University of Phoenix Online Degree...

What's Good....What's Not

A University of Phoenix online degree is one of the most popular degree programs in the U.S. distance education industry. This fact represents a growing trend in the adult education market. An increasing amount of working adults are turning towards online education to improve their career prospects.

In addition to its online bachelors, masters and doctoral programs, the University of phoenix has also added an online community college arm, called Axiom. There are already over 130,000 students enrolled in this program.

The University of Phoenix (UoP) also provides 100+ degrees on-campus, to a student population of over 300,000. This development has given the university the distinction of being the largest private university in America.

Even though thousands of graduates have gone on to successful careers with the help of their UoP degree, there have been many students and academics who have heavily criticized their operations.

One of the major criticisms levied against the University of Phoenix online degree is the lack of adequate accreditation for its undergraduate Business and MBA programs.

Whilst the university has regional accreditation, its online business degrees lack professional accreditation from the AACSB. AACSB-accredited degrees have the highest reputation amongst academics and employers alike for business degree accreditation.

As a matter of fact, some companies refuse to honor employee tuition reimbursement claims for employees who take a University of Phoenix online degree in business. Some companies go as far as refusing to hire UoP graduates because their business degrees are not AACSB accredited.

Other criticisms include:

1. A nomadic faculty. According to government statistics, about 95% of their instructors are part-time, compared to the national average of 47% across all universities. John J. Fernandes, President of the AACSB claims that this is one reason why University of Phoenix online degree programs in business, wouldn't be accredited by his body.

2. Some instructors have suspect or below average qualifications. This was the case with one Christopher G. Stanglewicz, a computer lecturer at the university. He claimed to have received a PhD in economics from the University of Kentucky(UKY). However, checks with the UKY didn't reveal any records for him.

3. Disengaged instructors. Some students complain that there is a lack of feedback in their graded assignments and on questions posted on message boards. This problem is exacerbated by the requirement that students should teach each other by working on projects for four or five hours per week.

4. Low graduation rate. A 16% graduation rate, which is amongst the lowest in the nation.

The UoP response to some of these criticisms are:

A. Graduation rate of its graduates is actually 50-60 percent, which is actually in line with the national average. The 16 % graduation rate (which is based on the Federal standard), only takes into account students with no prior college experience.

However, the vast majority of UoP students have prior college experience. When these students are taken into account, the graduation rate is much higher.

B. Since its inception in 1978, the University of Phoenix has been subject to many examinations, the most of any U.S university. Specifically, they have taken part in 30 accreditation visits by regional accrediting bodies, 35 evaluations by state education agencies and 10 program reviews by the U.S. Department of Education.

C. All instructors hold a minimum of a masters degree. All undergraduate and post graduate instructors must be working in the field they are teaching.

D. The UoP teaching and learning methodology has been recognized by the AACSB and American Association of Higher Education.

Even though a University of Phoenix online degree in business lacks AACSB accreditation, bear in mind this degree is accredited by the ACBSP. The ACBSP, which is recognized by the US Dept. of Education, accredits business programs that exhibits best practices in teaching and learning.

Bottom line is that even though the University of Phoenix has its faults, it continues to offer thousands of students from a wide variety of backgrounds, opportunities to get accredited degrees online, from an accredited institution.

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