* MA International History

* MA International Policy and Diplomacy

* MA International Relations

* MFA Interactive Multimedia

* MA Media Management

UK accredited University of Staffordshire offers the above via distance learning.
http://www.staffs.ac.uk/faculties/art_an..._learning/

OEDb's Online College Rankings 2008

Quote:Online higher education is growing, but a lack of transparency is preventing it from reaching its full potential. Even though online colleges are now receiving increased respect from top employers, diploma mills and the like limit the prestige of a legitimate online degree. We think more transparency is a good thing; a set of objective, quantitative rankings — however imperfect — should help shed some light on the relative attractiveness of the most popular accredited online colleges.

These rankings have been produced by OEDb, a database of accredited online education programs. In our rankings we included the most significant degree-granting undergraduate online colleges that operate nationally, as determined by our selection criteria. To our knowledge, our 2007 rankings were the first of their kind, and these 2008 rankings are meant to serve as an update with more colleges added.

For each college, we gathered data for eight different metrics — acceptance rate, financial aid, graduation rate, peer Web citations, retention rate, scholarly citations, student-faculty ratio, and years accredited. The overall ranking, shown below, ranks each college by its average ranking for each metric for which data was available.

Overall Results
This table simply shows the overall ranking of each college, with its average rank in the right-hand column reflecting the sum of all of its ranks divided by the number of metrics for which data was found for that particular college.

Overall Rank College Average Rank
1 Upper Iowa University 10.813
2 LeTourneau University 11.960
3 Liberty University 12.540
4 Nova Southeastern University 13.323
5 California University of Pennsylvania 14.232
6 Grand Canyon University 14.709
7 Regent University 14.742
8 Champlain College 14.960
9 Westwood College 15.428
10 Tiffin University 16.700
11 Dickinson State University 17.111
12 Walden University  17.500
13 National University 17.758
14 Fisher College 19.887
15 Colorado Technical University 20.165
16 ITT Technical Institute 20.186
17 Kaplan University 20.418
18 Post University 20.467
19 Franklin University 20.547
20 Peirce College Online  20.765
21 Western International University 20.891
22 Florida Metropolitan University * 21.223
23 Bellevue University 21.335
24 Capella University 21.712
25 University of Phoenix 22.722
26 Berkeley College 23.268
27 Granite State College 23.929
28 City University 23.956
29 York Technical College 24.047
30 Salem International University 24.504
31 South University 25.342
32 American InterContinental University 25.382
33 Florida National College 25.553
34 Darton College 25.584
35 Grantham University 25.636
36 Everglades University 26.771
37 National American University 27.175
38 Jones International University 27.554
39 Western Governors University 28.087
40 Herzing College 28.305
41 Ellis College 30.962

Quote:Established in September 2006, OEDb: Online Education Database is an independent for-profit organization located in Houston, Texas. We are dedicated to building a comprehensive database of the top accredited online colleges and the degree programs that they offer.

The methodology used to rank the colleges was developed by Jimmy Atkinson, founder of OEDb. Mr. Atkinson has a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from the University of Notre Dame. The data compiled for the purpose of this study was collected by Mr. Atkinson and his staff from January 10, 2008 – January 16, 2008.

The entire culture of learning is changing, and with that, formal education is too. One of the many ways in which formal education is changing is that it is now possible to study and earn a degree entirely online. While the opportunities for online education are rapidly gaining in number, there still exists a lack of transparency. We thought there was a need to cut through some of this by offering our rankings. Our main purpose in conducting this study was to show, as objectively as possible, which are the top accredited online colleges.

Our methodology certainly isn't perfect, but we strived to make consistent and logical at the very least. To that end, we feel that this first set of rankings is a good starting point. We plan to release new rankings annually. With time, our goal is to increase both the number of colleges we include and the amount of data we are able to collect.

Quote:In putting together this methodology, we strived to be balanced and objective. To that end, we used only quantitative, reliable metrics with data from authoritative third parties. We do realize that no methodology is perfect, but we did our best to weed out any factors that would obviously skew the results.

