Eastern University

[mcjon77]

I have new feedback about the program. I decided to leave the program today. I was graded a 48% on an assignment without any feedback on what I had gotten wrong. The low grade on the assignment dropped my grade to a 77% C and all classes need to be a 80% B, so now I am on probation. In addition, their test will consist of fill in the blanks that will mark you wrong when you are right with your answer. In order for you to get credit for the answers that are marked wrong when they are right. You will have to send screenshots to the department to have them check. Meaning, you could have many right answers on your fill-in-the-blank answers that are marked wrong and you are giving a lower score without you realizing it. I've completed 4 classes so far, and none of them have consisted of projects that are required by most internships for you to show your Data Science skills. I am on the hunt for a new Data Science or Data Analytics masters program. If you guys know of any good ones, please let me know.

Hi eleverson,

If you don't mind me asking, which class did you have trouble in?  If this was term 2 for you, was it data management or Analytics in R?  I am in the program right now and just finished my first two courses.  Everything went very well for me, and I wanted to know if I need to be on the lookout for anything.

[eleverson]

I have new feedback about the program. I decided to leave the program today. I was graded a 48% on an assignment without any feedback on what I had gotten wrong. The low grade on the assignment dropped my grade to a 77% C and all classes need to be a 80% B, so now I am on probation. In addition, their test will consist of fill in the blanks that will mark you wrong when you are right with your answer. In order for you to get credit for the answers that are marked wrong when they are right. You will have to send screenshots to the department to have them check. Meaning, you could have many right answers on your fill-in-the-blank answers that are marked wrong and you are giving a lower score without you realizing it. I've completed 4 classes so far, and none of them have consisted of projects that are required by most internships for you to show your Data Science skills. I am on the hunt for a new Data Science or Data Analytics masters program. If you guys know of any good ones, please let me know.

Hi eleverson,

If you don't mind me asking, which class did you have trouble in?  If this was term 2 for you, was it data management or Analytics in R?  I am in the program right now and just finished my first two courses.  Everything went very well for me, and I wanted to know if I need to be on the lookout for anything.

It was both Analytics R and the Data Management. Mostly the data management and this professor also teach machine learning and somebody I knw that is in it had to get a tutor to pass.

[allvia]

I have new feedback about the program. I decided to leave the program today. I was graded a 48% on an assignment without any feedback on what I had gotten wrong. The low grade on the assignment dropped my grade to a 77% C and all classes need to be a 80% B, so now I am on probation. In addition, their test will consist of fill in the blanks that will mark you wrong when you are right with your answer. In order for you to get credit for the answers that are marked wrong when they are right. You will have to send screenshots to the department to have them check. Meaning, you could have many right answers on your fill-in-the-blank answers that are marked wrong and you are giving a lower score without you realizing it. I've completed 4 classes so far, and none of them have consisted of projects that are required by most internships for you to show your Data Science skills. I am on the hunt for a new Data Science or Data Analytics masters program. If you guys know of any good ones, please let me know.

Hi eleverson,

If you don't mind me asking, which class did you have trouble in?  If this was term 2 for you, was it data management or Analytics in R?  I am in the program right now and just finished my first two courses.  Everything went very well for me, and I wanted to know if I need to be on the lookout for anything.

It was both Analytics R and the Data Management. Mostly the data management and this professor also teach machine learning and somebody I knw that is in it had to get a tutor to pass.

I think it needs to be pointed out that eleverson turned in this assignment that brought the down the grade on the last day of the course; this has not been stated in any of the feedback eleverson has given here publicly. I feel it is a disservice to the forum readers here to not have that fact be known.  


With that said - I'm not as far along as eleverson had gotten yet - eleverson did speak to me through this messaging system about their troubles.  I agree it isn't perfect (no program ideal for everyone); however, I'm personally enjoying it.  I think the approach of the program is real world - vs just theory and programming (yes you get those too).  I love that it is self paced - it is totally my style of education - I plan out what I want to achieve in a given time frame (say each week) and give myself time at the end of the course in case I need to 'catch up' or 'make up/increase' grade points somewhere.  

