Here are some tips for selecting schools, based on an analysis comparing each school to all others across dozens of factors:
Schools Concentrating On Systems Analysts
- Focus: For schools with a focus on this career area, look at Rio Salado College, University of Advancing Technology, Arizona State, and Pima 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
- Part-Time: For schools emphasizing part-time studies, consider Arizona State, Northern Arizona University, and University of Arizona.
- Diverse: For a diverse student body, consider Tohono O'Odham Community College, South Mountain Community College, Cochise, and Phoenix College.
- Adult Learners: For lots of adult learners, consider Mohave Community College, Phoenix College, Cochise, and GateWay Community College.
School Setting
- Out of State: For geographic diversity, take note of University of Advancing Technology, University of Arizona, Northern Arizona University, and Rio Salado College.
- Dorms: For a residential campus environment, take note of Northern Arizona University, University of Advancing Technology, University of Arizona, and Arizona State.
Excellence
- % Accepted: For selective institutions, look at University of Advancing Technology.
- Class Size: For small class sizes, look at Tohono O'Odham Community College, University of Arizona, Northern Arizona University, and Arizona State.
Student/Alumnus Reviews of Schools for This Career and State
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University Of Phoenix • Phoenix, AZ
Studying Business (completion in 2005)
• 7/20/2011
"It was often difficult to communicate with staff as well as with students."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | It depends on whether or not a person is discipline enough to handle going to school online. |
| Program Reputation | 5 | I hear complaints about the school. |
| Program Quality | 8 | The business courses were excellent. |
| Instruction | 5 | The teachers were sometimes inadequate. |
| How Difficult | 8 | It was difficult to keep up with the amount of work given. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | The online learning environment is difficult because there is no face to face involvement. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | Since it's online, it is very flexible. |
| Academic Facilities | 5 | Since it was online, there were no issues. |
| Social Life | 5 | Difficult to have social experience at an online school. |
| Placement Services | 5 | The job placement for the school has not been good. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | Don't know enough about it. |
The University Of Arizona • Tucson, AZ
Studying Information Sciences, Technology And Arts (completion in 2001)
• 7/26/2011
"I found it to be an excellent school. I have no complaints or any negative feelings. I can say that I feel like I got exactly what I paid for."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | I feel the the University of Arizona gave me the perfect skill set to enter the real world job market. I was way ahead of a lot of my co-workers who had to play catch up. |
| Program Reputation | 8 | I run into people al the time that know about the program or have graduated from it themselves. I would say that in my office alone there are twelve grads of the program. |
| Program Quality | 10 | The Information Sciences, Technology and Arts program at the University of Arizona prepared me very well for my job. The very in depth training and hands on labs made it easy when I transitioned from the university to real world job applications. It put me far ahead of some of my co-workers. |
| Instruction | 9 | Almost everything that the program taught me I use today . I would say the U of A program cuts out the wasted or out dated information. It focuses on the up to date and real world application of information technologies. This program gave me current knowledge of the forefront of modern IT and computer sciences. I didn't have to play catch up. |
| How Difficult | 7 | It was not very difficult. The Instructors made the work very easy to understand. The labs provided hands on visual teaching, making the whole program come together nicely. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | I thought it was the perfect balance of book learning and hands on lab application. It was never overwhelming. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 5 | School is always difficult, though I found the U of A to be very understanding about schedules and working with you, even for summer classes. |
| Academic Facilities | 10 | The University of Arizona is a beautiful place to attend school. Its campus is full of every resource one needs to thrive in a computer sciences curriculum, from instructors to labs to libraries to student academic support. |
| Social Life | 10 | I had a lot of fun at U of A . There was always something going on, be it a football game or a science club party. |
| Placement Services | 10 | Through the CRS office I had a job waiting when I graduated. I am still working for the same firm years later. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | I never really got involved in the alumni activities or networking. I got a job as soon as I graduated. I do receive alumni newspapers and information. |
Cochise College • Sierra Vista, AZ
Studying Information Security (completion in 2010)
• 9/23/2011
"I am very satisfied with my school because it was very helpful in helping me get a job and the teachers are very helpful and knowledgeable."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | I would recommend my school because it is a very good school and also because it's on the cheap side. You won't spend thousands of dollars. |
| Program Quality | 10 | Most of the teachers are ex military and government personnel with many years of experience in IT. |
| Instruction | 10 | I actually learned a lot from Cochise College. I already knew a little about security, but with the help of my teachers I was able to learn a lot more. |
| How Difficult | 6 | It was so so. The most difficult was the math portion of my program. It wasn't easy, but if you studied and did your work you would be fine. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | My program of study was mostly book/teacher based which is better because if you have a question, you can ask the teacher directly. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | My class schedule was awesome because I would work in the mornings and I would go to school in the afternoons. The school did have other classes at different times of the day, but for me the evening classes worked best. |
