Positive UNISA experiences

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by distancedoc2007, Jan 9, 2007.

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  1. distancedoc2007

    distancedoc2007 New Member

    Hi everybody,

    I am currently a UNISA (South Africa) student, pursuing their Doctorate in Business Leadership. I have had very positive experiences so far. The first assignment involves working through a UNISA-provided reading list of around 50 peer-reviewed articles, then supplementing the list with around 20 readings of your own choice (presumably oriented around your dissertation research interest). After this, you produce a paper of around 60 pages on the readings. That is where I am at now.

    I have found the staff to be extremely pleasant and helpful in all email dealings.

    The greatest challenge to this program is the need to be self-motivating, since nobody will chase you for deliverables.

    I wanted to make this post because I found it hard to find opinions from actual UNISA students when I was considering different schools. For what it is worth, I am a 'tenured' mid-career college instructor with a bricks-and-mortar BA & MBA, who is pursuing the degree partly as a mental exercise, and partly to broaden my career mobility within my own organization.

    UNISA meets my needs because it is self-paced, distance-based, extremely affordable, and their School of Business Leadership appears to have a good reputation. You do have to make at least 3 visits to the school to present at colloquia, but that sounds like fun to me.

    So far, so good! Cheers...
     
  2. me again

    me again Well-Known Member

    • What's the cost?
    • What's the link?
    • What are the requirements for a doctorate?
    You might want to consider adding a link to your program/school into your signature line. :)
     
  3. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    Welcome!

    I'm glad to hear that your Unisa experience is so positive, as their Doctor of Education program is on my list of programs under consideration.

    -=Steve=-
     
  4. PhD2B

    PhD2B Dazed and Confused

    This is the kind of thread I thoroughly enjoy reading.

    Thank you for sharing.

    I seriously considered their PhD in operations research program but decided to limit myself to U.S. based programs instead.
     
  5. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    Come on, now, don't bull rush the new person. ;)

    You're right that a link is useful, though, and the DBL program is through Unisa's Graduate School of Business Leadership.

    -=Steve=-
     
  6. eric.brown

    eric.brown New Member

    I had heard that the UNISA DBL requires visits to campus but had never had that confirmed until now. Thanks for sharing the experience.
     
  7. Bruce

    Bruce Moderator

    Welcome, and thank you for a very informative first post!

    Please feel free to share your UNISA journey with everyone, it's one of those schools that's often mentioned, but not well represented here.
     
  8. friendorfoe

    friendorfoe Active Member

    Welcome, thanks for the 1st hand info.
     
  9. Akuyu77

    Akuyu77 Guest

    Following you footsteps

    I joined UNISA a short while ago and I am at the reading assignment stage that distancedoc2007 passed through.

    I am reading different staff, including critical evaluation of articles. But the reading assignment instruction was not clear, so if we you can clarify this, I will be so happy
     
  10. AV8R

    AV8R Active Member

    One thing that has always confused me about UNISA is the large number of doctoral degree titles. This is what they offer in business alone:


    Home » Study information » College of Economic and Management Sciences » Degrees » Doctoral Degrees
    Doctoral Degrees

    Doctor of Accounting Science
    Doctor of Administration in Accounting
    Doctor of Administration in Auditing
    Doctor of Administration in Business Economics
    Doctor of Administration in Business Management
    Doctor of Administration in Economics
    Doctor of Administration in Industrial Psychology
    Doctor of Administration in Public Administration
    Doctor of Administration in Quantitative Management
    Doctor of Administration in Statistics
    Doctor of Administration in Tourism Management
    Doctor of Administration in Transport Economics
    Doctor of Business Leadership
    Doctor of Commerce in Accounting
    Doctor of Commerce in Auditing
    Doctor of Commerce in Business Management
    Doctor of Commerce in Economics
    Doctor of Commerce in Industrial Psychology
    Doctor of Commerce in Logistics
    Doctor of Commerce in Public Administration
    Doctor of Commerce in Quantitative Management
    Doctor of Commerce in Tourism Management
    Doctor of Commerce in Transport Economics
    Doctor of Literature and Philosophy in Economics
    Doctor of Literature and Philosophy in Public Administration
    Doctor of Public Administration
    Doctor of Literature and Philosophy in Statistics
    Doctor of Literature and Philosophy in Industrial Psychology

    How can a person tell what is what? For example, what is the big difference between the Doctor of Accounting Science, the Doctor of Commerce in Accounting and the Doctor of Administration in Accounting? Good grief.
     
  11. morganplus8

    morganplus8 New Member

    Ha! I read your post and had to laugh! It is very confusing to say the least but I spent the time required to find what I would like to study based upon certain critieria. The DCOM - Economoics version is best suited for me. DCOM's don't require visitation or a defence of your paper and that is perfect. I want to travel there, but on my own time-line and this one works for me. I haven't researched this for a couple of years and hope nothing has changed. But if the requirements are as they were two years ago, this is the program for me. Hope you can find a version that is flexible and delivers for you too, good luck!
     
  12. mattbrent

    mattbrent Well-Known Member

    I just noticed they have a classics program. I have been looking for a distance Latin program for a time now. I wanted to obtain a Latin endorsement so that I could teach that at my high school to complement the "Ancient History" I teach. However, Virginia states that the courses must come from a Regionally Accredited college or university. Obviously they assume courses are taken within the US, but I know that international degrees are acceptable. When I was in school, we had a teacher from Australia. How likely is it that courses taken through UNISA would be accepted by the Virginia Department of Education?

    -Matt

    (Nevermind... I just found the answer on my own. I would have to send my transcripts to an evaluation service in the US.)
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 6, 2008
  13. Ted Heiks

    Ted Heiks Moderator and Distinguished Senior Member

    The University of Florida www.distancelearning.ufl.edu offers the Master of Latin, MA in Latin, PhD in Classical Civilization, and PhD in Latin and Roman Studies at a distance with summer residencies.
     
  14. Bruce

    Bruce Moderator

    UNISA degrees have been widely accepted in the US for many years, so I don't foresee any problems with the evaluation service.
     
  15. ewillmon

    ewillmon New Member

  16. mattbrent

    mattbrent Well-Known Member

    Thanks to all who have replied to me. I'm completely ignorant when it comes to international schools. How do their credits transfer? Do they equal semester credits, or do they use a completely different system?

    Thanks,
    Matt
     

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