higher education – Page 3 – Love Your Dissertation

November 20, 2016December 11, 2016

What it’s like to be a nontraditional learner at an online for-profit university

When I was struggling to get my dissertation proposal approved, I looked for assistance on the virtual self-help shelves (in LinkedIn groups and online forums) and wistfully read the suggestions of various experts on choosing Committee members, meeting with advisers, commiserating with peers … I didn’t know what to make of their advice. None of that was my experience.

I “attended” an online for-profit university. I wasn’t given the option of choosing my Committee or my Chairperson. These mysterious people were assigned by even more mysterious administrators. Chairs and Committee members came and went: I usually had no idea my Chair had been replaced until I received a message from a new Chair introducing herself and asking to see my most recent proposal.

I earned my Ph.D. from a regionally accredited, fully online for-profit university. That means my doctoral experience occurred at the intersection of online learning and for-profit higher education. If you are a “traditional” graduate student—that is, if you attend a public institution (like Your State University) or a nonprofit private institution (like Harvard or Yale), you may disparage my experience and question the validity of my degree. I don’t blame you; I definitely had a different kind of education experience, compared to the one you know.

On the other hand, if you attend University of Phoenix, Walden University, Capella University, DeVry University, Strayer University, Grand Canyon University, Northcentral University, or Ashford University, you may find that you and I have a lot in common. Many of these for-profit institutions offer their programs at least partially through distance (online) learning. Some offer 100% online programs, meaning they have no residency requirements. They don’t even have any classrooms.

So, what about these for-profit universities? The mistrust of the for-profits is not just something floating in the zeitgeist: The differences between “traditional” and “nontraditional” higher education are dramatic. Nontraditional students are different from traditional students in some important ways. Similarly, nontraditional (online for-profit) institutions differ from their traditional counterparts, in ways both beneficial and frightening.

The main thing to keep in mind is that for-profit universities are businesses designed to generate a profit for their shareholders or owners. The way they generate that profit is through delivering education. Education is their product, not their mission and purpose. (In the interest of full disclosure, I should tell you now that my dissertation project was about academic quality at for-profit vocational colleges. Hey, what can I say. I was a cranky instructor with a bone to pick.)

The good news is that many for-profit higher education institutions—especially the ones that offer doctorates—don’t offer the types of vocational programs that the federal government is keen on regulating; thus, many of the concerns that led to these federal regulations may not apply to your for-profit institution. However, for-profit graduate universities are considered pretty low on the academic food chain, loved by few and disparaged by many.

The nontraditional graduate experience is not the same as the traditional face-to-face graduate experience. So far, I haven’t seen a book that addresses the plight of the dissertator who attends an online program or a for-profit university (or both, as I did).

I wrote Resubmit! 28 ½ Reasons Why You Can’t Get Your Dissertation Proposal Approved specifically for nontraditional doctoral learners who attend online programs in the social science fields (business, education, psychology, etc.) at for-profit institutions.

Are you a nontraditional learner? Let’s find out.

You pay your own way (cash or credit)
You experienced bad educational experiences in the past
You work full-time
You care for others
You have little time to spare for education
Online education is your only option
You need support from faculty and others
You feel a sense of urgency
You feel a sense of “succeed or die”
You feel a sense of fear

Nontraditional education options tend to attract nontraditional people. If you attend a for-profit institution, think about why you chose to enroll there instead of at your local state university or private nonprofit university. I’m guessing it was a combination of factors, like it was for me: cost, schedule, and online access.

For-profit institutions keep churning out graduates, and like it or not, we are all ambassadors for the industry. I can only hope that in time, the stellar work we do—or at least the solid, trustworthy work that we do—will bear testimony to the quality of the education we received. I’m doing my part, I hope.

If you need some help getting your proposal approved, my new book might help.

