Could DETC become obsolete?

Discussion in 'Accreditation Discussions (RA, DETC, state approva' started by thomas_jefferson, Nov 29, 2010.

Loading...
  1. Can anyone envision a plausible future scenario where, in the name of higher education reform, accreditation standards were mucked with in Congress to the point that national accreditation organizations like the DETC were invalidated?
     
  2. b4cz28

    b4cz28 New Member

    no.................
     
  3. Cyber

    Cyber New Member

    Yes.........
    But you'll still be able to use your degree, if your earned DETC degree is of any use in the first place.
     
  4. airtorn

    airtorn Moderator

    Yes - Everything has the potential to become obsolete.
     
  5. b4cz28

    b4cz28 New Member

    What??? Is there any real need for that. There are guys on this board who really worked their butts off to earn a degree from a DETC school.
     
  6. james_lankford

    james_lankford New Member

    it doesn't matter how hard you had to work to get the degree. It only matters if the degree is accepted by employers, grad schools or whatever.
    If it was accepted before, then it will continue to be accepted.
    if it wasn't accepted before, then it doesn't matter if it becomes invalid or not, because your employer or whatever already considers it invalid.
     
  7. Abner

    Abner Well-Known Member

    Don't sweat it B4. I agree with you though. Several of us get plenty of use out of our degrees. The proof is in the real world, not the CYBER world.

    Abner :)

    Originally Posted by Cyber
    Yes.........
    But you'll still be able to use your degree, if your earned DETC degree is of any use in the first place.What??? Is there any real need for that. There are guys on this board who really worked their butts off to earn a degree from a DETC school.
     
  8. Petedude

    Petedude New Member

    Yes, but it's certainly not the only possible scenario.

    RA could become obsolete (I hear people gasping out there). DETC could become relevant enough where the academic snobbery of RA simply no longer is of value in the "real world".

    DETC could also end up being more or less equivalent to RA, as others have suggested before in prior threads.
     
  9. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    If you're a sci-fi fan (me) then you can imagine any scenario. Could DETC disappear? Of course! Is it likely? No, not even close. Even if DETC accredition wanes in importance in academic areas it will never wane in importance in vocational areas. IMOO DETC will rise in importance with the creation of additional grad programs including added professional doctoral degrees.
     
  10. NorCal

    NorCal Active Member

    We only have one DETC school in my immediate area, and that school has a horrible reputation overall. However, they also have a law program which is one of the best rated law schools in the area. Very mixed reviews I know.

    Kind of related, but this DETC school offers "job placement" upon graduation. After my friend graduated with his A.A.S. Network Technology, they tried to place him as a sales clerk at Game Stop for $10 Hr. This is the only DETC school that I have any experience with, although not personally, so I'm interested in what you folks think that have more experience with these schools.
     
  11. Chip

    Chip Administrator

    I can't see the scenario the OP describes ever happening. For one thing, every DETC school on the planet, not to mention DETC itself, would hire lobbyists and buy off our congresspeople to prevent it from happening. For another, DETC is a reputable if second-tier accreditor, recognized by US DoEd and I can't imagine a scenario where congress would see fit to devalue the recognition of DETC degrees. If anything, I could see some sort of rule homogenizing accreditation and forcing RA schools to equally accept DETC credits and degrees (which would, in my opinion, be the wrong move.)
     
  12. Cyber

    Cyber New Member

     
  13. Abner

    Abner Well-Known Member

    Cyber wrote:

    I hope you haven't mis-interpreted what I said. [/QUOTE]

    Oh, I see what you are saying.

    Thanks for your comments!

    Abner :)
     
  14. Cyber

    Cyber New Member

    I know that not everyone who earns a graduate degree is interested in using their degree to teach, nor should every student take out thousands in student loans to attend RA schools just for the sake of the "DETC is inferior or RA is superior" argument. I think for the sake of learning something as well as for earning qualification that works for practical/professional careers, a degree from DETC schools are fine only if the cost is affordable. I never suggested that DETC programs are not as rigorous as in RA schools. I was only saying that if an earned DETC degree served a need, regardless of whether DETC exist or not, the degree will still serve that need. FYI: I have a BS and MS from RA schools. I intend to enroll in the new DSc in Technology Engineering that Aspen University intends to offer soon. Why? Because at their present $100 per credit, the value of the degree once earned will supercede the limitation of the degree (DETC and online). Would I consider enrolling if the degree is charged at a high tuition rate? Absolutely No. So DETC degrees are good for different individual situations, and we all should make that decision based on our own specific situation.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Nov 29, 2010
  15. Randell1234

    Randell1234 Moderator

    But you can and people have so I do not see the point. Are they just as "accepted" and B&M PhD's - I seriously doubt it but I would not say they can not be used to land a B&M teaching job if that is what you want and you have a strong enough background. I think the "online" PhD holders would count more on their professional background to secure a job as opposed to being an academic egg-head (no offense to the egg-heads out there) that never worked in the corporate world and only have "book knowledge" to bring to the table.
     
