Thomas Edison State College's accreditation (College-)

[Elle]

CollegeMinus shunts its graduated off to Thomas Edison State College. TESC brags about having "one of the most most flexible transfer credit policies in the country." In other words, if you can't take your credits anywhere else, go to the Hufflepuff of colleges! http://www.tesc.edu/admissions/Transfer-Credit.cfm Of course they accept credits from actual accredited schools, but they'll accept them from pretty much anywhere. See? http://www.tesc.edu/academics/catalog/T ... Credit.cfm

So make of this what you want.

TESC boasts accreditation by Middle States Commission on Higher Education

http://www.tesc.edu/about/Accreditation.cfm

and

http://www.msche.org/

Middle States is NOT a US Department of Education-recognized national accreditation institution. Council for Higher Education Accreditation ( http://www.chea.org/ ) is the one that matters for that, and standards are a lot tougher. Middle States is a voluntary and peer-reviewed organization covering New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and DC, and some non-American schools.

For teaching, they claim accreditation by the Teacher Education Accreditation Council. http://www.teac.org/ The one that seems to matter is the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education. http://www.ncate.org/ TEAC is questionable, at best. I can't find anything connecting them with the USDoE.

Surprisingly they (well, the W. Cary Edwards School of Nursing) are accredited by National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission, Inc. I was able to personally verify that, and that is an accepted nursing accreditation. The NJ Department of Nursing doesn't verify accreditation online, nor does the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education. So finishing with the W. Cary Edwards School of Nursing will allow you to sit for the nursing licensure exam IN NEW JERSEY for a license that is not transferable to any other state. Unless these find girls want to move to New Jersey, they won't be getting licenses they can use, and even to finish, they will have to move to New Jersey since clinicals and a bunch of other stuff can't be done online.

So unless you want to be a nurse in New Jersey (and this program is pretty much separate from Thomas Edison State College), it sounds like TESC is a two-bit school with accreditation from a local agency and a questionable agency. This makes me question the quality of ANY education from this school. If they accept CollegeMinus credits without question, that just screams of a lack of standards to me.

[holierthanyou]

...In other words, if you can't take your credits anywhere else, go to the Hufflepuff of colleges!

.

HEY!!! That is so uncool! I Hufflepuff!

Don't go putting Hufflepuff in the same realm as CollegeMinus! I would way rather my children attended a pretend fantasy school (and know it's pretend) than enroll in a pretend fantasy college (and think it's real)! ;)

[helloemi]

Accreditation mills are a bigger problem than diploma mills because most people see "Accredited!" and assume that the school is legit. It is really sad that these students are wasting their time with CollegeMinus!. I can't help but feel that they deserve it... just a little.

Oh yeah... GO HUFFLEPUFF! At least you get textbooks at Hogwarts.

[Elle]

HEY!!! That is so uncool! I Hufflepuff!

Don't go putting Hufflepuff in the same realm as CollegeMinus! I would way rather my children attended a pretend fantasy school (and know it's pretend) than enroll in a pretend fantasy college (and think it's real)! ;)

I do too! Hufflepuff takes anyone who doesn't fit in because of acceptance and good stuff. TESC takes anyone who can't go anywhere else as long as they'll pay money. So really more of a Hufflepuff tendency to accept all with the Slytherin reason of greed. :twisted:

[Elle]

Accreditation mills are a bigger problem than diploma mills because most people see "Accredited!" and assume that the school is legit. It is really sad that these students are wasting their time with CollegeMinus!. I can't help but feel that they deserve it... just a little.

The US is the only developed country that allows these mills to run rampant. California is the haven within the US for mills, and the US in general is a haven for the rest of the world. It's really aggravating that with all that's regulated here, there are no regulations on what it required of an accrediting institution. There are ones that are basically given the blessing of the USDoE, but that doesn't mean you can't operate. I could open an accrediting institution if I wanted and it would be entirely legal as long as I didn't say the government recognized me. Any of you all could start a college, become accredited by me and so claim accreditation, and offer degrees for life credit. And...if would be 100% LEGAL.

