For-Profit Higher Education Crackdown

[Belsnickel]

(09-06-2016, 10:32 AM)McC Wrote: What institutions are not making a profit?

The vast majority of them.

(09-06-2016, 10:42 AM)Benton Wrote: I dunno. I've known a few people that went through those places that are doing pretty good. My roommate in college dropped out after the first semester. He went to ITT Tech and they got him a pretty decent job working for the military (not in, but a company contracted by them). On the other side, there's lots of folks with more typical degrees working at gas stations or selling used cars as colleges don't do the greatest job of giving all students the skills and opportunities necessary for a job in their field, or their field is already saturated.

Personally, I think it'll be worse for some students it would have helped who don't do well in the traditional college environment.

I have a degree in accounting from a for-profit, and I could take my CPA exam if I felt so inclined. I learned a lot and know others in the same boat. That being said, just like anything, it is all a matter of what you put into it.

(09-06-2016, 11:58 AM)RICHMONDBENGAL_07 Wrote: This is a shame, I always thought these schools were a good idea especially for working adults.  College isn't for everyone, and I think many could benefit from a solid trade school of some sort.  I don't know if some colleges do this or not, but I always thought they (colleges) should offer trade schools as well as traditional academics.  I know a lot of colleges offer trade type learning, but to me it seems that it's usually in the medical field like pharmacy tech, ex-ray tech, bill and coding...etc.  They should offer more IMO such as HVAC, plumbing, and electrical.  Maybe even pair it with a business degree?   Maybe they already do this and I'm just out of the loop.  It's been a very long time since I've stepped in a class room.

They are a good option for working adults. I'm more in the line of thinking that they could benefit from more regulations and better accreditation processes because of some issues I know of.

(09-06-2016, 12:17 PM)PhilHos Wrote: Care to elaborate on more specifics. I'm especially interested in things that the for-profit schools do that the other schools do not.

So here is where my opinion on some of it can really come into play. Really it all boils down to two things: they are for-profit, and intellectual snobbery.

The accreditation system for for-profit colleges and universities is definitely less rigorous than those of other institutions. There are also higher rates of what are sometimes referred to as "Pell jumpers." These are students that stick around just long enough to get their Pell grant money, and then drop out, taking the cash with them. For-profit schools have been historically worse at handling that situation. There is also less help available to the students, at least based on my experiences.

All of that being said, a student still has to put in the effort to get the degree. It's not as rigorous as a traditional institution, but some classes in those can be a joke sometimes as well. The big argument a lot of people have is that their degrees aren't taken seriously by some employers, which is only being made worse with all of this. They aren't getting jobs, they are defaulting on loans, and they are blaming the system. In reality, it is academic snobbery more than anything else. There are some things that should be changed, but they don't deserve the vilification they often get.