Online College Inclusion Criteria

We wanted our rankings to include the most significant undergraduate degree-granting online colleges that operate nationally. Since there is no single authoritative list of online colleges on the Web — at least none that we could find — we went through multiple sources to find our initial list of colleges which we would consider for these rankings. Each source we chose is both well known and trusted. The colleges were culled from these sources from December 12, 2007 – January 10, 2008.

DETC — Institutions accredited by the Distance Education and Training Council are primarily distance learning based.

eLearners.com — Similar to DMOZ, eLearners.com provides a large list of online colleges which we did not want to miss.

Peterson's Distance Learning and Online Degree Programs Search — To make sure we didn't miss any notable online institutions that were regionally accredited and not listed on eLearners.com, we included any college listed in the distance learning and online degree programs search section of Peterson's.

US News & World Report's E-Learning Guide — To make sure we didn't miss any notable online institutions that were regionally accredited and not listed in the aforementioned DMOZ category or on eLearners.com, we included any college listed in the US News & World Report's E-Learning Guide's top 20 largest and top 20 oldest degree-granting online programs.

We then narrowed down these the list of colleges compiled from these four sources, based on the following criteria:

1. The college must be accredited. A college must be accredited for its degrees to be respected by most employers and other legitimate higher learning institutions.

2. The college must be listed in College Navigator. The College Navigator was commissioned by the US Department of Education to help prospective students compare higher education opportunities. We decided to exclude colleges not listed in College Navigator for two reasons: firstly, it would be impossible to rank them accurately without the trusted third-party metrics that College Navigator provides; secondly, we felt that any college not already in College Navigator was not notable and/or important enough to be included in our rankings.

3. The college must offer more than one undergraduate degree-granting program online. We wanted to exclude specialty colleges which only offered degrees in one subject.

4. The college, if campus-based, must offer at least 50% of its undergraduate degree-granting programs online. There are hundreds of colleges and universities nationwide that offer online programs. But very few are primarily online-based. Our rankings strive to rank only those that are primarily online-based.

The list of colleges used for our rankings is by no means comprehensive or perfect, but by using this methodology for selection we believe we included the majority of the biggest, most important, and/or most notable primarily-online colleges and universities in the United States. ....

No, not a story about Gus.

Old and Broke

Quote:
Nicholas von Hoffman
Old and Broke
Posted September 29, 2005 | 08:31 AM (EST)

People of non-rich circumstances and middle class beliefs know what the choice is. Face a very low-income, not so golden retirement or put the kids through college.

College tuition is rising faster than incomes and has been for some time. Only the very nicely fixed can pay for their children’s college and put away enough money to retire on. For most of us college for the kids means working until they tell you that you can’t cut the mustard any more and then hoping the kids you sacrificed so much for will return the favor.

Damon Darlin in the New York Times business section says the smart move is to tell the kids they are going to have to get through college by working, negotiating with the bursar’s office on price and taking out loans. Young people can borrow money on their futures. Older people cannot do the same for their retirement.

Love of offspring aside, putting a kid through college is something you do if you want to hold your head up in your circle. People who don’t pay for their kids’ college education live in trailers and spend their Saturday nights consuming alcoholic beverages with outrageous NASCAR sounding brand names.

Modern middle incomers do not have it in them to remind their whelps every day that it is up to them to find a college and get through it. Such behavior is more embarrassing than admitting that we didn’t go on a vacation this year because we couldn’t afford it.

Otherwise stable, job holding semi-professionals will choose a mate but not have kids. They may not know the precise numbers as Mr. Darlin does but they have the general idea and their answer is no kids. Or kid. The people who have kids in America are the people who never went to college themselves and don’t worry about it.

There are a dozen ways college could be made affordable again, but we live in a time when university presidents get paid upward of a million bucks a year, not counting the car and driver. The basketball coach gets twice that and the upshot is that the families with the socially most valuable traits to pass on to the next generation are virtually childless. Sterilization by economics.

Racist, anti-Christian UIUC physics professor George Gollin (George D. Gollin, George Dana Gollin) is at it again.  

Fayetteville, NC radio station WIDU 1600 AM has been attacked by Gollin simply because the call letters of the black gospel station are the same as an acronym of an independent foreign university he despises.