In my opinion if you work well on your own they (Eastern) set it up as tough to fail (if you put in the work and manage your time well) - after the first course they provide you in advance all the material information and give you suggestions to get a head start before the next courses even begin. I can't think of any grad program that would be so generous with giving you a head start to prepare for what is coming.

I'm limited in what/when as I'm moving at the speed of employer tuition reimbursement; figure I'll be done Spring 2022.  It took me so long to finally complete my bachelor that I'm OK with the pace. I do  data management as a primary function for my work now - that doesn't mean that all these topics are familiar to me already.

I wish eleverson great luck in finding the ideal master program for them - it took me a few attempts to find the right fit for myself. This is my 4th (but final) master program - I had stared the MBA route (2 schools, neither WGU - as is so often talked about on the forum) and MS IT Mngt (WGU). The first MBA I thought was the school, but learned it was just the subject matter with the 2nd - the IT Mngt was just a twist on the MBA. I was so very bored; had enough of the business aspect with my BSBA.  I followed my personal interest(s) and what I believe will be a better fit for my career goals (long term) - which brought me to the Eastern program.  I've landed here and will see it out to the end, but as I said I am working at a casual pace due to the tuition reimbursement working the way it does with my current employer - fortunately I like my job a great deal, so I'm not feeling any pressure to 'get it done (quickly).  

I will say that in the end I do prefer this set up over the WGU - not that WGU isn't great for self pace, but at Eastern I literally don't have to talk to anyone if I choose not to; although they do have a good set up if you do want classmate interaction and such (at WGU you do have to meet regularly with your advisor). With WGU I always felt like I need to 'rush' to get the most bang for the buck - at Eastern I know what I'm going to get for my "X dollars"; one course, 3 credits, over 7 weeks (or 8 - depending on the term's holiday 'breaks'). I have a full time job - that keeps me very busy - so I'm preferring the agile sprints vs the marathon.

I'm also one of the people who AwardTour reached out to for feedback on the program; and I will return to provide more feedback on the program once I'm farther along (and my schedule allows) - but with all the recent chatter on this program I felt I needed to add my .02 cents ASAP.

[eleverson]

I have new feedback about the program. I decided to leave the program today. I was graded a 48% on an assignment without any feedback on what I had gotten wrong. The low grade on the assignment dropped my grade to a 77% C and all classes need to be a 80% B, so now I am on probation. In addition, their test will consist of fill in the blanks that will mark you wrong when you are right with your answer. In order for you to get credit for the answers that are marked wrong when they are right. You will have to send screenshots to the department to have them check. Meaning, you could have many right answers on your fill-in-the-blank answers that are marked wrong and you are giving a lower score without you realizing it. I've completed 4 classes so far, and none of them have consisted of projects that are required by most internships for you to show your Data Science skills. I am on the hunt for a new Data Science or Data Analytics masters program. If you guys know of any good ones, please let me know.

Hi eleverson,

If you don't mind me asking, which class did you have trouble in?  If this was term 2 for you, was it data management or Analytics in R?  I am in the program right now and just finished my first two courses.  Everything went very well for me, and I wanted to know if I need to be on the lookout for anything.

It was both Analytics R and the Data Management. Mostly the data management and this professor also teach machine learning and somebody I knw that is in it had to get a tutor to pass.

I think it needs to be pointed out that eleverson turned in this assignment that brought the down the grade on the last day of the course; this has not been stated in any of the feedback eleverson has given here publicly. I feel it is a disservice to the forum readers here to not have that fact be known.  


With that said - I'm not as far along as eleverson had gotten yet - eleverson did speak to me through this messaging system about their troubles.  I agree it isn't perfect (no program ideal for everyone); however, I'm personally enjoying it.  I think the approach of the program is real world - vs just theory and programming (yes you get those too).  I love that it is self paced - it is totally my style of education - I plan out what I want to achieve in a given time frame (say each week) and give myself time at the end of the course in case I need to 'catch up' or 'make up/increase' grade points somewhere.  

