Law School Discussion

Nova Southeastern University

Big Debt – Little Results

May 9, 2007

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

Nova Southeastern is the sixth largest universities in the country and the leading school lender involved in the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP). Nova also has close ties to several private lenders now under investigation. Interestingly, Nova student borrowers now incur some of the highest levels of debt in the nation.

BIG DEBT

 In 2007, US News & World Report ranked Nova # 10 in the nation for undergraduate
debt.

 The average debt of 2005 Nova grads was more then $10,000 above the Florida
average.

 Nova Medical school grads finish with debt nearly $30,000 above the national average.

Little Results:

Despite the high level of debt that Nova students incur, the university consistently ranks at the bottom of nearly every academic category:

 US News ranked both Nova’s undergraduate program and law school 4th tier, or
bottom 25% of national universities.

 According to data Nova released under the Federal Student Right-to-Know Act, only
47% of full-time freshmen who started at Nova in 2000 received a bachelor’s degree
within 6 years.

 Nova’s H. Wayne Huizenga School of Business, is not accredited by the AACSB
(although 15 other Florida universities received accreditation)

 Ron Matus of the St. Petersburg Times reported that only 48% of Nova grads passed the bar this past February, lowest in the state (88% of FSU grads and 94% of FIU grads, who pay two thirds less than Nova law students, passed).

If you do not mind a 4th tier university and paying a high tuition, Nova is the place.  I would rather get what I pay for, at Nova you do not.  Their reputation is suffering now.  They have been subpeonaed by the New York AG in regards to the student loan scandal and are being investigated by the Florida AG.

My advise would be to stay away from Nova.  And from what I know, their reputation is going to suffer more in the near future.

Nova has revenue-sharing agreement with student loan provider
By Kimberly Miller

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Nova Southeastern University, the largest private college in Florida, has a revenue sharing agreement with one of its preferred student loan providers and contracts with the company to staff its student call centers, according to papers released today by the state.

Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum opened an investigation last month into how student loan providers get on schools' preferred lender lists and other questionable practices following a national inquiry spearheaded by the New York State Attorney General's Office.
 
McCollum and New York's Andrew Cuomo held a news conference this afternoon asking the U.S. Senate to support the national Student Loan Sunshine Act, which the duo said would protect students from quid pro quo arrangements between schools and lenders.

Cuomo said 32 attorney generals nationwide signed a letter of support. The U.S. House of Representatives passed the legislation last month.

"We are urging them to pass a law that would stop on a national basis the student loan scandals that we have found across the country," Cuomo said. "The level of abuse has surprised everyone."

While McCollum said Florida's transgressions were less severe than what was found in other areas of the country, he is supporting the legislation and working on a university code of conduct with Florida's Board of Governors - the public university oversight board.

Several universities nationwide have already signed Cuomo's "College Loan Code of Conduct," which prevents colleges from receiving anything of value to put a lender on a preferred list. Schools also are prohibited from steering students to certain lenders, and lenders are not allowed to have employees work in school financial aid call centers.

A handful of schools have also agreed to refund students money they received from lenders for loan business.

The 26,000-student Nova Southeastern University is the only Florida school to be questioned by McCollum and receive a subpoena from New York.

Nova is also the only Florida university in the top 10 U.S. News & World Report rankings for student debt with 62 percent of graduates carrying an average $26,658 in school loan debt.

Nova attorney Thomas Panza said he believes New York targeted Nova because of the number of students who take out loans for its graduate and professional programs.

Panza said school officials are willing to sign a code of conduct, and plan to terminate the contract with loan company Sallie Mae where its employees work in Nova's student loan call center.

Panza downplayed the revenue sharing agreement where students can extend their loan payments for a fee that is divided between Sallie Mae and Nova.

"That practice is such a small thing," Panza said. "It's very few students. Nova isn't doing anything wrong."
 

 

 
 

 

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/restore-employees-rights-at-nova.html

A few things are think are important to all incoming students, first of all US News and Reports has stated that Nova ranks in the top 10% in the nation with undergratuate Debt, but is a 4th tier university, in other words ranked in the bottom 25%.  Why would a student want to go to this university and spend that much more for a college that provides a below par education.  Also only 48% of the students that took the bar exam last February passed.  What does that say about Nova?  So I do feel this information is very informative to a student thinking about enrolling in a university.  Are you getting what you pay for?

This fight has been going on for 1 1/2 years and still going on.  Another fact is that the Florida Attorney General is investigating Nova's student loan pratices and I personally know of one person from Nova that was interviewed by Florida"s Fraud Task Unit.