Glendale University
Degree Requirements
The Glendale website states: “Glendale University does not award college credit for experience and this must be made clear. Professional educators worldwide agree that “life experience” in and of itself is NOT worthy of college credit. What PLA is concerned with is learning, regardless of how it was obtained. We assess the information furnished and gathered, to determine the level of your skills, knowledge and competence you acquired from your work experience, your voluntary activities, your avocation, your military service, your homemaking experience and knowledge from independent study. In brief, we analyze your “experiential learning” and this term legitimately describes most of the learning that occurs in our lives.”
Proper Disclosure
INCOMPLETE: They fail to mention four states that do not recognize their degree (FL, IL, TX, and WA). Glendale’s website states: “applicant understands that Glendale University degrees are not legal for academic or business use in the following states: OR, NJ, ND, and ID. Residents of these states should consider the Glendale degree as a testament to their accomplishments and used for their personal satisfaction only.”
Additional Miscellaneous Information
Glendale states they were founded in 1997, though they do not mention how many alumni they have. Furthermore, there is no evidence of them in existence ANYWHERE prior to 2005. They have the following accreditation: The National Distance Learning Accreditation Council (NDLAC). They have no verifiable (broadly recognized) 3rd party memberships. Their reviewers are not certified by the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) or the National Association of Online Academic Assessors (NAOAA) or any other organization.
E-Mail Responses
They responded in two days. Their email was very short: “We take a look at your resume and all of your work and life experience related to your field.”
Approval Process
I applied on 9/26. I didn’t hear from them so I wrote them back on 10/5. I still hadn’t heard back from them, so I decided to reapply on 10/12. I filled out their whole form and when I clicked to submit, I received this message. “The following required items are incomplete: An account already exists with the e-mail address you provided. Please click here to retrieve your password or enter a different e-mail address to proceed.”
When I clicked “click here,” nothing happened. So I couldn’t reapply and they were not answering my emails. So I decided to bombard them with e-mails and tell them of my problem. Finally a reply to my 11th e-mail. As it turns out, their email address is the same as Suffield’s, so they’re obviously the same company running two colleges. On 10/12, I received a simple email reply saying I could now submit another application. So I did and it went smoothly.
Bogus Approvals
Did the college reject my factitious and negligible 7-word description of my life experiences? At first, I didn’t get any reply at all back from them (see approval process above). When I was finally able to send in an application they rejected my bogus application. I think. They simply ignored it. No letter of explanation. No response. But they did approve me when I sent my valid resume.
Payment Policy
They accept credit cards online or money orders. They say they have a finance plan, but, it is not a real finance plan. You don’t get your degree until you’ve paid in full. This is a layaway plan. Not a true finance plan.
Address
This is the address they gave me when I asked where to send the money order:
Educational Resources
123 North Congress Ave,
Suite 274
Boynton Beach, FL 33426.
Note: The diploma package may be sent from another location. Since there has been no receipt yet, I will update this section if/when my package arrives.
UPDATE: January 9, 2007. The Glendale diploma package arrived today. Was shipped from New Jersey just like the Suffield package. Today is EXACTLY TWO MONTHS TO THE DAY since I paid them.
Degree and Photos
To date, I have not received my degree from Glendale. Please see “address fiasco” at this link for more details.
UPDATE: January 9, 2007. The Glendale diploma package arrived today. It was shipped from New Jersey just like the Suffield package. Today is EXACTLY TWO MONTHS TO THE DAY since I paid them.
Refunds
Refund status UNKNOWN. Their website states “100% refund (less $125.00 processing fee) – During the first 7 days.” As of this writing, I have not received my degree from them It has been over 3 months since I paid. I will update this if and when the degree arrives. I wrote them on 11/25 and again on 11/29 when I hadn’t heard from them. On 11/30, they wrote: “Madison we are trying to get the package to you, you supplied the wrong address…let me track it again and I will get back to you.” Please see “address fiasco” for more details.
UPDATE: January 9, 2007. The Glendale diploma package arrived today. It was shipped from New Jersey just like the Suffield package. Today is EXACTLY TWO MONTHS TO THE DAY since I paid them. I never asked for a refund but since they are also SUFFIELD as well as GLENDALE I assume they have the same policy.