Community college vs. ITT Tech/DeVry

Hey folks,

I'm in the infant stages of starting a pursuit somewhere in IT. Obviously going to a community college for Certification would both expedite the process, and save me several thousand from a school like ITT Tech/DeVry for an AD/BD.

But my question is, would it serve me better to attend an ITT Tech/DeVry over a community college? Or do I stand the same chances landing a job going to a CC?

Any help would be appreciated.

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Comments

NetworkVeteran

ADR86 wrote: »

But my question is, would it serve me better to attend an ITT Tech/DeVry over a community college? Or do I stand the same chances landing a job going to a CC?

Employers are mostly going to care about which certifications you attained, not so much how you studied for them. Whether you attend a private school for a year, a community college for 3 months, or self-study for one month, the result is the same. You either learned the material well enough to pass the certification exams and express it in an interview or you did not.

(This assumes, of course, you weren't attending college for an actual accredited degree.)

Cora5

You can save yourself a great deal of money going to a community college. If you must have a degree with DeVry on it, then take all of the core courses at the community college and transfer your credits to DeVry. Do your homework first. Go to the program administrator at the private school of your choice to see if they will accept credits from the community college.

I've been a lurker on this site for several months and had to respond to your post. I went to DeVry back when Bell Labs owned it. A degree from them at that time was highly regarded. I just wished someone back then would have gave me the advice I'm giving you today. Would have saved myself a lot of money and grief.

ajs1976

If you pick one of the tech schools, make sure they have the proper regional accreditation so if you want to transfer credits to a 4 year school at least some of the classes will transfer.

ADR86

good information in here, thanks everybody.

Nice to see you can still get a quality entry level career without being +30k in student loan debt.

However, this does lead to another question. Do employers even VALUE going to school? because my assumption now is that you can be self taught, (some) employers just want to see certs.

could anyone advise on that?

thanks again!

amcnow

ajs1976 wrote: »

If you pick one of the tech schools, make sure they have the proper regional accreditation so if you want to transfer credits to a 4 year school at least some of the classes will transfer.

To that end, avoid ITT Tech like the plague. They are not regionally accredited. So good luck transferring credits. Also, my personal experience with them was less than pleasant.

At least DeVry is regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC). With that said, they are still for-profit. I can't speak on experience. I can say their tuition is exorbitant at best.

You may actually have a better chance of landing a job with a degree from a community college over one from ITT Tech or DeVry. For-profit institutions in general have a less than stellar reputation in the work force, but especially ITT Tech. If I knew then what I know now, I would have chosen community college. You should do the same. If you desire a 4 year degree, just transfer your CC credits (or degree) to a regionally accredited non-profit university.

ADR86 wrote: »

good information in here, thanks everybody.

Nice to see you can still get a quality entry level career without being +30k in student loan debt.

However, this does lead to another question. Do employers even VALUE going to school? because my assumption now is that you can be self taught, (some) employers just want to see certs.

could anyone advise on that?

thanks again!

With anything above help desk or desktop support, I see quite the opposite. I find many employers now require higher education, with some going as far as requiring a bachelor's degree. I need more fingers to count the number of people I know were sent back to school, by their employers, to finish their degrees. Long gone are the days when lack of higher education was the norm. These days, everyone seems to be earning degrees (even if many of them are from degree mills like ITT Tech).

Xyro

ADR86 wrote: »

Do employers even VALUE going to school? because my assumption now is that you can be self taught, (some) employers just want to see certs.

could anyone advise on that?

Some may not like my answer, but if I could do it all again... I would not waste my time with "school" at the technical college level. I would have continued my self-study pursuing certifications & broken into the field that way.

So many told me that it couldn't be done that way & I didn't have access to a great forum like this one at the time, so I did what I thought was required. I went to "school". Not only did this waste my time but it also created "rust" in many of my knowledge areas as you don't learn much in a technical college... but you have to spend a lot of time doing it lol.

