Bad news...decision time for me...

The status with my dream program is in jeopardy. After working feverishly for weeks to get approved for the in-state tuition program I have hit a dead end. Everyone was positive about the direction that the application was going. This included my state director, the school associate dean and several other people that helped the process along. The folks at Western Carolina University have been absolutely amazing and helpful.

After examining the fine print we found that distance degrees do not qualify through WCU. So we are back to square one with the cost. The program will now be closer to $20,000 instead of $7,000. That might be a deal breaker for me. I do not have the funds and I really hesitate to take on this debt. I have 3 kids in private school, one starting college soon and a wife that is taking classes.

The degree is the one that I really want to do for a few reasons:

1) the program skips the fluff and theory and gets straight to application

2) the programs ran by and attended by people who are like minded - entrepreneurial in nature

3) the program using the "teaching" method of delivery. You don't spend countless hours writing long papers or studying to pass exams. You are learning about strategies and getting straight to applying them to your current or future venture.

4) you get to do all of this in a RA program that is AASCB accredited program!

Talk about an amazing opportunity!

Now, is it $20,000 amazing is the question. I have to do some soul searching about all of this.

Can anyone lend any insight as it applies to my decision directly?

 

My guess is you won't be able to answer this question until you at least try one class. Then you will be able to tell.

Also, how does this fit into your longterm career goals or plans for a business. Do you think you won't be able to succeed without it? That's my two cents!

 

If this is a WCU policy, it wouldn't be the first time that I've heard of ground-based programs rejecting online-based degree holders. But, I find it hard to believe that their knowledge of this policy just suddenly crept up out of nowhere, especially with the number of channels you've gone through there. Someone should've known long before now, right? It just sounds like they did a whole lot of wasting your time.

You mentioned not having the funds (you're not alone), and you have a family to support (you're not alone), so the decision sounds like it's already been made for you. You could always search for another program that's DL-friendly, or just wait until your personal situation changes, but I wouldn't recommend going into unaffordable debt or putting your family's well-being at risk.

 

This nails it. I'm seriously considering dropping out (for the moment) from my WNMU program for the same reasons. I think your families well being trumps this program. What about sharpening your business skills through say...WGU MBA

 

I essentially have been working on the classes. I have attended Carland College, which is unaccredited. Dr Carland founded the WCU program, wrote the text books and designed the curiculum for WCU before becoming tired of the university system. The syllabi are exact matches and WCU still uses his textbooks. So I'm familiar with the program and really love it.

The reason that I decided to make the switch was the opportunity to have an AASCB accredited degree instead of a state approved/unaccredted degree.

I own a business and intend to remain self employed, God willing. I'd love to consult some in the future while helping others launch their dreams. I will most likely have career success without the degree but I'm sure that I could be enhanced by studying further and networking with other entrepreneurs.

 

Maybe you should think about an MBA again. All curriculums aren't built the same. UL-Monroe, and Jacksonville State University are two that I can think of off hand that are close to the 7k price range (both are RA, and AASCB). I haven't looked at their layout but hopefully they have a few classes that are so theoretical.

 

Actually WCU does not decide anything about the tuition program. That is done through the SREB so it is not their fault at all.

 

That is good advice. I just want to make sure that I am paying for something that I am greatly interested in doing. There is no time or money to waste on something that doesn't benefit me.

 

Exactly. Maybe an MBA with an Entrepreneurship focus would be right for you (I don't even know if that exist). If your not interested in it then don't do it. Chances are you would only be wasting your money. It's not yet "game over" just yet. It's just time to go back to the drawing board.

 

LOTS of them exist. MANY such programs. Our respected guru and veteran of 9,850+ posts, Mr. Ted Heiks, is a holder of such a degree, among his others: MBA, Entrepreneurship, City University of Seattle, 1992.

An MBA program with specialization in entrepreneurship might be a very good choice. Whatever he decides, I wish Skidadl every success.

Johann

 

Hmmmm. When you said "distance degrees do not qualify through WCU", I took that to mean that distance degrees don't qualify for admission to WCU...

But either way, someone in the process should've been able to tell you about the distance ed policy before you got to this stage, and I can't see how WCU is 100% blameless in that regard. They have an admissions/financial aid department that should know of an important policy like this, given that they probably have to interact with SREB on a regular basis.

 

The reason why is because approval and the management of the program does not go through WCU. It goes through the SREB. Basically, once I get approved the SREB send WCU a letter notifying them that I will be paying in-state tuition.

Because the tuition program was set to expire the second term of the summer WCU went FAR above their call of duty by getting me admitted the first term. They went as far as setting up a special independent study course for me to take with only me in it just to get me qualified for the program. The regular program starts in the fall with the cohort. So they made a special exception for me to start the program. They also bypassed the admission procedure and got the dean involved in order to help me squirm into the right term for the program.

 

Huh?

Do you mean distance programs do not qualify for in-state tuition, or that your CCU degree does not qualify for the program?

Which CCU did you attend? If it's California Coast U., I can see some schools having an issue with DETC bachelor's degrees. If it's some other CCU and RA, I see no distance between ground and DL from a potential application standpoint.

 

I am an admitted student. There is not problem with my degree. There is not a problem with the admission process or eligibility.

We are talking about a tuition exchange program that 13 states agreed upon.

http://www.sreb.org/page/1304/academic_common_market.html

The system is a little confusing to navigate but your homestate has to approve you to become eligible to receive an in-state tuition discount. After that the state that you are studying at has to sign off on it. Each state has its own rules.

 

I think it couldn't help to express just how much you would like to enter the program, but you simply can't for the exorbitant "other" tuition rate they are pushing on you, and see if there is anything they can do. Maybe there is nothing they can do, but expressing further genuine interest in their program might help you out somehow.

 

That is exactly what I have done.