In this post at degreediscussion.com, Gollin associates the black gospel radio station WIDU with the European non-traditional World Information Distributed University (WIDU) that he considers an illegal diploma mill:  

Quote: WIDU News...
...is here!

Also, look here to see that WIDU events are "Always Clean, Wholesome, and Positive."

Got some Questions that you Ask Frequently about WIDU? Here's one that's not really a properly formulated question:

"I received my new brush and there is a bristle missing.
That is not a missing bristle. That is an open hole for pneumatic action on certain styles."

But here's something new: West Goat University Panama management team includes this splendiferous set of accomplishments for one of its DuckMen:

Quote:PhD, DBA, Academician, FCMI, GCGI, MInstLM, MBCS, Hon FBMA, CDBA, Honorary FBMA, Educational Consultant, Executive • Manager • Assistant Manager • Supervisor., Ambassador Elect USA, UKCCL; Independent Credential Evaluator, CUFCE, Prof. is specialized in Computer Information Systems for Small Business and In-Home Users. Strong history of customer service and outstanding organizational, communication, and interpersonal skills.

So this DuckMan is now a YoodleNoodle for the highly Goatish California University FCE entity.

Degreediscussion is on life support. It is only a matter of time before the toilet flushes one last time for Gus' pride and joy. But what about Uncle Janko?

He can't go back to DI - he's trashed Chip and Bruce repeatedly.

Janko has mocked DegreeBoard as "degreebored."

He won't go to "online.degree.net" because it is just too small of a pond for someone with an ego like Janko's.

He won't go to the CLEP discussion board ... he just won't.

He may end up at DL Truth ... with his own wing in the Hall of Shame!!!

Please refer to my comments posted in another thread to give this poll some context.

Quinn and Janko thread

Originally posted 04-06-2008:
http://www.dltruth.com/showthread.php?ti...89#pid1589

Armando Ramos Wrote:A fellow named David R. Greenwood lists 12 "interesting people" at Amazon, among them one John Weaver-Hudson and another one Brent Hudson of Moncton NB.  Could the latter be a relative of the former?  He's a PhD dropout and a pastor in an obscure locale.  Surely life is not that full of co-inky dinkies?

Quote:Sunday, January 6, 1991 - Page updated at 12:00 AM

Wctu Makes Gains On Strength Of New Image
By Eileen Ogintz

Chicago Tribune

CHICAGO - John Weaver-Hudson is at least 20 years younger than almost everyone else at the Christmas party, but that doesn't seem to faze him. Nor do the alcohol-free liquid refreshments.

Weaver-Hudson, clearly happy to be here, lifts his wine glass of cranberry-apple juice in a holiday toast. Like other guests, the 32-year-old minister is a proud member of the National Woman's Christian Temperance Union.

That's right. The WCTU - that formerly powerful army of determined gray-haired ladies known for their advocacy of total abstinence from liquor and for spearheading the Prohibition movement - is still around, and working hard to regain the momentum it once enjoyed.

And there are signs that, as it pushes a new agenda, it is beginning to succeed. At the top of its list of interests is keeping children away from drugs and alcohol, and in the process of pursuing that goal, it is replenishing its aging ranks with a promising number of energetic new members like Weaver-Hudson. It is computerizing its records and even has retained a public-relations adviser.

Alan Contreras, sign up now for your free vacation in beautiful, exotic Gambia, the garden spot of the dark continent.



Yes, it's true!  Gambian President "Jammin'" Yahya Jammeh has announced that free vacations have been awarded to the following great Americans:

Alan Contreras of Salem, Oregon
Steve Levicoff of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Thomas "Chip" White of Granite Bay, California

There's also one other fellow in Hartford, Michigan (he knows who he is) who is invited too!

Get yer Yahya's out boys, the Gambian government be waitin'!!!!!

Things are not looking very good for Gustavo "Gus" Sainz, his business, his finances and the future of DD. I feel bad for his family for what they are having to go through and their close friends for having to see them suffer. I'm certainly not one to gloat over the misfortunes of others and won't make an exception even in the case of my longtime nemesis, Gus Sainz.

