Few Questions about AIU

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by Tarbuza, Jun 13, 2005.

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  1. Tarbuza

    Tarbuza New Member

    I have few questions about American Intercontinental University (AIU) MBA Program:

    a) Is this program takes 10 months to complete?

    b) How much does it cost approximately?

    c) Is it difficult to complete this program in 10 months?

    d) How is the course load etc?

    Thanks for any inputs.
     
  2. Ted Heiks

    Ted Heiks Moderator and Distinguished Senior Member

    a) yes.

    b) they don't allow you access to the catalog that has this info until you at least give over your phone number, email, etc., so they can give you the hard sell, but it's ~ $30,000.

    c) not sure.

    d) one class at a time, but with very short semesters.
     
  3. Oherra

    Oherra New Member

    AIU's degree programs can generally be completed in 10-18 months assuming you come into the program with the required credits already (an associates degree for the bachelors program or a bachelors degree if you are coming into the masters). If you don't have the required credit you have to take additional classes or test out of those requirements which tends to tack on some time.

    The cost depends on the program but I paid around 26K for my masters degree. My employer paid around 24K for my bachelors.

    The difficulty and course load go hand in hand. Classes are offered in 5 week time slots so the pace is very fast. You cannot get behind because 5 weeks simply doesn't allow enough time to catch up if you do. The workload tends to vary with each instructor but you can generally expect to have one or two major projects plus discussion postings each week. Projects can take the form of papers, case studies, or in technical classes you may be asked to produce a specific application of some kind.

    In addition to individual projects each class will require a group project where you collaborate with 4-5 other students to produce a paper or some other assignment related to the course. Group projects where the bane of my existence at AIU. I hated them and I don't know anyone who enjoyed them. It's just not easy to collaborate with people you don't really know over the Internet. This is especially true if you're unfortunate enough to be lumped into a group whose work ethic is lower than yours -- be prepared to do a substantial amount of work on the group project.

    That said, I did enjoy most of my time at AIU. Their custom platform is better (in my opinion) than either Blackboard or WebCT. They are also extremely convenient and ship you all of the books you need automatically (but read the fine print, because you do pay dearly for that convenience).

    I learned a lot in my degree programs at AIU but most of all I think the programs taught me how to acquire new information rapidly. It's a useful skill especially if you go into adjunct teaching and are told 2 days before the beginning of the quarter they need you to teach a class other than the one you expected to be teaching. :)
     
  4. Rob L

    Rob L New Member

    Oherra's post hit the nail right on the head. With the exception of group projects, I throughly enjoyed my experience at AIU. I found tha administration friendly and wanting to help, professors to be enthusiastic, and the curriculum to be relevant and up-to-date.

    As for cost, that is another matter. The cost is a bit on the high side. But, the cost isn't so bad when you take in account on how quickly you can earn your degree. For your info, I have included AIU's latest tution rate in the following link:




    https://mycampus.aiu-online.com/pdf/tuition_schedule.pdf
     
  5. Tarbuza

    Tarbuza New Member

    Pricey

    Its really pricey. Are there any MBA courses that can be completed in 10 months with less than 30 K?
     
  6. Ted Heiks

    Ted Heiks Moderator and Distinguished Senior Member

    Re: Pricey

    You might want to check out http://forums,degreeinfo.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=19704

    The least expensive accredited MBA that you will find is Ashworth College. Other MBAs under $10,000 that readily pop to mind are American Military University and California State University, Dominguez Hills. I am told that Amberton University is $200/hour.
     
  7. qvatlanta

    qvatlanta New Member

    Pretty much anything is going to be cheaper than AIU. I would look into all distance MBAs and with the following criteria:

    1) low credit requirement (30-36).
    2) minimum prerequisites
    3) short term periods
    4) posted class schedule or rotation schedule to determine class availability. This is absolutely key because if a class you need is only offered once a semester every two years, it's going to slow you down a lot.

    It's hard to find all four of those together, but possible.
     
  8. Tarbuza

    Tarbuza New Member

    Shortes Term Periods

    <<posted class schedule or rotation schedule to determine class availability. This is absolutely key because if a class you need is only offered once a semester every two years, it's going to slow you down a lot. >>

    Have you found any University that meet the above criteria and have shorter term periods?
     
  9. Ted Heiks

    Ted Heiks Moderator and Distinguished Senior Member

    Re: Shortes Term Periods

    You might check out whether my beloved alma mater City University (www.cityu.edu) offers their DL classes on the five-week fast-track program.
     
  10. Arch23

    Arch23 New Member

    Oherra and Rob L

    Just curious: Was group work required for EACH course that you took? Also, how does the school's academic calendar work (e.g., Jan-Feb, Mar-Apr, May-Jun, or Jan-middle of Feb, middle of Feb-end of March, etc.)? Thanks!
     
  11. Oherra

    Oherra New Member

    AIU requires group work in every class.

    The AIU calendar was a traditional 10 week quarter calendar. The difference is that it was divided into an A and B session. Each session lasting 5 weeks respectively. You took one class per session (unless you got permission and paid extra to double up).

    You usually had one to two weeks off between each quarter.
     
  12. qvatlanta

    qvatlanta New Member

    Re: Shortes Term Periods

    I ended up enrolling in Brenau University (http://www.brenau.edu/sbmc/busdiv/grad.htm) because it fit the above criteria. Class availability wasn't fantastic, but it was good enough. It's going to take me about a year and a half, but I could do it faster if I really needed to. I was really looking at places with a location in my region (Georgia) and I'm sure there are probably other ones out there.

    You could also check out Troy State. They are cheap and I know they have short terms, although I'm not so sure about class availability as their site is so confusing.

    http://www.troy.edu/ecampus/onlinegraduateprograms/programs/mba/mba.htm
     
  13. jayncali73

    jayncali73 New Member

    Does anyone know if...

    1. Financial aid will cover the entire cost of your program at AIU or do you have substantial out of pocket expense?

    2. Books are included in tuition?

    Thanks
     

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