tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13722343.post113322176640826706..comments2023-10-29T14:44:07.458+00:00Comments on The Dossing Times: Dr Con Power - Pacific Western University [PWU] - PhD [1988] and DBA [1990] – legality of awards + academic contentSimonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13851386083389876851noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13722343.post-51456199443319813082008-03-20T22:55:00.000+00:002008-03-20T22:55:00.000+00:00Pacific Western University is a non-traditional, d...Pacific Western University is a non-traditional, distance learning institution based in California since 1977. <BR/><BR/>The university makes no claims of being accredited but is authorized to exist and grant degrees under California Education Code section 94310.<BR/><BR/>This university specializes in helping working men and women of honesty, character and responsibility earn college degrees while continuing to raise their families and contribute to their communities.<BR/><BR/>There are many people who erroneously believe that such institutions are nothing but diploma mills. <BR/><BR/>While such things do exist, this is not the case with Pacific Western University.<BR/><BR/>Back in 1985 when multitudes of California's public school teachers (you know, the ones with degrees from "accredited" institutions) were failing the CBEST test, Pacific Western University students were able to pass the test with no failures.<BR/><BR/>The university's reputation for academic excellence is well known and its degrees are accepted by most Human Relations departments in the private sector, and agencies of the federal government as well.<BR/><BR/>There have been reports of traditional academics going (undercover) into the offices of P.W.U. and their extensive “investigations” revealed that there were “no actual classrooms” to be found anywhere on the property!<BR/><BR/>My, how shocking it must have been for them – to find no classrooms in the offices of a distance learning center! <BR/><BR/>There are still a great many private-sector employers who need people with real qualifications – not just policy qualifications – who also realize that the deplorable condition of our public school system is the direct result of the academic, incestuous in-breeding of the “accredited” institutions of “higher” learning. <BR/><BR/>The real problem with these academic aristocrats is the fact that an ordinary person can get a real and meaningful education (without belonging to a fraternity or burning a flag), work a full-time job and raise a family, qualify for a responsible and productive job, and usually out perform his traditionally educated peers. <BR/><BR/>Charles L. Troupe<BR/>BA, Pacific Western University 1985Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04450551518028471039noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13722343.post-86832883039623184312008-01-09T14:23:00.000+00:002008-01-09T14:23:00.000+00:00I applied and attended the distance learning cours...I applied and attended the distance learning courses at PWU in the early 90's before the internet. In my case, I had completed about 18 hours of courses through USC when they were sending instructors to Europe for the miltary. <BR/><BR/>I also had some post masters applied research courses from LSU that I wanted to use toward a PhD. Since those course completion dates were over 5 year old, they were not acceptable for transfer credit at most universities at the time. <BR/><BR/>The bottom line was that I had about 30 hours of course work at the master's level completed at two other universities... USC and LSU.<BR/><BR/>In principle, had I been in the USA and could have transfered all the credit hours, I would have only lacked writing the dissertation to complete the PhD program. <BR/><BR/>I appplied to PWU and was accepted. I had to take several additional research and writing courses at the time. I was not just given the option to "buy" a diploma. Many of the courses Con Power listed were also requirements I had to fulfill.<BR/><BR/>Then there was the dissertation... in my case a work entitled "A Clypian Database Management Network - An Alternative to Traditional Networks" based on a US Army information management project I designed, implemented, trained and used in Central Europe. The dissertation was based on a three year information technology project that was nominated by European military commanaders for the INSCOM (United States Army Intelligence & Security Command) Commander's Award in 1992.<BR/><BR/>I also had an oral exam to defend my dessertation - long distance teleconference with a couple other instructors.<BR/><BR/>The point is that though PWU may or may not have been a mill... there are still some very talented people that paid a legitimate academic price for their degrees.<BR/><BR/>It is also worth remembering that distance learning programs such as PWU in the early days were not acceptable by any established academic institution or regulatory body at the time. Nowadays, there are several distance learning programs that are acceptable by many of the leading institutions of higher learning.