Charisma University now has .edu

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by Garp, Apr 19, 2020.

Loading...
  1. Garp

    Garp Well-Known Member

    I was looking recently at Charisma University and was surprised it has a .edu. I am guessing it is due to the ACQUIN accreditation (rather than ABSCP business accreditation) because of the EU suffix in the address.

    What is ACQUIN accreditation in terms of value? A quick look at Wikipedia says it is some sort of recognized German accreditor. The list of schools in the article is all German except for Charisma which is far far away from Germany. Any insight from people who know about German accreditation and how a foreign credential evaluator would look at it.

    I am not intending to enroll just curious. University of the Cumberlands seems a better deal financially and in terms of known commodity.
     
  2. mbwa shenzi

    mbwa shenzi Active Member

    First, there were two universities, or maybe a twin university, Victorville International University/American Centered University. Then, American Centered disappeared and Victorville University left California for the Philippines and changed its name to Charisma University. But the climate, or maybe the Commission on Higher Education disagreed with Charisma so the school tried made a failed attempt at establishing itself in Montserrat before finally ending up in Turks & Caicos. The ministry of higher education gave Charisma a provisional license (later a full one) to run an online institution but required the school to be accredited. So, Charisma got accreditation from ASIC in the UK, and became a candidate for accreditation with the ACBSP. Then, Charisma's ASIC accreditation was either revoked or dropped and the school instead sought accreditation from BAC in the UK. BAC later revoked Charisma's accreditation but Charisma managed to secure conditional accreditation from the ACBSP. Apparently now Charisma is accredited by a recognized German agency which is listed on EQAR, the European Quality Assurance Register for Higher Education. Well, that's some sort of progress, I guess. It'll be interesting to see if it lasts. Last time I wished Charisma the best of luck, I was sued, but I'll take the risk and do it again.
     
  3. Johann766

    Johann766 Active Member

    This German accreditation agency is basically a state-sponsored institution, so this is another big reputation improvement for the school after ACBSP accreditation.
     
  4. Mac Juli

    Mac Juli Well-Known Member

  5. mintaru

    mintaru Active Member

    Mac Juli likes this.
  6. Mac Juli

    Mac Juli Well-Known Member

    Yes, maybe. Or they are still in progress? But in this case, their advertising / their website is misleading.
     
  7. Johann766

    Johann766 Active Member

    Give it a little time, Acquin probably hasn't updated the list yet. Since they Acbsp accreditation I cannot imagine that they are lying.

    Since I'm German and I'm looking for a fast and uncomplicated PhD program I will not study at Charisma now. Why pay tuition fees When it is as rigorous as German Universities. I could as Well study at a German Universities and I won't have to pay tuition fees :D
     
  8. Stewart81

    Stewart81 New Member

    ASIC is most certainly not accreditation in the UK more it simply recognises an institution as passing various requirements to for UK student visas and administration matters. Some bodies like to make out its Government approval but it doesn't grant any awarding powers, though for non-degree programmes you don't need them here.
     
  9. Mac Juli

    Mac Juli Well-Known Member

    I am German, too.

    Let's play Rock-paper-scissors! The loser is going to call Acquin and tell the rest what is going on!

    ROCK!
     
  10. Mac Juli

    Mac Juli Well-Known Member

    Wait a minute… https://charisma.edu.eu/ does not really have an .edu - suffix. It seems rather that it is a subdomain of edu.eu, isn't it?
    From my understanding, these subdomains are *way* easier to register than .edu-domains, see here: https://register.edu.eu/eligibility-criteria
     
  11. Neuhaus

    Neuhaus Well-Known Member

    I don't know I'd say it's "way" easier to register, there is still criteria. It's just that there is more flexibility since multiple countries can apply for the .edu.eu domain extension. In the U.S., it's pretty easy, you need to be accredited by a USDOE recognized accreditor. Interestingly, Augustine Institute seems to have declined to avail themselves of that privilege since becoming accredited by ATS. Anyway, Charisma, like them or not, is approved to offer degrees in the country (territory) in which they are domiciled. They aren't really under any requirement, as far as I can tell, to get any institutional accreditation at all beyond the approval they have from Turks and Caicos and, if they are offering programs to Europeans, they are eligible for the .edu.eu extension.

    They're basically in a much stronger position than the likes of SMC and others were ever in.
     
  12. Mac Juli

    Mac Juli Well-Known Member

    Ugh. I was at SMC University, wish I were not...
     
  13. Mac Juli

    Mac Juli Well-Known Member

    Hello!


    Just in case if it interests somebody: Charisma University used to offer MBA degrees, if they could even be called so, here: https://gaqm.org/master_degree_program. The registrar told me however that is is not (any more?) the case.
    Well, I think this is a great step in the right direction - who would like to get an MBA degree just for passing three online exams that can be repeated as often as necessary? (OK, there are people, I guess...)


    Best regards,
    Mac Juli
     
  14. LearningAddict

    LearningAddict Well-Known Member

    In some countries, some programs do this and don't count the exam score at all, but usually that's because the entire course grade is based on a comprehensive project and even then you only get so many chances to nail it before you're dismissed. I don't see a project being mentioned with GAQM so that doesn't sound great.

    Well, at least the exam has to be proctored via ProctorU, so that's something...
     
  15. Rich Douglas

    Rich Douglas Well-Known Member

    The MBA is listed on their website.
     
  16. Mac Juli

    Mac Juli Well-Known Member

    Oh? On the site www.charisma.edu.eu? Really? Where? According to the registrar, it shouldn't?!
    It is still listed in GAQM, but I was told they are going to change that.
     
    Last edited: Apr 27, 2020
  17. Rich Douglas

    Rich Douglas Well-Known Member

    Yes.

    I would think it odd that a school whose only form of legitimate accreditation is a third-tier programmatic accreditation in business (provisional, yet) would have deleted its MBA, the most common and central of all business degrees. Not saying that it wouldn't happen, but it would be odd.

    And let's not forget that the school does not have the actual .edu extension, but a Euro version of it. It seems to mean little.
     
  18. mintaru

    mintaru Active Member

    So you don't think ACQUIN accreditation is a form of legitimate accreditation?
     
  19. Rich Douglas

    Rich Douglas Well-Known Member

    Do you?
     
  20. Mac Juli

    Mac Juli Well-Known Member

    Hello!


    Of course, I can only speak for myself, but I think ACQUIN is a pretty legitimate form of accreditation - as most Germans will probably do. If Charisman University will stop offering their degrees via GAQM, and they have announced to do so (see above) and if ACQUIN confirms their accreditation on their website (they haven't yet), then, well, in spite of their past I am willing to change my negative opinion about Charisma University.

    Which does not mean that I am going to enroll with them or to see them as a premium, recommendable institution or anything like this. :)

    Best regards,
    Mac Juli
     

Share This Page