Review of Colorado Technical University Online
B.S. Of Criminal Justice Program
Colorado Springs, CO 80907
United States of America
When I first started to get serious about my education and future, I was a recent Army veteran, married to a soldier, and had a seventh month old daughter with number two on the way. I knew I needed to pursue my education, but I also needed the flexibility to take on all of my other roles besides being a student. This is when I began exploring the possibility of obtaining my degree online. I found multitudes of universities offering various degree programs, but some seemed pricy while others lacked curriculum and experience. Finally, I decided CTU Online had the best program which offered me the most.
It started out with my filling out a form (online) with my contact information and degree path interest. Within 24 hours, I received a phone call from one of the admissions advisors who was more than happy to answer every question. The biggest concern I had was with accreditation. When the admissions advisor told me CTU held the same accreditation as Ivy League schools, I knew this was the right school for me. After giving the admissions advisor some more information about why I wanted to pursue my degree online and what motivates me, I was asked to fill out the application. I was astounded at the rate in which my application was reviewed and within a few days I received a phone call informing me I was accepted into their program.
The criminal justice program at CTU Online prides itself with highly qualified faculty. All of the instructors have work experience in the criminal justice field, as well as at least a Master's Degree. The instructors provided the most rounded courses anyone could imagine. In addition to the instructors, the course curriculum is outstanding. The courses are formed around real world situations and require the student to think "outside the box" to come to a conclusion. There are no tests, but in every course there is a group project which is worth about 20% of the course grade. All of the assignments are comprised of discussion board postings and either Word documents or PowerPoint presentations.
Since this program is conducted 100% online, you may be curious as to how lectures are conducted. I was a little skeptical myself. The lectures are conducted via live chat, with the instructor talking into a microphone over the internet, while students communicate thoughts by typing into the chat forum. The lectures are not mandatory, but are extremely beneficial. The instructors often cover upcoming assignments and give additional resources on the subjects, as well as opening a forum to ask any other questions or concern. These lectures are archived for later viewing if schedule conflicts occur.
The criminal justice program consists of several courses to include: investigating crime; American criminal procedure; forensic behavior analysis; crime scene analysis; white collar crime; criminal thinking; criminal law today; and juveniles and the courts. Of courses, the previous mentioned courses are only a few of the required courses, but they were some of my favorite courses. Each of these courses is taught by instructors who have specialized in the subject content in their career which is an added benefit.
In addition to completing the degree requirements, there are four additional certificates which are earned throughout the program. These certificates will enhance the resume and often help students obtain employment in the criminal justice field while still attending school. The certificates which are earned through this program are: Corrections Technician; Law Enforcement Skills; Crime Scene Technician; and Legal Studies and Court Processes. Each certificate is earned when the four courses required for the certificate are completed.
In addition to being able to complete a degree program online, CTU offers some added benefits to making the education experience positive. There is a virtual commons which allows students to communicate with each other. In the virtual commons there are several clubs from criminal justice to parenting to sports. There is an online campus store where students may purchase shirts, hats, and other school gear. There are several learning labs which allow students to learn more about certain subjects. Some of the labs include a math lab and English lab. Also, online is library which provides students with resources by subject.
Some of the other benefits of attending CTU Online include: career services, unchanging tuition rates, financial aid office, and bookstore. The career services provide resume writing help and job searching tools. In this section of the virtual campus there is a tool which shows the student the type of jobs she or he may obtain once completing the degree program. The unchanging tuition rates are a great thing for students on a budget. The tuition rate is determined by the number of credit hours the student takes per session and stays the same throughout the program. The bookstore is probably one of the best things about this campus. Students do not have the added responsibility for ordering or buying books because all book fees are worked into the tuition. All books are shipped by the bookstore in advanced and automatic. The bookstore generally makes sure books arrive at least five days prior to the courses start date.
This is an accelerated program and may not be for everyone. Most students complete their studies within 2 years while some finish in 15 months depending on prior education and/or military experience. If you are up for a challenge, give CTU Online a try. Visit their website at www.ctuonline.edu or call 1-800-416-8904 to request more information on the BSCJ program.
Published by Kristina Jones
Kristina Jones hails from Fort Lewis, WA where her husband proudly serves his country. She has a degree in Criminal Justice. She also has two young daughters and enjoys writing about almost anything. View profile
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12 Comments
Post a CommentI have been a student at this school for about a year now while finishing my Bachelors Degree. I have attended other traditional schools, Univ of Maryland, Front Range CC, and some on ground classes while in the military. The format is not for everyone. A full quarter length class is 11 weeks. A compressed online class is 5 1/2 weeks. Most of my fellow students and faculty agree that the online compressed courses are not not advisable for a technical class or in my words 'any class where you actually want to learn anything.' It is just too fast and too much information. However for the world history, literature, etc type of courses I loved it. I was in and out in 6 weeks and didnt have waste loads of time on traditional 'well rounded student' courses.