My experience thus far is that employers seem to mainly be interested in experience & certifications, not education - unless it's a Bachelor's or higher, so unless you plan to go to that level ... I would advise you that your time is better spent in pursuing certifications & landing an entry-level position, then working your way up from there.

Whatever you do, stay far away from ITT.

NetworkVeteran

Nice to see you can still get a quality entry level career without being +30k in student loan debt. However, this does lead to another question. Do employers even VALUE going to school?

Sure! Employers see lots of value in education. A good Bachelor's degree will give you a solid foundation for the future, especially a B.S. degree, and especially a CS/EE degree. Then again, you weren't talking about any of those. You were talking about ITT. If you pay $30k and make even an extra $10k/yr for the rest of your career, you've made a killing going to school, and often the benefits go beyond that. (Of course, implicit in this assumption, is you're not getting a degree in basket-weaving and then applying that to IT.)

To clarify, there are three categories--a trifecta!--employers care about:

+ Experience
+ Education
+ Certifications

You stated before you would be going to ITT or CC "for Certification". Once you have your certifications, it doesn't matter from a hiring perspective how you did it, as long as you have the certification and know the associated material.

Now, if you earned a relevant Bachelor's Degree, you can expect many to care.

ptilsen

Avoid ITT at all costs. Devry is at least regionally accredited, but I still wouldn't do it. Community College followed by a four-year public/not-for-profit university is the best plan, IMO. WGU is also a better option than Devry based on cost alone.

Going to a CC over ITT in particular will save you tens of thousands, not just thousands. A two-year degree from ITT costs in the neighborhood of $40,000, a four-year double. A two year-degree from a CC followed by a B.S. from a commuter university will, combined, be in the neighborhood of $25,000-$35,000, depending on your specific options and choices. WGU at a fast pace is even cheaper, with certifications built in.

Ultimately, certification material is best learned through self-study (WGU falls under this category), in my opinion. Degrees are better to pursue for their own value, and those from public or at least reputable private universities carry more weight, partially because of tradition, but more so because they have standards and you'll actually get more education.

boobobobobob

I dislike all vocational schools. They are expensive and all the certifications they promise, you can accomplish on your own with some self study. Go to a community college get your 2 year degree and self study all the Comptia tests.

detroital

I have to speak up about WGU. I am impressed with their agenda for IT, I was disappointed with their recruiter. I applied there and a recruiter called me. When I told him I had no certs (A+ or otherwise) I felt that the recruiter totally discouraged me from going. While not flat out saying I couldn't attend, I was very discouraged. This was a disappointment as I had hopes of gaining my certs through there. I may pursue this avenue later but for now I am in self study. Oh, and ITT? Well, you folks summed up well my feelings towards that institution.

phdillard

If you decide on community college see if they will give you credit for courses by already having certain certifications. I know the one in my town will give you credit for their A+ hardware and A+ software courses if you already have the A+, same for networking and the Net+, so you can save yourself a lot of time and money by self-studying and acquiring certain certifications before enrolling in courses.

Moon Child

Years ago when I first was thinking of getting a computer degree the first place I looked at was Devry. I had already been accepted at several state colleges( IU, Purdue, Iowa), but I liked what Devry had to offer better. Friends told me employers don't consider Devry a real college and consider their degrees to be worthless. Taking their advice I decided to go to a state college instead, IU. I will say I think the tech schools teach more technology to the student in a shorter amount of time then a traditional college and you get more hands on experience. One downside of the state college was it was more book based vs hands on based which is exactly what the Devry recruiter had told me. A lot more people to a class and not always the professor is the one teaching the class. College computer labs filled up quickly and the only way I could get on a computer was to wake up early in the morning to get a spot and stay there all day long. In fact I often found myself sharing a computer with other classmates, taking turns doing our coding and working on a computer.

