Walden University Reviews of Doctoral in Curriculum & Instruction

I have to say that Walden University is not for everyone because you have to be self-motivated. Do not expect professor to hold your hand to do your work. I received my Master of Science in Education and my Doctor of Education and both programs were rigorous. I do have to say that their dissertation process is very rigorous because they expect nothing but the best. Do not expect professors to tell you what to do because they will not tell you anything. Walden's online classrooms have rubrics for... Read More every assignment; therefore, you have to become familiar with them. These rubrics tell you exactly what they are looking for. If you do not follow them, you will not do well academically. If you are thinking about earning your Ed.D or Ph.D from Walden University, I have to tell you that the dissertation/doctoral project study is rigorous. I have attended both online and mortal brick universities and I have to say that Walden University format is much better. They have videos embedded, classroom assignment's and etc which makes it easier for you to follow through. As far as the coursework, it is just like attending any other school. People think online schools are a joke and easy, but they are not. If you do the work, you will not have problems with Walden. Good Luck in your Endeavors!

Stay away from Walden if you're looking to complete a Ph.D. without going broke. I began my program in 2008, thinking I would be able to complete my studies in five years. It is now 2016 and I'm still not finished because of the exceptionally long time it takes to get any writing reviewed. Any time I turn in an assignment, instructors have 14 days to review. While working with my dissertation committee, this means that each person has two weeks to review my work and return it. They do not do this... Read More concurrently, but consecutively. I've wasted numerous quarters (12-weeks) simply waiting for work to come back to me. I almost always complete my revisions within a few days, but each committee member then has two additional weeks to review. I have no choice but the finish this (I'm finally within two quarters of completing my dissertation), but I would strongly advise students to find another school. In addition to the wait times, I've also had my entire dissertation committee changed since I started it in 2012. I don't know why the first committee member quit. The second committee member to quit was my Dissertation Chair. She decided to retire in the middle of a quarter without telling anyone. Took me almost six weeks (1/2 of a quarter) to find a replacement. Then the new Chair had to have time to review my work. This summer, my methodologist quit due to health reasons. I've spend the last two weeks trying to find another methodologist who specializes in quantitative data analysis. During my phone conference with him, he stated that he doesn't agree with the methodology I'm using, so now I'm going to have to change that. It seems to just go on and on. None of my committee members seem to talk to each other, and they certainly don't agree with each other on how I'm conducting my study. I'm very frustrated and will never recommend Walden to anyone.

I would recommend that you look into the program thoroughly before committing to it and before getting in debt. I had to exit the program because one of the chair professors did not respond to my assignments in a timely manner. I complained to her supervisor and he advised me to be patient. Meanwhile, I was getting deeper and deeper into debt. I completed all the courses, but due to the lack of follow through from the chairs I did not complete my research study and decided to exit the program after... Read More $90000 in debt. I wish I could have stopped before the debt grew this high but I wanted to complete the program. I followed protocol and communicated with all the right people to get assistance and they were all good listeners but did not help me get anything resolved.

Walden University at the Doctoral Level is an absolute joke. I would dare say that they're a joke at all levels. But, I'll refrain from hurting the feelings graduates of that piece of garbage. They are designed to recruit as many students as possible to boost their commission and that's all they care about. You WILL NOT receive any support and the feedback from professors pretty much comes from a "comment bank". The professors barely read your work and gave me grades for completion. Don't waste your... Read More time or money as I've yet to find anyone who has successfully matriculated from any of their doctoral programs. I've been in education for 20 years, so I believe that I'm an authority on what's a good educational program and what isn't. In addition, I've already earned 3 Master's degrees from accredited brick and mortar institutions.

I signed up with Walden thinking they would live by their promise "A lot of help in one place" They did not. I am getting ready to go to court with them unless they are able to rectify the current problem. Most Professors are fine. I am not impressed with their academic advisors. I think at least one of them is so involved in his own studies he loses sight of his duties to the student. There is too much money involved for errors to be made that leave the student holding the blade. I am sorry I did... Read More not pay attention to the article that says they have a very low retention rate. You could be a great student and Boom! out of nowhere you get a surprise you did not expect.....no problem if they take responsibility.....but they do not.

For this review I will keep it succinct. Walden is not an institution where you learn through instruction. Read a book, write a paper, search on google, write more, and begin again. If you desire interaction, collaboration, good solid knowledgeable feedback, and consistency, then this will serve as advice to avoid the Walden program. It is very costly. It is non-supportive. It is geared for low profile. It is retaliatory. Search the internet first. Use your intuition and understand that there are... Read More individuals that pose as positive bloggers to underpin the university's reputation. If you pay close attention you will notice a very common voice to the posts. If you notice the posts that are opposite the glowing reviews, they all have the same theme. The cost per semester is outrageously expensive and the service you receive in turn is not worth the aches and pains of trying to pay off the student loans. The interactions are non-existent; the instruction is vapidly delivered. I advise you to pose as a disgruntled student and see how far you are allowed to go before you attempt to attend this "university". You will find that you are not only dismissed, but are marked for weeding. I will not bore you with my experiences, but suffice it to say that I have experienced all of the same things as the others with regard to non-instruction, bilking of money, retaliation, and no end product. Use the common sense adage "if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is". If you need to hear it, then "don't make this mistake - go to a face-to-face college or university". I wish you good luck in your journeys and may they bring you to your dream.