Colorado State University

Although I have been a member of this forum for a short time, I would have expected to see more threads on Colorado State University's DL programs.

This school is a Nationally Ranked Doctoral University (2nd Tier). Quite reputable, in fact. It offers degrees at the bachelor's, master's and doctorate level in DL format.

Some quotes from the web site:

(http://www.learn.colostate.edu/csun/ddp/)

"Colorado State is accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. All degrees and courses offered via distance education are Colorado State programs and bear the same accreditation."

"Colorado State University's distance M.B.A. was the 1st program to receive AACSB accreditation and continues to grow after more than 34 years of experience."

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CSU offers B.A., B.S., M.Ed., M.Agr., M.S., M.B.A., M.E., and Ph.D. degrees in a variety of disciplines.

Am I missing something?

 

Definitely yes. You are missing something.

 

Is this a sort of internet infomercial?
Jack

 

Just an honest question about CSU. Everyone is talking about Charter Oak, Excelsior, and non-RA schools... but why not CSU?

 

The key is that it is quite reputable... reputable schools are seldom a topic of conversation (i.e. their degrees take longer than 4 weeks to complete).

 

Hey, don't get me wrong, I love CSU...Go Rams!
Did that convince anyone? No, I didn't think so.
But seriously folks...CSU seems to offer degrees that are primarily in the business and engineering fields. They are probably good programs but they are hardly unique. After all, aren't there about a gazillion DL MBA programs? Bear had to write a whole separate book just to cover them all. The PhD programs are all engineering programs, hardly of widespread interest. So, as someone who is not into business or engineering, the question I would ask is: What sets these programs apart? Aside from acknowledging their existence, and that they're OK programs, what should we be talking about?
Jack

 

Reputable Schools

It seems that this forum is more focused on the non-RA or unranked RA schools that offer DL courses, in addition to universities in South Africa and Australia.

I have been doing some research and come across several reputable schools that offer DL programs (bachelor's, master's doctorate). Some of them are as follows:

Colorado State University (USA)
Texas Tech University (USA)
University of Maryland, University College (USA)
New York University (USA)
Harvard University (USA)
California State University, Dominguez Hills (USA)
Henley Management College (UK)
University of Manchester Business School (UK)
University of Wales, Bangor (UK)
University of Oxford (UK)
Heriot-Watt University (UK)
University of Strathclyde (UK)
Rensellaer Polytechnic University (USA)
Rochester Institute of Technology (USA)
New Jersey Institute of Technology (USA)
Indiana State University (USA)

This is what I could come up with in the last 30 minutes. I'm sure there are many more reputable schools.

So, why all the fuss with Charter Oak, Thomas Edison and Excelsior? Heck, even their names raise questions....

 

Re: Reputable Schools

Charter Oak, Thomas Edison, and Excelsior are all more flexible and less expensive than any of the schools you mentioned, which makes them a better fit for many nontraditional students. That's why they're a more popular topic of conversation.

Australia and South Africa are musts if you're considering doing a nonresident doctorate, since the only regionally accredited options in the States either cost a great deal of money (Touro--and it has to be in business administration or health services) or require residency (everyone else, near as I can tell) or, more often, both; since the Australian and South African higher education systems are roughly equal to ours (I refuse to get into the "Whose is bigger?" argument, but the fact that there is an argument pretty much proves my point), there's good cause for many U.S. students to look across the pond for degree programs.

But Colorado State? Great school, Scott. Appeared in every relevant DL book I had anything to do with producing. Good technology and engineering programs, and theoretically a pretty good MBA, to boot. Not worth a dern for those of us who want to study philosophy or theology, though.


Cheers,

 

Re: Reputable Schools

Honestly, I didn't recall there being much "fuss" about Charter Oak, Excelsior, and TESC until a certain shape-shifting purported H-W MBA student decided to leave A.E.D. and grace us with his presence here. Like a bad penny...

