Will a distance learning degree limit me?
Vashti
Human Resources working as a recruiter, though I may not always be in this
field. I'm considering getting a Bachelor's degree in psychology through
distance learning, but I'm concerned about whether that will limit me as far
as any stigma attached to distance learning. I may also wish to pursue a
graduate degree later. Someone who hires recently said to me, "if I get
someone with a distance learning degree, their resume goes right in the
trash." Maybe not very open-minded, but nevertheless, I'm hoping that's not
the majority reaction of hiring managers out there. What do you think?
The schools I'm considering are all regionally accredited and are not
diploma mills. They are:
Thomas Edison State College (www.tesc.edu)
Charter Oak State College (www.cesc.edu)
Excelsior College (www.excelsior.edu)
Louisiana State University
I'm very interested in anyone who can give me an opinion supported by fact
or experience. If there are any educators or employers out there, your
experience is especially valuable.
Thanks much for your input.
Vashti
Randy
survey of some HR recruiters. I was disappointed to learn that they tend to
view distance degrees rather negatively. I found it rather ironic, despite
repeated claims to the contrary in this NG, they made no distinction between
national and regional accreditation, but perceived distance degrees as being
of lesser value than traditional.
Randy
"Vashti" <notan...@ddress.com> wrote in message
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Vashti
"Randy" <har...@bignet.net> wrote in message
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Randy
"Vashti" <notan...@ddress.com> wrote in message
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Vashti
a traditional one by name alone. I know I wouldn't. I'd be looking for
"bachelor's" or "master's" and what it was in, and maybe the GPA.
Thanks, Randy.
Vashti
"Randy" <har...@bignet.net> wrote in message
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Ben Carter
including the following:
> I'm considering getting a Bachelor's degree in psychology through
>distance learning, but I'm concerned about whether that will limit me as far
>as any stigma attached to distance learning.
Are you concerned only with the marketability of the degree, or do you
also want to get an education?
Some people might question whether "distance learning" provides as good an
education as traditional classes, but that question has not yet been
addressed in this thread.
>The schools I'm considering are all regionally accredited and are not
>diploma mills.
What do you have against diploma mills? Is it the lack of education, or
the fact that prospective employers might not be fooled?
rosahegarty
> or experience. If there are any educators or employers out there, your
> experience is especially valuable.
>
> Thanks much for your input.
>
> Vashti
I do not know anything about the educational system in the states so I
can only comment on my own situation. In the UK & Northern Ireland we
have an Open University all courses are taken by distance learning. In
some if not all course there are several residential weeks where
students take exams etc. I am currently study by distance learning
with a College in Scotland and feel that it is worth while and at the
end off the day I will still have the qualification no matter by what
means I achieved it. You still have to do the work and research for
assignments so I feel that it should not be undervalued. So Keep at
it.
Vashti
Without going into my full history, this thread is dealing only with the
marketability factor as that is wherein my question and concern presently
lies. I have no doubt that distance learning is an excellent means of
education. I have already done a distance learning course and found that I
learned more in that one course than in every traditional course I've ever
taken.
As for your question about diploma mills, I'm guessing it was meant as a
flame of some sort, but really have no idea what you meant, so you'll have
to flame harder :)
Vashti
"Ben Carter" <b...@rexx.nospam.com> wrote in message
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Ed Mahood
wrote:
>I do not know anything about the educational system in the states so I
>can only comment on my own situation. In the UK & Northern Ireland we
>have an Open University all courses are taken by distance learning. In
>some if not all course there are several residential weeks where
>students take exams etc.
I can confirm, being an Associate Lecturer for the OU. Most courses
are done via distance learning, but there is a central conferencing
system and virtual campus where lots of discussion can and does
take place. For those in the UK and Ireland there are local study
groups and many courses also provide tutorials for additional help.
Participation in the study groups and tutorials is voluntary. Exams,
however, are sat all at the same time for each course, generally
at a local university or training center.
As for quality: the OU is ranked 11th of ALL British universities.
It is fully chartered (roughly "accredited" for the US crowd) and
claims to be the 4th largest institution of higher learning in the
world. Over 250K students are taking courses with them. In
addition, their Business School, for example is one of only 35
or so European business schools with EQUIS certification; their
MBA program is AMBA accredited. In fact, the OUBS produces
about 25% of each year's crop of UK MBAs each year. In the
meantime, they are the largest provider of management edu-
cation in Europe. In the meantime, the OU is operating in the
US as well and seeking accreditation there (though it will take
a while, due to the nature of the process).
Another excellent example, as far as I am concerned, is the
University of Phoenix, in the meantime the largest private
university in the US with over 90K students. They focus
primarily on business and nursing education, but have other
programs worth looking into. When I got my MBA from them
15 years ago, lots of recruiters looked down their noses, but
in the meantime, the market and the quality of the product,
namely the graduates themselves, have proven the value
of the programs.
The point is that there are very high quality distance education
programs about. HR recruiters who have personal biases will
continue to do so, I suppose, but YOU have to decide what
is important to you. Having done both full-time and part-time
and distance learning programs, I can only say that in the
end, YOU determine how quality your education is and what
you can do with it.
Later,
Ed