When Penn Foster
College students ask me for a
recommendation for schools to transfer to for a bachelor degree after they earn
their associate’s, Peru State College is always at the top of my list. The admissions staff at Peru State College
has always answered my questions in a prompt and timely manner, the customer
service is great, and the college will accept AS degrees from Penn Foster for entry
into their undergraduate programs. Peru
State College, with a traditional campus in Peru,
Nebraska, has also established
itself as a very worthy distance learning organization. However, this was not always the case.
According to this article, Peru State College was in dire
straits a decade ago. In fact, state
officials had considered moving the college and shutting down operations in Peru
due to “stalled productivity” (i.e. the college wasn’t making any money). So what was the saving grace of Peru State
College?
The answer: distance
education programs. Peru State College
brought in a new president who instituted a number of changes, with the biggest
being the establishment of distance learning programs at the college in
2001. That first year, there were 50
distance learning students. Currently,
there are about one thousand distance learning students studying with Peru
State. Although most never set foot on campus distance
learning students have made a big impact in Peru, funding almost 30 percent of
the initiatives on campus, according to the Lincoln Journal-Star.
Peru State College is a shining example of how traditional
campus-based colleges can become successful by embracing distance
learning. At some brick-and-mortar
campuses, distance learning programs are looked at by faculty with scorn. In their opinion, the distance learning
programs don’t measure up to the programs offered on campus. At Peru State College, the distance learning
programs have been embraced and credited with literally saving the school.
If you are a Penn Foster
College associate degree student, I
would highly recommend checking out Peru State College if you are interested in
continuing your studies. They offer a
number of online degree programs, including a couple of masters degree programs.
Of course, all of this success has come at a price. Tuition has increased since I first became
aware of Peru State College a couple of years ago, but it is still a very
affordable $157 per credit hour for online students.