Grand Canyon University - opinion? (Phoenix, Glendale: fit in, home, high school)

[observer53]

Originally Posted by LBTRS

I thought I read a while back that Thunderbird was purchased by a for profit outfit which has upset the Alumni very much. Did something change and that not go through?

Well, they are at "Letter of Intent" stage of their partnership with ASU, according to their website.

Update on Meeting with the President of Arizona State University (ASU) | Thunderbird School of Global Management

Now, let's see if we can steer this thread back to GCU.

[BuckeyeBoyDJ]

Originally Posted by breakingbad

I went to a Chris Tomlin concert and discovered Taco Tote...wow!

That Taco Tote on the NE corner of 35th Ave&Camelback is amazing! It really is strange how that school is in the area it is in but then again that part of West Phoenix wasn't always a bad area. It sucks for the students who live on campus though because there's no college atmosphere in that area at all off campus compared to the college town atmosphere ASU and northern Tempe offers (Mill,Mill,Mill,Mill,Mill,Mill......I LOVE MILL AVE!). For that reason alone I would pick ASU (way cheaper and a vibrant college town atmosphere where there's literally always something going on).

[Ponderosa]

Originally Posted by Jukesgrrl

It might not be "oppressively Christian," but it still remains a college with a Christian outlook. I wonder if the OP's relative is looking for that or would prefer more diversity in higher education.

But religion aside, for the life of me, I can't understand why anyone would pay extra to attend a FOR-PROFIT college that few outside of Arizona have ever heard of, rather than the far cheaper local state university which is known nationwide and has many respected programs and nearly limitless student activities. ASU also has multiple campuses or the student could attend a close-to-home community college for two years and then transfer to ASU for the bachelor's degree.

The kids we associate with through our own choose GCU because they want to stay in the valley but do not want to deal with the megaversity that ASU has become. Just visiting the ASU campus is over-whelming to kids from a smaller high school like ours. GCU offers an intimate setting that appeals to them.

We did their tour and I did not get the impression that they were all that religious. That question came up and they sort of brushed it off by saying something to the effect that it is a Christian environment/values etc. Chapel attendance is not required and there are only a couple of vaguely religious classes that are required in their core. If you get certain scholarships, though, the religious requirements increase. There are a lot of bible-toting students there, though, given the things one notices on campus. It's not ASU!

The community college option you mentioned is something to consider too. Some of the CCs are as big as colleges, among them Phoenix CC, Glendale CC, and Scottsdale CC. They have sports and sports scholarships, recreational amenities, and pretty much what you would find at a college except no dorms. There are apartments near them though that students rent, usually cheaper than the dorms at a university.

[azriverfan.]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

The kids we associate with through our own choose GCU because they want to stay in the valley but do not want to deal with the megaversity that ASU has become. Just visiting the ASU campus is over-whelming to kids from a smaller high school like ours. GCU offers an intimate setting that appeals to them.

We did their tour and I did not get the impression that they were all that religious. That question came up and they sort of brushed it off by saying something to the effect that it is a Christian environment/values etc. Chapel attendance is not required and there are only a couple of vaguely religious classes that are required in their core. If you get certain scholarships, though, the religious requirements increase. There are a lot of bible-toting students there, though, given the things one notices on campus. It's not ASU!

The community college option you mentioned is something to consider too. Some of the CCs are as big as colleges, among them Phoenix CC, Glendale CC, and Scottsdale CC. They have sports and sports scholarships, recreational amenities, and pretty much what you would find at a college except no dorms. There are apartments near them though that students rent, usually cheaper than the dorms at a university.

You are right, they don't require it for all students. But certain scholarships require chapel attendance.

http://www.gcu.edu/Documents/Scholar...lyer_FINAL.pdf

And while I understand that a large environment may be daunting for your children, those types of challenges will also them grow. Attending college is pretty daunting for most high school students including kids at bigger high schools. Would you want to deprive your kids of certain opportunities, classes etc AND pay more money as well?

I think the CC option is even better. Let them get their feet wet at a CC for the first two years and then transfer.

[DetroitN8V]

Originally Posted by observer53

It wasn't about "indoctrination" even when it was owned by the Baptist church. There are other colleges that while they have a religious history, are not involved in "indoctrination" as you call it (St Andrews Presbyterian College in NC comes to mind-- but that's another state, another thread). In any event, a campus ministry, or church activity, is part of the college experience for many students even at colleges/universities that don't have a specific religious connection. Just because none of that appeals to you doesn't mean it doesn't appeal to others.

Their website makes no reference to required chapel attendance now as they did in their Southern Baptist days. I do remember hearing about it then.

Then what's the point? Again, it seems that dropping the religious affiliation would broaden their potential for growth. Considering that it's a for-profit business, that seems like the logical thing to do.

Religion in general is all about indoctrination; getting one to believe certain things without the process of critical thought ("faith"), which is so counter to what a university experience should be.

[PlainWhite]

The long and the short of is that outside of Arizona no one has heard of Grand Canyon University. So the degree a student worked so hard to achieve may not be recognized or respected if they want to explore career options outside the state. Given that, and given that an education at GCU is far more expensive than a state school, ASU, U of A, and NAU seem to provide a far superior ROI.

[grmi66]

It's been a couple of years, but I remember reading an article about a survey of how HR professionals view colleges. If they are looking at resumes, what schools rise to the top? Basically the point of the story was what schools provide graduates that if you hire them, you know that they got a basic, solid education. In the top ten were schools like Penn State and other midwestern state schools and ASU was in there. All I know was when I moved to the east coast after college, every hiring manager seemed to think I went to ASU and I would have to explain to them that the U of A was a different college in a different city.

One thing that I do give GCU for is a desire to improve the surrounding neighborhoods. I believe that in a few years the area around 35th & Camelback will be more student friendly with shops and restaurants catering to GCU.

[Ponderosa]

Originally Posted by PlainWhite

The long and the short of is that outside of Arizona no one has heard of Grand Canyon University. So the degree a student worked so hard to achieve may not be recognized or respected if they want to explore career options outside the state. Given that, and given that an education at GCU is far more expensive than a state school, ASU, U of A, and NAU seem to provide a far superior ROI.

Uness one attends an Ivy League school or one of the famous ones like Stanford, it does not matter a hill of beans where you go for an undergraduate degree. It's a checklist item. And when you get right down to it, the name recognition of a university is based more on their athletic accomplishments than the academic ones.

[PlainWhite]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

Uness one attends an Ivy League school or one of the famous ones like Stanford, it does not matter a hill of beans where you go for an undergraduate degree. It's a checklist item. And when you get right down to it, the name recognition of a university is based more on their athletic accomplishments than the academic ones.

I'm not sure I entirely agree, but if that's the case, why spend 3 to 4 times more on tuition for a private education like GCU than for a state school like ASU which provides far more educational options?

[observer53]

Originally Posted by DetroitN8V

Then what's the point? Again, it seems that dropping the religious affiliation would broaden their potential for growth. Considering that it's a for-profit business, that seems like the logical thing to do.

Religion in general is all about indoctrination; getting one to believe certain things without the process of critical thought ("faith"), which is so counter to what a university experience should be.

Let's not take this further off topic with this discussion. They are doing what they want to do in terms of degree offerings, scholarships, etc. in a "Christian environment". The fact that you (and others) are averse to all things religious and see "faith" as a negative doesn't matter to them. I suspect they are growing just fine, with a good range of students, as they are.