In my opinion if you work well on your own they (Eastern) set it up as tough to fail (if you put in the work and manage your time well) - after the first course they provide you in advance all the material information and give you suggestions to get a head start before the next courses even begin. I can't think of any grad program that would be so generous with giving you a head start to prepare for what is coming.

I'm limited in what/when as I'm moving at the speed of employer tuition reimbursement; figure I'll be done Spring 2022.  It took me so long to finally complete my bachelor that I'm OK with the pace. I do  data management as a primary function for my work now - that doesn't mean that all these topics are familiar to me already.

I wish eleverson great luck in finding the ideal master program for them - it took me a few attempts to find the right fit for myself. This is my 4th (but final) master program - I had stared the MBA route (2 schools, neither WGU - as is so often talked about on the forum) and MS IT Mngt (WGU). The first MBA I thought was the school, but learned it was just the subject matter with the 2nd - the IT Mngt was just a twist on the MBA. I was so very bored; had enough of the business aspect with my BSBA.  I followed my personal interest(s) and what I believe will be a better fit for my career goals (long term) - which brought me to the Eastern program.  I've landed here and will see it out to the end, but as I said I am working at a casual pace due to the tuition reimbursement working the way it does with my current employer - fortunately I like my job a great deal, so I'm not feeling any pressure to 'get it done (quickly).  

I will say that in the end I do prefer this set up over the WGU - not that WGU isn't great for self pace, but at Eastern I literally don't have to talk to anyone if I choose not to; although they do have a good set up if you do want classmate interaction and such (at WGU you do have to meet regularly with your advisor). With WGU I always felt like I need to 'rush' to get the most bang for the buck - at Eastern I know what I'm going to get for my "X dollars"; one course, 3 credits, over 7 weeks (or 8 - depending on the term's holiday 'breaks'). I have a full time job - that keeps me very busy - so I'm preferring the agile sprints vs the marathon.

I'm also one of the people who AwardTour reached out to for feedback on the program; and I will return to provide more feedback on the program once I'm farther along (and my schedule allows) - but with all the recent chatter on this program I felt I needed to add my .02 cents ASAP.

You must be really bored today to come from out of nowhere and feel you should speak against what I have said about Eastern! Please point out what I have said was a lie. I remember in our previous private conversation you were in agreement with things I have said about them. The fact I turned in an assignment at the last min has nothing to do with anything I have stated about them. The assignment was still turned on time, the assignment still should have been given feedback on what I did wrong no matter what, which it did not. I'm not doing a disservice to these folks, I'm doing a service by speaking the truth. It is up to each individual if they want to go there or not. I'm providing factual feedback to them on what to expect. And yes, I have found a better school that will fully prepare me for my career as Data Analyst at the same low cost. And that is great it is working for you! Take more classes so you can fully provide real feedback before taking up for them!!

[mcjon77]

Personally, I am starting my second term tomorrow, having finished the first 2 courses (either 2 A's or an A and an A-). So far, I am enjoying the program and like the flexibility. I work as a data analyst right now, so some of the stuff was review (like python/pandas and some of the stats). However, what they are teaching is definitely applicable to the real world (at least in my industry). I plan on using the degree to transition to a data scientist role.

I appreciate the additional context allvia gave. I know that some programs just are not good fits for some people, and that is cool. For me, this will be my second masters, and third attempted. I withdrew from the WGU MBA program because I didn't like it, although I know several people who loved the format.

Eleverson, if you are interested in getting a data analyst position, I would like to offer some suggestions, since I was in the same position a few years ago. Focus on getting REALLY REALLY good in 2 skills, SQL and a visualization/reporting tool (Tableau/Power BI). If you do that (which should only take 2-4 months) you will absolutely be ready to apply for data analyst jobs at large companies, especially if you brush up on your stats from the Statistical Modeling course. You DO NOT need to wait until your are finished with your MS in data analytics before you apply for work.