You might note that the Cal State programs, to mention one that you listed, are frequently discussed here. You may also save yourself some research time by buying John Bear's book, where the afore-mentioned COSC, Excelsior, and TESC are described, along with the fine schools you listed.

This should clear up any lingering confusion, and we can all get back to agreeing to the superiority of Canadian, British, and Australian degrees once again.

Regards,


Tony

 

More REputable Engineering Schools

And for those of use interested in real topics and not just fluff and puff topics, there are:

Arizona State University
Auburn University
Boise State University
Bradley University
Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo
Cal State, Chico
Cal State, Fresno
Cal State, Long Beach
Cal State, Sacramento
Clemson University
Columbia University
East Carolina University
Eastern Michigan University
Florida A&M University
George Washington University
Georgia Institute of Technology
Iowa State University
Kansas State University
Michigan Technological Univeristy
Montana State University
New Jersey Institute of Technology
New Mexico State University
North Carolina A&T State University
North Carolina State University
Oklahoma State University
Old Dominion University
Pennsylvania State Univ., University Park
Purdue University
Rochester Institute of Technology
Stanford University
Texas A&M University
University of Alabama
University of Alabama - Huntsville
University of Arkansas at Little Rock
University of Colorado at Boulder
University of Denver
University of Houston
University of Idaho
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Maryland
University of Michigan
University of Missouri, Rolla
University of Nebraska – Kearney
University of Nebraska, Lincoln
University of Nebraska, Omaha
University of Southern California
University of Tennessee, Chattanooga
University of Texas, Arlington
University of Wisconsin - Madison
University of Wisconsin - Platteville
Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University
Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Northern Arizona University


All with DL graduate degree programs at the masters level. Many with little or no residency.

 

I think Colorado State is not often discussed because it's not controversial nor particularly innovative. But the very innovative NTU was in a sense a spinoff of Colorado State, and was founded by Lionel Baldwin, Dean of Engineering at Colorado State.


Here's an interesting overview by NTU Vice President Gearold Johnson.

 

So, why all the fuss with Charter Oak, Thomas Edison and Excelsior?

There are definetly some DL opportunities in foreign countries that are not available in the US, however there are many decent DL opportunities in the US (as you have noted)... virtually none of which are ever mentioned.

Why?

They require you to obtain a degree the old fashioned way... to earn it.

Many of the degrees are VERY flexible with respect to delivery but they are relatively inflexible with respect to academic rigor... they do not grant credit for life experience or enable "mature individuals to obtain a degree in 4 weeks". Therefore, the majority of these schools are of little interest to those who want to purchase credential with as little effort required as possible.

 

Ken it would really help if you read what is written right above your post.

Qoute from Gert
"I think Colorado State is not often discussed because it's not controversial nor particularly innovative"

If some one wants a degree in mining or engineering CSU will probably be the first one mentioned

Often the big 3 of DL are mentioned because of the flexibility they offer to adult learners. If somebody has credits from 2 or 3 universities, some vocational/military training and skills learned outside of academia they are an ideal choice. They actually get mention most often by people making your type of argument. It is similiar AED where the spammers are driving most of the readers over here to degreeinfo.

Harvard and all the rest of the top Universities have already shown they accept the big 3 schools by enrolling graduates. I think Tom, Rich, Tracy and others have shown that the graduates are first rate. So Ken what is your real beef or is this just another way to put down US RA Universities? By the way if you could let us know what name you will post under next week it would help.

 

Hmmm, Enron was considered innovative but I wouldn't have wanted to invest.

"Flexibility"... nice euphamism. Degree mills generally offer great flexibility.

Frankly, I see more spammers hear attempting to ridicule and limit the valued contributions of Scott Henley, Peter, etc..
Very sad.

The real loosers are the unfortunate who purchase the degrees under the assumption that they have achieved the fruition of academic an academic endeavor.