On the job I met many graduates of tech colleges in IT and they actually did learn more about the technology field at their colleges and get more hands on experience. With a little work experience and the A+ cert though I felt I caught up to them. I felt the state college gave me a very broad education that may not have helped my career anymore, but definitely changed the way I look at the world. Some of the classes I enjoyed the most in college were in religious studies, philosophy, western civilization, minority studies, psychology and sociology. College changed me from a very conservative republican to a staunch democrat A traditional degree with a diverse range of classes also makes transitioning to another major later in life easier, I later went back to IU and got my Masters degree in Education.

QHalo

My degree is from DeVry. If I did it all over again I'd find somewhere cheaper. But honestly, if you have experience and good certs, the degree is nothing more than an HR check box. Get it as cheap as you can. Not one place I've interviewed has cared my degree was from DeVry. All in all, what school you went to matters more in things like medicine and law. Least that's my opinion. YMMV

chrisone

REMOVED UNNECESSARY QUOTE

Same boat and swam the same waters here. DeVry is pretty expensive but at least employers feel somewhat relieved you have a degree from a place that focuses on technology. DeVry is a bigger name than any local junior college, no matter how reputable that JC may be. A name is a name and we should not focus on who is better etc. Like QHalo mentioned, my certs and experience get me the jobs and calls. The degree is just to show you know how to write and read lol

Spaced

detroital wrote: »

I have to speak up about WGU. I am impressed with their agenda for IT, I was disappointed with their recruiter. I applied there and a recruiter called me. When I told him I had no certs (A+ or otherwise) I felt that the recruiter totally discouraged me from going. While not flat out saying I couldn't attend, I was very discouraged. This was a disappointment as I had hopes of gaining my certs through there. I may pursue this avenue later but for now I am in self study. Oh, and ITT? Well, you folks summed up well my feelings towards that institution.

I had the same issue. I ended up doing my first semester in BS IT Mgmt, but then I decided to push for it again and got in touch with the IT college program manager. All I have to do is get a cert, any recent cert. Since I am already enrolled, I am just getting project+ and CIW Foundations (both are required by the business and IT college) then I change programs. I opted to go this route so that I don't pay out of pocket for certs and have an organized method of study with materials provided. If I were you, I would just get your A+ or CIW Foundations (super easy) and then talk to WGU again. CIW you can knock out in less than a month no matter how busy you might be.

devils_haircut

Long-time lurker here, and also a current DeVry student. If I wasn't on the Post 9/11 GI Bill (meaning I pay zero tuition), I wouldn't be going to DeVry. But being a non-traditional student pushing 30 with a real job, DeVry works great for me. The instructors have been mostly good, and I like the fact that DeVry requires them to have at least a Master's degree PLUS working experience in the field they wish to teach. The downside, besides cost, is that DeVry doesn't hold your hand. You are expected to do things on your own, keep up with your school work, and put forth some effort. You can pass all your classes and not learn a thing, but if you care about the material and apply yourself, you will do alright.

I spent time at other universities (IU, IUPUI, and Ivy Tech community college), and I can say that I don't see much difference in the quality of my education. I'm in the Network and Communications Management program, and I like that there is less emphasis on the liberal arts and more focus on technology and networking classes. DeVry is expensive, but it's not a bad school.