The skills needed for a data analyst position are (IN THIS ORDER):
1. SQL (up to the level of correlated subqueries and window functions)
2. Visualization/Reporting (Tableau is the most popular, followed by Power BI)
3. Statistics (what was covered in Eastern's stats course is more than enough)
4. Programming (Python, although VBA is surprisingly useful too)

The key is to be REALLY GOOD in EITHER of the first 2. I see some programs that make you mediocre in all 4. That is useless.. Get GREAT at SQL or Tableau/Power BI and you will be good to go.

[eleverson]

Personally, I am starting my second term tomorrow, having finished the first 2 courses (either 2 A's  or an A and an A-).  So far, I am enjoying the program and like the flexibility.  I work as a data analyst right now, so some of the stuff was review (like python/pandas and some of the stats).  However, what they are teaching is definitely applicable to the real world (at least in my industry).  I plan on using the degree to transition to a data scientist role.

I appreciate the additional context allvia gave.  I know that some programs just are not good fits for some people, and that is cool.  For me, this will be my second masters, and third attempted.  I withdrew from the WGU MBA program because I didn't like it, although I know several people who loved the format.

Eleverson, if you are interested in getting a data analyst position, I would like to offer some suggestions, since I was in the same position a few years ago.  Focus on getting REALLY REALLY good in 2 skills, SQL and a visualization/reporting tool (Tableau/Power BI).  If you do that (which should only take 2-4 months) you will absolutely be ready to apply for data analyst jobs at large companies, especially if you brush up on your stats from the Statistical Modeling course.  You DO NOT need to wait until your are finished with your MS in data analytics before you apply for work.

The skills needed for a data analyst position are (IN THIS ORDER):
1. SQL (up to the level of correlated subqueries and window functions)
2. Visualization/Reporting (Tableau is the most popular, followed by Power BI)
3. Statistics (what was covered in Eastern's stats course is more than enough)
4. Programming (Python, although VBA is surprisingly useful too)

The key is to be REALLY GOOD in EITHER of the first 2.  I see some programs that make you mediocre in all 4.  That is useless..  Get GREAT at SQL or Tableau/Power BI and you will be good to go.

Thanks for the info, I have had a chance to work as a Business Intelligence Engineer, and all that you have stated I agree with. This is the deal, when you get in R and the data management courses, it will be a bit more challenging than those other beginner python and stats courses. At least it was for me. Everything was going great in my stats and python courses as well. When you go into the data mgt course, this is a different professor (Dr. Morbito) with a different teaching style. You will learn PostgreSQL which has some different syntax from regular SQL with the functions, triggers, etc. Before that, I only used just plain SQL, so some things were a challenge. The advice I can give for that class is to tackle the assignments in advance in case you need to get some help because it is challenging. Not just for me, but many ppl who took it with me. As for R, everybody can say there is a learning curve for that. I loved Eastern and the program but decided to take a more traditional approach in my learning. I wanted a course that provided a grade with also projects I can use in a portfolio when applying for future jobs since I quit my BI job.

[ifomonay]

Personally, I am starting my second term tomorrow, having finished the first 2 courses (either 2 A's  or an A and an A-).  So far, I am enjoying the program and like the flexibility.  I work as a data analyst right now, so some of the stuff was review (like python/pandas and some of the stats).  However, what they are teaching is definitely applicable to the real world (at least in my industry).  I plan on using the degree to transition to a data scientist role.

I appreciate the additional context allvia gave.  I know that some programs just are not good fits for some people, and that is cool.  For me, this will be my second masters, and third attempted.  I withdrew from the WGU MBA program because I didn't like it, although I know several people who loved the format.

