Three years into a doctoral program at a large public university, Cortis (Mac)
McGuire was losing patience. As a successful quality management consultant with
a military background, he was frustrated by a dissertation committee comprised of
members who had never worked outside higher education. But he was astonished
when that committee—through faculty departures and other changes—simply
vanished.
The university's solution? Start over.
"One of the faculty members took me aside and said that I should just move
on campus, stay in the program, and teach there for another three years at
$16,000 annually while I finished," McGuire said. "Well, considering I could earn
significantly more making speeches, I was hard-pressed to stay around for that."
McGuire wanted to find a new doctoral program that would respect both his
accomplishments and his time. He initially resisted recommendations to consider
an online university, but as his mentors persisted, he chose to restart his studies
at Capella University. From early interactions with an enrollment counselor to
attendance at his first PhD colloquium, McGuire became more confident that
Capella was the right choice.
"At that colloquium, I was pleasantly surprised to find I was surrounded by a Who's
Who of professionals over age 40," he said. "And a huge number of them were
very dissatisfied with traditional doctoral programs that treated them like they
were 25."
But a community of professional classmates was only part of the story. McGuire
found that Capella's PhD program was even more rigorous than the nationallyrecognized
one he had left—a revelation that forced him to become very precise
with time management. And later, when his doctoral committee was made up of
three business consultants with terminal degrees, he gained access to a readymade
panel of experts he could tap for ideas to grow his consulting practice.
Today, with his Capella doctorate prominently noted in his marketing materials,
McGuire has increased his consulting income by more than 50 percent. That
financial security allows him to follow his other passions—teaching occasional MBA
courses at a pair of local universities, and advising other prospective learners to
consider the Capella experience.
"Capella has made a huge difference in my life," he said. "I recommend the
business programs frequently, and have probably sent more than 15 other learners
to the university since completing my degree."