{"id":44,"date":"2023-05-06T17:28:55","date_gmt":"2023-05-07T00:28:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/capstonedomain2.wpcomstaging.com\/?page_id=44"},"modified":"2023-06-20T00:49:11","modified_gmt":"2023-06-20T00:49:11","slug":"tanners-bit","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/index.php\/tanners-bit\/","title":{"rendered":""},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-nk-awb nk-awb alignfull nk-awb-fullheight nk-awb-content-valign-center\"><div class=\"nk-awb-wrap\" data-awb-type=\"image\" data-awb-parallax=\"scroll\" data-awb-parallax-speed=\"0.5\" data-awb-parallax-mobile=\"false\" data-awb-image-background-size=\"cover\" data-awb-image-background-position=\"50% 50%\"><div class=\"nk-awb-inner\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/GEORGETOWN3.png\" class=\"wp-image-303 jarallax-img\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1197\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/GEORGETOWN3.png 2048w, https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/GEORGETOWN3-300x175.png 300w, https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/GEORGETOWN3-1024x599.png 1024w, https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/GEORGETOWN3-768x449.png 768w, https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/GEORGETOWN3-1536x898.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 706px) 89vw, (max-width: 767px) 82vw, 740px\" \/><\/div><\/div><div class=\"nk-awb-wrap-content is-layout-flow wp-block-awb-is-layout-flow\"><div class = \"banner\" style=\"backdrop-filter:blur(10px);\n                          display: block;\n                        width: 100%;\n                          text-align: center;\n                         padding: 0px;\n                          margin-top: 0px;\"> <\/p>\n<h2 style=\"color:white;\n filter:drop-shadow(10px 10px 4px #000000);\npadding: 0px;\nmargin-bottom: 20px;\nposition: relative;\"><br \/>\n \u201cAt first, they really did make you feel like you were part of the Georgetown community.\u201d <\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/body><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-audio alignleft\"><audio controls src=\"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/tanner.mp3\"><\/audio><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left\"><em>Click to hear a day in the life of an online Georgetown student.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8216;Accessibility&#8217; was the word on Tanner Thompson&#8217;s mind when he first laid eyes upon the website for Georgetown\u2019s online Master of Science in business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Thompson\u2019s journey to postgraduate began in 2016, when he took a job right after obtaining his undergraduate degree. He was making a solid income\u2014around $40,000 a year\u2014but something was missing. He saw that even a little extra education went a long way (around six figures, to be exact) and the obvious choice was to go back to school and get a masters in finance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When it came time to pick a college, it felt like he didn\u2019t even have to think about it. Living in Utah and working full time with limited funds, online school was a no-brainer. He couldn\u2019t afford to make long commutes or move away from his place of employment at Wells Fargo.<\/p>\n\n\n<p>\u201cGeorgetown is the first thing you see when you google online masters,\u201d Thompson said. \u201cThere\u2019s <span class=\"tooltips \" style=\"\" title=\"#13 in national universities\"><span style=\"color:Gray\"><ins>Vanderbilt,<\/ins><\/span> <\/span>there\u2019s some in Utah, but I think Georgetown has some sort of search engine optimization, because it was right there at the top. It\u2019s very professional, and clearly they invested a lot. They even had an admissions counselor give me an hour-long entrance counseling review, and by the time you know it\u2019s $80,000, you\u2019re already sold.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:100%\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:100%\"><p>But what exactly is there to be sold on? Given that so many online degrees are offered at absolute bargain prices, a triple-digit price tag on a full degree seems silly. That is, until you remember: this is <span class=\"tooltips \" style=\"\" title=\"#22 in national universities\"><span style=\"color:Gray\"><ins>Georgetown.<\/ins><\/span><\/p>\n<p> <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Born and raised in Baltimore, Thompson already harbored a respect for the Georgetown name, which dominates the leaderboards. Based on that alone, the counselor told him, the quality of the program is a cut above what he\u2019d get elsewhere, so of course, the price was a little higher. He said the counselor even had him memorize the full name of the program: \u201cGeorgetown University Master of Science and Finance.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"415\" height=\"415\" src=\"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/lacrosse.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-204\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/lacrosse.jpeg 415w, https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/lacrosse-300x300.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/lacrosse-150x150.jpeg 150w, https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/lacrosse-100x100.jpeg 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 415px) 100vw, 415px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>An engraving of Georgetown&#8217;s famous lacrosse team, which Thompson found outside the library.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\"><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/sweatshirts.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-199\" width=\"246\" height=\"436\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/sweatshirts.jpeg 312w, https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/sweatshirts-169x300.jpeg 169w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 246px) 100vw, 246px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>A photo of the Georgetown bookstore Thompson took during a facilitated on-campus visit.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left\">Once Thompson was accepted, things seemed to be living up to his expectations. The curriculum was exact, with an emphasis on the students\u2019 cohorts and taking the same classes together, give or take a few electives. In Thompson\u2019s case, said cohort was only eighty students, and the program insisted upon them feeling included. Toward this end, students were invited to a one-week residency on campus and a program-wide banquet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cAt first, they really did make you feel like you were a part of the Georgetown community,\u201d Thompson said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>These efforts were the work of the Georgetown administration\u2014 the university&#8217;s online degrees are kept separate from the rest of the student body, with only a few <a href=\"https:\/\/2u.com\/partners\/georgetown-university\/\">public<\/a> about their relationship with 2U. