Everglades University (Boca Raton, Trinity, Christmas: credit, home, transfer to)

[keylove]

Hi all... I am thinking about returning back to school to take on different studies. I am really interested in holisitic/alternative health. I was surprised to find a school in SRQ that offered a BS for such a degree. I was wondering if anyone has attended Everglades University (located next to Keiser College in Lakewood Ranch) or has any experience with the school. The school is non-profit, and is accredited. I can't seem to find any reviews on it, positive or negitive. If anyone has any info, sure would love to hear form you! Thanks.

[bodyinharmony]

I came to this forum specifically to ask the same question, except I'm thinking about doing it online. I'm confused about accreditation and how valid this 'degree' will be toward higher learning. Were you able to find a review on the school anywhere?

[dntw8up]

When academics speak of accreditation they mean regional accreditation by one of the regional agencies that accredit the vast majority of public and private colleges and universities in the US. Everglades U is not regionally accredited. Everglades claims to be a "candidate" for accreditation by a regional accrediting agency, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, but all candidacy requires is filing an application, even if the filers know it will never be approved. You may be able to learn what you want from Everglades, but you should know: 1)any credits you earn will not transfer to a regionally accredited college or university; 2)any degree you earn will not be recognized by a regionally accredited college or university; 3)many employers will not consider your degree "legitimate"; 4)you will not be able to use any federally funded financial aid programs to help pay for your education at Everglades. If Everglades U appears to meet your needs despite the above, then it may be a good choice for you.

[bodyinharmony]

Their accreditation through the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT) seems to carry more weight than some of the other accrediting bodies out there, but from what I've been able to find, you are absolutely right that only the regional bodies are the truly 'legit' ones.

Unfortunately I can't locate a school that offers any degree programs in alternative healthcare through distance learning who has good accreditation. If you (or anyone) knows of one, please reply. The Naturopathic schools with regional accreditation all require you to attend at their location. I can see the necessity of this for say, cadaver lab, but it seems like most of the classes could be completed as successfully at home.

With this limitation in mind, it would appear that if I want to pursue this field of study I will have to do so with a school who's accreditation is less than stellar. (Moving is not an option at this time.)

It really seems odd that I've yet to stumble upon anyone who has attended Everglades. Guess it's time to start posting at other forums to see if anyone is attending any of the other schools. (University of Natural Health, University of Natural Medicine, Australasian College of Health Sciences, Trinity College of Natural Health, Phoenix Institute of Herbal Medicine and Acupuncture, etc, etc.) I want to know that at least the curriculum is worth what they charge, even if the degree will be mostly useless.

[FutureND]

I am an Everglades Student of seventeen months and I am very happy with what I have experienced.

I attend online and am therefore affiliated with the main campus in Boca Raton. EU is a small school, so attention is personalized--to the point where I have received cards from the staff members the last two Christmases. (My academic advisor is also my department head, if that tells you anything.)

Since they are working on regional accreditation, some of the other projects--such as finding online labs to pair with their curriculum--have fallen to the wayside. (More and more schools are accepting online labs, I am told.) When I recently inquired into the progress of online labs, I was told that they had not found labs that match with the school's curriculum, but my advisor offered to get me into business classes so that I would not have to repeat science classes when I picked up some extra credits at another school after graduation. (This is not a hassle for me, as I was going to have to pick up a few extra classes to get into alternative medical school, anyway.)

If you want to transfer your credits to a school in your state later on, be sure to check with your school of choice ahead of time. Here in Michigan, Central Michigan University will not accept EU's credits, Ferris State will accept all transferable credits and Eastern Michigan will consider your transfer credits after you have completed a semester.

If you are considering becoming a naturopathic physician, there are four schools in the United States that the National Institutes of Health consider to be "worth their salt" (along with another two in Canada). Of those six schools, the University of Bridgeport (a public school in Connecticut), the Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine (private, Arizona) and the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine (private, Toronto) will all accept degrees from Everglades. (I checked around after an admissions rep from one of the other schools told me my degree wouldn't be worth the paper it's printed on.)

As far as curriculum, alternative medical subjects are mixed in with general education classes. Thus far, I've had major-specific classes like Homeopathy, Chiropractic, Ayurveda, Traditional Chinese Medicine and medical ethics; but I've also taken math, chemistry, anatomy, poli sci and composition. (I'll have to repeat those "normal sci" classes, but oh well.) There's much more to come--I can show you my complete schedule, if you like.


Oh and did I mention there's only one class every four weeks? Makes it easy to go to work during the day and come home and do your homework (which I do). The other great part about this is that you're basically given a "to do list" that you can complete on your own time--the school week starts on Sunday and ends Saturday at midnight. (I like having as much free time during the week as possible, so I generally only "go to school" Sunday-Tuesday. )

Let me know if you have any further questions...glad I dropped by!