It totally depends what you're looking for. DETC accreditation guarantees that the school is legitimate and not a scam, and you'll get a competent education. However, if you plan on using a DETC Bachelor's degree to gain admission to a regionally accredited graduate school, you may run into some problems. It can & has been done, but it's far from a sure thing. Likewise, a DETC degree will probably have little value in securing a teaching job at a RA school. If you're considering a DETC school for personal interest, salary increase, etc., you're sure that it will satisfy all your requirements, and are not bothered by the above paragraph, then a DETC degree should serve you well. Bruce
My research of last year, reported here a number of times, suggests that about 40% of registrars will accept it most or all of the time. A third will never or rarely accept it; the rest in between. Thus it is significantly less valuable in academic circles than regional, and significantly more valuable than whatever is in 3rd place. In the business world, acceptance is likely to be much higher; we'll know more when Rich Douglas does his dissertation research next year.
If you're thinking about vocational training type courses rather than general education then DETC accreditation is the way to go.
This is an oft-neglected point that bears repeating. The National Home Study Council (now the DETC) got its start because of illegal and unethical practices in the home study business. Their original purpose was more along the lines of consumer protection; they still do that very well. It is their more-recent surge into accrediting degree-granting institutions that remains a debatable issue. As John notes, there is a significantly lower level of acceptance of such degrees among admissions officers of regionally accredited schools. (Lower than that for degrees from legitimate foreign schools, BTW.) Of the DL schools we frequently discuss here, I know of only one (Capella) that considers graduates of DETC-accredited schools as a matter of policy. There may be others, but Capella was the only one of the eight I contacted recently that would. Rich Douglas