DeVry University
 

My son wants to attend (actually its online) DeVry University; I'm looking at $60k
(3 years) to obtain a BS degree. Do any of you have any experience with DeVry?
Is $60k reasonable for a BS? He's looks for a degree in electronics.

What are you thoughts?
Thanks.

Cal Poly? State College(s), UC's in the area? Does he have the grades to get into any of these or is DeVry the only school that offers the specific degree?

60K seems like a lot for an on-line degree, to me at least. Also, if your thinking about taking student loans, seek government types, private student loans & loans offered by the school are not a good deal, or so I've heard.

Steve

I know two people who have graduated from DeVry. Both of them are solid individuals. I have a friend who is a professor at DeVry. He received his degrees from UC Berkeley and UC Davis.

While I think your son will miss a lot not going away to college, I do not believe that education will be part of that.

I have a friend with a DeVry degree and he has done very well (but he attended the school).

However I agree with the above $60K seems whack for a online degree.

Have you checked Harbor college, Dominguez, Alondra?

No experience with DeVry, but...

I would recommend community college, then transfer to a CSU to finish the Bachelors. Will cost much less. Plan for 4 years of hard work (longer if not taking 4-5 classes every quarter).

I don't understand why people would pay more when the state schools are available, unless you can't get into them. And - whether correct or not - there will always be people who view degrees from DeVry as "less" than a traditional university. Why pay more for a degree that some won't consider "real"? A degree is two things: 1) education 2) resume builder. It doesn't meet #2 if hiring managers blow it off. (Again: some will, some won't.) The relevance of #2 will also fluctuate based on the field he wants to go into.

My wife is about to start at a CSU after finishing her AA at a JC. We estimate $20k and 2.5-3 years for her to finish her BS at CSU. She spent three years at the JC, about $300 per semester... round up to $2,000 a year for books, etc. That's a total of about $26,000 and under 6 years. This is all while she is working full time. Can be done much faster if one has the time available.

I went to CSU from the start, and after 12 years just graduated. (Work, changing major, etc.) JC then transfer to CSU makes much more sense than the route I took. I did take a few classes at the JC and felt there was no real difference in the standards between the two.

+10000 to what Aaron said.

Plus the positive impact of social interaction at that age... I would be concerned if it were my child being isolated like that.

Bricks and mortar schools get you interviews and respect

and maturity. There are tangible benefits to living on your own.

Absolutely!!!!

Get the lower division work done at your own pace at a Community College. Then transfer to a State College or University of California. The advantages to this approach are incalculable.

Definitely true, BUT in my case it led to a big waste of money. Hopefully your son is a little more dedicated than I was at 18.

I appreciate all the comments and suggestions.
Thank you.

Would you wager $40K on that payback?

That's the conventional wisdom, but I think times are changing.

If you have a 2.7 GPA from an ivy league school (competition), or a 3.0 from a state school, or a 3.6 from JC then state, or a 3.8 because you learned better at your own pace online, would that still be true?

Kaisen... you have a story for us?

Not my own story, but those of friends, friend's kids, dozens of employees, etc

Well, my own story too, I guess. I went to a well-respected private school and it has never paid off in any tangible way. Also true of my wife, who invested $150K in a highly-regarded private college. And that's been worth squat.

We both got 'good' grades, but no doubt our GPAs would have been higher if we went to Podunk U. Graduating with a 3.2 from an ivy league or 4.0 from Podunk U.... who would you hire (be honest).

Both of us, if we could do it again, would have done two years at JC and finish at a specialized program offered by a state school. Online? Maybe! Several state schools offer it too.

If he's set on online classes, check out the local public schools. The private schools like Devry charge a big premium, I guess it's up to you to decide if the cost of justified.

My wife works at University of South Florida here in Tampa as staff support for one of the master and Phd degree programs. Students with degrees from "for-profit" or on-line schools are ignored during the application process.

For a brief time I worked as IT recruiter and most companies I did work for didnt look as favorably upon a deVry graduate as those from a regular college.

I don't think they are accredited like most tech degrees. This means you cannot get a MD, PHD, etc. For engineers you cannot sit for the EI exam or get a PE license.

have you read the disclaimer that states "units are non-transferable" that tells me that there are accreditation issues

If I had it to do again that is what I would do.

And part of surviving in the real world is interpersonal relations, communication, dealing and negotiating with people.... experience I don't think you would get with an online degree.

By going JC/CSU vs. DeVry you're increasing in reputation while decreasing in cost.

Win-Win

DeVry is great if you have no other choice. Maybe no JC or CSU close by? Can't pass the assessment/placement tests? Can't wait to get in the job market? Or, classes so impacted at state schools and can't quit your day/night job to go to school.

Makes perfect sense to go to CA public colleges. Cheap, good education. Or, if your son really wants to acquire great technical skills, do it like I did. I joined the USAF at 17, went to a JC for free but didn't finish. Worked on avionics, radar, comm systems and airplanes - excellent education and experience. Left the military after 4 years and snagged a great paying tech job for a defense contractor at 22. Everyone in the shop was ex-military, no DeVry or ITT or Heald or what have you. Then, finished JC and university on my employer's dime. Got paid to work AND go to school!

Part of my job is interviewing prospective employees. For some reason their GPA has not come up in any of those interviews. Where they went to school and what degree they earned does come up.
If I learn that someone earned a degree from an online school (correspondence course AFAIK) it will not carry anywhere near as much weight as a degree from full time 4 year university will.

We've gone over this time and time again...

Hi Larry,
I am going to have to agree with what everyone else is saying about the community college route. Our community colleges are an amazing value. Both my wife and I are both attending classes at Glendale College and we are amazed at the level of instruction at the school. Shannon, my wife, is doing a certificate program in web design. Many of her instructors are professionals in the industry which is great because they share their real world experience. The school is also really good at keeping up on the latest software, another important factor! I am just taking a few foreign language and English classes here and there as my work schedule allows in order to keep my skills up and can also attest as to how good the professors are.

Even if the tuition goes up to $40 a unit (which I don't think it will) community college is an absolute bargain in California. Why spend 60k on a school that isn't accredited and is something your son might lose interest in after a couple of years? By going to the cheaper school, he'll be able to try a variety of subjects that catch his fancy so when it comes time to transfer to the 4 year school he will be better prepared to succeed.

Good luck to him (and you!) :)
Michael

First, I don't think I would trade the last 4 years of my life for any amount of money.

Second, a lot of companies focus their recruiting efforts on top schools. Miami was a target university for my company. They were not going after devry.

GPA is not the end all be all. Mine wasn't that great. I will admit that it likely cost me a couple interviews, but once you get in the room, you have to sell yourself and your experiences. I got my job because I clicked with the guys who interviewed me and had experiences and a skill set that lined up with the job. GPA never even came up.

And chicks. :o

College is a whole lifestyle and maturing process, not just what's on a test.

Hello Everyone,
I appreciate all your input. It's looking like the community college is the way to go.
Thanks again.
Larry

I agree with everyone else on here. I went to community college for two years and earned two A.A.'s in Financial Accounting and General Business, and about half of an A.S. in Microcomputer Applications before transfering to UC Davis. From there I went on to earn a B.S. in Managerial Economics.

I was a poor student in high school, but in community college I was able to turn my life around and transfer with a 3.84. Now I have a 3.43 from the UC, and a couple of extra degrees, which are really helping me distinguish myself from other Navy OCS applicants.