| Academic Facilities | 10 | While I was attending school they remodeled the entire campus because it was getting old. The new building are all state of the art and everything is great. |
| Placement Services | 10 | AWESOME. They were able to find me a job as a federal contractor for a big national company that works with the Department of Defense. |
| Alumni Network | 10 | Great. I always receive emails stating that there is something going on for the alumni or being sponsored by the alumni. |
University Of Phoenix • Phoenix, AZ
Studying MBA (completion in 2001)
• 11/5/2011
"I learned a lot. This translated into increased ability and confidence."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | I would recommend it to those working adults that want to forward their careers. I'd also recommend it to career-changers. |
| Program Reputation | 7 | Many of the school's alumni have gone on to important roles, as shown in the alumni magazine. Still, some doubt the school's quality. |
| Program Quality | 8 | The university provided good instruction that gets the students ready for the real world. Learning Teams prepare the student for collaborative work. |
| Instruction | 8 | Teachers have real-world experience. Subject matter is relevant and timely. |
| How Difficult | 7 | It was mostly reading and project completion. The reading is voluminous but not difficult. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | The hands-on component is mostly reading and projects. The online classes do not meet in person. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | Classes were online. The classes were asynchronous, making it easy to fit them into a tight schedule. |
| Academic Facilities | 9 | Online resources are good. There is even an online library. |
| Social Life | 6 | Online, you don't meet anyone in person. Still, you can get to "know" others. |
| Placement Services | 6 | Job placement is so-so. The energy put into it is ok but could be better. |
| Alumni Network | 7 | The University has an active alumni network. Decent efforts are made to help alumni. |
University Of Phoenix • Phoenix, AZ
Studying Information Technology (completion in 2010)
• 1/8/2012
"The flexible program allowed me to complete my degree while working full time. The instruction that I received was well balanced and well prepared."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | UoP is a great way for working adults to receive a degree and push on with their careers. I would highly recommend this format and would like to see more colleges embrace this way of education. |
| Program Reputation | 8 | I believe the school is well known and respected. UoP has a good name and is known through a number of TV and print ads. |
| Program Quality | 7 | The program was good, but did not go into detail on some of the areas that I needed right from the start. For example, the program had an emphasis on programming, however I really needed the program to have more of an emphasis on overall project management. |
| Instruction | 9 | The instructor-lead programs where good. One of the advantages that I received in my training is that I worked with instructors who had real world experience in teaching specific subjects. |
| How Difficult | 5 | The program was challenging at times. However, all in all it was relatively easy for me because I already came to my studies with a good a mount of field experience. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | The mix between instruction and labs was really good. I felt that my training left me with a good amount of both theoretical as well as practical knowledge. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | I participated in a large number of on-line/off-campus training and therefore had pretty much maximum flexibility in my scheduling. It was this flexibility that lowed me to work and earn my degree at the same time. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | Great facilities and very easy access to professors and staff. All in all the advice and assistance I received from my academic staff during my training was outstanding. Sometimes the response times where a little slow due to instructor volume. |
| Social Life | I did not participate in social activities. Therefore, I can not rate this, however I know that there are a great deal of activities for students to take advantage of. | |
| Placement Services | I do not know, I already had found my own job by the time I graduated. I did not take advantage of the job placement program offered by my school. | |
| Alumni Network | 7 | The alumni network is good and communicates frequently. However, my current job responsibilities keep me so busy that I do not participate in any significant number of alumni activities. |
Glendale Community College • Glendale, AZ
Studying Computer Networking (completion in 2002)
• 3/6/2012
"Love it. Love my alma mater."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | Definitely. This school prepares students very well. |
| Program Reputation | 10 | I would go back and take the same courses. I would hope most staff would still remain, but likely not. |
| Program Quality | 10 | Came out very well prepared. Excellent course material and real world experience. |
| Instruction | 10 | Again, hands on labs with real world experience. Very useful degree that catapulted my career. |
| How Difficult | 10 | Science degree. Lots of math and reasoning. People tend to struggle with these items. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | Excellent mix of both. Lots of labs made it fun to learn. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | Pretty good class schedule. Lots of evening classes for me. |
| Academic Facilities | 10 | I think they did a good job. I would recommend this school to anyone. |
| Social Life | 5 | Too busy to attend any events. Worked full time and went to school full time with two babies. |
| Placement Services | 1 | Took an internship course and got an internship. Did not get a job. |
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