RA MBA that accepts DETC Undergraduate

I have a DETC accredited undergraduate degree that has served me well. I have been rapidly promoted up through the management levels with my previous employer and just recently left to work for a highly regarded company in a highly visible position.

My DETC degree was questioned during the interview but was ultimately accepted as "just as good" as a RA degree. This is not to say that all in this company has embraced my degree. In fact, it draws smirks from plenty of the Ivy League employees that make up the majority of the company.

I am now looking at and being encouraged to go for an MBA. I have no delusions of being accepted into an A, B, or even C school but I would like to at least make it into a regionally accredited program.

I have looked at some of the state schools that offer DL programs but they all seem to require RA undergraduate degrees (including Phoenix). There are some that I'm not sure about such as City University and Portland State University.

Can someone help me find a DL MBA program that will accept a DETC undergraduate degree?

Thanks

 

Hello, I believe Jones International will accept DETC graduates. I would try all schools that are in the (for profit) situation. The current economic factors may work in a positive way for you. Good Luck with your search. Hille

 

You may also wish to consider an MBA program which does not require a bachelor's degree for admission. Other threads have discussed this option.

 

UMass

Does anyone know if University of Massachusetts DL MBA program requires a undergraduate degree with RA accreditation?

Their website just says from an accredited college or university.

Ray

 

You may want to try several schools. Liberty University has a distance learning MBA and will consider graduates of Nationally Accredited programs. Although religious, they make no requirements for distance learning graduates.

http://www.liberty.edu

Two more schools (I do not know whether they offer the MBA or not) have offered to accept graduates of Nationally Accredited programs. They are Capella University & Argosy University.

On the international level you may want to contact the Canadian Rep for the University of South Africa. They may have a distance learning MBA (very affordable and well respected institution). For whatever reason UNISA obtained DETC accreditation and therefore may be receptive to your degree. It was founded in the 1800's and has several relatively well known alumni (Nelson Mandela).

Last but not least if nothing else works out for you try a DETC MBA program (example http://www.aju.edu). Again, Capella, Argosy, and Liberty have all indicated a willingness to consider NA degrees and all three are RA. Liberty has an actual Bricks & Mortar campus, football, team, etc if you want an acutal campus to point to.

North

 

The following is taken directly from the Heriot-Watt University web-page.

"If you have an undergraduate degree recognised by Heriot-Watt University, you can become officially matriculated in the programme as soon as you buy your first course and submit the accompanying Matriculation form and copy of your transcripts of your degree to Edinburgh Business School.

If you do not have a recognised degree, you will first need to pass any two of the seven core course exams, before the University will accept you as a matriculated student."

Wes

 

LIBERTY MBA RESIDENCY REQUIRMENT

I am working on my first two, Liberty University, MBA classes.
Liberty's MBA consists of videotaped lessons, proctored exams, and writing assignments. Syllabi are here:

http://www.liberty.edu/DistanceLearning/index.cfm?PID=2276

Liberty does have a residency requirement. I understand this is one weeklong intensive class. This is a change. Previously the requirement was for a total of 6 hours (two intensive classes) in residence. Below, I have cut and pasted from an email, recently sent by my academic advisor.

"Residence Requirements

Only BUSI 690, "Policy and Strategy in Global Competition" is required in residence. This class will start in Summer of 2003 and continue with possibly one week in January 2004 and again during summer 2004. You must have completed 27 hours of the MBA program in order to take this class, as it is a capstone class".

 

Bellevue

Bellevue University lists this as their first requirement for admissions into their MBA program:

Possess an undergraduate degree from a regionally accredited college or university; or a U.S. equivalent degree from a nationally or internationally accredited college or university;

Does this mean they would accept my DETC accredited degree? I'm not familiar with the term "nationally accredited".

Thanks,

Ray

 

Ray,

DETC is a national accrediting organization.

