Harvard DL

Anyone here have real experience with Harvard's DL programme? I'd like to chat with you if you do.
http://www.extension.harvard.edu/distanceed/

Cheers,

Christian
[email protected]

 

I think it's worth mentioning that Harvard Extension only offers courses....it's not possible to earn a degree solely by distance, so I don't know if I'd call it a program/programme per se.

Living in the Boston area my entire life, I've known many people who have taken courses through Harvard Extension, but I have yet to meet even one person who has earned a degree from there.


Bruce

 

They offer degrees, but it is my understanding that you need to complete at least one full-time semester on campus, which can be done via the Extension School or Harvard Summer School. I looked into their Master of Liberal Arts in Information Technology (ALM in IT), but I couldn't figure out a way to do the on-campus portion. If you can do it though, I'm sure that a degree from Harvard University wouldn't look bad on a resume, and the fact that it is from the Extension School wouldn't necessarily need to be indicated. The pricing is really fairly reasonable, and they have an open admissions policy (except for the TOEFL requirement).

 

Bad phrasing on my part. What I meant to say was that they offer only *distance* courses, not true distance degrees. They offer a huge amount of residential courses, as well as a Bachelor's degree and two graduate degrees.

Having never seen a degree from Harvard Extension, I have no idea if it does specify "Extension" or not. But, knowing something about the Harvard attitude as I do, I'd be willing to bet they make a big distinction. Someone told me that Extension diplomas are in English (regular Harvard diplomas are in Latin), but I've never been able to confirm that.


Bruce

 

I doubt they´re in English,
it´s the whole university´s policy to remain the old-fashioned Latin standard.

Besides, the DO DEFINETELY state "Extension School", ´cause the Extension School is the name of the particular school that´s issuing the diploma - the same as their other schools (don´t remember how they´re called, but you know what I mean: their Business School, their Law School and so on...)

(I remember that because I´ve been reading nearly the whole Extension school´s websites, FAQ´s, and so on... - and I remember it IS STATED...).

Greets from Germany,

Trigger

 

In terms of prestige, would Harvard Extension School diplomas have more prestige(and marketability in terms of finding a career) than say...the University of California Irvine? Opinions appreciated.



------------------
Sam C
www.uci.edu
UCI 2002
[email protected]
Confusion is just the path to insight and knowledge

 

I asked about this and was told that the degree is in Latin and thus would really just look like jibberish to most people anyway. They said that the degree would have both Harvard University and Extension School on it. To be honest though, I'm not sure that it really makes much difference what the degree itself says. It's not like you bring a copy with you to an interview, and you could still just put Harvard University on your resume. If I had the means to do the one semester residence then I would do it just for the name (plus the fact that the ALM in IT seems like a good program).

 

Actually, here is a copy of the email that I received in response to my inquiry:

Diploma Wording

The Extension School is one of twelve degree-granting schools at Harvard University. All Harvard University diplomas state the name of the University, the type of degree, and the school from which it was obtained.

In general, what the diploma actually says is not of great concern as it is not very descriptive: Harvard diploma are in Latin and they never indicate the concentration of the degree. When official confirmation of more detailed information on the content of the program is required, students request official transcripts from the Extension School.

For the purposes of resumes, etc., our degrees and certificates are generally referred to in the form of the following examples:

ALM in Information Technology, Harvard University Extension School

Certificate of Applied Sciences, Harvard University Extension School

More description can be helpful to audiences not familiar with the specific programs, so one might add:

for the ALM in IT, Master of Liberal Arts in Software Engineering

for the CAS, Graduate Certificate with concentration in Tech Writing and Multimedia

Some combination of the above is accurate.


I still don't see any reason that one couldn't just put "Harvard University" on a resume. I don't see as really being any different than just putting "Duke University" on a resume rather than "Fuqua School of Business, Duke University". It seems to me that even if someone put "Harvard University Extension School" on a resume, there would still be great benefit in the name recognition.

 

Or maybe even "Extension School, Harvard University"?


Cheers,

------------------
Tom Head
www.tomhead.net

co-author, Bears' Guide to the Best Education Degrees by Distance Learning (Ten Speed Press)
co-author, Get Your IT Degree and Get Ahead (Osborne/McGraw-Hill)

 

I think that would be totally proper, I don't see any ethical problems at all. I don't think anyone would get hung up about the school name, I mean how many people would put "Boston University, College of Arts & Sciences" on their resume, for example?

If the diploma is in Latin anyway, how many people know the Latin word for "extension"? Not me.