Technical courses and education is where CTU, at least in colorado springs shines, all of my instructors have loads of industry experience and most are still working. My instructors have included the followin
Wow so many bad things to say about my experience at CTU. I realized after six months of attending CTU on-line that is a scam. These people should be ashamed of themselves for wasting tax payer money. I have found a newspaper article that anyone planning on attending any of these ridiculous on-line schools like CTU, ITT Tech, Westwood College or university of Phoenix, ECT... should read. It is titled In Hard Times Lured into Trade School and Debt. By: Peter S. Goodman. The New York Times, March 15, 2010. This article explains exactly what these types of phony schools are up to.
I found CTU On-Line to be a miserable experience. The on-line class environment is a joke. All the instructors do is read you a book over the internet. Listening to the instructors just read you a book over the Internet was intolerable and boring. The instructors would never answer any questions, saying that they had to finish reading the required material in these live chats ("class sessions").
At first I thought Colorado Technical University Online was a great school. It appears that my rash judgment was incorrect. I was working on my Associates Degree, two courses away from graduation with a GPA of 3.21. I was dismissed from the university for a slow rate of progress. I never heard of such a thing. Aren't adult education programs supposed to be geared for working people to get their degree at their own pace? Well, that is what I have always been told. So if you are planning on going to CTU, read the policy manual. It might help you decide if you are doing the right thing by selecting CTU!
This school is corrupt and money hungry, they don't care about you! Don't bother with this non sense!
This terrible is ridiculous and puts shame to the integrity of the Education Department! The curriculum merely consists of writing papers in APA format for every assignment and I mean every assignment. There are no tests and no other homework rather than writing in APA format. The only variable is how long the assignments are. The curriculum isn't even based off of the books given for the class and you don't have to open them during any of your classes. You learn more about finding credible online references than you do anything else. If this were a program based up APA formatting and writing it would be fantastic, but it isn't. Do you self a favor and find a better college, this one is not worth the time it takes to write its name!
CTU Online is an excellent school, but you must watch out because it is very fast-paced. I am completing my Master's in November 2008. I have had excellent professors, and the campus has a lot of support (library, learning labs, etc.). Don't take my word for it - my husband is an undergrad at CTU Online at age 52. He will earn his Associate's in November and (financial aid willing) hopes to complete his BSBA in February 2010. If you go into this school thinking you can skip the live chats, you will not do well - often the professors change the requirements in the course syllabus and offer additional insight that you will need in order to successfully complete assignments. If you can't attend live chats, they are archived so you can listen and read (watch) get the information on your own schedule. It has been rough juggling my job and the demands of their MBA(HRM) program, but it is worth it. (I also do not work for CTU, but if I could, I would!)
After reading these reviews I am very worried about using CTU Online program. Are there better online programs that I can find for a business degree?
(cont) the system and all the work I did during that first week of class - I was not listed as a current student in their computer. I would NEVER recommend this college to anyone. Online classes are convenient, but CTU is NOT worth the headache.
(cont) keeping up with my group assignments. I decided that wasn't worth being a CTU student and decided to go to a local college. I mailed a transcript request to them to send to my current school. Over a month went by and no receipt of the transcript. Finally called them and was told that they never received it, but then again, they've had a high staff turn over (go figure). So who knows where it ended up. The department I talked to gave me all the information to fax over another request - but no mention of a fee. So one week after the request was faxed, I get an email saying that they have a fee and the transcript will be sent after the payment clears - 3-5 days AFTER receiving payment (even by credit card). I've learned that CTU may be wonderful if you are a current student. You end up off that list, and they don't give a damn. Even with my mess up of being deleted from the system to being a current student to withdrawn, they didn't care if I was bumped out of the system and all t
I attended CTU online last year. I didn't have to crack open a book unless it was for my own personal knowledge because I could find all the research I needed over the internet. I had withdrawn from a set of classes and reinlisted for the next set of classes. Well into the first week, SOMEHOW, my information was deleted. I was no longer a student and was told I was not reinlisted, never had, none of my information was up to date, my major change wasn't in the computer system, my advisor change wasn't in the system, even my financial aid information was gone. It was if someone just clicked on my name and hit delete. I spent 3-4 days sending all the emails back and fourth from financial aid, my advisor, everyone just to show I was a current student. FINALLY, they got me back into the classes, but the wrong classes (I sent previous emails from the instructors to prove I was in their classes). By the time I was back into my correct classes, I was so far behind in my assignments and barely