NCU teaching model

Clapper, is your assessment for all DL schools or only for NCU? And if it's only for NCU, then how is it different from other DL models? How many different DL models have you experienced?

 

I’m breaking my own “don’t post anymore” rule by posting here, and feeding, but:

By undue profundity we perplex and enfeeble thought; and it is possible to make even Venus herself vanish from the firmanent by a scrutiny too sustained, too concentrated, or too direct.
--Edgar Allan Poe

 

Sorry to disappoint, dlady, but I'm no troll. I've been accepted into a PhD program at NCU and am genuinely trying to get a better understanding of what it's like to be a student there before taking the plunge.

 

I found the Q&A in this thread to be very helpful in understanding NCU's model of instruction, and I can understand Clapper's desire to know what to expect before making the huge commitment of enrolling in a PhD program.

Some graduate students prefer and do well with self-directed study. In the online graduate course I teach, I get about 1 out of 10 students who really resents being required to interact and meet deadlines in an online class and who just wants to do the work within a specified timeframe and move on. Speaking for my own style as an online learner, I know I do better in a structured program where I have opportunities to get to know and interact with my classmates and the instructor and where it's "normal" to expect feedback from the instructor.

So, thank you Clapper, for asking some questions that helped me understand that NCU is probably not a good choice for me.

Tricia Schodowski

 

Congradulations! What is your name?

 

I totally agree! I am a highly self-motivated entrepreneur that does not need any hand-holding from a mentor. I make my own structure and goals. NCU certainly is not for everyone but works well for me.

 

For me, the NCU model is perfect. When you get to the doctorial level coursework, you "get it" (or not if you aren't willing to work for it).

DEL

 

A dissertation is where the rubber meets the road...

Clapper, my brother, who is a tenured professor at a state B&M university, estimates that the attrition rate at B&M universities is about 50 to 70% once students get to the dissertation. Those students simply "get up and walk away" from the dissertation after they have spent all that time, money and work completing all of the traditional coursework that leads up to the dissertation. The coursework is easy; the dissertation is hard. Therein lies the difference. Major attrition does not occur during completion of the coursework; instead, major attrition occurs at the dissertation. Why? That should ring bells for you.

My brother advised me against pursuing any doctoral program, due to the dissertation requirement. Being hard headed, I ignored his sage advice. I didn't fully appreciate or understand his analysis until I "hit the dissertation brick wall." I reckon that you'll be in the same boat that I was in: and when you hit the dissertation, you'll either sink or swim. Remember: 50 to 70% of all students sink when they hit the dissertation.

Clapper, if you go to a doctoral program -- no matter which doctoral program it is -- it is the dissertation that will make you or break you. I genuinely tried to give you a better understanding of what it's like to be a student in the dissertation stage before you take the plunge. My brother advised me against pursuing a doctoral degree; and that's the same advice that I give to you, regardless of which dissertation program you are looking at.

Less than 1% of the population has a doctoral degree. There are reasons for that low statistic.

 

I'd buy the term evaluator, vs mentor, for some of the mentors I've had. That would fit perfectly. For other mentors I've had there the mentor moniker does fit. Of course, I've had some medical doctors treat me that I wondered whether they were actually a doctor, too.

Maybe the bad mentors will get weeded out eventually. I doubt it. It's not happening much at the brick and mortars, from what I see. Why should it happen at a distance learning school? I would venture to guess that they have a greater chance getting the boot at a proprietary school, though.

bing

 

The term "online adjunct professor" sounds pretty good to me! Of course, I'm not the boss.

 

Nahhhh...."Dude that grades my papers and helps me with questions if I have them-person" is a good one

 

LOL

But what does Clapper think?

 

The point of this thread was to get a sense of the level of involvement and initiative the mentors take with their students. The inference that prospective NCU students who dare to become more informed about the NCU's teaching model are in need of hand-holding is a red herring.

On paper, I like the NCU approach. Correction: I love it. I am a self-motivated learner and for the most part I like to pursue school-type projects independently. But what is mentoring if not the active engagement of the teacher with the student? It's a relationship. However there are many former and present NCU students who report (on various forums) that their mentors do little more than post a grade along with a sprinkling of feedback. And clearly for some that's just fine. But to my thinking that's not true mentoring.

In the many graduate courses I've taken, the professors have always had great latitude creating their own syllabi within certain departmental guidelines. A good teacher selects their readings like someone who gets off sharing the best of their beloved record collection. In the best cases, you can sense their enthusiasm for the subject.

Given the very remote format of a non-residency "campus," the temptation for a professor/mentor to "phone it in" is tempting and, apparently, not uncommon. Handed a prosaic, cookie-cutter syllabus, by the department heads, there's no up-front expectation that the course has to reflect their scholarship. By analogy, the first section I turn to in my newspaper is the Op-ed section: I want some personality to infuse the subject matter.

OK, so that’s the ideal. I know, it’s asking a lot.

 

I approve.

 

Clapper, you didn't answer one single question that I asked you, so how can I further address your original questions?

"dlady," thanks for your insight. < shrugs shoulders >

 

Actually, the thread managed (somehow) to answer my questions. I appreciate your input.

NCU has granted me 40+ transfer credits so at least I wouldn't feel too wiped out by the time I got around to the dissertation part of the degree. But I'm in no immediate hurry to start up and have time to come to my senses and continue on, happily, with my PhD-less existence.