Also, I don't work for them

coldgrip1

I graduated from DeVry in 2008 and landed an engineer job 2 weeks before I graduated. Yes that's an engineer position and not a technician position. When I started, I realized why they hired me so quickly. That small company had one IT guy and he was a DeVry grad. The department lead was a DeVry grad. The owner of the company was a self taught millionaire with no degree of any kind. But he loved DeVry grads especially EET grads. He always submitted a request for interview with the top 1 or 2 grads a month before school ended. His reasoning: DeVry students are either smart as heck or dumb as heck. I would say 7 out of 10 are dumb as heck, and 1 or 2 smart ones. I graduated with a 4.0 from DeVry. Not smart by any means, but I outworked every other student in the class and in the lab. I spent 2 years at San Jose State University and dropped out becuz the scheduling didn't mesh with my work schedule, professors were very difficult to reach, and classes were always overcrowded. If you put in the time, DeVry is a good place to learn. Professors are excellent and they give you personal attention in and out of class. With that said, don't go to DeVry. It's too gaddamm expensive, and if you study something like BSEET (electronics engineering technology), be prepared to get laughed at by EE guys. They design, we manufacture. Two very different things. Those guys make six figures. We make 50k-60k a year. On paper, they're equivalent, but they're not.

eansdad

If you are looking to go to college and start in IT the best place to start is a good community college program and the CompTIA triad (A+, Net+ and Sec+). A good internship and your set, our local community college used to have a class requirement for an internship for a semester. Unfortunately the new Dean decided to axe it.

devils_haircut

MentholMoose wrote: »

ITT Tech and DeVry have been absent from these competitions (at least the ones I've seen), but maybe they don't have an IT security program.

They don't. They have:

Network Communications Management - B.S.
Computer Information Systems (with multiple tracks) - B.S.
Network Administration - A.S.

They also have ECT, CET, EET, and BMET programs.

EDIT: I stand corrected, one of the tracks for CIS is Info Systems Security.

blinkme323

I would be very wary of Devry (and ITT tech for that matter). I have some very close contacts in the IT recruiting industry and degrees from Devry are roundly dismissed (that's putting it nicely).

I also work for a large Healthcare company, and have seen first hand resumes be discarded due to them having Devry and other for-profits listed as education.

aspiringsoul

ITT Tech graduate here. In hindsight, I regret going to ITT very much. That being said, the reason that I was selected by my current employer was because I possessed that degree. They selected me over several candidates with a degree from the local community college. One of my most beneficial classes was the last class that I had that prepared us for interviews and even had an HR manager give us a mock interview. That class really prepared me for an interview that I would have otherwise not have been prepared for. I've taken classes at the local community college, and I'm actually just 9 credits shy of having an AAS there in IT, but what's the point since I'm already enrolled for my bacheolor degree. An AAS is kind of irrelevant when you possess a BS, in my opinion. I had a much better experience with ITT Tech's classes over the on-site classes at my community college. The ITT Tech classes provided us with 4 hours of lab time, while the community college classes were just around an hour. Now, my experience with the community college's online classes for Information Security were probably the most beneficial online classes that I've ever taken. In one class, we connected to a VMware server at the community college through a VPN connection and compromised a virtual W2k Server using metasploit (this was extremely fun!)

That being said, the high cost of tuition is just not worth it. If you want to be competitive in today's job market, you'll need a bachelor degree and you should view an AAS as a stepping stone to get there. Many universities have 2+2 programs if you possess an AAS from an accredited community college. You can get a bachelor degree from an accredited community college (WGU or state university) for much less than an AAS from Devry or ITT Tech. Don't go to for profit schools like these. You will regret it.Now, some employers have an aversion toward ITT Tech/Devry grads, and I understand why. The admission requirements for ITT Tech were a joke. You could be clinically brain-dead and get accepted there (not having to have an acceptable ACT/SAT score is a big red flag!) However, over half of the people in my Computer Network Systems program dropped out (some couldn't keep up, others for financial reasons, and others because they didn't want to attend anymore). With that being said, some of the best IT Pros that I know are ITT Tech/Devry graduates. I know a couple of very successful Devry graduates. My former teacher from ITT Tech has his own company and he only employs graduates from ITT Tech (he even offered me a job). So, it really depends on the HR manager's preference I suppose, but I would say there are a fair amount that are apprehensive about selecting a candidate from for-profit schools such as these.

The ITT Tech undergraduates that I know all regret going to ITT Tech because of the inflated cost, including me.

