The Sing Off

Is Capella University a school worth going to?

I need to find an accredited college to get my Accounting Bachelor's Degree. I need something that allows me to take night classes and/or online classes. I have a friend who is taking classes at Capella University, and she says she loves it. I just want some more opinions on whether their degrees are worth anything to employers or not. Or maybe some other university ideas?...

Public Comments

1. No. It's a for-profit school with a poor reputation. Employers have been known to toss any job application listing a Capella degree directly into the trash. 70% of Capella students are female, and 45% are minorities. Most of these students would not be accepted in schools of higher reputation. Most Capella degree programs do not have programmatic accreditation. Graduates of Capella degrees must endure the barely suppressed snickers of friends and colleagues their entire careers. Try Athabasca University. ADDED It's interesting that all the positive Answers to this question came within a one hour period, three days after the Question was posted, mostly by Responders who joined Q!A just today June 1/10... The Question is being spammed by Capella "ambassadors"...
2. In today's world more employers are taking into consideration an individuals' hectic schedule and the need to find "alternative" means of accomplishing your educational degrees. With this being said, I am currently attending Capella University to obtain my PhD in I/O Psychology. It has been a lengthy process for me, but I am pleased with Capella. I would recommend the University to anyone interested in continuing their education. I would recommend that you contact the University and speak to an enrollment counselor. They will answer any questions you may have to finalize your decision. I wish you the best of luck.
3. I think so and it is accredited . There are others but at Capella you are responsible for your own success or failure.
4. Capella University is an accredited school even at the PHD level; Capella University degrees are definitely worthy to any employer. You will find the academic and IT staffs professional, reliable, flexible, and responsive. The online curriculum is vast and the courses are not easy; students, practitioners and scholars are required to respond to other students just as in a classroom setting. If you are looking for a challenging and rewarding educational program you will be extremely pleased with Capella University.
5. Yes, Capella University is wonderful. The support staff and teachers are very knowledgeable. The schools accreditation's are on point. For example I am enrolled in the Masters program in mental health counseling. For me to even take the license exam in my state I would need 48 hours of class time, a certain amount of residences and so on and Capella offers all of that plus more. The school would need to be CACREP accredited and they are. So, in all the school offers everything that i need and the classroom is set up in such a way that it allows me to discuss topics with fellow learners and also the teachers. I have called in numerous of times to talk to counselors to make sure that I will be happy with this degree and they always listen and point me in the right direction. They also help you research your degree so that you can see the types of jobs you can apply for after graduating. Well I hope this helps.
6. Hi Nick - I have both a master's and Ph.D. from Capella and have been very successful. Employers have not questioned my degrees and I work at a four-year public university, so that gives you a pretty good idea of the quality of the education. The flexibility of the programs and the interest of the faculty is what made the experience so rewarding and my work so valuable. Good luck!
7. I'll start with a disclaimer--I did get my PhD degree from Capella. There is always the perception that an online degree is not as good as a degree from a "real" university. Well, e-mail was not considered "real" compared with fax and there would not have been Google, Yahoo!, Amazon, and others if it wasn't for the Internet revolution. My "day job" is as a Vice President of Corporate Strategy for a public corporation, and my "night job" is as an adjunct professor for technology forecasting in the graduate school of management in UT Dallas. I don't seem to have a problem with my "online" degree. In fact--UTD is now responding to student requests to move more and more classes online, and is struggling to catch up, where Capella (and a few other universities) have already established themselves. Let me assure you--the study at Capella was as real as it gets. I worked hard for 3 years until I heard the words "congratulations, Dr. Solomon" at the end of my dissertation defense conference call. When I initially did my research on which university to take, I first checked for accreditation. Capella is accredited like any other university in the area, and it is proactive on keeping its accreditation status. I liked their program, which has put me in charge of my progress, like another person on this thread commented. Finally--would I preffer a Ph.D from Harvard over Capella? You bet! But would I be able to work full time, support a family at a good lifestyle while paying tuition to Harvard? Not so sure... If I could take myself 4 years back to the decision to enroll in Capella--I would do it all over again. By the way--just like some employers (in the education sector, mainly) might criticize you or discount a degree from Capella, they might do the same if you went to the University of North Texas, University of California at Santa Barbara, University of Colorado at Boulder, or any other university that it not on their favorite list... Watch out for those biases... My two cents...
8. I am a 2009 graduate of Capella, with a PhD in Education. I have not had one employer even smirk at my qualifications. The truth is Capella is an accredited university. The course work has few limitations on it, but you will definitely work to achieve the minimum grade needed to stay enrolled. The questions are not simple textbook regurgitation: critical thinking is an essention part of the method employed. I highly recommend Capella University, especially for post-grad work.
9. I have cited my doctorate from Capella in applying for adjunct positions on faculty at various universities. Those who interviewed me indicated no bias against Capella and were impressed that I'd finished. I believe I got a good education there, challenging, with academic rigor; and I learned a lot. I also built a network of colleagues who continue to be a source of support. There are always some who will question a degree earned from a non-traditional university. Online and non-traditional learning, however, is where higher education is headed; and much of the resistance comes from those who've only learned in brick and mortar schools and do not understand distance learning. By the way, I have seen people earn advanced degrees from Capella, Walden, U of Phoenix, and other schools advance very nicely in their own organizations, receiving full respect for their degrees. I wish you the best!
10. I got my bachelors degree at a traditional university so I was a little hesitant to get my MBA at an online university. I researched several different schools before deciding on Capella. I am now in my second year of the Capella University MBA program. I have been so impressed by the quality of the teachers, the challenging materials and the camaraderie that develops between online classmates. Through bulletin board postings and group projects you connect with your professor and other learners. Your professional challenge projects give you real world case scenarios to apply the skills you learn in class. My academic adviser is fantastic. She has always made herself available to help me plan my course load and pre-register for classes. Like all other academic programs, you will get out of the program what you put in to it but if you are committed to your program, I am confident that you will have a great experience with Capella. Best of luck in your academic pursuits.