Former Capella Learner (Update)
Written: Oct 09 '05 (Updated Jan 11 '07)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: None
Cons: Dishonest, not trustworthy, and definitely not genunine. Cost too much.
The Bottom Line: Capella has truly changed and I would avoid this school.
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| amira717's Full Review: Capella University |
Summary
Capella has five schools:
SchoolSchool of Education
School of Human Services
Harold Abel School of Psychology
School of Business and Technology
School of Undergraduate Studies
4 Degree programs and one certificate program:
Bachelor's Degree
MBA Degree
Master's Degree
PhD/PsyD Degree
Certificates
Their academic programs are as followed:
Business
Counseling
Criminal Justice
Health Care Administration
Higher Education
Human Resources & Training
Human Services
Information Technology
Instructional Design for Online Learning
K-12 Education
Nonprofit Management
Project Management
Psychology
Social and Community Services
Why I chose an online university?
I chose Capella University by accident. I was living in Philadelphia and knew I wanted to go back to school. However, I was working full-time and knew I was tired of the traditional school setting. You know the classroom, the lectures, and final exams. I stumbled upon Capella University and thought this was for me. It was convenient and I could work and go to school at my own pace. I mean there were still assignments and papers, but it was all writing, and I could handle that. As I said, prior to 2001, Capella seemed to be a great school. It was cheaper, I received support, and I can say my experience getting my master's degree in counseling was positive. Until...
The PhD Program
I decided to continue for my PhD in counseling, the price increased considerably from about $500 per quarter hour to $3000+ per quarter. According to Capella the flat rate fee was suppose to be a wondeful break. So, if you took one course per quarter it would be $4000 and if you took 3 it was the same. However, most students take between 1-2 courses, but with all the work it is considerably hard. So to charge someone $4000 for 2 courses just doesn't make sense. At least not to me.
I also noticed that my refund check was going down. I started out getting about $2000-3000 per quarter to about $500.00. I didn't know where all the money was going because I was taking the same amount of courses each month.
Residencies
About $1300 this is for the residency only. And now they have a requirement where you go to a 12 day residency then a 9 weekend residency. Who in the world can afford to go to a residency every weekend? You also pay for your hotel stay, travel, transportation, and of meals. A full priced residency could cost you about $5000 and this doesn't include your online courses.
Residencies although part of every master-level and PhD program, it is NOT and again I say is NOT covered under your financial aid. You are told if you don't have the money, to get one of their private loans or use your refund check. And remember your refund check isn't given to you until after you started your courses. However you must pay immediately.
I decided to withdraw when they told me I couldn't use my financial aid to pay for my residency.
Problems Galore
-They are constantly making decisions without notifying the learner. For example, if you're taking a course, they may discontinue that course w/o letting you know. You may find out if you so happen to call them, but by then you have already been charged and are halfway through the course. I had this happen to me to find out I didn't need this course.
-Most programs have you either choose to take a Comprehensive Exam or do a Dissertation. Not Capella, you have to do BOTH! And I later found out through a instructor who still works for Capella that many learners were not passing the exam. I have a fellow learner 2 years later still trying to pass her Comps.
-Getting support is almost out of the question. Meaning academic support, technical support, and instructor support. No one responds or contacts you in a timely fashion. Or you're told to contact some other department by email. Usually no one contacts you.
Computer Problems
WebCT is the software of choice at Capella and it was horrible to manage and a large program. It will send you system crashing. I have had viruses and trojans attacking my system for no apparent reason. I had to wipe my computer clean at least 4 times because of their programs.
Advisors, Mentors, and Instructors
-Mentors rarely make consistent contact. And finding a mentor is more difficult than you think. You e-mail them they don't respond or don't have time. Most instructors didn't want to give a student the real time needed to answer questions. I had one instructor who spoke so scientific other learners began to ask each other for help on assignments. And, I had one mentor I emailed a question...and received a response a A YEAR LATER.
-Support Services often passed the problem to someone else and most seemed inexperience. I mean no one knew what they were doing and then they would catch an attitude because you're upset that your questions were never being answered.
Thoughts:
-I would not recommend this school because it is too complex and it is obvious they are more about your dollar than actual education.
- The spend time making their website nice and not enough time actually helping their students. More and more students are leaving and not graduating.
-So what they are CACREP accredited. What is the difference if you never get your degree because you cannot afford the cost. Or you feel badly about your degree. I received my degree and almost lost a job because of the degree. Some employer think the name Capella is not a real school. That is embarassing.
The Future
I am doing very well at my new school. I am glad I decided to leave. If you want to go to an on-line university it is not a bad idea if your busy like myself. However, you MUST do your research just as if you're buying a car. Ask them question and argue with them. Test the waters before you put your hard earn money into it. I wasted thousands of dollars, but I learned that we all have a choice. Which is why I am no longer there. There are plenty of genuine schools out there.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
amira717
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Location: The World Above
Reviews written: 23
Trusted by: 2 members
About Me:
Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates visions for tomorrow.
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