ITT Tech AAS degree: $40,000+
AAS from local community college: Less than $10,000

I would prefer Devry over ITT Tech, only because they ARE regionally accredited and they DO have at least some admission requirements.Don't waste your money, you won't start out making more money just because you have a degree from Devry or ITT Tech (In most cases).My recommendation, go to a community college, get your AAS and then transfer to a University for your bachelor degree OR skip the AAS, and enroll for a BS program at a state school or WGU. WGU will be much cheaper, but the competency based approach isn't for everybody.

filkenjitsu

As someone who went to ITT for my associates and Keller Graduate School (Devry) for my masters, I can tell you that I learned a lot, enjoyed, and got a lot of utility from my degrees at both schools. I had 100% tuition reimbursement though....100% including books and fees... DO NOT go to an expensive school unless you have tuition reimbursement.

Here is what I would do now if I did not have tuition reimbursement: fund the cheapest and fastest schools.

I think you need a degree, especially if you want a title with engineer in it or if you want to work for a larger company. It is a requirement for every position at my company which is a service provider unless you have lots of experience. But the guys I work with who got jobs here have lots of experience and degrees. Most people I work with have masters degrees. I am working to finish my 2nd masters now.

Again, you need a degree in my experience and opinion....

Let me reiterate my advice: make a list of 5 - 10 schools (community colleges, online schools, state schools, etc.) and puck the 4 schools that will let you complete your degree the fastest. Once you have those 4 schools, compare the prices and the style of learning.

You can get a large number of classes finished by using CLEP and DANTES tests which are like certification tests for subjects such as English, Biology, Math, etc. All schools accept these tests as college credit as these tests were pretty much setup by the education system/government for military personnel. Most tests require you to get a 55 or 60% passing grade to get the credit. That percentage is a failing percentage in college..... Think about it. You cram the subject, eek out a failing grade on the test, and you have now passed that college class..... .

Unless you are going to school for engineering or computer science, I see no reason not to just get your degrees as fast as possible since you will more so be relying on you certification study and training for job skills.

Some colleges inline that are regionally accredited can help you get a bachelors in 12 to 14 months and the. A masters in 12 months. Go that route....

neo9006

I would say the community college route as well as some of the posters said, as for ITT, I have heard plenty of bad stories, having just recalled a guy was having a hard time transferring his credits when I was in going after my degree this was like 20 years back. I can't say anything about Devry since I havn't gone there. As for what one poster said you can do a 2+2 degree, you can get a Bachelors in Applied Arts and Science, that is what I am getting in Dec after transferring alot of my hours to a brick and morter school. I think it depends on where you go to college and the state, I pay about 3k a semester right now for 12 hours plus books or a little less. Good luck on your journey.

networkjutsu

This DeVry and ITT Tech vs name a school here has been covered many times. You'll mostly see people say bad things about them. You'll also see graduates who regret going to them. I, on the other hand, do not really regret going to DeVry. I wasn't ready to "start over" to go to a better college. I chose it because they were very generous in giving me credits from previous college work (back home) and here in the US. If I went to DePaul University, I would've probably gotten only 20-30 credits and would probably have to pay more than $50K+ for tuition, books and etc. As I've mentioned in previous thread, I've gotten around 60 credits transferred towards my BS degree which cut down the cost. The only regret I have is the cost. I would've picked WGU and saved money if I had known about it at the time.

QHalo wrote: »

Not one place I've interviewed has cared my degree was from DeVry. YMMV

chrisone wrote: »

Like QHalo mentioned, my certs and experience get me the jobs and calls.

I have to agree with my fellow DeVry graduates with what they mentioned. It's also worth to mention that even though the places that we've interviewed didn't care about where we received our degrees from, it is possible that there were also employers who trashed our resumes and never got a call back. With all the HR software that they have now to screen resumes, it's quite easy to discriminate on where the candidate received their degree from.