[gardenvarietycitizen]

Interesting. The place I work (a Big! Ten! University!) is accredited by the "North Central Association of Colleges and Schools" and yeah, that's the real deal. It's hard to tell only by the names but a quick google makes things quite clear.

[gustava]

CollegeMinus shunts its graduated off to Thomas Edison State College. TESC brags about having "one of the most most flexible transfer credit policies in the country." In other words, if you can't take your credits anywhere else, go to the Hufflepuff of colleges! http://www.tesc.edu/admissions/Transfer-Credit.cfm Of course they accept credits from actual accredited schools, but they'll accept them from pretty much anywhere. See? http://www.tesc.edu/academics/catalog/T ... Credit.cfm

So make of this what you want.

TESC boasts accreditation by Middle States Commission on Higher Education

http://www.tesc.edu/about/Accreditation.cfm

and

http://www.msche.org/

Middle States is NOT a US Department of Education-recognized national accreditation institution. Council for Higher Education Accreditation ( http://www.chea.org/ ) is the one that matters for that, and standards are a lot tougher. Middle States is a voluntary and peer-reviewed organization covering New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and DC, and some non-American schools.

For teaching, they claim accreditation by the Teacher Education Accreditation Council. http://www.teac.org/ The one that seems to matter is the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education. http://www.ncate.org/ TEAC is questionable, at best. I can't find anything connecting them with the USDoE.

Surprisingly they (well, the W. Cary Edwards School of Nursing) are accredited by National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission, Inc. I was able to personally verify that, and that is an accepted nursing accreditation. The NJ Department of Nursing doesn't verify accreditation online, nor does the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education. So finishing with the W. Cary Edwards School of Nursing will allow you to sit for the nursing licensure exam IN NEW JERSEY for a license that is not transferable to any other state. Unless these find girls want to move to New Jersey, they won't be getting licenses they can use, and even to finish, they will have to move to New Jersey since clinicals and a bunch of other stuff can't be done online.

So unless you want to be a nurse in New Jersey (and this program is pretty much separate from Thomas Edison State College), it sounds like TESC is a two-bit school with accreditation from a local agency and a questionable agency. This makes me question the quality of ANY education from this school. If they accept CollegeMinus credits without question, that just screams of a lack of standards to me.

Middle States is accredited. NCATE is accredited.

[gardenvarietycitizen]

Ah. Yeah there's "Middle States Accrediting Board" which is the skeevy one. Edison does link up to the legit one as far as I can tell.

[MonkeyMomma]

I think Middle States is actually a legit accrediting organization ... if you look at the list of accredited schools, there are many I recognize (Trinity University in DC, for example). The president of my alma mater worked with Middle States before coming to us, including working with universities in the UAE on accreditation which would allow students to more easily transfer to US universities. I don't really know about the other one. Anyone with more experience with accrediting orgs?

PS-My husband just informed me that TESC should be "burned down with a giant Tesla coil." It's like this all the time living with a Tesla freak. :lol:

[Elle]

Reading comprehension. That's why I underlined "national." They're not accredited by a national organization but by a borderline regional facility that's recognized. Like I said, it's a voluntary one that's peer-reviewed, and it's unusual that it overseas some colleges that aren't in the US. Like in Africa and Chile.

[MonkeyMomma]

Reading comprehension. That's why I underlined "national." They're not accredited by a national organization but by a borderline regional facility that's recognized. Like I said, it's a voluntary one that's peer-reviewed, and it's unusual that it overseas some colleges that aren't in the US. Like in Africa and Chile.

OMFG. Reading comprehension yourself. If you check the CHEA website you yourself listed, THE FIRST RECOGNIZED REGIONAL ACCREDITATION ORGANIZATION LISTED IS MIDDLE STATES.

http://www.chea.org/Directories/regional.asp

The accrediting organizations identified in this directory are recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). Recognition by CHEA affirms that the standards and processes of the accrediting organization are consistent with the academic quality, improvement and accountability expectations that CHEA has established, including the eligibility standard that the majority of institutions or programs each accredits are degree-granting.

My alma mater, a very respected, yet small, brick-and-mortar institution, is accredited by a regional body that is also recognized by CHEA.

