The Day of Reckoning, Accreditation: The day we wish would never come
I've talked about the Day of Reckoning before, but now I'm using it in a slightly different context. This is the Day of Reckoning when you realize that all the hard work you did at a school was for nothing. It is when you went to transfer and are told that none of your credits count, or when you apply for a grad school and are told they'd love to have you...but. It is the day no one wants to happen, but unfortunately it is a day that all Bob Jones University grads could face sometime in their life.
The problem with this day of reckoning is that few realize that it lurks around the corner. And a lot of graduates never have to face the issue. I didn't ever try to transfer to another school, so if it weren't for friends and family I'd have no clue that BJU grads can't really transfer any credits. And for those who don't go on to grad school, or don't go on to grad school outside of the Greenville area, they are probably blissfully unaware. But you just never know when the day will come. When an employer refuses you the raise because you don't have a regionally accredited degree. When a potential employer files your resume in file 13. When you decide to switch careers only to find out your undergrad degree disqualifies you. When you decide it is time to go to grad school only to realize none of the schools in your area will accept your degree. When you graduate from college the whole world is supposed to be open to you, but for the Bob Jones University grad that world shrinks real fast and depending upon the road you embark on can soon become a dead end.
I've asked before is it worth it? Is Bob Jones University worth the risk? My answer remains no for this sole reason. I wish I didn't have to worry each time I apply for a job or college, "will they accept my degree as valid?" I wish I didn't have that nagging question in my mind. I wish that I could be confident, "Of course they'll accept me." Instead I'm always wondering, worried about what my prospects might be on the next job hunt. Will I find suitable employment. None of my non-BJU friends worry about that. If they have the credentials and want to apply to a school they can stand pretty confident in success. If they want that job that requires a certain education they don't have to worry that accreditation will get in the way. For me the day of reckoning has come more than once. For many it may not come at all, but really you just never know where the future might lead you. I envy my friends who don't have to worry about that.
If you graduated from Bob Jones University and have never had the day of reckoning over accreditation count yourself blessed, but know this, it lurks around every corner. Maybe you are in a field now where it doesn't matter, and maybe you have no desire to teach, and maybe you have even less desire for more schooling, but the danger still looms over your head. Please consider joining the petition to let Stephen Jones know this is a problem. The university needs to be honest so that if a student/parent chooses to attend BJU they know what the consequences might be. That way the day of reckoning isn't looming as an unknown danger, but as a calculated risk understood by all the participating parties. What is Bob Jones University afraid of by being honest? Losing students? They'll lose students either way, because as more people get hurt by accreditation and feel cheated the louder they will become. Honesty is the best solution. Please join us.
Comments
2 comments postedI just wanted to add a note about the greater responsibility that BJU has as a Christian college to not only be honest about their accreditation status, but also to be specific about what that means to its students. The ITT Tech advertisement was very interesting because it sounds to me like they are simply attempting to protect themselves legally since at least one lawsuit has been filed against them because of credits that wouldn't transfer. But of course, one would hope that a Christian school would have more noble intentions other than concerns of being sued. In any case, Pensacola Christian College requires students to sign a form.
It says:
"PCC has never made application for regional accreditation because it could jeopardize the College’s philosophical distinctives. It is the practice of PCC, and other colleges and universities, to accept or reject credits based on their own institutional criteria regardless of whether or not credits will be accepted by another college of the student’s choice. While PCC makes no representation that its graduates will be accepted by specific institutions, boards, professional bodies, or government agencies, it is the intent of the administration and faculty to meet and exceed standards of quality in academics, which are posed by recognized accrediting associations"
PCC belongs neither to a national or regional accrediting organization. In my opinion, however, even this disclosure statement is somewhat misleading (It's funny how it sounds like, "Oh, you were rejected from graduate school because PCC isn't accredited? That's normal because PCC's grad school rejects graduates of other schools all the time!"). But at least the basic info is there, and PCC would probably be protected if a lawsuit was filed against them.
Actually, I'm sort of impressed that PCC admits that basically it's anybody's guess if any grad school would give you a second look, or if you could ever practice as a health care worker, take the CPA exam or bar exam, ever work for the government on any level, or in any modern occupation except perhaps the most basic of entry level positions. (Of course, after the student signs this form, I wonder how many times in four years PCC's version of the one guy who got into Yale is mentioned.)
But who has time to worry about "boards" and "professional organizations" when PCC has an indoor bowling alley, a 265 acre waterfront park, a swim center, and a new indoor water park with synthetic surfing waves? On the other hand, if you look at both PCC and BJU as little more that a place to hear some solid preaching that will prepare your personal character for life, or a place to find a Christian spouse, meet some great Christian friends, sharpen your athletic skills, and academically practice for that second bachelor's degree you'll need to complete later, then consider that one year's tuition and room and board at PCC is only $7,500 and the cost at BJU is $17,220. (Back to the questions of "is it worth it?" If Mormon young people can devote two years to learning about their church and ministering before heading to college, than perhaps fundamentalist young people can devote four years!)
But seriously, I guess that it says a lot about my experiences that I'm sort of impressed with PCC's odd disclosure statement. It says a lot about how BJU is not only not being "up front" about what they are really offering, but how they are systematically misleading students about what type of occupations and opportunities are available to individuals who earn a degree from BJU.
Tyler Williamson
Hey Tyler, your link didn't work, it got truncated in the middle, but Google saved the day. Here is the link to the document which he was referring to.
While I do think it is odd to even have this level of disclosure from PCC or BJU the statement really isn't that helpful. I got a similar line from the Provost at BJU. Basically the idea is that each individual institution can accept or reject credits/degrees for any reason at all. Which is true, but what they are trying to say is this, "if we had accreditation you could still be rejected from transferring classes." True, if I took classes at a regionally accredited school there is no guarantee that another school will accept those credits, but that doesn't mean that regional accreditation doesn't go a LONG way to helping those credits move along, and that non-regional or no accreditation is no worse. The truth is that most institutions will do their best to accept at least some credits earned at a regionally accredited school, if not all. Sure that means that some may n ot transfer, but the accepting institution will at least consider the thought. However, with no accreditation or non-regional accreditation the accepting institution has no obligation to even attempt to accept your credits and often has a hard rule in place not to accept those credits.
By pretending that this is a problem that even Harvard transfer students have to go through is exteremely misleading itself. There are still transfer credit woes, but nothing in the ball park of whole sale denial with no recourse options available. With regional accreditation at least you can make your case to the provost.