Another for-profit comes under the gun. Black Arts: The $800 Million Family Selling Art Degrees and False Hopes
I can definitely see why. Before enrolling at AAU I was promised I will do this: However, after paying thousands upon thousands of dollars in tuition money, this is what I was able to muster: Any questions? :biglaugh:
i would love to do a fine arts degree in drawing and photography for kicks. if only there was a cheap program. ):
University president Elisa Stephens insists on being addressed as "Doctor Stephens" on the basis of her law degree. This is not illegal, but is uncommon. They identify their honorary "Doctor of Humane Letters" as their "highest degree". This year's recipients are Lisa Cholodenko and Joe Zee.
Cash cow. No investment is made into aau. Aau is used to finance other investments and a lavish lifestyle. No problem except that it is federal subsidies loans not free market loans.
Your work exhibits great rage against the machinations that keep learning in check. It's a bold departure from the confines placed on the artist. It screams I will not be held down. I'd say you learned more than most. You could have ended up like this (Bob Ross)
I have to say that my son and several of his friends go an exceptional education through AAU. In addition, they got intern and externships. They did see lots of kids wash out - but those kids didn't put in the time and effort. My son had about 20 hours a week of homework for each art class he took. I also attended the new student/parent orientation. They were really clear that they taught people the education necessary to get a job, but that lots of people wouldn't make it through.
I won't get into their recruiting practices, but in fairness, do people really expect to walk into a 6-figure job with an Art degree, even if it's from Yale? Also, despite all her money, does anyone else get the impression that Elisa Stephens is not a very happy person?
I'm not sure what kind of job you can get with a Fine Arts degree. Graphic arts? Design? I've heard it said that architects are all frustrated sculptors but that doesn't mean that if you're a sculptor you can be an architect. As for Elisa Stephens, she's a rich American so of course she's unhappy.
If Popeye and Olive Oyl had a kid it would look like Kool's drawing. That said, I think the point of the article is that AAU is the University of Phoenix of the art world. "Just 32% of full-time students graduate in six years, versus 59% for colleges nationally, and that rate drops to 6% for online-only students and 3% for part-time students." All the debt numbers are the same too. No one is saying that it's impossible to get a good education at AAU just as it's entirely possible to get a good education at Phoenix. But the numbers mean something too.
More on AAU plus a reply from the university President Report Blasts SF's Academy of Art University for Low Graduation Rates, Land Use Violations: Forum | KQED Public Media for Northern CA