Eleverson, if you are interested in getting a data analyst position, I would like to offer some suggestions, since I was in the same position a few years ago.  Focus on getting REALLY REALLY good in 2 skills, SQL and a visualization/reporting tool (Tableau/Power BI).  If you do that (which should only take 2-4 months) you will absolutely be ready to apply for data analyst jobs at large companies, especially if you brush up on your stats from the Statistical Modeling course.  You DO NOT need to wait until your are finished with your MS in data analytics before you apply for work.

The skills needed for a data analyst position are (IN THIS ORDER):
1. SQL (up to the level of correlated subqueries and window functions)
2. Visualization/Reporting (Tableau is the most popular, followed by Power BI)
3. Statistics (what was covered in Eastern's stats course is more than enough)
4. Programming (Python, although VBA is surprisingly useful too)

The key is to be REALLY GOOD in EITHER of the first 2.  I see some programs that make you mediocre in all 4.  That is useless..  Get GREAT at SQL or Tableau/Power BI and you will be good to go.

Thanks for the info, I have had a chance to work as a Business Intelligence Engineer, and all that you have stated I agree with. This is the deal, when you get in R and the data management courses, it will be a bit more challenging than those other beginner python and stats courses. At least it was for me. Everything was going great in my stats and python courses as well. When you go into the data mgt course, this is a different professor (Dr. Morbito) with a different teaching style. You will learn PostgreSQL which has some different syntax from regular SQL with the functions, triggers, etc. Before that, I only used just plain SQL, so some things were a challenge. The advice I can give for that class is to tackle the assignments in advance in case you need to get some help because it is challenging. Not just for me, but many ppl who took it with me. As for R, everybody can say there is a learning curve for that. I loved Eastern and the program but decided to take a more traditional approach in my learning. I wanted a course that provided a grade with also projects I can use in a portfolio when applying for future jobs since I quit my BI job.

Hey mcjon and eleverson, this is really, really good stuff. All these data science programs dabble into this and that, but you don't have any idea what's important. Thanks for your insights on the skills needed. What do you guys think about things like Javascript or other front-end skills? They don't require you to know how to create web apps to make your visualizing work interactively? Or does Tableau already do that?

[eleverson]

Personally, I am starting my second term tomorrow, having finished the first 2 courses (either 2 A's  or an A and an A-).  So far, I am enjoying the program and like the flexibility.  I work as a data analyst right now, so some of the stuff was review (like python/pandas and some of the stats).  However, what they are teaching is definitely applicable to the real world (at least in my industry).  I plan on using the degree to transition to a data scientist role.

I appreciate the additional context allvia gave.  I know that some programs just are not good fits for some people, and that is cool.  For me, this will be my second masters, and third attempted.  I withdrew from the WGU MBA program because I didn't like it, although I know several people who loved the format.

Eleverson, if you are interested in getting a data analyst position, I would like to offer some suggestions, since I was in the same position a few years ago.  Focus on getting REALLY REALLY good in 2 skills, SQL and a visualization/reporting tool (Tableau/Power BI).  If you do that (which should only take 2-4 months) you will absolutely be ready to apply for data analyst jobs at large companies, especially if you brush up on your stats from the Statistical Modeling course.  You DO NOT need to wait until your are finished with your MS in data analytics before you apply for work.

The skills needed for a data analyst position are (IN THIS ORDER):
1. SQL (up to the level of correlated subqueries and window functions)
2. Visualization/Reporting (Tableau is the most popular, followed by Power BI)
3. Statistics (what was covered in Eastern's stats course is more than enough)
4. Programming (Python, although VBA is surprisingly useful too)

The key is to be REALLY GOOD in EITHER of the first 2.  I see some programs that make you mediocre in all 4.  That is useless..  Get GREAT at SQL or Tableau/Power BI and you will be good to go.

