Beware of Northcentral

[Herbert Spencer]

Do the accreditors currently doing their inspection know about this "illegal" activity?

If they didn't before they do now!

Submit a Third-Party Comment

[Dickie Billericay]

I'm beginning to see your point. Here's one from today at the gay boy porn sponsored discussion board:

As an alumnus of NCU, I was pleased to here the candor of Dr. Gardner in his presentation to the faculty and staff.

http://forums.degreeinfo.com/showthread....post272917

Now check this one out. The same poster, from October 2002:

I thought you might want to here the latest.

http://forums.degreeinfo.com/showthread....#post53511

NCU needs to educate their shills before they turn them loose in public. Isn't the difference between "here" and "hear" a topic they cover in third grade? The poster appears to be an NCU PhD student who started out dumb as a post and never learned a thing in the intervening five plus years.

Is this more proof that NCU sucks or more proof that regional accreditation sucks? I think we already know the answer to the first one, and I guess we'll find out the answer to the second one soon enough.

[Toxic]

I'm beginning to see your point.? Here's one from today at the gay boy porn sponsored discussion board:

As an alumnus of NCU, I was pleased to here the candor of Dr. Gardner in his presentation to the faculty and staff.

http://forums.degreeinfo.com/showthread....post272917

Now check this one out.? The same poster, from October 2002:

I thought you might want to here the latest.

http://forums.degreeinfo.com/showthread....#post53511

NCU needs to educate their shills before they turn them loose in public.? Isn't the difference between "here" and "hear" a topic they cover in third grade?? The poster appears to be an NCU PhD student who started out dumb as a post and never learned a thing in the intervening five plus years.?

Is this more proof that NCU sucks or more proof that regional accreditation sucks?? I think we already know the answer to the first one, and I guess we'll find out the answer to the second one soon enough.

The trolls at degreeinfo have been quiet since Bruce made NoCentral Dave look like a paranoid wack job. Shame..... was great fun to read

The bigger issue will be the fraud and such hitting the news in the next few years. Since NoCentral and Tui require no residencies it should be easy for someone with $$$$ to hire a ghost writer to do their work for them. Phone call for a dissertation defense? What a friggin joke. Heck, NoCentral's DBA doesn't even require a defense !!! Makes it extra easy. Notice how some of the so-called students seem to progress so fast, some in multiple programs at the same time???????????? Sooner or later someone involved will get pissed and turn the phonies in.

[RAW]

From the Ripoff Report:
Northcentral University On-line Beware of on-line PhD

Richard
Florida, Florida

Submitted: 2/11/2007 5:27:26 PM
Modified: 2/13/2008 10:57:54 PM

Beware of the Ph.D. on-line programs.

Please help me find the appropriate outlets to discuss on-line doctoral programs. I believe that we need to bring the deception to the forefront this year. I would like to explore several alternatives. Unless something is done soon, I believe that regional accreditation is going to lose value in the market place. The schools with weak programs and that use deception are going to destroy the market value that many major corporations have built. In order to stay in this market many of the large for profit private schools may need to seek AACSB accreditation or risk the lost of a declining image of regional accreditation.

Beware of the correspondence Ph.D. on-line programs with no residence requirements.

Northcentral University is a good example of a school that will bring down the standards of regional accreditation. Northcentral University on-line purports to be 100% online but is primarily a correspondence school. NCU uses deceptive advertising. It purports to have an online Ph.D. program. The school is a distance education correspondence program. It is not conducted over the Internet. The Internet capability of the university is grossly ineffective and is one of the weak links in its program. There is no interaction with students and very little, if any, assessment or interaction with professors. It is what one of my colleagues called, a glorified correspondence school. Yet, NCU continues to promote itself as an on-line delivery system simply because there may be some limited emails and download files or information. NCU may try to compare itself to large private programs, but these schools are mostly owned by publicly held corporations that are subject to Sarbanes Oxley and thus a higher standard of accountability. They also have the resources to provide multi-media on-line educational programs as well as the library and faculty resources to provide a viable program. NCU does not have any of these. NCU has demonstrated very little accountability or service initiative. Although NCU is accredited, it promotes its services in a deceptive manner. It should be classified with unethical marketing scams. It is not an on-line program. It is a correspondence school.