<BR/><BR/>If a person "bought a degree", they could have actually done the same thing if they approached the right people at any university.<BR/><BR/>However, if a person did the coursework required, it was graded, and he fulfilled the basic requirements as demanded by any other program, I'm not so sure we should dismiss the individual because of some shady business practices of PWU (if indeed they did that) or any other distance learning program. <BR/><BR/>Con Power and other graduates shld be judged on their abilities and not their academic achivements. There are many PhDs that can not pour water out of a boot even if the instructions are written on the heel.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13722343.post-81364403420071066602007-10-22T05:20:00.000+01:002007-10-22T05:20:00.000+01:00Pacific Western is a diploma mill. Look at the in...Pacific Western is a diploma mill. Look at the investigation by the Government Accounting Office (GOA) done in 2004 (http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d04771t.pdf). They had someone go undercover and PWU was still directly selling degrees. However, PWU has never been accredited, only "approved" -- and California has low standards for "approved". It was only "approved" in the mid-1990s when it had to show some courses that people could take (and whether they took them or not is another story). Up until that time, PWU was a straight diploma mill where you could buy a Ph.D. even if you didn't have an undergraduate degree. I wouldn't believe anything PWU manufactured about Con Powers program although it might be true that he actually did all of those things. He had already done considerable graduate work at legitimate universities. However there are only two dissertations in dissertation abstracts from Pacific Western -- one in 1996 and one in 1997. Neither one was written by Con Powers. PWU graduated hundreds and hundreds and maybe even thousans of people and only two are in the abstracts. If someone writes a legitimate dissertation it should be in dissertation abstracts.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13722343.post-69716688590950136232007-08-28T03:34:00.000+01:002007-08-28T03:34:00.000+01:00I live in California and am an educator. PWU ( no...I live in California and am an educator. PWU ( now known since last month as Miramar to try to dodge the poor reputation associated with PWU is NOT accredited in CA. Further, the use of it's degrees for academic purposes or for employment purposes is ILLEGAL in the states of Texas, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, New Jersey and pending in 3 more states; persons using their degrees from PWU in these ways can be charged with a misdemeanor offense. It is widely known as a diploma mill throughout the United States and that is precisely why the institution has moved to San Diego (in California) and changed it's name. It currently has no PhD or doctoral programs at all since it's curriculum for these degrees has been challenged by so many as laughable... <BR/>Sorry, but this is the truth.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13722343.post-1163516842820945952006-11-14T15:07:00.000+00:002006-11-14T15:07:00.000+00:00Get out your map & learn the difference between Ca...Get out your map & learn the difference between California & Hawaii. The California school is state approved & in the process of accreditation. The Hawaii school of the same name is closed. They're not the same school.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13722343.post-1140630406380813912006-02-22T17:46:00.000+00:002006-02-22T17:46:00.000+00:00Pacific Western University is a sham.Under various...Pacific Western University is a sham.<BR/><BR/>Under various pretexts it sells degrees.<BR/><BR/>Employers should beware, its "qualifications" are worthless and any job applicant who puts a PWU certificate on their resume should be given a wide berth.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13722343.post-1138265657325637682006-01-26T08:54:00.000+00:002006-01-26T08:54:00.000+00:00Pacific Western University is a notorious diploma ...Pacific Western University is a notorious diploma mill. Sued by the State of Hawaii, not recognized as legitmate (in any of its various incarnations) by the State of Oregon. Used to puff up resumes, just like Almeda College and University and Regis (not to be confused with the legit Regis).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13722343.post-1133262804623552632005-11-29T11:13:00.000+00:002005-11-29T11:13:00.000+00:00Comment from Dr Con PowerI very much appreciate yo...Comment from Dr Con Power<BR/><BR/>I very much appreciate you carrying my response, and also your extremely balanced and fair comments.<BR/><BR/>Regards<BR/><BR/>ConAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13722343.post-1133225323973348222005-11-29T00:48:00.000+00:002005-11-29T00:48:00.000+00:00I would also like to point out I never doubted tha...I would also like to point out I never doubted that PWU had California state approval. Only what other parts of American education think of PWU and California.Simonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13851386083389876851noreply@blogger.com