Here are some tips for selecting schools, based on an analysis comparing each school to all others across dozens of factors:
Schools Concentrating On Accountants And Auditors
- Focus: For schools with a focus on this career area, look at Metro State, Colorado State, UCDHSC, and Fort Lewis.
Fastest Response From Schools
- Request Info: For the fastest information for prospective students, look at the Spotlight schools on this page.
Student Body
- Part-Time: For schools emphasizing part-time studies, consider Metro State, UCDHSC, Mesa State, and Colorado State.
- Diverse: For a diverse student body, consider Colorado State, UCDHSC, and Fort Lewis.
- Adult Learners: For lots of adult learners, consider Colorado State, UCDHSC, and University of Denver.
School Setting
- Out of State: For geographic diversity, take note of University of Denver, Fort Lewis, Colorado Northwestern Community College, and Western State College of Colorado.
- Dorms: For a residential campus environment, take note of Western State College of Colorado, Fort Lewis, Colorado Northwestern Community College, and Mesa State.
Excellence
- SAT: For students with high SAT scores, look at University of Denver.
- Class Size: For small class sizes, look at University of Denver, Western State College of Colorado, Fort Lewis, and Mesa State.
Student/Alumnus Reviews of Schools for This Career and State
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University Of Denver • Denver, CO
Studying Accounting (completion in 1970)
• 7/25/2011
"I got a great job in public accounting because of the reputation. The program prepared me well for job opportunities."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | It provides a great entry into the business world and great training for running a business and deal structuring. |
| Program Reputation | 10 | Major contributions by the alumni and business communities have improved the reputation. In addition, a new business school was built and staffed thanks to additional budget availability. |
| Program Quality | 10 | The classes at DU were small and the instructors were active in business accounting, not just in academics. They were always focused on combining accounting with actual business situations. |
| Instruction | 10 | Classes were focused on real business problems. All the professors had actual business experience. |
| How Difficult | 10 | I was in the scholars program and classes were competitive and professors expected a lot. All the students were motivated and worked hard. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | Instructors were all in the business world. In later classes we did actual jobs for business in need. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 5 | I was in the standard four year program. I took classes during the day and did not need flexible class scheduling. |
| Academic Facilities | 7 | The facilities were adequate. A more important factor was the quality of the professors. |
| Social Life | 6 | DU did not have an active program in major sports. Not having a football team was a bit of a negative. |
| Placement Services | 5 | Originally it was very helpful. After developing my career, I did not use the services. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | Not much in this area. Paying for college for my children has limited my ability to commit financial resources. |
Arapahoe Community College • Littleton, CO
Studying Major-Business Admin; Minor-Accounting (completion in 1997)
• 8/9/2011
"I believe they taught me everything I needed to know. They also made it very clear and very interesting. I really enjoyed my time there."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | I would especially recommend it to single parents because of the on campus daycare. But the curriculum, teachers, advisors and everything else was great, too. |
| Program Reputation | 9 | I think they do a very good job, especially considering they are just a community college. They had a good accounting curriculum that was very relevant. |
| Program Quality | 8 | I learned everything I needed to know to step out in the business world in the accounting field. I think the program was very good. |
| Instruction | 9 | The teachers were great. They also helped me prepare for an entry level job in my field. |
| How Difficult | 9 | It was difficult. But I'm a perfectionist and was trying to always maintain straight A's while being a single parent at the time. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | Definitely more book learning, which I liked. But we also had to learn several accounting software programs and other computer programs, so it was a nice mix, I think. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | I thought it was great, especially for a single parent. I could go to school at different times 6 days a weeks and take classes online and at other campuses around the area. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | The teachers were very accessible. The library was very adequate with computers and programs loaded. They also had a daycare on campus, which was really great. |
| Social Life | 4 | There didn't seem to be too much going on, just sometimes. I was more interested in the curriculum and in studying, though. |
| Placement Services | 9 | They were very supportive. They gave me a lot of resources and leads to find a job. |
| Alumni Network | 8 | The teachers were always accessible for help. The counselors were also very accessible if you needed them. So was the financial aid department. |
Colorado Technical University • Colorado Springs, CO
Studying Accounting And Business Management (completion in 2009)
• 8/7/2011
"For all the reasons I previously stated. This college has poorly constructed class programs, faculty with very poor interpersonal/teaching skills, incompetent staff, unreliable resources (electronic), etc."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | no | Absolutely not. This college is a joke. I recommend cheaper alternatives. If a student can transfer their credits from a community college to their home state college then that is advisable since most credits will transfer and you will pay less for half the degree. You will likely also receive better teaching and post graduation/job placement assistance with other schools. This is not a good college to consider. |
| Program Reputation | 5 | I live in New York. I know that this school is accredited with various New York state regulatory institutions. I wouldn't have been able to work in New York with the degree if it weren't an accredited institution and I checked into this before hand but can't recall the exact association that I contacted. But I'm not certain of my college's ranking. I wasn't interested in receiving a degree from an Ivy League school, as all you pay for is the "brand" since a Harvard Accounting program teaches the same course material as any other Accounting program. |