January 28, 2014

Dividing up the pie: vocational education versus “traditional” education

An article by Dr. Brian C. Mitchell on a recent Huff Post College blog got me thinking about the roles of vocational institutions versus the “traditional” institutions, specifically community colleges and public universities. Dr. Mitchell posed several questions about how institutions of higher education can strategically plan for their future. He suggested institutions need to do a better job of defining their core missions.

Dr. Mitchell also asked what institutions should stop doing. He asked, “Should colleges be in the food service, hotel, security, and technology business?”

My response to that question would be no. Not any more than for-profit vocational colleges should be in the degree-granting business.

The lines between the two types of institutions have been blurred ever since the Department of Education in 1972 granted for-profit institutions (almost) equal footing with traditional institutions (Simmons, 2013). Almost equal footing means equal access to federal Title IV funds, the lifeblood of for-profit institutions.

Allowing the for-profits access to federal student loan funding opened the door to abuses by many for-profit institutions, large and small, and prompted a series of Department of Education rules aimed at curbing fraudulent marketing practices, including the 90/10 Rule, and more recently the Cohort Default Rule, the Incentive Compensation Ban (Simmons, 2013), and the Gainful Employment–Debt Measures Rule (Department of Education, 2011).

The for-profits have encroached upon the territory of traditional nonprofit private and public institutions by offering advanced degrees. Some for-profit institutions have been able to gain the coveted regional accreditation status commonly held by traditional institutions.

To compete with the nimble, deep-pocketed publicly traded for-profit higher education institutions, the traditional private nonprofit and public institutions began to offer programs in more vocationally oriented fields. They also adopted more aggressive marketing tactics to differentiate themselves.

Since the reelection of President Obama, enrollments have dropped at for-profit colleges, due in part to growing awareness of fraudulent business practices and disproportionately large student loan default rates (Huff Post College, 2012). However, students still choose for-profit vocational colleges over community colleges when they want to get in and out fast with an accredited degree. Clearly the for-profits offer something consumers want.

Furthermore, a study reported in USA Today in 2012 showed that graduates of vocational programs who earned certificates earned more than those who earned Bachelor’s degrees, suggesting that employers find value in employees with specialized certificates (Marklein, 2012).

The for-profits should stick to what they do well: vocational education. They should continue to have carefully monitored access to federal Title IV student loan funding. However, they should be restricted to granting only certificates and diplomas. Community colleges should be the grantors of Associate’s degrees. Advanced degrees should be the province of baccalaureate and graduate institutions. Vocational institutions should not be authorized to grant degrees.

References

Huff Post College. (2013, November 7). For-profit college shares tumble after President Obama reelected. The Huffington Post. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/07/for-profit-school-shares-_n_2088339.html

Marklein, M. B. (2012, June 5). Study examines vocational certificates’ big rewards. USA Today. Retrieved from http://usatoday30. usatoday.com/news/education/story/2012-06-06/vocational-education-degrees-pay/55410846/1

Simmons, O. S. (2013). For-profits and the market paradox. Wake Forest Law Review, 48(2). 333-360. Retrieved from http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2282868

United States Government Department of Education. (2011, June 13). Program integrity: Gainful employment—debt measures. Federal Register, 76(113), 34386-34539. Retrieved from http://ifap.ed.gov/fregisters/FR061311GEDebtMeasures.html

January 18, 2014November 15, 2016

Should everyone be able to receive student loans to go to college?

I’ve heard that the federal government is promoting the idea that all citizens should be able to go to college, and that it is the job of government to make it happen by providing access to student loan funding.

This article outlines some serious economic threats posed by allowing students to borrow large sums of money to earn degrees in fields that promise little ability to pay the loans back.

More research is needed to understand the link between student loan default rates and specific programs of study. Eventually the only students who will have access to federal student loan funding will be the ones who study computer science, business, and healthcare. It’s all about accountability.

After all, do you want your taxpayer dollars funding art, music, dance, poetry, and philosophy, when the likelihood of employment in those fields is nearly nil? Will you miss the humanities when no one can afford to study them anymore?