To the people who say DeVry is expensive, let's not forget that other private schools that are not for-profit organization are also expensive. Last week, I am revisiting the idea of starting my Masters (always crosses my mind) and noticed that DeVry's cost is around $30K while DePaul University's cost is around $40K. Have you also seen RIT's cost? It's even more expensive than DePaul. Yes, both has better reputation than DeVry, but do you want to pay more more than $10K for the reputation? That's something to consider as well. Some will definitely say it's worth it and some may be hesitant to pay much more given that most people choose to take a loan to finish the program as soon as they can. I do get the point that DeVry's reputation isn't as good as other colleges/universities so it is expensive for what you get. As what I've said in the past, pick whatever that will work for you - cost, scheduling, and etc. Consider the cost first since not a whole lot of people are lucky to get a job in their field as soon as they graduate. That said, consider WGU first before you look at other options. Their low cost is a game changer in my opinion. I wish more colleges/universities follow their path but I very much doubt it unless the bubble burst.

I'll leave you guys with this article I read last week. It may change what people think or may not but it shouldn't be where you got your college degree from or what degree it is but should be based on what you can offer. Bill Gates And His Foundation: Employers Should Focus On Skills, NOT College Degrees

MeatCatalogue

You'll never get off the helpdesk if you can't write. If you can't speak you'll soon be outsourced. The point is, community college will help you in the long run a lot more than any tech degree.

Go to community college part time and study for certs part time. At CC it may not be the world's best education but they won't pass someone who can't read, write or speak.

ptilsen

MeatCatalogue wrote: »

You'll never get off the helpdesk if you can't write.

I disagree. You'll get fired for poor written communication. That will get you off the helpdesk fast enough.

Regarding Devry, I have an overall negative perception of it, and would always rank it below a public university, even though I know it actually teaches more infrastructure skills than probably any public university. I have an even more negative perceptions of ITT, even though it, too, actually teaches good infrastructure skills and I have an A.A.S. from ITT. Bottom line, having a degree from either school is better than no degree, but worse than pretty much any public school, and more expensive. And while yes, there are plenty of other private universities that are just as or more expensive, most of them at least carry some prestige over Devry and ITT and regional accreditation, which is important.

An aggregate, both private and public universities with regional accreditation churn out smarter, more well-rounded candidates who probably know less about infrastructure, but may well go further. Of course, there are plenty of exceptions (myself and probably several other TE members), and I think disqualifying a candidate or hiring one based purely on school choice is misguided. However, an ITT or Devry grad is going to get a little more scrutiny and have more points to earn, if you will, than a grad of a "better" school.

Ultimately, at this point, there is simply no reason for a prospective IT professional to choose ITT or Devry over other options. CC followed by finishing a four-year degree at WGU or any public university is a more affordable option that will turn out a better-credentialed candidate. WGU is better than ITT and Devry, period, and even just going straight to WGU probably makes more sense for most prospective professionals.

devils_haircut

ptilsen wrote: »

I disagree. You'll get fired for poor written communication. That will get you off the helpdesk fast enough.

Regarding Devry, I have an overall negative perception of it, and would always rank it below a public university, even though I know it actually teaches more infrastructure skills than probably any public university.

...most of them at least carry some prestige over Devry and ITT and regional accreditation, which is important.

A) DeVry is regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and is a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.

Why do you look down on people from DeVry, if you don't mind me asking? Have you taken classes there? Do you know anyone that has? My understanding is that some campuses aren't that great, but the one I attend here in Indianapolis has been stellar. I say that as someone who has attended several state schools and a local community college, so my experience is somewhat broad.

Kimura410

I went to community college just to figure out what field I was in to. I took the intro IT class, programming, operating systems, and security. I just got my Associates and used the IT classes as electives so it worked out. I plan to take a few more here and there just to learn or experience something that I may really be in to, but do not have plans right now to get a bachelors degree, don't see the point.