| Program Quality | 1 | The quality of teachers/professors was lacking (despite their paper credentials/qualifications), tuition costs rose multiple times a year when I was supposed to be locked in at a particular rate, the deadlines were not conducive to an effective learning environment (some courses were only 5 weeks long and the work load was double that of a traditional college; but such is the way for online courses I suppose), they did not provide assistance in job placement upon graduation (as they advertised), and they also gave useless "advice," for resume formatting, etc. Additionally, they did not at all assist in financial aid when I was in the process of finding financing options for my tuition (they did not even so much as offer a list of scholarships that I might have qualified for). This University is really lacking in customer service, quality education (their professors are very unhelpful and even chastise students if they require further explanation), and the staff in other departments are unqualified for their positions (they often contradicted what someone else had told me moments prior to forwarding me to them...so most seem not to know what they're talking about). |
| Instruction | 1 | I taught myself out of the text books. There were a total of 4 professors that earned that title, in my opinion. The rest didn't seem to want to be bothered. They seemed only interested in giving their lectures and leaving without offering assistance beyond what their contract required, many were very patronizing to their students (I attended school with many middle aged individuals who weren't used to the academic routine and were regularly chastised for it), and some professors contradicted even what was in the text books. I also had a couple of situations with different professors where my work was mixed up with another student and I received poor grading when my papers/financial statements and other assignments received much higher marks. They just have very unprofessional and unhelpful staff who are mostly only "teaching" for extra income. It's a side job to them and all they do is reiterate what is in the text book...often times verbatim. Lousy staff. Oh, and I was also accused of plagiarizing on several accounts (I dropped a few classes due to scheduling issues after already submitting work. When I retook the courses they ran my assignments through the database and alas... I plagiarized myself. I had a heck of a time proving I hadn't plagiarized). |
| How Difficult | 4 | Easy enough up to the point of tax accounting. Memorizing all of the laws isn't exactly "learning" and "applying" the tax laws to the actual profession. Though I did have 2 assignments I recall where I did have to keep tax laws in mind when completing the income tax statements for assigned scenarios/fictitious individuals. Overall, it's easy if you can teach yourself out of the textbook but difficult if you need additional help because help is lacking. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | Book learning entirely. It's an accounting course so you learn strictly by the text book and practice your knowledge with simulated scenarios. If you consider preparing income statements, balance sheets, and so on as "hands-on" learning, then I suppose it is 50/50. But I learned from my text book without much assistance from professors and completed the tax forms, financial statements, and various cost/financial analysis of business situations with only the text book as my source of of learning. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 8 | I took online courses so the flexibility was fairly high. The only reason it isn't extremely high is because you still have deadlines when homework is due and sometimes this was hindered by their website crashing, causing students to miss deadlines (and if the Professor decided he/she did not care we were forced to complain to the Dean about this in order to even have our work considered for grading... which often received poor grading as a result of going over the professors head in the first place.) |
| Academic Facilities | 1 | Their idea of resources were providing my own textbooks that I purchased and website links that are readily available with a basic google search. They offered libraries, of course, but again, most of the resources within the library were electronic and not helpful. |
| Social Life | 1 | There isn't much to explain. This has more to do with my personal choices than the school itself. It provides plenty of means for social interaction but I was too focused on completing my course work and not interested in socializing. Though I must say, their forums for the online courses were unorganized and the "group projects" lent to more problems than help since many students failed to participate and those of us participating had to make up other peoples' work. |
| Placement Services | 1 | As I said before hand, they did nothing for me personally to help place me in any positions. They provided a name for a Colorado company but, alas, that company (like many) required experience via interning. The staff also didn't seem to have their facts straight. One staff member specifically guaranteed assistance with job placement. Another said that all they could do was provide school recommendations and they advised me to collect several references from my professors. Other than that, they did absolutely nothing. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | I wouldn't know, as I don't participate in the alumni program. I didn't even bother to go to graduation to receive my diploma - I let them mail it to me. |
Metropolitan State College Of Denver • Denver, CO
Studying Accounting (completion in 2010)
• 9/25/2011
"I found the experience as a whole to be excellent. It helped spur my interest in taxes and fraud, giving my career a better sense of direction. If they had offered a Master's program at the time I was looking into it, I would probably have gone with them."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | The teachers were excellent, and the courses really focused on preparing students for their career. The flexibility of scheduling, as well as the course offerings, work great for anyone who wants to pursue an accounting career. I would certainly recommend their program. |
| Program Reputation | 5 | The Big 4 firms don't recruit here because the student profile tends to be older. A number of mid-size companies do look for talent there, and have been working with the staff to develop the program to better meet the needs of local companies. |
| Program Quality | 9 | The teachers were great, well-educated and experienced in the field. They provided numerous opportunities to learn outside of the classroom. |
| Instruction | 9 | The curriculum covered all the basics to prepare me for an entry level accounting position. It was very comprehensive and I felt very good about the quality of instruction I received. |
