University of West Alabama

I completed my Master's in School Counseling in a year and a half. Then, a year later, I decided to go back for the new Education Specialist in School Counseling. I wish I had not. During this time, I found out that the school had been put on probation for accreditation (they did not lose their regional accreditation). I have grown discontent and now that I'm one class away from finishing I would not go to that school if given other choices. The pacing of the program is too fast. Eight weeks for a class. The quality of most teachers is subpar. They want students to read 2-3 chapters per week. Some classes use two textbooks. I even had one class where we had to read 6 books and write essays on each one. Some teachers just assign "busy work" that does not make sense. Then for each class you take a midterm and a final exam using a Remote Proctor that records the session. Many of the questions are essay questions and in most classes you are not supposed to use the book or notes. How can a person, especially someone who works full time, have children, and many obligations, learn by heart a whole book of new materials? I do have to say that I have had two wonderful instructors out of the ten that have been my teachers throughout my Ed.S. journey.

Please beware of the instructors. I am currently a student in the counseling program. Some of the teacher's i've worked with are horrible. They barely respond to you on your work. The class is not interactive. They give you 4-5 chapters to read each week. Some teachers have the attitude like I have it and if you don't well sorry for you! I've had an instructor try to give me a complete 0 in a class even though I turned in ALL assignments! Remote Proctor is another issue. I've experienced some teachers who will not let you turn in assignments due to the proctor even though I called tech support for help and forwarded all the emails to the teacher explaining the situation. As if I can fix the proctor myself! BEWARE OF THE INSTRUCTORS!

I completed my master degree online in a year and half. The staff was great, supportive and always available for student assistance. I loved the fact the program was really thought out and required the taking and passing of a comprehensive examination at the completion of the program to test your knowledge base.

I received my Masters Degree totally on-line. This was my first completion of an on-line degree. It was convenient. There were no live chats required, which I love. There was use of a discussion board, but it was done on your own time. I totally enjoyed the entire experience. I had to work for my degree and sometimes it got tough, especially in Statistics and Research, but I learned a lot. There is a practicum and an intern required at the end of the program. Which is good because it allows a chance for hands on learning and not all on-line.