Psychology Reviews

No Bad Reviews

By: alnjan (In Progress) on June 18, 2008

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Unfortunately, very few accurate reviews reflecting objective experience are ever posted here. I doubt that this one will make it, either. Thus, I will make it brief. No one completing the Phy PhD program within the last 6 months of 2008 will give a faverable assessment of this school, namely because no one will be allowed to graduate. All dissertations are being withheld. I wish this truth could make it to those with interest. Getting through the NCU courses isn't that difficult. Getting through the dissertation process is impossible. Don't sign up, it's a scam

BEWARE! No one Gets Passed Dissertation

By: Anonymous (In Progress) on June 18, 2008

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If I had been writing this review about a month ago, I would have reiterated all the positive, sunshine comments I see posted. Unfortunately, NCU has really CHANGED. 

I finally arrived at my first dissertation class. I've been enrolled for over a month, just waiting for approval. The process was straightforward, at first: the dissertation was approved by all committee members. The disastrous shuffling around of staff, however, caused my dissertation to sit for about 20 days before it was assigned to a Reviewer. After getting relatively quick approval from all committee members, my Reviewer, basically told me, in no uncertain terms, to start my dissertation over. I will have to create 7 new instruments do pilot tests and change all my hypotheses and add several more. In general terms she has made it impossible to get my dissertation approved. Her recommendations would take years to complete. I heard from my committee Chair that the NCU Reviewers are now stopping approval on all dissertations. My Concept Paper was approved. It supposedly had comments as to how I was supposed to make changes; however, I did not receive the paper due to technical "gliches" in the system (or at least that is what I was told). 

I'm wondering if anyone else is having difficulties getting their dissertation approved. I believe with the entire shake up at NCU, they will not be approving many dissertations in the future. They will, however, take your encourage you and guide you down the rosy path until they get all your money. I'm hoping to get a class action law suit started. Yes, if you have already graduated or have yet to get to your research classes, you probably think the world of NCU. But I'd like to see someone who has graduated within the last week to give a positive review. DO NOT ENROLL, it will take five years, but you will definitely be sorry!!!!!

Licensure

By: rgiunta (In Progress) on March 31, 2008

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I did a practicum through NCU to full a requirement for state certification in Substance Abuse Counseling.  I'm considering doctoral work.  Has anyone successfully licensed with a degree from NCU?

Mixed Review

By: Anonymous (In Progress) on March 13, 2008

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An audit of all processes and programs related to the Ph.D. program in Psychology will show:
(1) Weaknesses in the mentors backgrounds, knowledge, experience, and teaching capabilities.
(2) Direct incompatibility regarding stated course requirements at NCU, the course fundamentals, core learning goals, and what is acceptable as a standard in the academic arena.  The course outlines need to be updated and consistent.  I have two graduate degrees, one of which is from a top ivy league school.  What is required for course completion should match course description.  In most cases it does not.
(3) Mentor communication is very limited, even when it is requested or solicited.
(4) Stay away from the major discussion areas as they contain so much erroneous (and silly) information.
(5) The course work is not rigorous (very simple) and most points are lost or gained on APA style mistakes.  APA style is important but quality content ranks higher in the real world.  More challenges need to be incorporated.  Most courses can be finished in six weeks, if feedback is timely(6) Clinical courses need more solid and up to date clinical training such as neuropsychology.
This is what I have found so far.  I hope this review is helpful and productive.

Answering concerns

By: Anonymous (In Progress) on December 28, 2007

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I would like to respond to concerns about "mentors" and their quality as instructors.  In any college/university you will have good and bad instructors.  It is the responsibility of the adult student to be an independent learner.  This applies if you are sitting in a brick and mortar building....or taking classes by distance.  In previous work at traditional schools, I have had classes that I felt were not as beneficial as others.  I expect that to be the case at any school.  Overall, I have been very satisfied with NCU.  I should add that I work at a brick and mortar school.  I believe NCU stacks up in every way.

Great Program

By: t.sicotte (In Progress) on December 18, 2007

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This is a great program. For value and quality courses NCU compares well to many of the Bricks and Mortar schools. The format is challenging and requires a dedicated, motivated, organized aproach but it is worth the effort. I'm almost finished my masters and it has been a wonderful experience.

Great school. Good rigor. Doubtful accreditation.

By: Anonymous (In Progress) on December 18, 2007

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I began NCU's doctoral psychology program in 2006 and I am absolutely enjoying my learning experience. I have had great mentors and the academic work is quite rigorous and challenging. I love the focus on scholarly research and writing and I love the 100% online medium. Overall, I think NCUS is a great school. You cannot beat the financial value-NCU has one of the lowest tuition rates of any online school or most brick and mortar schools! The only thing that bothers me about NCU is the re-accreditation process that it is currently going through. For some reason, I have a lingering suspicion that the school will not be re-affirmed for accreditation. I think the accreditation board will probably require some sort of residency or weekly discussion forum or both. Who knows? My doubts may be unwarranted. Still, this bothers me because I would hate to have wasted good money on a school that will not be re-accreditated. If NCU loses its accreditation I will cut my loses and move on to another school without hestitation. But, this will not erase my love for the NCU learning experience. It is truly an outstanding school.

What you put in

By: t.sicotte (In Progress) on December 18, 2007

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This is an excellent school.I've almost finished my Masters and it has taken a while but was well worth it. I had to produce a lot of written material because there are no formal tests but I believe this greatly helped my focus and enhanced the learning process. It has been a challenging and stimulating experience and I would recommend it to anyone who needs a flexible yet valuable program. You need to be self-motivated and well organized but it is definitely worth the money and effort spent.

Very good online program.

By: Anonymous (In Progress) on February 4, 2007

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I am currently pursuing my PhD in psychology at NCU, taking my fourth course. So far, my experience has been very good. I am familiar with online education, having achieved my Masters degree from another well-known online school. I can say without a doubt that NCU meets or exceeds all standards for higher education. I read one comment regarding the rigor of NCU, stating that all academic coursework requires simply summarizing textbook material. If this is all that this commentor did to pass the course, then I feel sorry for that individual. One's education is what you make of it. You can be admitted into Yale or Harvard and still simply "get by". NCU's program is very rigorous. It seeks to develop critical thinking and writing abilities. I love it, but it is overwhelming sometimes. It is a serious program for serious learners!

Great School. Excellent program

By: t.sicotte (In Progress) on February 2, 2007

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I researched a variety of online programs before deciding on NCU. I've been working in the field for almost 20 years and have a very busy schedule. This program challenged me to continue to expand my knowledge on my schedule (evenings/weekends) without the extra travel time spent travelling to a bricks and mortar instutution. 

The amount of work required initially shocked me but then again this is a masters program at an accredited university. Please don't waste your time on schools that are not regionally accredited or have been accredited by some bogus accrediting body. Do your homework.

I have almost completed the program and the quality and variety of courses has been excellent. Some mentors have been better than others but I have had much worse, more disinterested professors, at 'normal' universities. I have been able to comprehensively study a particular specialty while completing several related courses and I have great confidence in the breadth and depth of knowledge I have about the subject.

Great value education at a reasonable expense! I'd do it all again and wouldn't change a thing.

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