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Do NOT enroll in this University if you are offered admissions. I repeat: DO NOT enroll at Walden if you get accepted. The work is difficult, ponderous and fast-paced. They don’t care if you work full-time, have children or other obligations. Simply stated, Walden University is a “real” institution with academic standards, not a degree mill. So if you‘re reading this review with the hope of easily earning a PhD, EdD or whatever other dream that’s rattling around your empty skull, keep it moving because this is not the shortcut you’re looking for. Walden is an institution dedicated to social change and the theories of social change are embedded in several courses. It is an institution that tries to activate its learners while producing rich research that addresses current problems. The courses are held in 12-week cycles, but in reality they are 10 weeks since the first and last weeks are more of a ramp up and feedback portion of the course. The work is challenging; the books and journal articles are relevant and the ideas and profiles from your colleagues are impressive. I have been at Walden University since 2007 and I am in the final stages of my PhD. This process has been rewarding, enlightening, and expensive. I would match the quality of my education in the Public Policy & Administration program against any state-based institution. The curriculum is from central casting – thorough, based on the canon, and fairly exhaustive. What I am most impressed about Walden is its dedication to change. The services and student interactions have gotten increasingly better since I entered and the residencies, while always a strong point, are even stronger. Look, I have tried to dissuade you from Walden so let me throw my final pitch. As stated earlier, this is a REAL University, with real doctoral demands. When you enter this University, you ARE pursuing a doctoral degree…don’t let the absence of walls fool you. You will be up after midnight on more than a few occasions, and your weekends for the next 3 to 4 years are pretty much gone. Now when you’re 20 pulling an all-nighter is fun, but when you’re 40, it hurts. The body changes, folks. You have to bend your life around Walden, not the other way around. So if real life is kicking your you-know –what, then maybe this isn’t the time and place. In my view, most of the complaints about Walden found on the internet come from those clowns that thought they were going to have an easy ride, and because they flame out in six months, they get bitter and lash out rather than use a little introspection and realize the problem was internal. Distance learning is not for everyone; it plays to certain learning styles. So if in college you were the social butterfly and needed to be in that atmosphere, frankly, that environment is difficult to replicate in an online institution. There are several online student groups that you can join, but the stimulation is just not the same. Stated simply, there will be times when you feel isolated. Now let me warn you that Walden University is a non-traditional institution because it is based online. The old guard of traditional PhDs will be resistant and so you have to be prepared to work, show and prove your value. No one is going to give you a corner office simply because you brandish your Walden credentials. No, you’re going to have to earn it; you’re going to have to entrepreneurial. Don’t go into Walden thinking you’re going to be a full professor at a state university because that’s probably not going to happen. But there will certainly be opportunities for you to publish, consult, teach and present. In other words, you can live the life of a scholar, but you probably won’t be funded by the state tax dollars that subsidize the public higher education system. You have to opportunistic and proactive. So you see Walden isn’t for the inert while you’re in the institution and when you’re out. Know and embrace that aspect of this before you get on board. In closing, I encourage you not to enroll. You’re probably aren’t ready. You’re like a lot of dreamers out there hoping one day to get that big promotion or to be recognized for some great idea or some other ego gap you’re trying to fill. Sorry, this isn’t the institution you’re looking for. Walden University is only for those seriously dedicated to the process of higher learning and you have to maintain a high level of focus throughout the entire journey. Are you ready?