  16. PaulC

    PaulC Member

    Which DETC school has "one of the best rated law schools in the area"? DETC schools are distance based, always have been. How is a DETC school even considered in the context of "in our area"? Not rhetorical questions. I really am curious.
     
  17. Anthony Pina

    Anthony Pina Active Member

    The DETC and the AALE both occupy a somewhat strange place in the realm of accreditation. While the vast majority of national accrediting agencies focus upon a single program or area of an institution, only a few are authorized to accredit entire institutions, and most of those are faith-based accrediting bodies for religious schools.

    Looking at the CHEA database of authorized agencies: If you take out the faith-based agencies, you are left with DETC, AALE and ACICS. The latter tends to limit its efforts to career and technical colleges, so it covers different ground than the regional accrediting agencies. AALE focuses on liberal arts institutions and DETC upon institutions that offer degrees at a distance. At first glance (and maybe at second glance), it may appear that the DETC and AALE perform a redundant function to the regional accrediting agencies. When DETC just accredited correspondence schools, then its distinction from the regional accrediting bodies was more pronounced. Now that DETC is accrediting academic programs up through the doctorate, it seems as though it is covering the same ground as regional accreditation.

    Frankly, I am a bit surprised that the regionals have not gone after the DETC for infringing up their turf. Perhaps Arne Duncan and U.S. Dept. of Education’s attack upon the AALE (the smallest and weakest of the national agencies) is just the first step and DETC may be next. I hope not, as I believe that the takeover of accreditation by the U.S. DOE would be an incredibly bad move.

    Could the DETC become non-viable? That probably depends upon whether the DETC comes across the radar of the Obama Administration, Arne Duncan or Tom Harkin. Could the DETC become obsolete? That really depends on the DETC. I have no particular issue with the DETC, but as the academic leader of a decent sized distance learning program, I wonder what the DETC could offer my institution that regional accreditation could not.
     
  18. PaulC

    PaulC Member

    If the concept of regional "turf" existed, it would more likely be that of brick and mortar, not level of degree granted. The DETC has been accrediting programs that award undergrad and grad degrees for quite some time. However, what has been the line in the sand that separates regional from DETC is the time and place paradigm; regional have been the stalwart of fixed place and time and DETC has been the steward of anywhere, anytime. The irony is that, if there were a turf to be infringed, it seems more like the regionals moving further into the distance turf - the cornerstone of the DETC mission - while the DETC has not budged an inch towards accrediting brick and mortar.
     
  19. truckie270

    truckie270 New Member

    If there is an argument to made that turf is being infringed, it will be made by the RA world - not vice-versa. You must remember that RA includes state public schools and they are the ones who are going to drive this discussion. Online education represents competition for tuition dollars and as every state faces increasing fiscal strain they will be fighting for every dollar they can get. If this includes a deeper foray into distance learning at the expense of the DETC, then the eventual loss of the DETC will be the cost of doing business in the world of higher education.
     
  20. Anthony Pina

    Anthony Pina Active Member

    I do not agree. The DETC began as the National Home Study Council, a professional/trade association for correspondence schools. It has only been recently, since the advent of the Internet and fully online degree programs, that the DETC has been accrediting online institutions with graduate degrees. Jones International University started in 1993, when the World Wide Web started gaining traction. Although the DETC was around, JIU chose regional accreditation (as did the other major virtual universities, such as Walden, Capella and UMUC). If the distance turf was the exclusive purview of the DETC, then the regional accrediting bodies have completely infringed upon its turf. CHEA still refers to DETC as a "Career Oriented" accrediting body (along with ACICS).

    Again, I have no animosity toward the DETC, I just wonder what the DETC can offer to an institution that the SACS, WASC, North Central, Northwest, Middle States and New England Associations could not? I can see the benefit of institutions with business schools seeking out AACSB or ACBSP accreditation, psychology programs seeking APA accreditation, etc. Why would any institution with a distance learning program that can achieve regional accreditation seek out DETC accreditation?
     

Share This Page