I have no certifications yet, but the two recent classes I took fully prepared me to take A+ and security+. I also received a free voucher to take my security+ because I was a top student in the security class, so basically the class or test (however you choose to look at it) have now become free. Most entry level jobs I have researched do not require a bachelors, but some do require an Associates.

My plan is to get the certifications and then apply for an entry level job somewhere, then learn while on the job and perhaps the company I work for will one day pay for further education.

Had I not started any classes at community college yet, I would just focus on self studying and nailing some certs. It is good to at least have that associates though. Besides, my experience in community college was fairly easy and equally cheap. I have heard nothing but bad things about ITT tech (credits are non transferrable, its very expensive) I feel as though self studying and maybe some inexpensive classes at a community college will get you the same results. Basically, I agree with everyone else lol.

ptilsen

devils_haircut wrote: »

A) DeVry is regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and is a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.

I realize. I didn't mean to imply it wasn't, although I clearly did exactly that. ITT is not regionally accredited, which was why I mentioned that.

devils_haircut wrote: »

Why do you look down on people from DeVry, if you don't mind me asking? Have you taken classes there? Do you know anyone that has? My understanding is that some campuses aren't that great, but the one I attend here in Indianapolis has been stellar. I say that as someone who has attended several state schools and a local community college, so my experience is somewhat broad.

Devry is private, for-profit, and expensive, yet lacks the prestige of a more traditional private, for-profit school or even a public university. My understanding is also that like ITT (and, to a lesser extent, WGU), it has low admission requirements and is fairly easy to get through. All this being said, I would certainly place Devry well above ITT and probably University of Phoenix. And admittedly, it has been two years since I did any in-depth research on each school.

Admittedly, I have not taken classes there. But, I have generally not heard good things about it from those who have, and have read plenty of bad reviews online. My understanding is that like ITT, DeVry is predatory and essentially targets working adults for what is a grossly overpriced degree. And at $80,381, according to the current calculator, it is certainly overpriced. I also ran through its calculator my actual financial information, and it spat out that I would qualify for $26,000 in grants. I can assure you without a doubt I qualify for $0 in grants. Most of that is Pell Grants, which have an income threshold I am way above (and this was evident in the info I entered). They are clearly overpromising financial aid that can surely not be delivered. This alone is evidence of the predatory nature of this type of school. Of course, I'm sure plenty of more reputable schools behave similarly, but I haven't seen anything quite this bad. Even ITT didn't try to lie about qualifying for grants for which I didn't qualify even five years and half my income ago.

Overall, I don't want to exaggerate how I would react to someone with a DeVry agree. I'd give them full consideration, certainly, if all else was in line with job requirements. Again, my own degree is certainly worse, and I've done just fine despite that. However, if I see a similar degree from pretty much any public university, I would look more favorably on it. And more importantly than how I or prospective employers view candidates, I think I've sufficiently made my point that going to Devry is irrational. There is nothing DeVry is providing that justifies an extra $50-60K over WGU or public universities.

devils_haircut

ptilsen wrote: »

There is nothing DeVry is providing that justifies an extra $50-60K over WGU or public universities.

Fair enough, and thanks for taking the time to respond. I admit, if the government wasn't footing the bill for my education, I'd be going somewhere cheaper. But I like the class schedules, the pace, and the responsibility it takes to keep up with the mostly self-study classes. It's a more independent learning experience than the state schools I attended, and I think it encourages a sink-or-swim mentality that causes a lot of people to drop out and post bitter comments online. DeVry will take in anyone that can foot the bill (almost anyone...I believe the acceptance rate is 93%, while the graduation rate is closer to 30-35%). But they are a private, for-profit institution, so I don't blame them for that. Plenty of people get suckered in, pay $550+ per credit hour here, then realize they aren't college material and drop out. But I can honestly say that now that I've reached 300 and 400 level classes, the only people remaining are the ones that actually care about their education.