Here are some tips for selecting schools, based on an analysis comparing each school to all others across dozens of factors:
Schools Concentrating On Medical Secretaries
- Focus: For schools with a focus on this career area, look at Des Moines Area Community College and Hawkeye Community College.
Fastest Response From Schools
- Request Info: For the fastest information for prospective students, look at the Spotlight schools on this page.
Student Body
- Diverse: For a diverse student body, consider Western Iowa Tech Community College.
School Setting
- Out of State: For geographic diversity, take note of Dordt, Western Iowa Tech Community College, Iowa Lakes Community College, and North Iowa Area Community College.
- Dorms: For a residential campus environment, take note of Dordt, Iowa Lakes Community College, North Iowa Area Community College, and Western Iowa Tech Community College.
Excellence
- Class Size: For small class sizes, look at Dordt.
Student/Alumnus Reviews of Schools for This Career and State
Kaplan University • Davenport, IA
Studying Health Sciences (completion in 2011)
• 10/29/2011
"I had more complications than successes with this school. I have also been unable to find a job in health care administration. I am currently working as a medical secretary and attending classes at a local university to obtain a Bachelor's degree in a different field of study."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | no | Their financial aid department is nothing short of embarrassing. You are not assigned a specific advisor and do not receive specific treatment. This makes things very frustrating, since you end up explaining your entire academic and financial information every time you call to seek help. |
| Program Reputation | 4 | My school was online and doesn't have a firm reputation yet. Employers are more recently looking at online schools as reputable; however there is still a stigma regarding online schools. |
| Program Quality | 4 | Kaplan University is a for-profit university that does not seem to care about their students. The financial aid department gives you more trouble than any campus based university. I would not recommend them to anyone. |
| Instruction | 7 | The professors were helpful. Many of them worked within the field that they taught so they had experience to share with the students, instead of just academic knowledge. |
| How Difficult | 6 | The workload was more intense than a traditional campus-based university; however I feel as though the course requirements were too lenient. I also feel that they did not necessarily test on the subject material since many times you were required to write papers instead of taking some sort of exam. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | There was no hands on learning. Everything was taught in an online seminar format and you were required to read the books that were assigned for each class. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | The whole point of an online university is to cater to individuals who cannot attend a traditional university, mainly because of work restrictions. The majority of the classes take place between 6pm to 11pm. |
| Academic Facilities | 4 | They have a great deal of online resources available. They also have an agreement with a specific library where you can request hard copies of the books. However; since they are online they do not offer the basics, such as laboratories, study groups. They have a tutoring program for certain fields of study; however I did not use any of them so I am unable to report on these. |
| Social Life | 1 | They are an online university and do not have any social events or athletics. They offer a graduation ceremony that allows you to meet your fellow students when all is said and done. |
| Placement Services | 2 | They do not have any job placement programs. They do have an alumni network that helps you with interview preparations and resumes. |
| Alumni Network | 7 | They have a website-based alumni network that helps you create a resume and also gives you interview tips. It would be better if they had some connections in the fields that they teach in. |
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