$900 Elmwood Master of Leadership and Management (NA DEAC)

[Jonathan Whatley]

The DEAC accredits the Elmwood Institute which currently offers one program, a Master of Leadership and Management.

Tuition is currently listed as $25 per credit x 36 credits = $900 for the entire degree ($75 per 3-credit course).

Each course is completed within a 16-week term but is described as "self-paced." The start of each calendar month is the start of a new 16-week term, so terms overlap.

In addition to the 12 courses there is a comprehensive exam or an approved project.

A bachelor's degree or international equivalent is required for admission.

Edited in July 2025: At its launch the Elmwood Institute was a division of Patten University. In its June 2025 meeting the DEAC approved Elmwood's application to launch as an independent university.

Edited in June 2026: The Elmwood Institute is now the Frontier Institute of Technology at frontiertech.edu, and tuition and fees have increased somewhat from the rest of this post.

The following is background information about Elmwood's former affiliation with Patten University. The non-Elmwood Institute main body of Patten University continues to offer several programs at more normal tuition, $330 per credit graduate level. This Patten University is not regionally accredited. The name has a complicated history. A school named Patten University was once a brick-and-mortar institution in Oakland, California and once held regional accreditation from WASC, but in several asset sales it converted to for-profit online and then lost its accreditation. Later its name was acquired by American Graduate University. AGU then changed its name to Patten University while retaining AGU's own pre-existing national accreditation from the DEAC.

[newdegree]

Very interesting find. I would of jumped into it if I was not already working on a doctorate plus working towards a BA in CS at TESU
It’s N.A. but at that price point I’ll eventually add it to my credentials and degrees

[Vle045]

The DEAC has approved the already nationally accredited Patten University to launch a new division named the Elmwood Institute. The Elmwood Institute currently offers one program, a Master of Leadership and Management.

Tuition is currently listed as $25 per credit x 36 credits = $900 for the entire degree ($75 per 3-credit course).

Each course is completed within a 16-week term but is described as "self-paced." The start of each calendar month is the start of a new 16-week term, so terms overlap.

In addition to the 12 courses there is a comprehensive exam or an approved project.

A bachelor's degree or international equivalent is required for admission.

The non-Elmwood Institute main body of Patten University continues to offer several programs at more normal tuition, $330 per credit graduate level.

This Patten University is not regionally accredited. The name has a complicated history. A school named Patten University was once a brick-and-mortar institution in Oakland, California and once held regional accreditation from WASC, but in several asset sales it converted to for-profit online and then lost its accreditation. Later its name was acquired by American Graduate University. AGU then changed its name to Patten University while retaining AGU's own pre-existing national accreditation from the DEAC.

How/why so cheap?  Feels like I’m missing some sort of “catch”.

[newdegree]

He is right that is the tuition
https://www.elmwoodinstitute.org/tuition-fees

[Jonathan Whatley]

How/why so cheap?  Feels like I’m missing some sort of “catch”.

They likely had fairly low incremental cost of curriculum development and DEAC accreditation; they already offered a Master of Leadership and Management accredited through the main Patten. And I suppose a cost per student through the Elmwood Institute division not much different from the alt-credit providers, but with graduate learning objectives.

[jg_nuy]

Interesting find and great price. Will be looking forward to see if anyone tries this.

[Vle045]

Interesting find and great price. Will be looking forward to see if anyone tries this.

For the price, I’m tempted to give it a try.  $75 is a drop in the bucket for a Master level class.

[newdegree]

Would be a great alternative to someone looking for a cheap masters degree , better choice versus an ENEB masters (although the ENEB degree can be evaluated as a RA bachelors degree)

[freeloader]

Really neat find. One potential hiccup for some people:

“State Authorization
Elmwood Institute is licensed, authorized, or exempt in the following states:
​
Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, and Washington.”

https://www.elmwoodinstitute.org/accredi...-licensure

[newdegree]

I don’t think it would make a difference since it’s online ? I’m in New York my state is not on the list ?