University of Phoenix

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University of Phoenix
Image:Uphoenix_logo.gif
Motto One University. Many Ways to Earn Your Degree.
Established 1976
Type Private, For-profit
President Bill Pepicello
Faculty 20,000+
Staff 12,000+
Undergraduates 220,000+
Postgraduates 60,000+
Location Phoenix, Arizona, USA
Campus Urban
Locations 190+ campuses
Website phoenix.edu

University of Phoenix (UOP) is a for-profit educational institution specializing in adult education, with campuses located throughout the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. UOP was founded in 1976 by Dr. John Sperling. In the early 1970's, at San Jose State University in California, Sperling and several associates conducted field-based research in adult education. The focus of the research was to explore teaching/learning systems for the delivery of educational programs and services to working adult students who wished to complete or further their education in ways that complemented both their experience and current professional responsibilities. At that time colleges and universities were organized primarily around serving the needs of the 18-22 year old undergraduate student. That is not at all surprising, given that the large majority of those enrolled were residential students of traditional college age, just out of high school. According to Sperling, working adult students were often "invisible" on traditional campuses and treated as second-class citizens.

Contents

[edit] History

Since 1976, University of Phoenix has grown considerably, producing more than 171,000 alumni. In 1989, University of Phoenix was recognized as the first U.S. university to offer course work online. As of October 2006 University of Phoenix has an estimated 280,000 students attending via the various methods of going to school. The University of Phoenix, originally, was based out of California. Later its main campuses were moved to Phoenix, Arizona.

In April 2006 UOP began offering classes through a sister organization, Axia College of University of Phoenix, which is an online-only school focusing on Associate Degree programs and entry level college courses.

In September 2006, UOP agreed to pay $154.5 million over 20 years for the right to put its name on the Arizona Cardinals' new NFL stadium, previously named Cardinals Stadium, in Glendale, Arizona[1]. UOP does not field any major intercollegiate athletic teams.

[edit] Accreditation

UOP is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and is a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. UOP as a school is regionally accredited. However, UOP does not have professional accreditation for many of its majors, in particular its very popular MBA program. In British Columbia, the University of Phoenix was accredited by the Private Post-Secondary Education Commission (PPSEC) in 2002. That agency is now called the Private Career Training Institutions Agency (PCTIA).

Business Programs: UOP does not have professional accreditation for their business programs, either by AACSB, IACBE, or any other professional business accreditation body. UOP is a candidate for accreditation with ACBSP. UOP has stated,

Employers have not expressed a preference for business school accreditation. Regional accreditation, like that of the Higher Learning Commission, which accredits the University of Phoenix, is important for students seeking employer reimbursement and federal financial aid. With respect to the academic issues, we believe our students greatly benefit from being taught by practitioner faculty who are experts in their field. This allows our students to integrate and apply the content knowledge to their chosen professions. By adhering to this model of instruction, the University of Phoenix is better served by not being accredited by AACSB.[1]

However, a 12-month corporate preference study held with HR professionals conducted by the Online University Consortium (OUC)[2] concluded the following:

Traditional universities remain top choice for corporations over for-profit providers of online education and degree programs, and candidates with credentials from traditional universities are more likely to be hired and promoted than those from for-profit schools. These results were gleaned from data compiled over twelve months by the Online University Consortium, and further support recent findings from other industry experts.[3]

OUC also states that,

...all of the best business degree programs now carry both regional and professional accreditation from an accrediting body that's been approved by the Department of Education. A program accreditation to look for is Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) International. It's considered to be one widely accepted standard in the market for business education. Another to consider is the International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education (IACBE).[4]


Nursing Program: The Bachelor of Science in Nursing and the Master of Science in Nursing programs are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE).


Counseling Program: The Master of Counseling program in Community Counseling (in Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona) and the Master of Counseling program in Mental Health Counseling (in Utah) are accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP)[5].

[edit] Modalities

Ground Ground classes are similar to the traditional college experience. Students attend a class with a professor-facilitator who mediates a class discussion. These classes normally are 5 to 6 weeks long depending on the program of study. If a student were to schedule their classes to be year round with no more then a week break in between their classes they would accrue credits at the same rate as that of a full time "traditional" college student. These students typically attend one day a week for about 4 hours; they also are expected to spend time outside of the scheduled class, organized into "learning teams". Each "learning team" usually consists of 3 to 5 students who are expected to complete assignments for class credit. Professors tend to require at least one class presentation from each team.

Online Online students attend an online classroom via the internet and Microsoft Outlook Express. In lieu of a classroom discussion, the facilitator will ask the class "discussion questions" in the classroom newsgroups. Each student responds to the questions and each other's responses, thus creating online interaction on a variety of topics. These classes follow a similar format to the ground classes. Students attending online can connect to the online classroom wherever there is a proper internet connection, and are expected to participate online at least 4 days a week. A typical student should expect to spend at least 15 study hours per week, but the time can be distributed over the week to fit the student's schedule.

FlexNet The FlexNet modality is a hybrid of the Ground modality and the Online modality. The typical FlexNet class is five weeks in length. The FlexNet students meet during the first week of the course in a classroom, and the next three in the online environment, and finally the last week is held once again at a ground campus. During this first meeting the instructor will distribute the course syllabus. Over the next four weeks, the students complete their assignments in an online format using classroom newsgroups.

[edit] Controversy

University of Phoenix has received fines from both the United States Department of Education [6] [7] [8] and the United States Department of Labor [9] [10] for its recruitment practices and its treatment of recruiters. One of the fines paid to the Department of Education totaled $9.8 million. These legal issues were settled out of court but new issues are pending.

The University of Phoenix's parent corporation, Apollo Group, Inc., has also been the target of a securities-related lawsuit [11], alleging that the group disseminated false financial statements to stock purchasers. "In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the company said that it denies all claims and that it intends to defend itself vigorously against the allegations made in the suit."

As of September 27, 2006, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a lawsuit on the behalf of Bob Lein and other unnamed terminated enrollment counselors.[12] They claim that University of Phoenix has shown favoritism to its Mormon enrollment staff. They are suing for back pay, damages for emotional distress and punitive damages. Apollo spokesman Joe Cockrell said the company had not seen the lawsuit, but he emphasized in a statement that the 15,000-employee company has, "always been guided by equal opportunity and respect for others."

Partly as a result of efforts by the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reopened a whistleblower case in September 2006. In this case, the University of Phoenix is accused of illegally compensating recruiters based on the number of students they enroll. [13]

University of Phoenix (and/or its associates) aggressive email advertising has resulted in its inclusion on several blacklists of spammers as compiled by anti-spam groups.[14]

[edit] Academic programs

The University of Phoenix is divided into four schools, some with associated colleges.

  • The John Sperling School of Business and Technology
  • College of Undergraduate Business and Management
  • College of Information Systems and Technology
  • College of Graduate Business and Management
  • Artemis School of Education, Health and Human Services
  • College of Education
  • College of Health and Human Services
  • College of Arts & Sciences
  • The School of Advanced Studies


[edit] Notable alumni

[edit] References

  1. ^ Cardinals get collegiate feel, Sports Illustrated, September 26, 2006

[edit] External links


Apollo Group, Inc.
Corporate Directors: John Blair • Dino DeConcini • Hedy Govenar • John R. Norton • John Sperling • Peter Sperling
Assets: Axia College •College for Financial Planning • Institute for Professional Development • University of Phoenix • Western International University
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