Why doesn't everyone leave TS alone, faith-filled, charismatic man that he is...
He was the one who posted the information that claimed that Walden de Mexico, or whatever it is called, was that country's leading university. Then, and far more serious than that silly error, disclaimed any responsibility for the inaccuracy.
Sorry, I was being sarcastic (hence my use of the term "charismatic" taken from TS's own description of himself, above).
Universities (and more specifically) graduate programs are judged on the reputation and productivity of their entire department.
Well, maybe for more traditional schools, but FP's are concerned about the bottom line, for the school as well as students. If you get an MBA from Phoenix, you'll (probably) make more money or get that promotion at work. That's a win win for both sides. When you go for that promotion at work, your boss doesn't ask if your professors had anything published recently. They just see "MBA" and check that box off for the interviewee, and keep driving on.
their researchers are integrated into a community of scholars and are often leaders in their area of expertise.
Again, FP's don't care about their profs being integrated into a "community of scholars." 90% of them are adjunct, working, full time, in the area of their expertise, usually Business or Nursing or, sometimes, Education.
My problem is a potential lack of job market opportunities for graduates. For many educational decisions, you can look up information on future earnings or job prospects. The main professional organization in my discipline does a great job of this, and it is very clear that job prospects are good but not great.
Exactly. Also, as far as the Humanities go, one of the biggest complaints I've read on the CHE is that there isn't a way to determine how many grads are employed, and how many are slaving away at minimum wage as adjuncts somewhere. Remember, the goal of FP institutions is career education. Not scholarly work. Not liberal arts or education as a social virtue. It's about getting that BSN so you can go become a nurse. It's about getting that MBA so you can get a $10,000/year raise. It's about getting that Ed.D so you can get promoted to Assistant Principle because you'll never retire as a public school teacher making $40,000/year after 15 years. As an FP student, you're buying a ticket to more money. That's why the majority of my students are poor, often minority, first generation college students who would have trouble getting through the first year of a community college. That's why they're paying $12,000 for their freshman year of school; they desperately want to get out of their current situation and into a job that doesn't involve nametags and hairnets (if they have a job at all). They know nothing about higher ed, or peer reviewed anything. They just want a good job and a degree.
This is no information about the earnings, job stability, or economic value of for-profit degrees in academic journals.
There is, however, quite a bit of this in business journals. Also, if the company is public, you can look up their tax statements, etc, and get much of this info.
we are asked to trust for-profit universities that seem to be misrepresenting themselves in other ways.
Not really. The Admissions Reps at my school are very honest with the students. Yes, it's expensive. Yes, you'll have to pay it back. Etc. However, for students coming from the lower end of the socioeconomic spectrum, how much are they listening to this? How real is "this BA will cost you $50,000 and you'll have to pay it back" to them? A 22 year old with four kids who takes the bus across town to take my class can't conceived of $50,000; she just wants to live somewhere safe, and needs a lot of extra help to stay in class (at a state uni, even if she got in, she would most likely drop out in the first two weeks. Non-traditional students need a lot of handholding).
For-profit universities have an direct financial incentive to enroll and graduate more students, yet these students are (at least) unprepared for many university jobs.
So do non-profits. If you don't think there's pressure to keep and graduate students at "regular" state colleges, you haven't been paying attention. Also, the mission of FP's isn't to get students a university job; that's for traditional, non-profit schools. No one should be going to an FP with the idea that he or she will get a TT job anywhere in any subject. Is it impossible? No. Is it even more difficult than all of those people from high-ranked, traditional schools? Absolutely.
Outside of the university, some may be successful (such as TS and his 'six figure salary') but isn't there a limit on the amount of for-profit university graduates that can make money as consultants or teaching at other for-profits?
As far as I know, there isn't a limit to how much anyone can make, regardless of background, so I'm not sure what you mean here.
For-profit education would seem to take this problem and amplify it by providing a financial incentive to increase the supply of students with degrees that may be unrelated to job market success.
It's the opposite, actually. The reason FP's don't offer English and Humanities degrees is that the ROI is abmissal. They want to show how much money their graduates make (and they do, almost all of them). English degrees tend to make much less than, say, Accountants.
I have huge issues with FP education, but you've got to understand what their mission is, and why they do what they do. They are career education institutions, whatever their accreditation. Some are better than others, but their goal is the same.
