The Swift Rise Of University Of Phoenix Online

Culture

from the dominating-distance-learning dept

When people talk about distance learning for higher education, at some point, they almost always mention the University of Phoenix Online. It appears that the company has clearly made its name as the dominant online educational institution. Some, though, are wondering if they can keep it up. They point to the fact that the system they use is fairly low-tech, focusing on mostly text-based information – leaving the bells and whistles to their competitors. I would actually think this is a plus for the University of Phoenix. It means lower costs on their end, more students can sign up (easy for dialup users as well), and many fewer problems for students – making them more likely to continue with their courses. If they had to load some complex video application that kept crashing their browser (and, let’s face it, it would), they are much more likely to find it too frustrating to bother. The bigger question, in my mind, though, is how do people view a degree from the University of Phoenix Online? The education received might be top-notch, but if potential employers think of it more as a degree mill or the equivalent of a community college, it might make people wonder if it’s worth spending $10,000 or more per year on the courses.