DL doctorates in top universities

Funny, I thought the point of the topic was that DL degrees can earn you a spot in a tier 1 school.

I didn't mean the thread was off-topic but that I was off-topic and trying to get back on.

Regards,

marilynd

 

Smith School of Business --University of Maryland (College Park)
Robert W. Cook, DBA Nova Southeastern University
http://www.umd.edu/catalog/0405/chapter9.pdf

College of Business --Florida Institute of Technology
John Patton, DBA (Associate Professor)
http://www.fit.edu/faculty/profiles....html?value=175


Hospitality and Tourism Management – School of Business-- University of Massachusetts (Amherst)
Jeffrey A. Fernsten, DBA (Associate Professor)
http://www.umass.edu/grad_catalog/htra/


School of Business --- Howard University
William Brent, DBA (Professor) ----- Page 61
http:// www.howard.edu/facts/Facts2004.pdf

There are many more Nova DBAs in regional tier-1 colleges that have AACSB accreditation but like Andy and Tony pointed out, nobody knows whether they were already teaching fulltime or part-time before they were employed. My list doesn’t prove or disprove anything. It demonstrates that there are exceptions to the rule. Like I stated above, Nova is now a well-established B&M university and it has been around for a long time and such no one should be surprised to find many Nova doctorates in the academe.

 

Speaking of which, I would like to see examples of people with DL doctorates who are teaching full-time at ANY university (let alone a "Tier-1" school). Nova is not really a virtual university, although it does have a substantial distance learning program. To really test out the acceptance in academia, we need to see some Capella, Walden, Touro and Northcentral folks among the assistant, assoicate and full professors out there.

No one is arguing the presence of Nova Southeastern degrees in academia. They are there for all to see. However, when we start discussions with titles like "DL doctorates in top universities", I'd really like to see some actual DL doctorates included in the discussion.

Tony

 

I realize that this is a US-centric forum and I realize that this thread relates primarily to US degrees/universities but . . .
It took me all of 2 minutes to find a bunch of people with PhD's from UNISA who are working at well-known Australian universities. If I bothered to keep looking I'll bet I could find a few working in US universities. While this may be a bit off-topic I don't believe it's entirely irrelevant to the central issue.
Jack

 

Which UNISA? Unisa (Suid-Afrika) or UniSA (South Australia)? Latter probably not DL.

 

Yes, sorry for any confusion. I was referring to the South African university.
Jack

 

Yes, sorry for any confusion. I was referring to the South African university.
Jack

 

Where in the AACSB accreditation requirements does it state that professional accredidation is necessary or required?

I was told by an AACSB employee that they do not require full time instructors to have degrees accredited by them. Was the person I spoke with wrong????

 

Carlosb - you're right to say that AACSB doesn't require faculty at their accredited schools to have degrees from AACSB schools. In fact, it isn't uncommon at even very high quality schools for some of the faculty to have degrees that aren't in business (perhaps in economics or psychology). As Ike has pointed out, some NSU DBA grads teach at AACSB schools.

However, there are AACSB accredited schools that do require candidates for faculty positions to have degrees from an AACSB school. Look in the jobs section of the Chronicle of Higher Education and you'll see examples. When I look at a job ad like this the message is clear - "all of you DL grads can forget it!".

Oops! Let me claify "all of you U.S. Dl grads can forget it!". There some AACSB schools in Europe that may qualify.

Regards - Andy

 

I also have noticed many faculty members with australian degrees from places like Charlest Sturt or USQ; however, it is hard to tell if the degree was earned DL or not as most of the Australian Universities offer on campus and external degrees.

Most of the holders of PhDs from internet schools work as adjuncts or community college professors. You can also see many graduates of DL schols teaching in places where the PhD is not a requirement but a plus like in Devry University.

It is evident that the DL doctorate has utility but also many limitations. It seems that the best bet is to get your doctorate from a place that also has on campus programs like NOVA or Argosy.

 

Tony's point is well taken.

I wonder if DL doctorates do not suffer from a certain inherent disadvantage that perhaps DL bachelors and masters programs do not. The doctoral system is a tutorial system. In UK-style research degrees, this applies from the beginning of the program. In US-style doctoral programs, it is most evident at the dissertation stage--i.e., after all the coursework, comps, and technical (language, statistics, etc.) requirements have been completed. The tutorial system is a very personal relationship. As many can attest, choosing the "wrong" person as your dissertation sponsor can sink your dissertation effort (or at least make it tortuous).