Bruce

 

Well it's true Bruce, we've never met, but I earned my ALB (that's the way it's cited) from the Harvard Extension School in 1986. My diploma is entirely in the English language and identifies my work as occurring in the Extention School (just as someone else's might identify the Architecture School, etc.)
As for it's utility, I was accepted into seven different graduate schools, including Harvards own School of Education, based on this degree. On my resume I state that I received my ALB from "Harvard University" and this has never been challenged. The Harvard Alimni Assoc. regularly solicits money from me and I regularly throw away my invitations to join the Harvard Club gag me [:-(]
I have no knowledge of Harvard DL as this was not in existence during my studies. It is correct, as was stated above, that you cannot earn any Harvard degree solely through DL. On the other hand, Harvard Ext degrees are the best kept secret in New England, especially when you discover that the cost per course is less than at your local State Univ. Keep smiling,
Jack

 

You know better than that, Bruce. Relative school prestige is an obsession in higher education and it has led to a number of flame threads on this group.

Part of the point of having a Harvard degree is the competitive advantage that the 'Harvard' name confers. There is a widespread opinion out there that Harvard graduates are a superior kind of graduate.

But if the Harvard extension school actually suffers from just those defects that cause other schools to fall in the USNews rankings, things like lower admissions selectivity, higher dropout rate and lots of part-time vocationally motivated non-traditional age students, then it's obviously misleading to suggest otherwise to those who are trying to avoid those characteristics.

I have nothing against the Harvard extension program. I think it's great. I'm not even saying that I wouldn't be strongly tempted myself to omit the words 'extension school'. I'm just trying to be honest about the ethics of doing that.

 

My opinion is that if Harvard wants to reap the financial rewards of having their Extension program, then they'll have to suffer the indignity of seeing "ordinary" people with a Harvard degree. If they don't want Extension graduates calling themselves "Harvard graduates", then they shouldn't offer degrees.

Is the degree issued by Harvard University? From what I've seen, the answer is yes. How then could there be a problem listing it as such?

As I said before, how often do you see a graduate degree listed on a resume as "XYZ University, College of Arts & Sciences"? If it's acceptable to just list the issuing school for every other college & university, why should Harvard should be the exception? Because it's Harvard? I don't think so.


Bruce

 

You really should look into it Jack. My sister-in-law had her wedding at the Harvard Club, and it's quite an impressive place. The member's lounge is pretty much how you'd picture it...dark woodwork, heavy drapes, leather furniture. The only problem might be the membership fee, I'm sure it's not cheap.


Bruce

 

And think of the countless hours one would have to spend perfecting the tonal inflections of the phrase "I say, old boy." Not that I'm knocking it..

 

That's OK, Dennis. I'm the one that's knocking it. My general experience is that the members of the Harvard Club constitute a very snobbish subset of Harvard graduates. I'm sure there are exceptions but to me it's just not worth it.
Jack

 

I've never had the idea that Harvard is reaping any financial rewards from this degree program. The cost per course for the students is quite affordable and no one is getting rich based on my contributions to the alumni association (due to my lowly salary as a Clinical Social Worker).
Jack

 

The issue of how to refer to a degree from Harvard Extension School was discussed in an earlier thread. Personally, I agree with David Yamada's comments in that thread.

 

While I understand the point being made here I would want to make several points of my own. The first is that those commenting on the Harvard Extension degree, especially David Yamada in the thread referenced above, seem to be confusing the issue by continually referring to the Harvard Extension degree as a DL degree. It is impossible to earn a Harvard Extension degree by DL and when I earned mine there were no DL courses offered at all. The second point is that the extension courses are taught by the regular Harvard faculty and they clearly state that the same standards are used in grading the daytime and the nighttime courses. The third point is that in order to be admitted to the Extension degree program you need to earn a specific GPA (3.0 I think) over the course of 15 credits. So while it is not competitive in the same sense, it is also not accurate to describe the admission process as "open." You have to earn your way in. Finally, I would like to point out that, having earned my MSW from Simmons College School of Social Work, I do not, nor have I ever, relied on my Harvard degree to "get me a job." My Masters degree is the credential under which I work. I consider myself lucky to have lived close enough to Cambridge to have taken advantage of Harvards program. My guess is that Harvard will never offer a degree program entirely through DL and so it is unfortunate that more people will not have the same opportunity.
Jack

 

I believe that the requirement for an Extension School degree is that 60% of the courses must be taught by Harvard Instructors. Some, but not all, of the Harvard Instructors are from the regular Harvard faculty. Others have the title "Lecturer in Extension," and teach in the Extension School alone.