Correspondence courses?

Lee

The Kepler school is an interesting one. They offer distance learning, and all of their courses are asynchronous, in other words you structure your day as you wish, they don't have specific times during the day when you have to be on-line. In this way it's like a correspondence course, and thus would seem ideal for me. It's certainly an in-depth program; it's a four-year program which offers a BA degree at the end. It's probably the best astrological education one could obtain in the U.S.

It has two problems for me. First, there are three twelve-week terms each year, and one week in each term one must go to the Seattle, WA area for seven-day symposia. That means one must be prepared to spend three weeks out of each year (for four years) in Seattle.

Also, the cost is about ten times the cost of the most expensive of the other correspondence courses I've looked at. The cost is $1800 per term, plus $200 per term for books. This means the cost for the four years (assuming they don't raise the tuition) is $24,000. <Lee faints from sticker shock>. If one does the program as a non-matriculating student (I assume this means everything is the same except you don't get the degree), then the entire cost would be $17,400. Now, this doesn't include the cost of three round-trip tickets to Seattle each year, plus housing costs for those weeks.

Yikes! :eek: :eek: :eek:

-- Lee
 

Minderwiz

Clearly the person running this has an overly strong second House and their eighth shows that they easily obtain other people's money!!!

Suggestions as to possible placements?
 

Astraea

Tuition

In one sense, that is a lot of money -- but it's very much less than a four-year education at most other colleges offering BA degrees (particularly for out-of-state students). Scholarships are also available.

Kepler's faculty is first-rate. It was the brainchild of several practicing astrologers (ironically, Joanne Wickenburg -- who operates one of the first correspondence schools you investigated -- is among them), who donated long hours of their time to bring it to birth. Robert Hand, Nick Campion, Lee Lehman, Demetra George, and many others are on the faculty. If one considers what a four-year education might cost with any of these astrologers on a per-hour mentoring basis, the cost would probably be similar.

At any rate, Kepler is just one of a host of possibilities for distance learning in this electronic age -- we live in interesting times!
 

Lee

I do agree with Astraea, you have to compare it to other colleges offering a BA degree.

But... $200 a term for books? That's $2400 in books for the four years! That's even more than I've spent on Tarot decks! :)

-- Lee
 

Astraea

Textbook costs

Yes, books are very costly! My husband is a professor, and students at his college pay an average of $400 per term for books. $200 a term at Kepler is actually not high, when you consider the scope and depth of information involved. Remember, astrology is hundreds of years old and associated with many schools and systems, within which are found literally thousands of techniques. Because Kepler's curriculum is comprehensive, the cost for texts is higher than one might expect to pay in connection with a single-approach course focus.

Edited to add that Kepler is essentially a liberal arts college with an astrological focus; its curriculum thus includes courses in related fields, such as astronomy, mathematics, cosmology, history, mythology, psychology, counseling, symbolism, etc.

I argue neither for nor against Kepler's approach, since there is a school and a preferred method of study for every person; however, I think it is important to note that Kepler's costs are not comparable to those of other astrology schools, because it is radically different in its scope and approach from all others in the US.
 

Lee

I didn't really mean any disrespect for the Kepler school or its teachers. As I said before, it's probably the best astrological education one could get in this country (the U.S.), and probably even the world.

Like Astraea, I'm not making a judgement about Kepler in general; I'm really only looking at all this from the perspective of my own situation, and from that light, Kepler is completely out of the question. I wish I could go there... but I can't. My humor about the situation is probably just the result of frustration! :)

So far, the leader of the pack for me is Bob Mulligan. I e-mailed him a request for more information, and he sent me a thorough and thoughtful response, and he's mailing me an information packet. I'm impressed with his responsiveness, and you can be sure this will play a big role in my decision. I also like the fact that he places a lot of emphasis on helping the student establish a professional practice. As I said at the beginning, I don't know if this is in the cards for me, but it's nice to know that if I did decide to go that route, he would offer valuable advice towards that goal.

Carole Devine on her website suggeste people e-mail her if they would like to receive a sample lesson and tape. I did, and she hasn't e-mailed back, but she may have simply put it in the mail, so I'll wait and see if I get it.

I'm most disappointed with the English Huber School. I sent them a polite and friendly inquiry asking them to clarify their course structure and fees, since it's not entirely clear from their prospectus. That was two full days ago and I have not had a response. Perhaps I'm being unfair, but if their organization were as large and well-organized as their promotional materials suggest, then one would think that there would be someone in an office somewhere who is checking the school's e-mail at least every other day. If I don't hear from them after another few days, I'm definitely going to count them out. This is exactly the sort of thing which makes me nervous about dealing with people who are so far away. If they are this unresponsive to a prospective student, then how responsive will they be after I become a student?

The adventure continues! :)

-- Lee
 

Lee

Hi Astraea, I just went back to Robert Blaschke's site, and he has a full course description there, which either wasn't there a few days ago or maybe I missed it:

http://www.earthwalkastrology.com/syllabus.htm

I still think it's not geared toward beginners, since the course description only speaks of client issues, establishing a practice, and advanced techniques.

-- Lee
 

Astraea

Mulligan, Devine, Huber

Hi, Lee. It has never seemed to me that your statements about Kepler were disrespectful -- a four-year liberal arts education, culminating in a BA in Astrology, is quite a surprising and unusual concept (in this historical period, at any rate), especially in view of the attendant costs. Kepler is a great modern-day experiment, and I truly hope it is successful -- but I suspect that it will be difficult going for awhile.

I, too, pay close attention to response times when I e-mail someone in a professional capacity. Even a simple reply to the effect that [fill in the blank] is currently too busy to reply, but will contact you within the next 24 hours, is helpful. In the case of an individual, it might be that the person is out of town attending a conference -- Carole Devine, for example, is a popular speaker at astrological workshops, and there are several going on right now; this might affect the progress of your lessons. Bob Mulligan's wife helps him to run his office and business, and I have found both of them to be very prompt, courteous and thorough in their replies.

In selecting a course, I think that you are wise to anticipate having an astrological practice when you complete your studies (whether or not you ultimately decide to practice professionally). Bob Mulligan is quite experienced and knowledgeable in that area, and very generous in sharing what he has learned.

I am waiting for a couple of replies to e-mails regarding the status of the Astrological Institute in Scottsdale, and will let you know what I find out.

With so many viable study options, the human touch really becomes decisive. If you like the material you receive from a school, and the personnel respond to you with respect and courtesy, you will (at the very least) be able to cross others off your list! This truly is an adventure, and it's enjoyable to accompany you -- if only in print. :)
 

Astraea

Blaschke course

Lee, our messages crossed. I followed your link to Blaschke's site. His wording is ambiguous, and I suspect that it is because he wants to communite with prospective students in a one-to-one manner. "Preparing for your natal consultation," for example, could mean anything from learning how to set up a chart, to setting out the teacups and tape recorder -- my thought is that he intends for serious seekers to contact him with further questions.

From the outset, I have had the sense that Robert Blaschke would be a good person for you to contact -- even if he is not the person with whom you wish to study, he is sincere and honest and I believe that he might be able to point you in a worthwhile direction.
 

Minderwiz

I agree with Astraea's comments about Robert Blaschke, and I have the first book of his 'Astrology: A Language of Life' series, on Progressions.

Whilst I don't know at what level his course his aimed, Astraea is dead right - the best thing to do is contact him and see. I'm sure you will get some good advice.