I just watched the Frontline program “College Inc.” on the PBS website. It is a really good story regarding “the promise and the growth of the for-profit higher education industry”.
With various for-profit schools throughout the US, the University of Phoenix is the biggest player in the for-profit education sector. With an enrollment of almost half a million students, its revenue last year was $4 billion.
The for-profit schools only enroll 10 percent of all post-secondary students, yet they receive almost 25 percent of all federal financial aid. What is most alarming is that 44 percent of all students who defaulted with three years of graduation were from for-profit schools.
Watch the full program online at PBS – College Inc.
While for-profit colleges are convenient, the teaching quality is compromised, and free money is difficult to obtain.
Here is my reaction to the Frontline episode College-Inc.
http://preppedandpolished.com/college-inc-the-problems-with-for-profit-colleges/
Alexis Avila
Founder/President
Prepped & Polished
http://www.preppedandpolished.com
Thanks for sharing Alexis
I took a different stance, except I go for the jugular and attempt to discredit PBS entirely. While PBS is right in saying that private schools have an interest in earning profits, PBS has (donation-based) interests that compel them make programs that present for-profit universities negatively. Here’s my take on the documentary:
http://xout.wordpress.com/2010/08/04/deducing-bias/