| How Difficult | 7 | The program was challenging. The teachers gave you plenty of school work and encouraged me to take things further than what was required for my own benefit. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | The curriculum was very focused on application. In every class, the emphasis was on real world business issues and went beyond coming up with the numbers. Interpretation of results was very important. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 8 | The college understands that they have a large number of working adults attending classes and try to arrange their schedule to accommodate them. They offered a wide variety of classes in the evening, specific to the accounting program, as well as offering more summer classes than I expected to see. |
| Academic Facilities | 6 | The library was average, it had good computer facilities for research, but the hard copy material was very out-dated. The Accounting Honor Society helped with tutoring in several areas. I found that most professors were easy to get in contact with and were willing to help students when we got stuck. I didn't utilize the academic advising much, I knew what classes I wanted to take and what the relevant prerequisites were. |
| Social Life | 5 | The school certainly encourages the students to engage in a variety of athletic and social events. Due to my school and work schedule, I found it difficult to attend. |
| Placement Services | 7 | The career services center is very good. They offer practice interviews with local firms, so graduates have an idea of what to expect when they start job hunting. They also do a great job with resume preparation. Their career board is very helpful and includes the option of email notification of jobs, which has been very useful. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | I haven't had much opportunity to interact with the alumni network from Metro. I tend to track their activities through third party sites like LinkedIn.com. |
University Of Phoenix • Westminster, CO
Studying Accounting (completion in 2008)
• 10/14/2011
"The school told me that my credits from another school would transfer in. This did not prove to be the case for many credits."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | no | My school lied to me so I do not have a positive attitude toward it. I would not feel comfortable endorsing it to my friends/family. |
| Program Reputation | 3 | As stated previously, I do not think many employers think highly of this school. I do not think that employers think great learning occurs here. |
| Program Quality | 5 | A lot of employers have a negative attitude about the University of Phoenix. I do not believe that they think it is a good school. |
| Instruction | 6 | I really liked many of the instructors. They brought real-world situations into the classroom. |
| How Difficult | 5 | They do have a lot of homework and reading every week. Overall, it wasn't too challenging in many ways. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | They require a project in every class. They usually have an oral presentation as part of that. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 5 | They had different evenings in the week available as well as different campuses. They also did have online options for some of the classes. |
| Academic Facilities | 5 | The instructors had day jobs as well as teaching jobs. You couldn't get a fast response if you needed one. |
| Social Life | 1 | The University of Phoenix does not have social events as far as I know. It's for older folks, in general. |
| Placement Services | 2 | I received no assistance with this. I never received any followup on this, only them wanting me to start my masters with them. |
| Alumni Network | 1 | I've received no information on this. I am unaware that they even have such a thing. |
Red Rocks Community College • Golden, CO
Studying Business (completion in 2000)
• 3/24/2012
"After I reached my degree, I was nowhere near ready for the job market, and/or ready to go after my certificate. I had to continue my pursuit in a couple of other schools, and start working for accountants to get the experience I need today."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | I would recommend Red Rocks. I think the school gave me the foundation of my career. I was able to get into all classes I needed with little or no wait. The staff was helpful and friendly. I know several people who graduated and went on to successful careers in law enforcement and business management. The campus was a safe and secure facility. The support staff was always just a call away. |
| Program Reputation | 3 | Red Rocks is an awesome community college, and in Colorado it is one of the best, or at least it was. Red Rocks does not specialize in accounting, so most of my classes were in general business subjects. |
| Program Quality | 5 | Red Rocks had a lot of business management courses. The professors were all savvy in business, though only a couple of the professors had real accounting experience. |
| Instruction | 4 | Most lessons had a textbook approach. We learned all of the basics. Lessons lacked practical, everyday, modern, up to date experience and or expectations. |
| How Difficult | 6 | Classes were less then 10-15 students. Every lesson was taught and covered until everyone was on track. The pace was moderate. The next class assignment would be posted and so I was able to work ahead most times. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | The majority of the studies were in the textbook. Practical examples were not available. Most instructors had to reach way back to come up with examples, and/or bring in accountants from the outside to talk about current day accounting. Computer use was mostly data entry, not program specific. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 8 | This is why I chose to attend Red Rocks. I was able to make and set my schedule around my full time day job. I was serving active duty in the military and was able to find all the required classes at night and weekends, year around! |
| Academic Facilities | 7 | I cannot say enough about the faculty. I never had a professor I didn't respect. The entire teaching team made themselves available to the students daily. Most were available before and after class. I remember making an appointment to meet with a professor on a Sunday. The resource center was well equipped with computers and resource materials. If the resource center didn't have what you needed, they could tell you who had it. The resource center hosted study groups for all studies. I could always find someone willing to help with a concept. |
| Social Life | Being that I attended most of my classes at night and/or on weekends, I did not have much contact with the school spirit. I remember being invited to events, however I never attended any. | |
| Placement Services | 4 | I did not go through the job placement program in the school because I moved right after I obtained my degree. I used the job boards both on line and the boards to find job openings. Most jobs postings were local. They had a network of employers from the Golden, Colorado area and boasted about a high job placement rate. I just didn't see it and/or use it. |
| Alumni Network | I attended mostly night and weekend classes. I have no contact with the school at this time. |
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