colleges, graduation
College graduation | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

For many people, higher planning begins at a very young historic period — around 15 or 16 years old– and as high school students get sophomores and juniors, they start thinking about which colleges they desire to attend, what they desire to study, and even the blazon of career they want to have. Although these plans may change, the core framework begins, and these students' dreams begin to get reality.
Traditionally, young students determine the GPA they'll need, extracurricular activities in which they should participate, and the level of Saturday or ACT score they'll need to reach their goals. Some schools take especially stringent access standards. For instance, virtually students who are accepted into Columbia have GPAs in the "A" range (around iii.four or above); they likewise accept SAT scores of at least 2100, or Act scores of at least thirty, according to About.com'south higher admission graphs.
These days, however, the college market as a whole is quite a bit different than information technology was fifteen or xx years ago. From 2000 to 2010, the number of degree-granting institutions increased by around ten%, according to data published on the National Center for Educational activity Statistics. Many schools began offering online degree options during that time menses, and some schools were developed as exclusively online schools. The traditional fashion of doing things — transport in your alphabetic character, GPA, and examination scores — is non necessarily the way students become about getting into college anymore.
Today, so many universities automatically accept students, and coursework can be completed entirely online. During this transition, some schools have thrived, as accept the students who have graduated from these schools. Other institutions, nevertheless, have gained bad reputations.
These colleges and universities have fabricated news headlines. Some been coined "wastes of time and money," and others have been called "pay for caste schools." Is at that place any truth to these claims?

1. Everest College

a doctor holding a tablet
Physician holding a tablet | Source: iStock
  • Average Yelp review: 1.5 out of 5 stars

Everest College (as well known as Everest Institute or Everest University) offers online and accelerated degree programs in healthcare, business, IT, and other career fields.
Almost people accept heard of Everest College — they've seen the commercials, heard well-nigh it from a friend, or they've read about the schoolhouse somewhere. Odds are, if you have heard of Everest, you may very well have heard something negative. In add-on to poor reviews on Yelpand Consumer Affairs, 144 people gave the establishment an average review of two.3 out of v stars, and only xviii% of Glassdoor users would recommend information technology as a place of employment to a friend. Some Everest campuses have meliorate ratings than others.
Everest College Alhambra, i of the higher rated campuses, reports that "of the 516 students who began school, nothing students were qualified for an exclusion from the cohort. Of the 516 students, 375 completed their coursework and graduated inside the immune timeframe. Therefore, the school's graduation charge per unit for those students is 73 percent."
Students may be graduating, but the school has had issues finding employment for its grads, and information technology has made headlines for its extreme task placement methods. Last twelvemonth, the Huffington Mail service reported that the college paid $2,000 to have one of its graduates placed in a task position for at least 30 days. Why? The school must meet certain task-placement numbers to satisfy accreditation requirements.
Users on Grad Report, a website where students can share their school experiences with other students, have overall negative reviews of the school. Still, around one-third (31%) of Everest Grad Reporters say this school helped their career, and 63% of Grad Reporters who completed the medical assistant program say they are now employed. Therefore, the school is doing some good.

2. University of Phoenix

University of Phoenix stadium
University of Phoenix stadium | Christian Petersen/Getty Images
  • Average Yelp review: ii out of five stars

University of Phoenix has been chosen a "pay for degree school." I Yelp Review says "Bottom line, University of Phoenix degree is worthless in real world. Employers know [it's] a joke and will file your resume at the bottom of the stack or but throw it away. This and many other online and for turn a profit colleges that have been popping upwardly in the concluding several years are the biggest scam on the planet perpetrated upon the American public." Some may say that's just i opinion, just there are several others just similar it. The institution receives one.five out of 5 stars on Consumer Affairs.
The school's accreditation from the College Learning Commission was also placed on discover a while dorsum. "University of Phoenix is accredited by the College Learning Committee which is a member of the Northward Central Association. University of Phoenix has been placed on Notice past the College Learning Committee. Notice is a Commission sanction indicating that an institution is pursuing a form of action that, if continued, could lead it to exist out of compliance with one or more Criteria for Accreditation."  This is still listed on the Academy of Phoenix website.
Some students exercise portray the school in a more positive light. 50-8 per centum of users on Grad Report would recommend the school to a friend, and another 59% say their degree from Phoenix has helped their career. Grad Reporters from the business programme written report boilerplate salaries of around $53,000, and 86 pct of these grads say they are employed. Therefore, the schoolhouse is doing some expert for some of its grads.

3. DeVry University

student studying
Educatee studying | Source: iStock
  • Average Yelp review: 2.5 out of 5 stars

DeVry, a school known for catering to "working adults," offers both online and traditional degree programs. A footling over a yr ago, DeVry made headlines because its medical schools in the Caribbean were charging higher tuition rates for lower educational standards.
"DeVry, which has two for-profit medical schools in the Caribbean area, is accepting hundreds of students who were rejected past U.South. medical colleges. These students amass more debt than their U.S. counterparts — a median of $253,072 in June 2012 at AUC versus $170,000 for 2012 graduates of U.Due south. medical schools," according to Bloomberg. "Many DeVry students quit, particularly in the kickoff 2 semesters, taking their debt with them. While the average attrition rate at U.S. med schools was 3 per centum for the course that began in the fall of 2008, according to the AAMC, DeVry says its rate ranges from 20 to 27 percent."
DeVry also receives depression boilerplate reviews from Yelp, Consumer Affairs, and Online Degree Reviews. Of the users who reviewed DeVry on Grad Study, 46% say they would recommend this school, and 38% say their caste improved their career. Those who graduated from the business concern and it programs report salaries of $40,000 and $45,000 per year, respectively. Overall, the reception appears to be mixed — some students had a positive experience and others had a negative experience.
This listing could keep forever, every bit several schools have negative student reviews. Fifteen people gave ITT Technical Institute an average of 3.1 out of 10 stars on Online Degree Reviews, and Yelp reviews are as well pretty low for ITT. However, Penn Foster receives lower reviews on Online Degree Reviews, but somewhat higher reviews on other sites, like Grad Reports.
When reviewing a school, it's wise to review several resources, as opposed to simply reviewing one or 2 review sites. This way, y'all refrain from basing your decision off a few bad experiences.