WGU graduates ?

Da-Regulator

Hey I'm new to the site and was looking in to WGU. WGU looks pretty accredited how do employers look at it. I dont won't to waste my time if people look at it, and don't think its a valued education.

I liked the information on it thought. I'm in Iraq right now and was trying to find a respected online college for IT security.

If anyone could drop me a line or something let me know I'd really appreciate it. Thanks.

Sounds Good

i'd like to know this as well. contemplating attending WGU.

-Foxer-

It's accredited, so it's basically the same as any other state school.

In my own experience, people haven't really asked much about it. They just see the degree and seem to accept it. On a few occasions though, they've been curious about it, and I told them a little about it. In either case it didn't seem like they had any problem with it.

Da-Regulator

Thats awesome they accept it. Its amazing you can get a bachelor degree for under $25000, and all those certs. I'm apply and see what the counselor says about doing classes from Iraq.

Oh yea thanks for letting me know about the employers.

demonfurbie

Da-Regulator wrote: »

Thats awesome they accept it. Its amazing you can get a bachelor degree for under $25000, and all those certs. I'm apply and see what the counselor says about doing classes from Iraq.

Oh yea thanks for letting me know about the employers.

let me know i can refer ya in to wave that 65 fee

uhtrinity

Da-Regulator wrote: »

Thats awesome they accept it. Its amazing you can get a bachelor degree for under $25000, and all those certs. I'm apply and see what the counselor says about doing classes from Iraq.

Oh yea thanks for letting me know about the employers.

Testing centers might be an issue, mainly for the Pearson vue and Prometric exams. WGU webcam exams maybe an issue due to internet speed / latency and / or privacy.

Sounds Good

i also have a question about the grading. how is it done? from what i've seen, its not letter based.

erpadmin

Sounds Good wrote: »

i also have a question about the grading. how is it done? from what i've seen, its not letter based.

Explanation of Grade Equivalent of B



WGU, as a competency-based university, defines competency as the ability to perform a job/role to defined, established standards in the real world. In other words, a graduate who possesses the knowledge, skills and abilities needed to be successful on the first day at work is deemed competent. Thus, competent graduates are those who are conversant with the content of the domains of knowledge and skill of their particular degree program and are ready to succeed in the working world. Psychometricians at WGU have translated competency into proactive assessment development processes and procedures to ensure passing scores are consistent with our intended interpretation. With “C” being a minimal level, and thus one not assuring competency, WGU equates competency with the grade level of “B.”
We set passing standards (cut scores) for our competency exams using the Modified Angoff approach. We use the Modified Angoff approach because it is a standardized method for setting passing standards that meets all applicable national testing standards for fairness, is consistent with the type of scoring interpretations we use at WGU, and meets legal defensibility requirements. In this method, we organize workshops of Subject Matter Experts (SME) who know about the content of the exam and are familiar with first-day-on-the-job practitioners in the given field(s). During the workshop these SME judges determine the difficulty of each test item, i.e., the proportion of competent graduates who would correctly answer each test item. Standard setting judges are taught to visualize a group of competent graduates—analogous to those with a B average. By way of comparison, we contrast this group with a “minimally qualified” person who may (or may not) succeed on their first day at work (a C student) and an experienced or expert worker (an A student). In this way, our competency exam passing standards (cut scores) can be interpreted as the score that would be achieved by competent graduates—those who would likely finish a traditional program with a "B" average.
We set standards for Performance Task, laboratory, observation, clinical, and portfolio assessments using the “B” grade analogy above. Passing for these assessments is always set such that candidates must score at the level of “3” on a four-point scale, or the equivalent.

http://kb.wgu.edu/display/2/index.asp?c=12&cpc=3041r5ddxF0IetxgscnfYq4KF2b&cid=3&cat=&catURL=&r=0.5303156

Sounds Good

erpadmin wrote: »

http://kb.wgu.edu/display/2/index.asp?c=12&cpc=3041r5ddxF0IetxgscnfYq4KF2b&cid=3&cat=&catURL=&r=0.5303156

so no, it doesn't use a letter system. what do you say when an employer asks you what was your GPA during an interview?

ehnde

Sounds Good wrote: »

so no, it doesn't use a letter system. what do you say when an employer asks you what was your GPA during an interview?