In the best examples of this system, the tutor helps the student along the road to becoming a scholar. It is not uncommon in prestigious programs for tutors (sometimes called sponsors, auditors, advisers) to guide promising candidates to present papers at conferences, publish articles in refereed journals, and in many informal ways prepare him or her to become a productive scholar after leaving the nest, so to speak. I know one professor at Cal, Santa Barbara who has an unofficial rule of thumb never to let the dissertation come to the defense until the student has already had two or three scholarly articles published. That way, when the person enters the job market, he or she already shows evidence of publishing and quality of scholarship. "Tier-1" universities (a term I don't particularly care for) are all about scholarship. Individuals who only want to teach need not apply.

Now, what I wonder is this. Does distance get in the way of developing the bond between between tutor and student? Do DL students miss much of the informal guidance that comes with this relationship? (Those who teach today will admit, I think, that they craft email replies with more hesitancy--and therefore less candor--than is true in face-to-face meetings.) How important is this relationship? Certainly, it is important for getting the dissertation through committee and approved. For those who need the degree as a credential (to teach, get a raise, be promoted, etc.), perhaps this is all that is necessary. For those who want to be scholars, the dissertation is only part of the process, however. I wonder if, in this narrow circumstance, DL convenience is not also a hindrance. Is this perhaps a reason for the dearth of DL doctorates at Tier-1 schools? Or is it only prejudice against DL degrees? Or is it just that DL is so new that, relatively speaking, the numbers of those qualified to reach Tier-1 schools hasn't reach critical mass, yet?

What do you think (preference given to those who have been through a DL dissertation)?

Rock on,



marilynd

 

I'm glad to see that Florida Tech (my alma mater) has embraced diversified education approaches away from their home campus in Melbourne FL. I went through a traditional campus program in Aeronautics there, but I've noticed over the past 15 years they have pursued a strategy of implementing satellite campuses around the country (mostly govt/military centers with evening and weekend classrooms) for engineering and acquisition/contract management curriculums. And, over the past several years, they have ramped up their approach to distance learning significantly.

 

Walden University

A quick Google check will show numerous Walden University PhD holders in many B&M institutions. Also, I remember a number of distance learning articles that came out a couple of years ago mentioning a Walden PhD among Yale University's faculty.

 

Re: Walden University

I'm sure that you are right; however, a recent search of Yale University's web site failed to find any reference to Walden University, other than footnote in a research paper that referenced what appeared to be a Walden dissertation.

Tony

 

Re: Walden University

I know a department head of a business department at a small university who received his PhD from Walden (non-AACSB) and his MBA from Oral Roberts (non-AACSB). It is a conservative religious school, however, with signing a doctrinal statement a necessary requisite for consideration, so that must have narrowed the field a good bit for the hiring committee, but still, it shows that given the right circumstances, it can be done.

It depends more on the person and the research and publications post-PhD or Masters than the degree sometimes. If you keep at it, sooner or later you'll get an interview. If you have a great track record of scholarship and interview well, I'd say you'll have a chance at all but the most elite schools.

 

Re: Re: Walden University

Would that be Big Halsy?

Jack
(I tried but I couldn't resist)

 

Re: Re: Re: Walden University

Alas, no.

Big Halsy's now running some sort of big film something-or-other--I believe they call it "Sundance".

I'm honored that you got my reference to an obscure little film of thirty-odd years ago--one of my favorites, not the least of reasons being that I am a motorcycle racing aficionado. And how are you acquainted with this little film?

Oh yes, the Professor and Department Head is Dr. Brett Andrews, Business Division Chair, Oklahoma Wesleyan University.
http://www.okwu.edu/home/directory/directory_profile.php?id=91

 

One of the worst horror stories I have heard is from a PhD student who started off with a brilliant advisor who was also extremely helpful and supportive. The advisor was highly-renowned in the field and had agreed to anchor the student's dissertation committee. Then the student noticed that his advisor had suddenly started to act very strangely... whenever they had meetings he would go off to the bathroom for 20 minutes at a time, his skin was turning an unhealthy yellowish shade and he would break out in a sweat at odd moments, but he kept insisting he was OK and in perfect health. Well it turned out a heroin addiction was getting the better of him and needless to say this created a serious problem with the dissertation timetable...

 

Walden University

<<I'm sure that you are right; however, a recent search of Yale University's web site failed to find any reference to Walden University, other than footnote in a research paper that referenced what appeared to be a Walden dissertation.--Tony>>

I tried searching Yale University's site, but couldn't find the person either. I did find some info on Walden University's site about a graduate (Dr. John Antonakis) who was hired as a reseacrh associate in psychology at Yale (plus info on other graduates, such as Dr. Jacob Lozada, who was hired in Bush's cabinet):

http://www.waldenu.edu/ponder/0601/text.html

(The item about Dr. Antonakis is under "Class Notes" near the bottom of the page.)

 

Re: Re: Re: Re: Walden University

While I don't go out to the movies anymore I continue to watch a lot of films (VHS & DVD). I simply watched the film back when it came out. Also, I have some fondness for characters who live on the edges of society.
Jack