Fielding Graduate School
Started by isupsych253
Fielding has been discussed extensively on here, so a search will turn up plenty of threads on the program. The basic answer is no...it is not held in high regard, and it should be avoided.
Their accredition is on probation. Also, I would be weary of any online doctoral program... 😱
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Oooo it's online?! Was very unaware of that. Just thought it was a schoolnin Santa Barbara, never mind then!
Haha from what I understand they have a campus or office in Santa Barbara but you do the whole program online and then you just visit the office if you want or need to. They call it the "Distributed Learning Model"
They call it a "blended" model or similar because they have students on campus a few times a year, but at the end of the day the vast majority of the training is online. It is definitely good that you are doing your research up front about doctoral programs because a lot of students don't take enough time to really see what is out there.
Right now I would recommend a new student carefully consider things before applying to Fielding due to the program being placed on probationary status. As I have stated repeatedly on this forum until I am blue in the face, Fielding is not an online program, it received its APA accreditation 20 years ago before the internet was invented.The blended model actually gives us the same in-class, face-to-face, one-on-one exposure to faculty as any other program. We also go to regional campuses continuously throughout the year. The basis of our APA accreditation 20 years ago was the fact that the program could demonstrate equivalent amounts of class time. That being said we do engage n a unique form of individual mentor-ship and independent work in conjunction with our face to face in the flesh work with faculty. The term blended refers to a mixture of independent work and face to face work rather than an online component.
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Based on having worked with and trained some Fielding grads over many years I would say that it can be a viable path for someone who has been in a clinical field and wants a path to a PhD that is non-traditional so that they can maintain clinical work while advancing their degree. But (as with any program) you need to really explore the pragmatic details regarding costs and any risks re accreditation. I would NOT place Fielding in the same camp with other programs described as "on-line" for the reasons listed below. They are long-established and can be a good non-traditional path for some.
I second what Docma said. I actually looked into Fielding before applying to graduate schools about 8 years ago. At the time I thought it was a fairly well thought-out, reputable program. My concerns were cost and time to completion. It seemed a lot of Fielding doctoral candidates took 8-10 years to graduate. My hunch is that this is partly because non-traditional folks need to work, raise families, etc. while doing the program. Still, I was a little worried I'd get "lost" in the process and not get enough faculty support. I've known some successful Fielding graduates though. The curriculum looked pretty rigorous to me too, FWIW.
Purely anecdotal but, a few students in my cohort went to an info session at Fielding when they were shopping graduate programs. The school basically admitted that, because they use a narrative grading system, and because teachers could take a long time to actually write the narrative, and because you can't take some classes until you've got a passing grade in other ones, it could take 7+ years to graduate and through no fault on the students' part.
but, yeah, I agree with others, it's not an online school.
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Several people have stated that Fielding is not an "online" school, but many people in the field clearly have the impression that it is. Can someone explain how the model works if it does not rely on completing classes online? How does it provide the same face-to-face hours with faculty as a traditional program?
I'm not sure I remember all the details, but it's a "distributed learning" model. You must attend symposia out in Santa Barbara infrequently (a few times a year?); then you're also part of a regional "cluster" group that meets regionally perhaps a few times per month. For instance, there's a New York cluster, a Mid-Atlantic cluster, etc. I was under the impression some aspects of the coursework were online. Then I gather you arrange your practica locally, thereby giving you face-to-face clinical experience. There's probably a couple of people who post here at SDN that are more acquainted with the details of Fielding, but this is generally what I remember.
This is what I've heard, but I don't understand how this experience = same face to face amount of time as traditional students.
At the end of the day, if the perception is that it is "online" and/or different from traditional training, this can/will impact a student's ability to secure an internship, post-doc, job, etc. Is it worth that risk?
...also, there is probably less of a class/corporate identity feeling/cohesiveness among students. From the pics on their webpage, I assume, they meet (if they do) at hotel rooms since there is no dedicated campus??
While this would not be for me, I believe, those who apply should do in-depth research before deciding for Fielding.
Just my 2c
If memory serves, a year or two ago I had asked this question, as well as a number of other ones repeatedly to one or more Fielding students and the questions were almost universally avoided or vague quotes from the website were repeated. I did my usual ploy of just re-posting the same thing over and over again, but don't recall ever getting a satisfactory answer to the questions. It will probably pop up in search if someone wants to look - I think they were all pretty critical questions when determining the quality of the school (e.g. How practica sites are selected and evaluated by the school to make sure they provide appropriate training), etc.
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Thanks for the clarification, psychmama.
I agree with others that I still do not understand how this = the same face to face time with faculty as a traditional program.
Agreed. I do know they have these marathon weekend sessions where they cram a lot of face to face hours in.😀 But I'm with you -- it is not clear how they fit everything in.
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