Reading about the online “School of Business and Trade (SoBaT) on this forum had me curious, and over the past couple weeks I completed their MA in Social Sciences program.
I have nothing but good things to say. While it’s possible to accelerate through the program for a seasoned learner, it’s not a quick process. The 12 exams required across different domains of human knowledge really do require substantial engagement with the texts, to the point that despite their open-book nature, they do not lend themselves to quick search engine answers.
After completing, I was invested and impressed enough to even pay the modest graduation fee for a diploma to support the institution (who issues then both a PDF diploma and transcript, with a verification code to authenticate those documents on their website). For self-directed learners, one could actually get a lot out of this program.
YMMV on the utility of the application of the credential in the private sector in a North American context, but from an integrity standpoint, this program is every bit as legitimate as other similarly formatted accredited programs, from Ashworth to Capella.
If these folks added proctoring to their exams, this could be a real interruption in higher ed. The exams were thought provoking and challenging, and included international relations, human geography, communications, climate change, public health ethics, writing, social work research, human psychology, political science, advanced sociology, statistics, and world history.
I have nothing but good things to say. While it’s possible to accelerate through the program for a seasoned learner, it’s not a quick process. The 12 exams required across different domains of human knowledge really do require substantial engagement with the texts, to the point that despite their open-book nature, they do not lend themselves to quick search engine answers.
After completing, I was invested and impressed enough to even pay the modest graduation fee for a diploma to support the institution (who issues then both a PDF diploma and transcript, with a verification code to authenticate those documents on their website). For self-directed learners, one could actually get a lot out of this program.
YMMV on the utility of the application of the credential in the private sector in a North American context, but from an integrity standpoint, this program is every bit as legitimate as other similarly formatted accredited programs, from Ashworth to Capella.
If these folks added proctoring to their exams, this could be a real interruption in higher ed. The exams were thought provoking and challenging, and included international relations, human geography, communications, climate change, public health ethics, writing, social work research, human psychology, political science, advanced sociology, statistics, and world history.
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