In fact, on further browsing, it looks like CHEA is essentially a national certifying organization for accrediting bodies, as well as a lobby for their interests in DC, not a body that accredits institutions in and of itself.

[CanadianHippie]

HEY!!! That is so uncool! I Hufflepuff!

Don't go putting Hufflepuff in the same realm as CollegeMinus! I would way rather my children attended a pretend fantasy school (and know it's pretend) than enroll in a pretend fantasy college (and think it's real)! ;)

QFT! Hufflepuff is for hard working, tolerant, fair, and loyal people.

[SisiL78]

Holy Sh*t.

I looked up the tuition and fees per year for an Associates Degree at TESC.

Its nearly 12k a year!!! That's online, no room and board or anything.

You can go to a good (and accredited) community college for a third of that! And many 4 year universities respect the credits earned at a CC and allow them for transfer. My FH took a couple of his accounting pre-reqs at a local CC on the advice of the University he is now attending. He paid about 120 per credit. And he got real professors, some of them teach at the several large 4- year schools in the area and moonlight at the CC.

There should be regulation. These so called colleges target the people who are too lacking in critical thinking for a real college. They will have no chance of this degree actually helping them in life. All they'll get is a bunch of debt that they can't pay off. TESC does qualify (it seems) for subsidized and un-subsidized loans. So, when the students inevitably default on the loans its Mr. and Mrs. Joe Taxpayer funneling money into these diploma mills.

There was a Frontline special called College Inc about these diploma mills. You can watch free online at http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline ... einc/view/

It was eye opening and disturbing. People ended up in horrible debt and had less to show for their "educations" then when they started. They really have a sophisticated marketing program that preys on the vulnerable.

[Elle]

God dammit. I SAID IT'S REGIONAL, NOT NATIONAL. TESC is accredited by a REGIONAL organization, NOT a NATIONAL one, and I've said this three times. In the first post I said it's not accredited by a NATIONAL organization. Re-read and tell me where I said it's not accredited even by a regional organization. What I've said it's not accredited by is a NATIONAL one.

[synchroswimr]

God dammit. I SAID IT'S REGIONAL, NOT NATIONAL. TESC is accredited by a REGIONAL organization, NOT a NATIONAL one, and I've said this three times. In the first post I said it's not accredited by a NATIONAL organization. Re-read and tell me where I said it's not accredited even by a regional organization. What I've said it's not accredited by is a NATIONAL one.

It is my understanding that trade schools and specialized programs are accredited nationally, but for most colleges and universities, the regional accreditation is standard. I am in an online grad program that is accredited by the same regional accreditation program as the Big Ten U in the region; no national accreditation for either (except in specialty programs).

[lilwriter85]

Holy Sh*t.

I looked up the tuition and fees per year for an Associates Degree at TESC.

Its nearly 12k a year!!! That's online, no room and board or anything.

You can go to a good (and accredited) community college for a third of that! And many 4 year universities respect the credits earned at a CC and allow them for transfer. My FH took a couple of his accounting pre-reqs at a local CC on the advice of the University he is now attending. He paid about 120 per credit. And he got real professors, some of them teach at the several large 4- year schools in the area and moonlight at the CC.

There should be regulation. These so called colleges target the people who are too lacking in critical thinking for a real college. They will have no chance of this degree actually helping them in life. All they'll get is a bunch of debt that they can't pay off. TESC does qualify (it seems) for subsidized and un-subsidized loans. So, when the students inevitably default on the loans its Mr. and Mrs. Joe Taxpayer funneling money into these diploma mills.

There was a Frontline special called College Inc about these diploma mills. You can watch free online at http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline ... einc/view/

It was eye opening and disturbing. People ended up in horrible debt and had less to show for their "educations" then when they started. They really have a sophisticated marketing program that preys on the vulnerable.

I watched the College Inc documentary last year and it was a bit said to watch. 12 k for an associate's degree is too much. Some community colleges even offer online classes.

[Sunnichick31]

HEY!!! That is so uncool! I Hufflepuff!

