Is DL moving forward or backward?

Is there really a difference between a for-profit that charges very high tuition and a non-profit B&M? I think the overarching problem that higher ed faces is the high costs, which baffle spectators who wonder why students continue to pay these ridiculous high tuition. Just saying that a school is a non-profit, and then turn around and charge the very same tuition that the supposedly "evil for-profits" charge, then I don't see a difference. I bet if there exists a regionally accredited for-profit online school that charges $300 per credit hour for their doctoral program, many of us would not really complain about the value of such degree. Charging high tuition for a degree that has not so favorable perception, and with limited value to many who continue that "Jihad" against DL schools and programs comes off as scam, and many of them I believe, are just that, scams.

 

Correction: Is there really a difference between a for-profit that charges very high tuition and a non-profit B&M that also charge very high tuition?

 

The data on online enrollments versus total enrollments in higher ed continue to show consistently that online enrollments are increasing at a rate ten times higher than enrollments in general. So there is no indication of any backward movement.

I had a rather sizable post regarding the for-profit situation, but I decided to place it in the "For-profit college risk: Huge debt, questionable degree" forum.

 

I feel that DL has nowhere to go but up. As technology and bandwidth advances, more and more DL courses can be conducted online. Maybe some surgical courses, B & M schools will have to adapt some components of DL into their curriculum.

 

But you also have to remember or consider who your target audience is. If you want to work in the corporate world with a PhD in business, a for-profit DL school may work just fine. If you want to work teaching online for a DL profit school – again maybe just fine. If you want to teach at a B&M university it could be the worst choice. If you want to be a school principal, a for-profit DL may or may not work (probably not too well).

 

Excellent point- while it is not RA, people are singing and dancing over the Aspen EdD. No complaints accept for the "but it is NA concern".

 

I hope that Aspen will go RA sometime soon and still manage to keep tuition a almost the same rate as it is now. I would be all over that.

 

Yes. I always wondered about that as well. As a matter of fact Harvard has an extremely expensive DL offering through their school.

 

Dl degrees seem to enjoy pretty high acceptance in K-12 at the present time. The acceptance for DL doctorates for community college faculty is also pretty high (particularly if your bachelors and masters are from traditional B&M programs).

As Randell says, the lowest acceptance is for full-time tenure-track positions at traditional B&M universities. However, a major source of DL doctorates are currently employed university faculty and administrators who were hired with masters degrees and later completed their doctorates. So the interesting thing is that a DL doctorate will not get you an assistant professor position, but if you are an assistant professor, it could help you get a promotion to associate professor.

 

Funny - I found 4 sources that all said Mr. Colbert has a B.A. in Theater from Northwestern (1987). Can we find 4 others to say that he doesn't?

By the way - here's one of his latest comments on higher ed:

"By reading this tweet, you have earned a masters in communication from Stephen Colbert "University." Standard text messaging rates apply." (Twitter)


Congratulations!

Johann

 

Like I said, I was just going off what he said...he could have been joking.

Who cares??? Now we know he has a degree from a school that offers an online degree program, which makes my point even better.

 

There is not really a difference, in my opinion. Both are overpriced. The B&M might be less of a ripoff because the degree would enjoy wider acceptance. An unfair but true fact of academic life.

 

That's exactly what my point was. To me, the the overpriced tuition is really what gets me, not the degree format. Why? because I do not plan on using my degree to apply for a job at a B & M school, so I could careless. That is why I think if Aspen continues with what they've started, and eventually become RA with many more degree options, no school would come close to taking over the DL world in terms of increased student enrollment.

 

Yes, if Aspen can become RA, it could really turn the academic world on its head.

 

Degrees by distance learning have been available for about 17O years. And controversial since before Day One, when the University of London was just a wild and crazy idea. When a Member of Parliament rose to ask, in effect, "And what is to keep them from actually awarding degrees?" the reply from another MP was, "Nothing but the scorn of all mankind."

And 17O years from now, it'll still be controversial, and huge, and Maniac Craniac will make his millionth post to offer some new opinions thereupon.

 

In 3O years, the University of Phoenix has grown from 1,OOO students to 5O2,OOO students, in effect doubling in size about every three years.

At this rate, we can extrapolate and determine that in 42 years, there will be 8 billion students at the University of Phoenix. In other words, everyone on earth will be a Phoenix student, so there will be no one left to criticize them.

 

MC is going to live 170 years? MC what are you eating?