Thanks for the info, I have had a chance to work as a Business Intelligence Engineer, and all that you have stated I agree with. This is the deal, when you get in R and the data management courses, it will be a bit more challenging than those other beginner python and stats courses. At least it was for me. Everything was going great in my stats and python courses as well. When you go into the data mgt course, this is a different professor (Dr. Morbito) with a different teaching style. You will learn PostgreSQL which has some different syntax from regular SQL with the functions, triggers, etc. Before that, I only used just plain SQL, so some things were a challenge. The advice I can give for that class is to tackle the assignments in advance in case you need to get some help because it is challenging. Not just for me, but many ppl who took it with me. As for R, everybody can say there is a learning curve for that. I loved Eastern and the program but decided to take a more traditional approach in my learning. I wanted a course that provided a grade with also projects I can use in a portfolio when applying for future jobs since I quit my BI job.

Hey mcjon and eleverson, this is really, really good stuff. All these data science programs dabble into this and that, but you don't have any idea what's important. Thanks for your insights on the skills needed. What do you guys think about things like Javascript or other front-end skills? They don't require you to know how to create web apps to make your visualizing work interactively? Or does Tableau already do that?

Hey ifomonay, front-end skills would not be needed. Any visualization tool you use will provide all of the features. The most popular visualization tools are Tableau and Power BI. Power BI is my favorite because it's more dynamic. It provides good performance with data tables by creating a relationship data model. I like how easy it is to clean your data and to connect to different data sources. You can even scrap data from websites. Check out Kms BI on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzUC0i3g...an&index=8  He is awesome with making PowerBI interactivity like JavaScript

[ifomonay]

I have new feedback about the program. I decided to leave the program today. I was graded a 48% on an assignment without any feedback on what I had gotten wrong. The low grade on the assignment dropped my grade to a 77% C and all classes need to be a 80% B, so now I am on probation. In addition, their test will consist of fill in the blanks that will mark you wrong when you are right with your answer. In order for you to get credit for the answers that are marked wrong when they are right. You will have to send screenshots to the department to have them check. Meaning, you could have many right answers on your fill-in-the-blank answers that are marked wrong and you are giving a lower score without you realizing it. I've completed 4 classes so far, and none of them have consisted of projects that are required by most internships for you to show your Data Science skills. I am on the hunt for a new Data Science or Data Analytics masters program. If you guys know of any good ones, please let me know.

Hi eleverson,

If you don't mind me asking, which class did you have trouble in?  If this was term 2 for you, was it data management or Analytics in R?  I am in the program right now and just finished my first two courses.  Everything went very well for me, and I wanted to know if I need to be on the lookout for anything.

It was both Analytics R and the Data Management. Mostly the data management and this professor also teach machine learning and somebody I knw that is in it had to get a tutor to pass.

I think it needs to be pointed out that eleverson turned in this assignment that brought the down the grade on the last day of the course; this has not been stated in any of the feedback eleverson has given here publicly. I feel it is a disservice to the forum readers here to not have that fact be known.  


With that said - I'm not as far along as eleverson had gotten yet - eleverson did speak to me through this messaging system about their troubles.  I agree it isn't perfect (no program ideal for everyone); however, I'm personally enjoying it.  I think the approach of the program is real world - vs just theory and programming (yes you get those too).  I love that it is self paced - it is totally my style of education - I plan out what I want to achieve in a given time frame (say each week) and give myself time at the end of the course in case I need to 'catch up' or 'make up/increase' grade points somewhere.  

In my opinion if you work well on your own they (Eastern) set it up as tough to fail (if you put in the work and manage your time well) - after the first course they provide you in advance all the material information and give you suggestions to get a head start before the next courses even begin. I can't think of any grad program that would be so generous with giving you a head start to prepare for what is coming.

I'm limited in what/when as I'm moving at the speed of employer tuition reimbursement; figure I'll be done Spring 2022.  It took me so long to finally complete my bachelor that I'm OK with the pace. I do  data management as a primary function for my work now - that doesn't mean that all these topics are familiar to me already.

