Purdue Global or SNHU

[upgrayedd]

I graduated last Summer with UMPI's BLS in Management and took a much needed break. I paid the UMPI tuition out-of-pocket and I can't afford to do that again. I'm now looking at Master's programs that my employer will pay $10k a year for, but there aren't many choices.

I'm trying to decide between two paths:

• I have two years experience in social media marketing for a local radio station. It's fun, exciting and I get to be creative. I enjoy things like audience research and it's really satisfying to see the results of that in successful campaigns. However, this is a part-time gig and despite my experience, I have had zero luck finding full-time employment in this field. So one option that may help with this path would be a Master's in Marketing from SNHU. 
  

• I have twenty years experience in healthcare, at the same employer. My job involves direct patient care and while I'm good at it, this is something I no longer want to do. I'm considering a Master of Health Informatics offered by Purdue Global, because that field typically requires healthcare and electronic medical records experience which I have plenty of. Analytics isn't something that excites me, but I think I would have a better chance at employment with a less extreme career pivot than marketing.
  

From what I've read (outside of DF) opinions on both schools seem to be mixed. There are some strong negative opinions of Purdue Global not being a legitimate part of the Purdue system, re-branded Kaplan, etc. Again, I'm just looking at these two schools because they would be paid for. I want this last hurdle to result in a career change that I'm happier with and to not be a wasted effort.

[walruspanda]

From what I've read (outside of DF) opinions on both schools seem to be mixed. There are some strong negative opinions of Purdue Global not being a legitimate part of the Purdue system, re-branded Kaplan, etc. Again, I'm just looking at these two schools because they would be paid for. I want this last hurdle to result in a career change that I'm happier with and to not be a wasted effort.

I'll say that in my experience interviewing, employers seem to view "Purdue Global" as "online Purdue" rather than "Kaplan rebranded." Unless you're in Indiana, few people not knee-deep in online degree knowledge are going to have a clue about PUG's linage. 

No idea about the quality of the two programs, but wanted to state what I've found about how people perceive the PUG name.

[LevelUP]

WGU also has a master's in marketing
https://www.wgu.edu/online-business-degr...ogram.html

I have seen several entry-level marketing jobs start at around 50k. This may be a pay cut that you are not willing or able to take.

[datby98]

I would recommend going with PUG's Master's as healthcare skills gained in the past 20 yrs are your core competency, according to the shared information.

[upgrayedd]

WGU also has a master's in marketing
https://www.wgu.edu/online-business-degr...ogram.html

I have seen several entry-level marketing jobs start at around 50k. This may be a pay cut that you are not willing or able to take.

I definitely do WGU if my employer was willing to pay them. WGU was on their list a couple years ago but that all changed.

[bjcheung77]

Employer with EdAssist or Guild? There should be more options than just PUG and SNHU, did they provide only two options? You may want to check this thread for other options just in case they will allow other institutions: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...der-1-Year

[upgrayedd]

Employer with EdAssist or Guild?  There should be more options than just PUG and SNHU, did they provide only two options?  You may want to check this thread for other options just in case they will allow other institutions: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...der-1-Year

There are other schools, but not with the same programs. These two happened to have degrees in my areas of interest.

[bjcheung77]

I'd go with the SNHU in HIM, as you can't really get a balanced mix/match of certs, degree, experience for HIM. You can always add in cheap, easy, fast, certs for Marketing if you ever wanted to... For HIM, it's better to take your time to get the subject matter knowledge and to fill in required learning gaps.

[ss20ts]

From what I've read (outside of DF) opinions on both schools seem to be mixed. There are some strong negative opinions of Purdue Global not being a legitimate part of the Purdue system, re-branded Kaplan, etc. Again, I'm just looking at these two schools because they would be paid for. I want this last hurdle to result in a career change that I'm happier with and to not be a wasted effort.

I'll say that in my experience interviewing, employers seem to view "Purdue Global" as "online Purdue" rather than "Kaplan rebranded." Unless you're in Indiana, few people not knee-deep in online degree knowledge are going to have a clue about PUG's linage. 

No idea about the quality of the two programs, but wanted to state what I've found about how people perceive the PUG name.

My husband's experience is the same with PUG. In fact, he was told by several managers and co-workers to attend PUG over TESU and WGU because they know the Purdue name. They just felt like it was Purdue Online and had no idea about the Kaplan drama. We're not anywhere near Indiana. He completed the BS in Analytics and has worked in healthcare IT for decades so this was a check the box kind of thing. He has since been given an increase in pay due to being a data science expert. I don't understand half of what he does at work, but it pays well!

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Marketing is a hard field to break into for whatever reason. The pay isn't spectacular either until you're really far up the chain unfortunately.

[maguirewj]

One consideration is that PUG has a CBE MBA. If you're highly self-motivated, you could complete the credential pretty quickly. Although if that's the goal, I'd also look into WGU. They have a lot of concentration areas for their MBAs, and the CBE program at PUG is just a general MBA from what I recall.