NCU is not a student friendly environment, nor is it transparent and accountable in its disclosure. NCU advertising is deceptive and I believe that this is wrong and should be changed and or reported to the public at large. Their student service is not effective and their focus is primarily on money. Students will receive much better service from large traditional or private universities. They continue to use false advertising and this warrants public disclosure and, at least, preventing others from falling for NCU's deceptions. Although they may rank well in terms of cost, please remember, you get what you pay for. And you will not get much from this correspondence school.

Students should search for an AACSB school or a regionally credited school that has a long successful history and/ or is backed by a credible organization that has the resources to provide a top rated program.

There is no doubt that on-line education and alternative delivery educational programs are an increasing trend. But there is a great difference in the educational quality of the various programs. There is a vast difference in the quality of regional accredited programs. Sadly, Northcentral on-line may be the one that clearly pulls down the image of regional accreditation. Prospective students, employers and the educational community must be informed of this about this matter in order to make wise choices. 2007 should be the year to bring this out to the public at large and I hope that you play a role in helping with this process.

UOP has a doctorial program that is not AACSB accredited. Many teaching jobs in business schools required professors who are AACSB qualified. UOP has the potential to devote the resources to create a viable program. There has not been much discussion of the doctoral programs at UOP or whether they would ever seek AACSB accreditation. Students who desire a career in academia should beware of online programs that do not have substantial residential requirements.

Currently there are no on-line AACSB schools. Schools that offer alternative delivery PhD programs that may have credibility at the doctoral level could include the University of Maryland University College and Nova Southeastern.

The University of Maryland University College is one of 11 degree granting institutions of the University of Maryland system. Thus, it is a public university. Information on their doctorate in management can be found at:

http://www.umuc.edu/grad/dm/dm_home.shtml

Complete transparency on the University of Maryland University college accreditation and self study can be found at:

http://www.umuc.edu/middlestates/index.shtml

Nova southeastern is a private university and offers doctorate programs that are closer to traditional programs than the on-line programs. That is, they required residency via attendance of classes for their doctorate in business degree programs. They do offer on-line programs for other levels but not at the business doctorate level. This may be a selling point for their program for those wanting to enter academia in the teaching profession.

Information on Nova's accreditation activities can be found at:

http://www.nova.edu/rpga/accreditation.html

Nova is accredited by International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education and Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS).

Information on their doctorate programs can be found at:

http://www.huizenga.nova.edu/FutureStude...al/DBA.cfm

Nova's web site is very transparent and they include syllabus for each class.

Nova also published their strategic plan.

http://www.nova.edu/cwis/strategic_plan/index.html.

Nova has made great achievements over the year and their doctorate program seem to be well structure and is expected to receive greater acceptance in academia. Nova is a non profit private university.

These are just two alternatives to on-line programs. There may be other viable programs that will gain credibility in academia. If you are not interested in teaching, then the accreditation and credibility of the school's program is of lesser importance.

Perhaps before you select a program, you should talk with potential university employers and ask them if they would hire you based on the PhD program you are considering. Both the reputation of the school and its specific program as well and faculty and student research will be considered in the employment decision. Please beware of the Ph.D. on-line programs. Do your homework wisely!

Richard
Florida, Florida
U.S.A.

[RAW]

More from the Ripoff Report:
Agreed: Northcentral is a horrible correspondence school masquerading as an online university

Takashi
Tortuga, Massachusetts
U.S.A.

Submitted: 3/25/2007 4:18:37 PM
Modified: 3/25/2007 6:36:24 PM

Agreed: Northcentral is a horrible correspondence school masquerading as an online university

I had the misfortune of enrolling in the PhD program at Northcentral and found it to be exactly as described in the complaint. It is not an 'online' school as the term is usually understood. Rather, it is a correspondence school, and not a particularly good one at that.

Further, the PhD program itself is a complete joke, particularly the dissertation portion. Anyone considering Northcentral really ought to compare the substance and quality (or lack thereof) of this program against those of any 'real' PhD program. Northcentral comes up very short in every meaningful criterion.

