dropping to one class very expensive.

Walden is a bit of a mystery to me. I've asked for info several times but have never received a follow up call, email message or anything. They need my web marketing effectiveness consulting services... ;-)

Cheers,

Dave Wagner
([email protected])

 

Walden has been around longer than the on-line division of Touro. Having said that I would lean toward Touro for two reasons. The first is the residency issue you mentioned. The second is that the parent of Touro (Touro College) does have a bricks & mortar campus with a number of colleges (including medical ???) attached to it. Depending on what you want to do with the degree that may work in your favor.

Another aspect to consider is the degree focus itself. I am not a business expert so others will have a better perspective. What do you intend to do with the degree. That may effect which Ph.D. focus (business or Mgt ) may be a better choice.

North

 

Re: Re: Re: Touro or Walden for PhD

Dave - The residency aspect of NSU is, IMHO, a strong suit. Doctoral studies can be a pretty lonely existance. Getting together with peers on a monthly basis was a strong motivator for me. Email just isn't the same as face to face with faculty and peers.

As for size, NSU is much larger than any of the other programs in discussion here. The business program has about 500 or DBA students, while the education program has thousands and computer science runs up around 700.

As for the PhD - in business, the DBA and PhD are pretty much consider in the same light. Indeed, many teaching positions say "DBA or PhD in business ....". The degree title has never been issue in my academic life.

Thanks - Andy

 

Re: Re: Touro or Walden for PhD

They also have a Law school..

You can really focus your research on any aspect of business with which faculty members have familiarity.

 

There are several reasons why I wouldn't be interested in Nova, the frequency of travel and the travel distance are major issues to me.

Touro, Walden and Capella are reasonable alternatives, but there are a lot of intangibles that are difficult to predict before matriculation. Which is more committed to their students? Which can handle federal loans with the least problems? Which is willing to make the road to the PhD a learning experience rather than an obstacle course? Which will have the residencies available for my schedule?

I am hoping that my post here will inspire some responses to these kinds of issues from people who have had direct experience with the schools in question.

 

I applied for a student loan through Capella. The prces was extremely smooth.

As for making the PhD a learning experience, rather than an obstacle course--I took three classes in the Nova DBA program. The quest to find a Nova professor interested in chairing your dissertation was very tough. It was especially so for myself--I am not an academic, my job is very tough and involves much travel.

I found the Capella way better--you choose a faculty mentor who stays with you thoughout your program--and who automatically becomes the chair for both your comp paper, and your dissertation. I find it to be much more organized and focused--and one big reason why I returned to Capella. (I at one time dropped out to pursue Nova because a local DBA cluster was formed in Atlanta. I was not happy with the experience.)

 

Jim, Thanks for the useful information. How long have you been in the program at Capella?

 

I started the Capella program in 1998--back in the "Graduate School of America" days, and did three quarters worth of courses. Then, I left for a year, and pursued the Nova DBA for three courses.

Now, I am back at Capella--I started back last November. I did two courses last year, am doing two in this quarter, and have two remaining in the Spring quarter. After that, its comps and dissertation. I'm getting close to the end.

I left Capella because I thought Nova would be better due to the fact that I have done so much distance learning--I thought classes would be better for me. However, my worklife is so intense (I am division presdient for Panasonic's North American cellphone product development), I found that the lectures were not that productive for me. (That's being generous--some were a real waste of time.) I also found that lecture based classes--in spite of their appeal, didn't really teach me that much more--most of the real learning I did on my own anyway. Finally, the dissertation process seemed like such a disorganized mess to me.

If I were younger in my career, and needed a lot of face to face instruction, or employed in academics already and had access to potential dissertation committee members or publishing avenues (there is a publication requirement for graduation), Nova would work better for me. So, I really can't slam Nova--it just didn't fit me very well.

 

This is common at Nova. In fact many PhD students (about 65%) that have completed their course works, dropout at this stage. We also have to note that the dropout rate in traditional doctoral programs is about 70%.

Ike

Ph.D (ABD), NSU

 

You presented an objective view of your Nova experience above. I do not disagree with your point of view but I have few things to add. First, I will not describe the dissertation process at Nova as a disorganized mess. Nevertheless, I have to concur that the process is not students-friendly. Second, unlike Capella where mentors’ advice can help many students proceed smoothly through the dissertation process painlessly (not effortlessly), at Nova, you are mostly on your own and the process can be very painful. I believe that each system has its merits and demerits.

Ike

 

I agree with your assessment. As I mentioned, the key is to find a program that fits you. I found that Capella fit me better--but certainly Nova would be a better fit for others.

 

I have been following this thread in anticipation of someone (anyone) discussing Touro's dissertation process...Anyone??

I have found Touro's administration and factulty to be very responsive to my needs at the Masters level. I have no experience at the PhD level, yet.

I chose Touro for their flexibility, content, and price. They don't require ANY physical residency. Their courses reflect my interests, and the MBA was virtually free (I'm in the military and receive tuition assistance from DANTES). There are no books in the traditional sense - everything is provided in their cyber library or on CD-Rom. There are no proctored exams; this makes it easier to complete the requirements while deployed (i.e. in Afganistan).

I know Touro is very young, but there should be someone - Eli? - who is in the dissertation process.

Thanks, Gary

 

I completed the Human Services PhD at Capella in 1999. I don't think you can find a more student friendly school.....DL or B&M. They are interested in your getting an education and will provide you the assistance you need. Student loans, a snap.

 

I completely agree. I think that Capella is the most students-friendly DL school. But like I noted in my earlier post, the approach or model being used by any school has its merits and its demerits.

 

As of two months ago, no one had entered candidacy yet; it's still a new program.

Cheers,

Dave Wagner
([email protected])