As bad as I feel, though, I still think that this subject warrants a poll. Considering the fact that Sainz has continually bashed this site and barred its members from DD, the membership of DLTruth should be allowed to express their views on Sainz and his financial disaster.

Australian Dr. George Brown has dedicated his life to protecting the entrenched, wealthy higher education interests, both at home and abroad, from cut rate competition.

Meanwhile, unsuspecting foreign students in his native land are being exploited, beaten and murdered.  

What is Dr. George Brown doing about it??????
Is there any money or prestige in it for George?  Well, then it's a safe bet he won't be doing a damn thing!!!  

Foreign students feel high price to study

Quote:
Enough is enough: the stabbing of Jalvinder Singh, one of many Indian students working as a Melbourne cabbie to make ends meet, sparked a CBD protest by his driver colleagues.

Quote:Foreign students feel high price to study
Mark Dunn and Nick Higginbottom

May 10, 2008 12:00am

INDIANS are being warned that Melbourne is unsafe, after a series of attacks on students from the sub-continent.

The international students swarming into this and other state capitals are paying a price much higher than their education fees, with 40 dying in less than a year.

The stabbing of student taxi driver Jalvinder Singh two weeks ago has led to warnings by the Indian press that racist attacks in Melbourne are on the rise.

Boarding home fires, car crashes, murders and drownings are taking their toll, with 17 foreign students dying in Victoria in the past year.

Greedy landlords, second-rate colleges and low-paid jobs are the lot of many students.

A Herald Sun investigation into the booming $12.6 billion foreign student industry found:

MORE cash-strapped foreign students in cramped Melbourne boarding homes will die unless laws are toughened and rogue landlords pulled up, the Metropolitan Fire Brigade says.

OF 370,000 foreign students in Australia, 135,000 are in Melbourne. About 20,900 obtained permanent residency last year after graduating -- almost triple the 2004 total -- with many focusing on courses that can earn residency points.

A GROUP of Melbourne landlords, including one man who owns 70 houses, are cashing in, with some charging weekly rates of $85 a head when up to 14 students live in one house.

SOME western suburbs landlords are charging unwitting students internet fees and $5 a week to park in the street.

STATE authorities have closed eight private training schools in Melbourne in the past three years for failing to meet educational standards. Students claim several colleges have woeful computer or book stocks.

UP to 40 per cent of student fees at some institutions are spent on student-recruitment promotions.

THOUSANDS are driving cabs or doing $5-an-hour menial jobs to afford their education.

The Times of India this year warned Indians to think twice about moving to Australia.

Readers agreed on the paper's website, one calling Australia "the most racist country in the developed world". Others expressed fear over plans to study in Melbourne.

"It's in their blood. Aussies were, are and will be bloody racist," said one forum contributor.

Federation of Indian Students of Australia secretary Gautam Gupta said racism was rampant.

He had met eight students in the past month who had been assaulted in Melbourne, two of whom were beaten so seriously they returned home in fear.

On top of safety issues, he said a number of colleges or training companies were failing to provide decent education.

"Sometimes there are no teachers, sometimes there have been only three computers for a class of 50," he said.

Foreign students packed in unregistered rooming houses are a major concern. Three Indians killed in a fire in Footscray in January were sharing mattresses when their computer allegedly sparked the blaze.

But, with overloaded electrical systems and poor fire safety features, there were warnings before the tragedy.

A Burwood property containing 14 beds for foreign students burnt down last year. By the next day, nine of the beds had disappeared.

Property agents were marketing suburban homes near universities as ideal "mum and dad" investments that could be packed with students, MFB investigator Rod East said.

Victoria University housing officer Hean Chang agreed landlords were exploiting students.

"A four-bedroom house in Sunshine will normally rent for about $270 but a landlord will be asking students to pay $130 each, that means $520 for the property," she said.

Opposition spokesman for Multicultural Affairs and Citizenship, Nicholas Kotsiras, said: "I would be greatly concerned, as should be all Victorians, if Melbourne's international reputation was being dragged down by the inaction and neglect of the Brumby Government."