National Accrediting Organizations
AABC 2000 Manual, 2000-2001
ABHES Accreditation Manual, 9th Edition, Appendix J, January 2001
ACCET Document 3.IDL , Interactive Distance Learning, August 2001
ACCSCT Standards of Accreditation, revised 9/10/01
ACICS Accreditation Criteria, July 2001 Edition, Appendix I Principles and
Guidelines for Nontraditional Education
ATS Handbook of Accreditation, Bulletin 44, Part 1 2000, Standards of
Accreditation, also Guidelines for Petitioning the ATS Commission on
Accrediting Regarding Multiple Locations (Extension Sites) and Distance
Education
COE Handbook of Accreditation, 2002 Edition
DETC Accreditation Handbook, 2001 Edition
TRACS Accreditation Manual, December 2001


http://www.chea.org/Research/Accred-Distance-5-9-02.pdf?pubID=246

 

National Accrediting Bodies

This is a better source:

DISTANCE EDUCATION AND TRAINING

Distance Education and Training Council, Accrediting Commission
1959/1997/F2001
Scope of recognition: the accreditation of postsecondary institutions offering programs primarily by the distance education method up through the master's degree level.

Title IV Note: Accreditation by this agency does not enable the entities it accredits to establish eligibility to participate in Title IV programs.

Michael P. Lambert, Executive Secretary
1601 18th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20009
Tel. (202) 234-5100, Fax (202) 332-1386
E-mail address: [email protected]
Web address:www.detc.org

http://www.ed.gov/offices/OPE/accreditation/natlinstandspec.html#det

 

Jones internation is pretty flexible in its admission policy. It could be an option.

 

Double check with University of Phoenix. They recently started accepting National Accredited undergrad degrees for admission to the grad programs.

 

Emails

Well, I sent emails to Bellevue, UofP, Liberty, Capella, U Mass, and Jones Int. to find out if they will accept my DETC accredited undergraduate degree. Not a peep out of any of them yet.

I am going to go ahead and complete the application requirements for Bellevue and Liberty and get them sent off next week.

I'll post responses when I get them.

As a side note:

I called the DL school where I received my degree from and spoke to the Dean of Students to find out their experience with getting their degrees accepted by RA schools. The Dean told me that there shouldn't be a problem with those schools that have the policy to accept national accredidation as long as I graduated AFTER they received DETC acceptance

This goes against what some have said regarding retroactive accredidation. Luckily, I graduated after DETC!

I also asked him about the school "going" for RA. I was told that he could make no promises about ever getting RA and the process takes years but that that should be a goal shared by many DL schools.


Ray

 

Re: Emails

Good luck Ray. Please do let us know how things work out.

North

 

I am enrolled in UoP and spoke to the admissions department. They just started accepting National Accreditied degrees several months ago. Try to give someone a call instead of the emailing them.

 

GOOD LUCK!

Ray,

I wish you success! Can you tell us which DETC school conferred your undergraduate degree?

 

Columbia Southern University

My undergraduate degree is from Columbia Southern University.

They have been bashed in the past on this board and elsewhere but I have had a good experience with them. My first year of college was spent at a state university but family health and financial matters brought me home to do my part for my parents. Residency was not an option for me for many years without sacrificing my family values so I picked up the “shovel” and brought in the paycheck.

*******Skipping a VERY long story********

I worked in an engineering department for eight years learning everything I could. I purchased text books after getting course requirements faxed to me from several engineering schools and did my own “DL program”. I found CSU a short time ago and jumped at the chance to earn a degree. I found their program challenging and worthwhile. I was recently promoted to a high-level management position (in a different company than I started with) that is about as far as I can go with my current credentials thus; I’m seeking an MBA.

I have had some struggles and some frustrating conversations regarding my DL degree. One such conversation was with my company’s CEO who, over dinner, asked me about my school while tapping his Harvard class ring on the table. I’m not going to be able to completely avoid the DL conversations but I can at least avoid the DETC conversations.

It would also seem to me that obtaining a RA accredited MBA could also provide additional credit to my DETC undergraduate degree (i.e. “it was good enough to get into grad school.”)

Well, we’ll see what happens, I have a couple of phone calls from UofP to return…


Ray