Hard to believe, is it true?

I have spent alot of time investigating the possibility of yours' truly getting accepted into a graduate program. I will earn a residential NA bachelors and most likely will want to continue my education at a RA online or residential program. Although there are many opinions (most of them concurring that RA is the way to go-which is probably true), being somewhat antisocial I like to look at the data rather than have someone tell me "this is the way it is, live with it". I have heard references to the data, but nothing very concrete. Although I would like to see it myself, that is not directly related to my main question......which is.

The scenario is, an applicant (like myself) has a high GPA, high GMAT or GRE, and fairly impressive work experience. The same applicant (still me) isn't that selective about where he goes, just that it is RA for licensing purposes.

Reading all the opinions here suggest that I am up the proverbial creek.

So.......a RA program that will admit just about anybody, regardless of GPA or standardized tests scores, who has a RA undergrad degree will not admit me? Is this true?

Thanks in advance.

Tony

 

In my survey of 325 registrars, as reported at the AACRAO convention (American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers) in Seattle last year,

20% would almost always accept national accreditation

10% would often accept it

9% would occasionally accept it

So you not up a creek at all, you just need to shop around for that roughly one in three that will accept your degree.

 

Thank you Dr. Bear. Those percentages are more than I had thought but less than I hoped for. Regardless, I thank you for the info as it does give me something to work on and for.

Tony

 

In addition Dr. Bear notes in his book that people can sometimes get around stated requirements. I think the idea would be to find the best programs in your field, make contact with people in the program, and then apply. Also certain RA universities are known for accepting DETC degrees. Capella has been noted before and there may be others as well.

 

This is assuming that by "NA" you mean "nationally accredited," and not "non accredited." Lacrosse would fall into the "non accredited" category, since WAUC is not a nationally recognized accreditor. I believe that Dr. Bear's survey was relevant only for programs which were accredited by organizations, such as DETC, which were recognized by the Dept. of Education.

The smartest thing to do is to contact some grad programs that you might potentially be interested in, and ask them if they'll accept the undergrad degree that you're planning to get. Let us know if you find any RA schools that will accept it, as I'm sure that there are other people who would be interested.

 

Thank you both.

Dave:
I still have half a mile to run but I will definitely do that. Although the prestige isn't as important as the RA I do, of course, want to get into the best program I can. I would like to get into an in-state program (all AACSB) and it seems, based on their vaguely stated requirements, that what you suggest is what I will have to do. If I'm not successful, then I go down my list.

Gary:
I do mean nationally accredited. Even before I started absorbing the wealth of knowledge on this board I still checked it out with the appropriate government agency. Of course, going on that information, I really didn't understand that there was a difference between national and regional accreditation.....and here I am with this question. Like I said to Dave, I am still a ways away (unintentional alliteration), but I will keep everyone informed on my progress.

Tony

 

You don't say what kind of license you want, but since you mention AACSB in another post, I'm guessing CPA. I would check with the state where you want a license as soon as possible. I know that in the case of engineers, some states will license someone who does not have acceptable accreditation on a bachelors degree if the applicant has a masters or PhD that has acceptable accreditation. On the other hand, there are states that insist that the bachelors degree have acceptable accreditation, no matter what graduate degrees the applicant holds.

Gerry

 

Hi Gerry,

Yes, it is fairly complicated in my state. A University graduate degree with business accreditation makes it a lot easier to qualify to sit for the CPA exam. However, a master's degree from a RA school is acceptable along with enough hours in certain accounting areas. The only time undergrad accreditation comes into play (excepting getting accepted into the grad program) is when a person fulfills the credit hour requirement (150 sem. hours) but doesn't earn a masters.

At least as far as I can gather .

Tony

p.s. To be honest, I am not sure I want to be a CPA. Like I mentioned in another post, maybe b-school, or law school. Mainly I just want to continue my education, although I am leaning towards the CPA route. I can always change my mind and go in a different direction after I reach that goal.