I have no beef. Just trying to educate inviduals what I and some others know regarding academic standard in the US and around the globe... I am sorry if you prefer to dwell in in the pit of ignorance, I assume some do not.

I am actually omnipresent and post as Ken, Scott Henley, Peter and everyone else who proclaims unbiased truth to all with an ear to hear.


Cheers... to peace, prosperity and the 3 week BA.

 

Harvard, Colorado, Oxford, London, and NYU would never dare associate their programs with the likes of Thomas Edison, Charter Oak (what a poor choice for a name), and Excelsior (even worse)...

You cannot equate degrees from institutions that have a history behind them (I think Oxford was founded in 1096) to barely accredited institutions that provide alternate routes to a degree via "life experience", "prior learning assessments", etc...

Regional Accreditation abviously means nothing when both Harvard and Charter Oak are RA. Perhaps the US News Annual College Rankings are a better system of determining legitimacy.

After all, except for RA, what can the "Big 3" offer? An easy route to a useless degree.

I think there is a mass denial going on here. What else could it be? And I thought that all the people who thought circumcision prevented masturbation, blindness, cancer, AIDS, and anything else under the sun were gone?

I guess the Europeans have been right all along.

 

Scott I realize that this is meant to be inflammatory. However, you certainly realize that even if you could classify them as "easy", they are hardly "useless". Where an accredited degree is required this type of degree becomes "useful". It is accredited and therefore the organization I work for will recognize it for employment purposes. Many have also used this degree for entry into graduate school. This includes our own eccentric Steve Levicoff who took his all the way to the Ph.D. level (ever notice in his old aed sig line he bore a remarkable resemblance to Snoopy).

It should be noted that I do not possess degrees from these schools and am not necessarily impressed by this sort of learning assessment. Nonetheless, your statement was inaccurate.

North

 

Scott, you're not missing a thing. In this forum - as with it's father (AED) - many excellent programs get little to no 'press'. (Not a complaint, just an observation.) This is a consumer-centric board with many comments based on rumors and sheer perception.

I've observed a recurring tendency: One of the regulars will get interested in a particular program, and will generate a lot of conversation about that school - focused mostly on the positive. Other readers of the forum will get interested as well. Before you know it, a fair number are signed up. And the press generation escalates, until another program takes it's place. And the cycle continues.

Many comments are posted here from individuals with little to no experience with the school. A few comments come from folks who have experience with the school. Other folks will chime in with no experience, but have done a lot of "checking" (I have a very hard time calling it "research". Every now and then, there will be comments from folks who started a program, but never came close to finishing (ie, bombed out) - and will still represent their experience as conclusive.

From all this, perception is developed. Its interesting to watch an unsubstaniated opinion get morphed into 'fact'.

Lesson to educational consumers? Do your homework and find the best program that fits your needs. You'll get *some* information here about *some* programs, but don't neglect other sources.

 

Along with, I believe, over 90% of employers in the United States (Rich can provide the exact statistics). I really don't see exactly what Scott is getting at here; if he means to say that a U.S. regionally accredited degree is useless, I guess my question would be "Useless where?" It was certainly very useful for local Marine who earned his Regents degree while in the military, then went on to law school at a top-tier school and now serves on the law faculty of a major private university. I'm sure it was useful for Rich Douglas, and John Wetsch, and me.

Ken: As for the "B.A. in Four Weeks," I'd wager I could pass the University of London B.D. (New Testament English concentration) in four weeks if they waived the administrative delays and let me follow a 28-day exam schedule with my choice of optional modules. If you think they might be game, let me know and perhaps we can work something out.



Cheers,

 

...but then again maybe all of our US RA degrees combined will equal a credible UK BA (Hons) and we can rest assured that we now have a proper education in the eyes of the world.

John

 

How do you think the names of the following universities: The University of Sunshine Coast (Australia), The University of Highlands and Islands (Scotland) and Royal Roads University (Canada)?