Urdan said the dwindling appeal and high costs of programs at the Art Institutes -- the programs include culinary arts, media production, fashion, animation and interior design -- also worked against the universities. These programs require students to buy expensive course materials and equipment, which are essentially investments with low returns since most graduates end up in jobs with low starting salaries.
“In the context of a full-employment economy, attracting students to what are effectively vocational programs remains very challenging,” Urdan said. “They have to be persuaded that spending or borrowing money will boost their earning power enough to justify the expense. And because [the Art Institutes] is primarily a four-year degree institution, the cost and hurdle involved are that much greater.”
Tuition at the Art Institute of Philadelphia, for example, ranged from about $48,000 for an associate degree in graphic design to about $93,000 for a bachelor's degree in graphic design. The Philadelphia campus is among the locations that are closing. Tuition at Argosy University's San Francisco and Nashville, Tenn., campuses, which are also closing, ranged from $445 per credit hour to more than $1,000 per credit hour, according to its website. The Argosy campuses offer undergraduate and graduate degree programs.
But it isn't just the cost of the programs that may be turning off potential students. The wages for the careers that the degrees lead to aren't high enough for these programs to be a good value, said Spiros Protopsaltis, an associate professor of education policy at George Mason University and former deputy assistant secretary for higher education and student financial aid at the U.S. Department of Education under the Obama administration.
Employers don't seem to value these degrees, especially from a former for-profit, as much as they do when students are coming from a traditional public university or a nonprofit institution that hasn't undergone a conversion, he said.
10 replies (most recent on top)
Prices are too high and in additional investment is needed to provide students with a positive experience. DCEH was not willing to make it happen and that is why they are in the mess they are in. Game over
What quotes above are a bunch of bull, if these programs have such terrible appeal then why are all the local colleges and universities adding them. Media and Design are exploding with good paying jobs in our area. And there was never a need to kill the associates degrees, that was EDMC and DCEH wanting to get more form students by pushing Bachelors. The Art Institutes for many years only had two year degrees and diploma programs that did just fine. Forcing the programs into 4 years degrees was all about a money grab. And yet these programs are flourishing at other institutions. It is AI who did not want to spend the money any more on gear and classroom facilitates when they could charge high prices for c-appy on-line education. The money grab is what did this company in, not lack of interest in these programs.
Argosy is closing
If Western States is as easily manipulated as Middle States, accreditation won’t be an issue.
aip will be done in name only -- aio will move with auo -- change the name that's it - programs still offered unless they are not making $ - just a prediction
Does that mean bye bye aio admins? wishful thinking
Ai is done. Campuses are to roll under Argosy. If accreditation is a problem, the Ai will close. Otherwise, they'll stay open for now.
Big admissions meeting today about AO taking over for Ai. It's already happening!
According to MSCHE, AiO is merely a delivery method for AIP. It would seem AiO could easily be moved to any Ai under an Argosy.
Looks like online will be saved.
Ai needs Argosy accreditation, if they can not get under Argosy, Ai closes.
@iyhj do try to keep up
WIEwhaW and the point is? does this mean Ai is closing for sure?