University of Phoenix, DeVry: Scams That Leave You "Dumber" and Poorer

http://www.alternet.org/economy/148021/university_of_phoenix,_devry:_scams_that_leave_you_%22dumber%22_and_poorer?page=entire

For-profit college target the poor and minorities, and students who enroll end up with debt that far outweighs that of their nonprofit and public school peers.


If you’ve spent any length of time in an urban community in the U.S., I’m sure you’ve seen the ads on public transportation or heard the television commercials from schools where you can train to be a medical assistant or a computer technician. But before you or someone you know signs up for a “promising career” at one of those for-profit colleges, take heed!

For-profit colleges have been around for years. The University of Phoenix, Sanford Brown, DeVry University, and ITT Technical Institute are just a few of the more popular ones. It appears that these schools target minorities, low income individuals and anyone dumb enough to believe their ads. The most memorable are the commercials from ITT Technical Institute: Because you can’t get the jobs of tomorrow until you get the skills today. Start by calling ITT Technical Institute.

But I’m here to tell you these schools are not the answer to a promising career! I think schools like ITT are a money sucking scam! With record unemployment in the U.S. and African Americans making up a large percentage of the unemployed, I fear that more African Americans may be lured into the trap of dishonest for-profit schools only to find themselves with a degree or certificate that they cannot use and loads of debt that they cannot pay.

According to data provided by U.S. Department of Education, students who enroll in for-profit colleges end up with debt that far outweighs that of their nonprofit and public school peers. The data showed that last year 350,000 University of Phoenix students were responsible for repaying almost $5 billion in outstanding loans, yet only 44 percent of them had the financial means to repay their loans. Don’t get me wrong, students who attend public universities can graduate with large amounts of debt as well. However, all of my friends who’ve gone to 4-year accredited public or nonprofit universities have gained skills and jobs that have allowed them to pay off their loans. I can’t say the same for friends who’ve enrolled in schools like ITT Technical Institute or the University of Phoenix.

More at the link ---

bothers me. The ad is about degrees in criminal justice. The ad uses very careful language about training people to be paralegals. They say that they give the critical thinking skills needed to obtain an entry level position. They never actually say that they grant a paralegal degree.

They better not say that. My daughter is a paralegal. She has a post- baccalaureate certificate. She obtained a B.A. from Iowa State, and a post-baccalaureate certificate from Roosevelt University. Both are fully accredited and respected.

The ITT ad does say at the end, in small print, that the credits obtained there will not transfer. I wonder if their "counselors" give this advice and those disclaimers to prospective students, or if they wait to be asked. At eighteen, I would not have thought to ask. I wanted to know the costs and the living arrangements. But I knew that I had already chosen a reputable school.

setting. She's 'helping' in some way that's not clearly explained. A young gullible person might think the program leads to a nursing degree.

I was quite impressed with what I saw and ready to sign on the dotted line until I heard what it would cost. I went with the local university's equivalent program for about an eighth the cost and have done quite nicely since graduating.

They've been around as long as I can remember and they're loaded with salespeople that are about as reputable as military recruiters.

slinking through a warehouse. An expensive degree is not needed to be a security guard.

of establishing credible online learning opportunities at a fraction of the cost of attending a college? Once the revised student loan forgiveness takes off (push the numbers on the 10 year forgiveness for public sector workers for example) and you are going to see tuitions rise to consume these extra dollars at our traditional universities. As far as I can tell universities do everything possible to fleece their students as well. Their meal plans are expensive. Textbooks are insanely high with no effort to correct the situation (come on a new textbook in most fields every two years is ridiculous). They force you to support the sports programs by mandatory fees for an activities pass. If you are middle class you are considered a cash cow.