Don't go putting Hufflepuff in the same realm as CollegeMinus! I would way rather my children attended a pretend fantasy school (and know it's pretend) than enroll in a pretend fantasy college (and think it's real)! ;)

Hey! Hogwarts IS a real school! I was supposed to get an acceptance letter, but my owl got lost or something. They'll send a new owl and letter soon and then I'll go off to Griffendor, learn how to apparate, show up at your house, and prove that Hogwarts is REAL! :pray:

lol :D

[CanadianHippie]

Hey! Hogwarts IS a real school! I was supposed to get an acceptance letter, but my owl got lost or something. They'll send a new owl and letter soon and then I'll go off to Griffendor, learn how to apparate, show up at your house, and prove that Hogwarts is REAL! :pray:

lol :D

Yeah there was an outbreak of Owl Flu, a lot of people didn't receive their letters. Hogwarts is working things out though. If all else fails they will send teachers to come get us.

[holierthanyou]

Hey! Hogwarts IS a real school! I was supposed to get an acceptance letter, but my owl got lost or something. They'll send a new owl and letter soon and then I'll go off to Griffendor, learn how to apparate, show up at your house, and prove that Hogwarts is REAL! :pray:

lol :D

Too bad you're destined for Gryffindor, or else we could be roomies (after our dang owls finally arrive!). Hufflepuff rules Hogwarts!!!

[bbfreethinker]

[link=http://www.chea.org/search/actionInst.asp?accredID=3;Middle%20States%20Association%20of%20Colleges%20and%20Schools]This link[/link] lists all the schools accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges & Schools

Thomas Edison is on the list along with Cornell University, Johns Hopkins University, Princeton University, and University of Pennsylvania. Of all the things wrong with CollegeMinus I don't think Thomas Edison not being accredited is one of them.

[mirele]

It is my understanding that trade schools and specialized programs are accredited nationally, but for most colleges and universities, the regional accreditation is standard. I am in an online grad program that is accredited by the same regional accreditation program as the Big Ten U in the region; no national accreditation for either (except in specialty programs).

This. Most reputable public colleges/universities are accredited by the regional groups. Here's the list from Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regional_a ... ccreditors

Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools is first.

That said, I think paying $12K a year for CLEP tests at TESC is karaaaaazeee.

[pomology]

Guys, Elle is a person who admits she has never been to college and that she thinks for many people its a waste of time. Why would you expect her to understand how accreditation actually works?

Hey, Elle, thanks for implying that my state would operate a public school that is a non-accredited piece of shit. Don't blame TESC for CollegeMinus's bullshit.

I looked up how my college is accredited. It is accredited by a GASP regional accreditation association. Which also happens to be the association that accredits the Air Force Academy. But I guess degrees from the Air Force Academy are suspect if not outright pieces of shit.

Check it http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regional_accreditation

As usual, Elle doesn't have a fucking clue what she's going on about.

[gardenvarietycitizen]

"...Association of Colleges and Schools" is the key. They are regional, but recognized by the Department of Education. Essentially they ARE the national accreditation (it's broken into regions is all).

There are other places named similarly that aren't them. TESC is with the usual legit place though.

...and for that matter, I'm sure TESC is a perfectly fine and normal community college for plenty of people. College Plus! uses them because they allow the credits but the main gripe is with College Plus! in particular. As someone upthread already posted, you can just go to TESC straight up (either in person or over the internet).

[DarkAnts]

This. Most reputable public colleges/universities are accredited by the regional groups. Here's the list from Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regional_a ... ccreditors

Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools is first.

That said, I think paying $12K a year for CLEP tests at TESC is karaaaaazeee.

That is highway robbery! The local community college costs $2500 per semester for a full time student.

[pomology]

"...Association of Colleges and Schools" is the key. They are regional, but recognized by the Department of Education. Essentially they ARE the national accreditation (it's broken into regions is all).

There are other places named similarly that aren't them. TESC is with the usual legit place though.

...and for that matter, I'm sure TESC is a perfectly fine and normal community college for plenty of people. College Plus! uses them because they allow the credits but the main gripe is with College Plus! in particular. As someone upthread already posted, you can just go to TESC straight up (either in person or over the internet).

QFT.