I wish eleverson great luck in finding the ideal master program for them - it took me a few attempts to find the right fit for myself. This is my 4th (but final) master program - I had stared the MBA route (2 schools, neither WGU - as is so often talked about on the forum) and MS IT Mngt (WGU). The first MBA I thought was the school, but learned it was just the subject matter with the 2nd - the IT Mngt was just a twist on the MBA. I was so very bored; had enough of the business aspect with my BSBA.  I followed my personal interest(s) and what I believe will be a better fit for my career goals (long term) - which brought me to the Eastern program.  I've landed here and will see it out to the end, but as I said I am working at a casual pace due to the tuition reimbursement working the way it does with my current employer - fortunately I like my job a great deal, so I'm not feeling any pressure to 'get it done (quickly).  

I will say that in the end I do prefer this set up over the WGU - not that WGU isn't great for self pace, but at Eastern I literally don't have to talk to anyone if I choose not to; although they do have a good set up if you do want classmate interaction and such (at WGU you do have to meet regularly with your advisor). With WGU I always felt like I need to 'rush' to get the most bang for the buck - at Eastern I know what I'm going to get for my "X dollars"; one course, 3 credits, over 7 weeks (or 8 - depending on the term's holiday 'breaks'). I have a full time job - that keeps me very busy - so I'm preferring the agile sprints vs the marathon.

I'm also one of the people who AwardTour reached out to for feedback on the program; and I will return to provide more feedback on the program once I'm farther along (and my schedule allows) - but with all the recent chatter on this program I felt I needed to add my .02 cents ASAP.

You must be really bored today to come from out of nowhere and feel you should speak against what I have said about Eastern! Please point out what I have said was a lie. I remember in our previous private conversation you were in agreement with things I have said about them. The fact I turned in an assignment at the last min has nothing to do with anything I have stated about them. The assignment was still turned on time, the assignment still should have been given feedback on what I did wrong no matter what, which it did not. I'm not doing a disservice to these folks, I'm doing a service by speaking the truth. It is up to each individual if they want to go there or not. I'm providing factual feedback to them on what to expect. And yes, I have found a better school that will fully prepare me for my career as Data Analyst at the same low cost. And that is great it is working for you! Take more classes so you can fully provide real feedback before taking up for them!!

Where did you transfer to? I might consider there. I have already started the program, but I now have some serious reservations. There is a proctoring software needed for the quizzes now. I do like the idea of proctoring, because some students will try to cheat, so I definitely support requiring the webcam to be turned on and to have the screen recorded. This is my issue, however. The proctoring software will not launch unless you give it permission to access the files in your Downloads folder. Why is that? Suppose I have my health record there. Are they HIPAA certified? I bet not. I can move the files to another folder. So then that means the university is dictating which files I can put where on my own personal computer. I Googled it to see if others had the same concern. Someone on reddit mentioned it back in April 2020, so it's not a software bug, because it doesn't take a year to fix a bug. I think the usual rebuttal is, "if you have nothing to hide, then you have nothing to worry about". I don't think that's a good argument.

[eleverson]

Hi eleverson,

If you don't mind me asking, which class did you have trouble in?  If this was term 2 for you, was it data management or Analytics in R?  I am in the program right now and just finished my first two courses.  Everything went very well for me, and I wanted to know if I need to be on the lookout for anything.

It was both Analytics R and the Data Management. Mostly the data management and this professor also teach machine learning and somebody I knw that is in it had to get a tutor to pass.

I think it needs to be pointed out that eleverson turned in this assignment that brought the down the grade on the last day of the course; this has not been stated in any of the feedback eleverson has given here publicly. I feel it is a disservice to the forum readers here to not have that fact be known.  


With that said - I'm not as far along as eleverson had gotten yet - eleverson did speak to me through this messaging system about their troubles.  I agree it isn't perfect (no program ideal for everyone); however, I'm personally enjoying it.  I think the approach of the program is real world - vs just theory and programming (yes you get those too).  I love that it is self paced - it is totally my style of education - I plan out what I want to achieve in a given time frame (say each week) and give myself time at the end of the course in case I need to 'catch up' or 'make up/increase' grade points somewhere.  

