I have never liked the for-profit colleges. They charge too much. Make unseemly profits. Leave students unserved. And then walk away leaving society unserved. Finally, Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa has produced statistics to back up that dislike:
* Although they have less than 10 percent of students, they receive around 25 percent of federal student aid.
* Although they have less than 10 percent of students, they account for 40 percent of defaults on student aid.
It's about time government did to for-profit colleges what it eventually did to the for-profit K-12 schools like The Edison Project - - stopped giving them money.
Sorry, you are just wrong. Since you don't bother to substantiate your reasons - I won't mine. Other than to say, that these institutions, that often provide education in non-traditional ways (that stodgy institutions of higher learning fail to do)... therefore democratizing education.
Posted by: JRA | June 30, 2010 at 06:48 PM
JRA, while I appreciate and enjoy all comments here, it would be a little more forthright of you to tell us your name. With regard to "substantiate your reasons" I think the statistics from Sen. Harkin's committee are pretty specific and pretty damning of the for-profit record in higher ed.
Posted by: William Draves | July 01, 2010 at 10:15 PM
I work at a community college in Pennsylvania. I've seen many people who have taken courses at proprietary schools only to find out that their diploma is worthless for finding a job.
On the other hand, I am also aware that one of the schools with the highest track record for employment after graduation in the area is a for-profit art school.
I think it's safe to say that there are good schools and bad schools.
Posted by: Alycia B | July 16, 2010 at 10:11 AM