I've never been asked what my GPA was in a job interview. Beyond having a degree interviewers almost exclusively care more about experience. A WGU degree is regionally accredited and just as valid as any other state college degree.

erpadmin

Sounds Good wrote: »

so no, it doesn't use a letter system. what do you say when an employer asks you what was your GPA during an interview?

According to WGU, all of your "Passed" courses will equal to a 3.00 (B). No matter what, you are pretty much going to be a 3.00 student if you graduate with a WGU degree. No chance to be Magna Cum Laude or anything like that.

And as was previously mentioned, hardly any employer asks about a GPA...unless you went to some Div-1 school or Ivy League or something. For the most part, they just care about a degree.

To put it in better perspective, the highest diploma I have is high school. (With some college...that does/did count for something). I make $88k a year as a DBA(starting 1/1/2011--currently it's $84k ).

It's all good. See below from more goodies from the WGU handbook.

Transcripts include four possible marks:

• Pass: Certifies successful completion of a course of study. The student has demonstrated the required competencies by passing the final assessment with a grade equivalent of B or better or 3.00 grade points on a 4.00 scale.
• Not Passed: Indicates that a student failed to complete a course of study in the time allotted. To meet program requirements, the student generally re-enrolls for the course of study in a subsequent term.
• Transfer: Signifies that the student has completed equivalent work at another regionally or nationally accredited institution.
• Withdrawn: Represents that the student was withdrawn from the university or course before term completion.

The University does not calculate a grade point average (GPA).

One competency unit is the equivalent of one semester hour credit of learning in traditional grading systems.

Grades are transcripted upon completion of a course of study, but courses of study in progress will not show on the transcript until the end of a term.

-Foxer-

Sounds Good wrote: »

so no, it doesn't use a letter system. what do you say when an employer asks you what was your GPA during an interview?

I've never been asked either. I don't think it's something that most employers care about. They just want to know if you have a degree or not.

Mike-Mike

I know several people on this board are students at WGU, is anyone here a graduate other than the guy that did it all in one semester? more importanly have you been on a job interview and been asked about your WGU Degree?

petedude

Mike-Mike wrote: »

I know several people on this board are students at WGU, is anyone here a graduate other than the guy that did it all in one semester? more importanly have you been on a job interview and been asked about your WGU Degree?

Mike,

Scroll up a bit. I think you'll find your answers.

Chris:/*

Standford does not use GPA and unless you have a title at the end of your degree no one cares.

uhtrinity

Sounds Good wrote: »

so no, it doesn't use a letter system. what do you say when an employer asks you what was your GPA during an interview?

3.0+, wasn't even questioned for a FBI help desk job in 2008. That was before I had finished the BS and still got an offer.

joshmadakor

erpadmin wrote: »

I make $88k a year as a DBA

I didn't know you were such a boss

erpadmin

joshmadakor wrote: »

I didn't know you were such a boss

Trust me...I'm no ones boss. I have seniority over folks, but it's not the same.

I'll be sure to bookmark this page and find it again when I do become a boss though.

(A little secret about my salary...I came into my job at ~$64k...same title I have now...my raises are dictated by labor agreements...I came in at the 4th step and now I'm entering my 9th...it will take 2 years after my 9th step to reach the 10th and final step...then I have two choices...fight for a title change, or bounce...but if I bounce, I'll be able to get boss status and money...)

Ryuuzakumi

demonfurbie wrote: »

let me know i can refer ya in to wave that 65 fee

What if you've already paid the fee? I'm enrolled in the masters program in social science education. Haven't taken the readiness assessment yet. Still waiting to hear back on whether or not I can get financial aid. Excited to start!

CoolAsAFan

I'm still a student so I can't say personally about what employers think of WGU, but I have read plenty of success stories and relatively no negativity about how employers look at a WGU degree.I don't think you will be able to do WGU in Irag. Some exams you can do online with a webcam, but most you have to go to an authorized testing center and actually take in person. I highly doubt there are any of these testing sites where you are located, but I could be wrong and its perhaps worth checking out.

markulous

I have never heard of employers asking for your GPA...

I would not see why employers would look down on it. It's non-profit and regionally accredited; just as good as any other University.