by Jason Salas, KUAM News Monday, December 20, 2004 Subscribe to Jason's newsfeed   E-mail this article Printable version KUAM Toolbar Web Widgets Get RSS headlines

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With the topic of online learning being under such scrutiny of late, the most important factor in play when considering such a program is, naturally, accreditation (or more appropriately, as we've seen, the lack thereof). To answer some of the questions people have about furthering their education in virtual classrooms, and to hopefully quell some of the natural hesitation people have these types of program, the nation's largest facilitator of Internet-based learning, for its take on the situation.

The University of Phoenix's Online Program has graduated more than 4,000 students since 1994, awarding associates, bachelors, masters, and doctoral degrees for a number of disciplines, from nursing to business, legal studies to information technology. It also serves several professional certification tracks. Its main target audience is the working adult, with tailored programs for active service people and military dependents.

Founded in 1976, UOP was among the first institutions to implement online learning programs with the mid-1990's explosion of the Internet, and has since been expanding its offering to those who might not have the time or lifestyle to accommodate full-time "normal" studies. Program coordinator Diana Cruz Ellis, who runs UOP's local satellite operation at Andersen Air Force Base in Yigo, says the institution's programs are completely compatible with on-ground programs from other institutions. And yes, UOP is completely accredited.

She told KUAM News, "As of September we actually had over 70,000 students enrolled in our program," said Ellis, "and they students consisted of students taking online as well as campus, or on-ground classes. We've been around since 1989, and in terms of accreditation, we've maintained the same accreditation as other major universities. It's basically just the convenience of doing it at home for the working adult."

Ellis says the single most-popular question that arises from potential students is the legitimacy of the program, given its nature on the Internet. Of this point, and her own institution notwithstanding, she says that the validity of a program can be determined with its level of accreditation, saying, "Usually that's the most important thing, if you are going to spend the money going to continuing education classes, accreditation is one thing you're going to need to look for, you'd want to make sure that is regionally accredited, which we are, by the northern central association, so that gives us the same level of accreditation as Michigan State, Arizona State, Purdue and other schools.

"We are like every other university, except that we're online. And a lot of the traditional universities are going that way, dipping into the online forum, trying to make it more convenient."

Fortunately, several resources exist for applicants to gauge a program before starting the application process. Says Ellis, "Several Web sites tell you about accreditations, how important they are, the differences between the state and regional accreditation, and what universities are accredited, and who they were accredited by."

And to maintain accreditation, Ellis says UOP is constantly audited, possibly even more than a comparable on-ground campus, which may do so only routinely. She assures those interested that the Phoenix program isn't a "degree mill" - one that operates outside of state or federal supervision, and freely grants fraudulent diplomas for minimal work. "The accrediting body does keep a close eye on us; we are a private university with a huge online program, so we were the guinea pigs at first," she explained.

Added Ellis, "So they're starting more and more to look back at our records, making sure we hit the contact hours, making sure that admissions are all in order and all set, making sure that everything's legitimate, and making sure everyone meets those requirements."

Once more, when choosing an institution to further your education, regardless of the format, but especially for online programs, qualifying its level of accreditation is key.