The question you have to ask yourself is whether you (or your employer) should pay (or borrow) good money for a degree that is grossly substandard to those offered by even the lowest rung of reputable schools. If you are just doing it to have something to hang on your wall, a visit to a print shop can get you something with about equal value for a lot less money. If you really want a degree that represents academic achievement and that will be respected by others who know better, look elsewhere.

[Toxic]

Touro University International\Tui and NoCentral promote themselves to the public sector people like police, firemen, and government with their NO RESIDENCIES “degrees” and discounts. A real DBA program requires real experience in the business world, usually at mid to higher management levels. HOW DOES A COP THAT WALKS A BEAT QUALIFY FOR A DBA PROGRAM !!!!!!!! No offense to the police as a whole but does this make sense? No residencies, no defense, just mail the papers in and call yourself a doctor !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

In the news who is it that gets busted the most for fake degrees? Yep, the police, firemen, and government employees! So, NoCentral and the like create a program that is very easy to cheat in, give government employees big discounts to help them pay their ghost writers, and there you have it kiddies!

[RAW]

More from the Ripoff Report:

Don't Believe the Shills, This PhD Program Sucks

Trent
St. George, Utah

Submitted: 2/24/2008 3:52:35 AM
Modified: 2/24/2008 3:53:00 AM  

Whenever someone writes the truth about this crappy correspondence school masquerading as an online university, you can bet that a bunch of Northcentral employees will follow with fake posts claiming to be satisfied students.

Well I was a real student there, and I can tell you from first hand experience that this PhD program is the pits. The saddest thing is that this horrible program is 'regionally accredited,' which is supposed to indicate it has been reviewed and meets the standards of an accredited college. Don't believe that either. There are diploma mills out there with higher standards.

The dissertation portion of this program is in complete chaos. There is no meaningful supervision or direction. There is little interaction with your assigned 'mentor' and what you do get is useless at best. If you can get any response at all it is usually cynical and counterproductive, replete with lies and treachery. The administration tries to protect itself by blaming the students. They have your money and there are plenty of other suckers out there who will shell out hard cash for a dream that turns into a nightmare.

This new dean says the school lost money five out of the last seven months of 2007 and it is bleeding red ink. There's a good chance this place won't even be in business by the time you graduate. What good is a 'degree' from a place nobody can find to verify your study? I'm glad I left this place and went to a better school.

Northcentral is substandard. If you want a substandard 'degree' for the price of a real one, this is the place. If you want to deal with an administration in chaos, with programs in chaos, with 'mentors' in chaos, this is the place for you. If you want a real school with a real PhD program, try somewhere (anywhere) else.

Trent
Saint George, Utah
U.S.A.

[Armando Ramos]

There's a good chance this place won't even be in business by the time you graduate.

Public records show Northcentral was very nearly put out of business two months ago!

The Arizona Corporation Commission sent Hecht this Notice of Pending Administrative Dissolution on December 3, 2007, because he had not filed the annual corporate report:

[Armando Ramos]

Another Northcentral lie exposed.

Since details of Hecht's unsavory past have been made public the NCU administration (i.e., Hecht) has been scrambling to undo the damage. The current party line is that Hecht is no longer involved in the ownership or administration of the school.

But public records reveal NCU is owned by a corporation called "Innova Management Group, Inc." The company was formed April 7, 2007, and its sole stated purpose is "to act as a corporate holding company of stock and other assets pertaining to education, vocation and scholastic interests..."

And who was its initial statutory agent? Donald Hecht.

Who was the initial board of directors? Donald Hecht.

Who was the initial incorporator? Donald Hecht.

Who signed paperwork on 12/14/07 as "Owner/Director"? Donald Hecht.

And who signed paperwork in April 2007 stating he had not filed bankruptcy (page 3, paragraph C), then had to file it again in December to correct it (page 4, paragraph C) when the lie was discovered?? You know.

More sleight of hand from SCUPS, errr, I mean, Northcentral. What else are they lying about, and is the NCACS accreditation team smart enough to figure it out? We will see.

[ham]

NoCentral's DBA doesn't even require a defense !!!

many universities don't.
but hell, in the UK they usually have postgraduate (or even graduate ) work marked by THREE different examiners, including externals and additional referees.