Cost! Cost! Cost!

I guess the regional accrediting agencies are granting full accreditation to degree mills now, huh? No, Capella is not a degree mill.

Non-traditional and innovative, perhaps, but not a degree mill.

Russell

 

My bias must be stated up front. I am currently a Capella doctoral student. December will mark the end of my third year in the program. I have just completed my dissertation proposal conference. My dissertation committee members include the former Dean of the Education at UMass who is currently eminent professor of educational reform at Old Dominion University; the current Dean of Academic Studies at Landegg Academy; a current Professor of Educational Psychology at Valdosta State University with significant publications to his credit; and an EdD with adult education books published by the likes of Jossey-Bass and Sage.

I am disappointed that these individuals agreed to foster the scam of Capella as a legitimate institution of learning. Perhaps they too were duped.

I am obviously quite interested in your basis for proclaiming Capella a "degree mill". This is not the sort of statement one would make without substantive information to back it up. How did you come to this conclusion?

As a student of research, I am always interested in learning how others collect, evaluate, and synthesize data before they form their conclusions. Perhaps it was through interviewing students to learn how many hours they must devote toward the development of course learning plans, research papers, and projects. Could it have been by reviewing the names and CV's of faculty that sit on comp and dissertation committees? Was it through having the experience of completing a program yourself in order to have context for accurate reflection on the effort required? Perhaps you spent some time reviewing a handful of dissertations produced by Capella graduates.

What exactly is your foundation for this "degree mill" claim? As a student that has shelled out a lot of money to Capella, your evidence might assist me in demanding a refund. Being a degree mill would certainly constitute fraud. The work I was required to do to write and re-write all those research papers and projects and correct every last little APA format inconsistency could have been for naught if your position proves out to be true.

I am looking forward to your response.

 

So it seems that even on this forum we cannot escape trolls.
Jack

 

This is a completely untrue assertion regarding Capella. It is legit, RA, and offers quality programs with qualified faculty. Otherwise, support your claim.

John

 

Sleep well tonight, Paul, and be proud of your accomplishment. There is no foundation to support such a "claim."

Russell

 

Even though I've only been following the distance ed forums for a few years, there are several themes that come up often enough to get boring. Here's a quote from Steve Levicoff (specifically referring to Capella) about 18 months ago:

This reminds me of the thread on AED about "relative mills." The basic idea is that if your reference point is Princeton, then Rutgers is (relatively-speaking) a mill. And if your reference point is Rutgers then Fairleigh Dickinson (referred to by one Rutgers grad that I spoke with as "Fairly Ridiculous") is a mill. And compared to Fairleigh Dickinson, TESC is a mill. And so on.

Perhaps it all comes down to what JBB has referred to as usability. If your goal is to get a tenure track academic job at Berkeley, then a Capella PhD will get you nothing but ridicule. But if your goals are a little less grandiose, then a Capella degree may well be entirely acceptable.

 

Perhaps it all comes down to what JBB has referred to as usability. If your goal is to get a tenure track academic job at Berkeley, then a Capella PhD will get you nothing but ridicule. But if your goals are a little less grandiose, then a Capella degree may well be entirely acceptable.[/B][/QUOTE]

I appreciate the objective approach to this. In the final analysis, I will weigh my objectives against the options and decide which school suits my needs best.

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David

 

Russell, thanks for you positive input. My tongue was planted firmly in cheek in my above post.

I have found Capella to be a terrific experience and have had nothing but the finest of accomplished academicians and professionals as my mentors, tutors, and fellow learners.

I am not exactly waiting with bated breath for any revelation regarding Capella. Good school, good program, good experience, and yes, a little pricey.

 

Incidentally, I didn't mean to imply that I think the relative "mill" concept is valid or appropriate -- just that, like it or not, people often run into a pecking order based on perceptions (and mis-perceptions).