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Eager to get involved, Thompson rose to the challenge of class president, ingratiating himself even more with the college as a middleman between the program\u2019s tight-knit community and Georgetown administration. Student government became the modus operandi for how Thompson would interact with his cohorts, quickly setting himself apart from the rest. He even took the time to tutor others in the program, all the while maintaining an A average for his first few semesters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cOne of my goals was to be a very accessible class president, so I was always in our class group chat which had around eighty people,\u201d Thompson said. \u201cI was very involved.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He noticed right away that students liked to complain\u2014 a lot. The volume of complaints, however, didn\u2019t exactly match up with their substance, according to Thompson. Coming from Baltimore and then living in Utah, his perspective on the program tended to differ from that of some other students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cPrivilege was definitely a factor,\u201d Thompson said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>His stint as class president wasn\u2019t just fielding endless complaints, however. In the midst of his degree, a few female students voiced concerns about sexual harassment, coming to him only after they tried both the Dean of Students and the chair of the program. Unsatisfied with the inaction of the administration, the students went to Thompson, hoping for better results. When the topic surfaced during a meeting with Dean of Students and the program chair, both only expressed concern to Thompson about the school being sued by students. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cSome people did feel more comfortable talking to me because they didn\u2019t feel welcomed fully by the administration,\u201d Thompson said. \u201cIt was really more reserved in that case.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Although his reception to the program and much of his interactions with administration were positive, the weather would only stay sunny for so long.  An off-campus accident lead to Thompson requiring accommodations to finish his degree, which brought some of the less-than-ideal qualities of the program to life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThere was an entire thing called the Disability Services Department, and I was never made aware of it. It was buried in page six or seven of the syllabi of the courses, but it was never mentioned,\u201d Thompson said. \u201cWhen I found out, it was way too late.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Toward the end of his stay at Georgetown, Thompson experienced issues with how he was treated by other students. Along with his condition, Thompson had reached a breaking point. Facing an academic expulsion and at his wits\u2019 end, he decided to try seeking help from the Georgetown racial grievances office located on-campus in D.C. They told him they couldn\u2019t help, but there was one thing <em>he<\/em> could do\u2014sign a nondisclosure agreement, which would prevent him from talking about his experiences at Georgetown any further. The employee he spoke to refused to drop the matter, citing pressure from above, and Thompson was pursued through email or by other university employees following his refusal to sign.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI almost laughed in his face. I was kind of shocked,\u201d Thompson said. \u201cHe was just like, if you don\u2019t sign a nondisclosure agreement the fact that you\u2019re going to be expelled will haunt you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In retrospect, Thompson doesn\u2019t feel any ill-will towards the university, and still valued what experience he got from the program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m not angry at Georgetown,\u201d Thompson said. \u201cOverall, Georgetown did live up to my expectations, meaning what was promised on the website did deliver.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<p>Much of the information around the degree was only revealed to Thompson by a recruiter, and the presence of third-party companies in the program was not made evident during his recruiting process in 2016. He knows the company as 2SU, the alias it used for <a href=\"https:\/\/answers.syr.edu\/display\/ITHELP\/2U+Support+Services\">Syracuse university,<\/a> which he also attended online.<\/p>\n\n\n<p>Thompson describes the atmosphere at  <span class=\"tooltips \" style=\"\" title=\"#62 in national universities\"><span style=\"color:Gray\"><ins>Syracuse<\/ins><\/span><\/span> as much warmer, as opposed to Georgetown&#8217;s professionalism. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"415\" height=\"415\" src=\"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/tanner.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-207\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/tanner.jpeg 415w, https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/tanner-300x300.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/tanner-150x150.jpeg 150w, https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/tanner-100x100.jpeg 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 415px) 100vw, 415px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Thompson continued to pursue higher education after dropping out of Georgetown.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s more normal,&#8221; Thompson said. &#8220;You can choose whatever you want, and there&#8217;s more electives.&#8221; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Thompson has since earned two master&#8217;s degrees at Syracuse, and hopes to delve further into certificate programs that would enable him to work in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.investopedia.com\/articles\/financialcareers\/08\/quants-quantitative-analyst.asp\">&#8220;Quant,&#8221;<\/a> or quantitative analysis, a lucrative niche of finance that applies complex mathematics to market trends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-nk-awb nk-awb is-layout-flow wp-block-awb-is-layout-flow\"><div class=\"nk-awb-wrap-content\"><\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Click to hear a day in the life of an online Georgetown student. &#8216;Accessibility&#8217; was the word on Tanner Thompson&#8217;s mind when he first laid eyes upon the website for Georgetown\u2019s online Master of Science in business. Thompson\u2019s journey to postgraduate began in 2016, when he took a job right after obtaining his undergraduate degree. &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/index.php\/tanners-bit\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-44","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/44","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44"}],"version-history":[{"count":26,"href":"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/44\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":558,"href":"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/44\/revisions\/558"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ascjcapstone.com\/spring-2023\/lilliang\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}