In my opinion if you work well on your own they (Eastern) set it up as tough to fail (if you put in the work and manage your time well) - after the first course they provide you in advance all the material information and give you suggestions to get a head start before the next courses even begin. I can't think of any grad program that would be so generous with giving you a head start to prepare for what is coming.

I'm limited in what/when as I'm moving at the speed of employer tuition reimbursement; figure I'll be done Spring 2022.  It took me so long to finally complete my bachelor that I'm OK with the pace. I do  data management as a primary function for my work now - that doesn't mean that all these topics are familiar to me already.

I wish eleverson great luck in finding the ideal master program for them - it took me a few attempts to find the right fit for myself. This is my 4th (but final) master program - I had stared the MBA route (2 schools, neither WGU - as is so often talked about on the forum) and MS IT Mngt (WGU). The first MBA I thought was the school, but learned it was just the subject matter with the 2nd - the IT Mngt was just a twist on the MBA. I was so very bored; had enough of the business aspect with my BSBA.  I followed my personal interest(s) and what I believe will be a better fit for my career goals (long term) - which brought me to the Eastern program.  I've landed here and will see it out to the end, but as I said I am working at a casual pace due to the tuition reimbursement working the way it does with my current employer - fortunately I like my job a great deal, so I'm not feeling any pressure to 'get it done (quickly).  

I will say that in the end I do prefer this set up over the WGU - not that WGU isn't great for self pace, but at Eastern I literally don't have to talk to anyone if I choose not to; although they do have a good set up if you do want classmate interaction and such (at WGU you do have to meet regularly with your advisor). With WGU I always felt like I need to 'rush' to get the most bang for the buck - at Eastern I know what I'm going to get for my "X dollars"; one course, 3 credits, over 7 weeks (or 8 - depending on the term's holiday 'breaks'). I have a full time job - that keeps me very busy - so I'm preferring the agile sprints vs the marathon.

I'm also one of the people who AwardTour reached out to for feedback on the program; and I will return to provide more feedback on the program once I'm farther along (and my schedule allows) - but with all the recent chatter on this program I felt I needed to add my .02 cents ASAP.

You must be really bored today to come from out of nowhere and feel you should speak against what I have said about Eastern! Please point out what I have said was a lie. I remember in our previous private conversation you were in agreement with things I have said about them. The fact I turned in an assignment at the last min has nothing to do with anything I have stated about them. The assignment was still turned on time, the assignment still should have been given feedback on what I did wrong no matter what, which it did not. I'm not doing a disservice to these folks, I'm doing a service by speaking the truth. It is up to each individual if they want to go there or not. I'm providing factual feedback to them on what to expect. And yes, I have found a better school that will fully prepare me for my career as Data Analyst at the same low cost. And that is great it is working for you! Take more classes so you can fully provide real feedback before taking up for them!!

Where did you transfer to? I might consider there. I have already started the program, but I now have some serious reservations. There is a proctoring software needed for the quizzes now. I do like the idea of proctoring, because some students will try to cheat, so I definitely support requiring the webcam to be turned on and to have the screen recorded. This is my issue, however. The proctoring software will not launch unless you give it permission to access the files in your Downloads folder. Why is that? Suppose I have my health record there. Are they HIPAA certified? I bet not. I can move the files to another folder. So then that means the university is dictating which files I can put where on my own personal computer. I Googled it to see if others had the same concern. Someone on reddit mentioned it back in April 2020, so it's not a software bug, because it doesn't take a year to fix a bug. I think the usual rebuttal is, "if you have nothing to hide, then you have nothing to worry about". I don't think that's a good argument.

Oh goodness, when I was there they did not activate the proctoring system. My new school has proctoring too. Not sure how it works since I don't start until Mar. 15th of next week. But the good thing is you will have a quiz, discussion, and assignments to determine your overall grade vs just quizzes with Eastern. Eastern is starting to add assignments but they are still similar to quizzes because they use an automated system to grade. Here is NWMSU https://online.nwmissouri.edu/programs/m...ytics.aspx