Northcentral University is a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

online In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed "on line" o ...

university with its headquarters in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. It was established in 1996 and is classified among "D/PU: Doctoral/Professional Universities"; it offers bachelor's,

master's A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

, specialist, and

doctoral degrees A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''l ...

. NCU was acquired by the National University System in 2019.

History

Northcentral University was founded in 1996 by Donald Hecht as a private

for-profit university Proprietary colleges are for-profit colleges and universities. They are operated by their owners or investors, rather than a not-for-profit institution, religious organization, or government. Because they are not funded by tax money, their long ...

. In 1978, Hecht had established

California Southern University California Southern University is a private, for-profit, university in Costa Mesa, California. California Southern University is currently a member of the American InterContinental University System. It offers associate's, bachelor's, master's ...

, formerly known as Southern California University for Professional Studies (SCUPS). In 2003 the university received regional accreditation from

The Higher Learning Commission The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is an institutional accreditor in the United States. It has historically accredited post-secondary education institutions in the central United States: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa ...

. Four years later, the institution moved its headquarters to

Prescott, Arizona Prescott ( ) is a city in Yavapai County, Arizona, United States. According to the 2020 Census, the city's population was 45,827. The city is the county seat of Yavapai County. In 1864, Prescott was designated as the capital of the Arizona ...

. In that same year, the school received

ACBSP The Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP), formerly the Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs, is a U.S. organization offering accreditation services to business programs focused on teaching and learni ...

accreditation. Shortly thereafter, on October 8, 2008, Northcentral announced the university was being purchased by Rockbridge Growth Equity, LLC. In 2011 the

US Department of Education The United States Department of Education is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government. It began operating on May 4, 1980, having been created after the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was split into the Department ...

determined Northcentral was one of 75 US institutions failing its 2009-2010 financial responsibility test (a measure of the institution's financial solvency), and would be required to post a

letter of credit A letter of credit (LC), also known as a documentary credit or bankers commercial credit, or letter of undertaking (LoU), is a payment mechanism used in international trade to provide an economic guarantee from a creditworthy bank to an ex ...

in order for students to receive federal financial aid. Northcentral also failed its 2010–2011, 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 financial responsibility tests, scoring zero for 2010–2011 on a scale of -1 to 3, lower than the 0.2 it earned the prior term; 0.2 for 2011–2012; and 0.2 again for 2012–2013. In 2015 the

placed Northcentral on "HCM-Cash Monitoring 1" status because of its financial issues. In 2019, the National University System (California) acquired Northcentral University, in effect, converting Northcentral University into a non-profit institution.

Academics

Northcentral University consists of six schools: * School of Law (Degrees offered: JD, BA, Undergraduate Certificate in Paralegal Studies) * School of Business (Degrees offered: BBA, MBA, MSOL, MSA, DPA, DBA, PhD; Post-Baccalaureate and Post-Master's certifications in Business) * School of Technology (Degrees offered: MS and PhD) * School of Education (Degrees offered: MAT, MEd, MS-ID, EdS, EdD, EdD-ID, PhD, PhD-ID; Post-Baccalaureate and Post-Master's certifications in Education) * School of Health Sciences (Degrees offered: MHA, DHA, MSN, DNP) * School of Social and Behavioral Sciences (Department of Psychology – Degrees offered: BA, MA, MS and PhD in psychology; Post-Baccalaureate and Post-Master's certifications. Department of Marriage and Family Sciences – Degrees offered: MA, DMFT and PhD in Marriage and Family Therapy; Post-Baccalaureate and Post-Master's certifications

Accreditation and certifications

Northcentral is

accredited Accreditation is the independent, third-party evaluation of a conformity assessment body (such as certification body, inspection body or laboratory) against recognised standards, conveying formal demonstration of its impartiality and competence to ...

by the

Western Association of Schools and Colleges The Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) was an organization providing accreditation of public and private universities, colleges, secondary and elementary schools in California and Hawaii, the territories of Guam, American Sam ...

; the institution was previously accredited by the

Higher Learning Commission The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is an institutional accreditor in the United States. It has historically accredited post-secondary education institutions in the central United States: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa ...

. The university's business school is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP). The university's master's and PhD programs in Marriage & Family Therapy are accredited by the

American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy The American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT) is a professional association in the field of marriage and family therapy representing more than 50,000 marriage and family therapists throughout the United States, Canada, and abroad. ...

. Northcentral University is also recognized as a Registered Education Provider (REP) at the Global Provider Enrollment Level by Project Management Institute and offers project management degrees at the bachelor, master, and doctoral levels. The JFK School of Law at NCU was placed on probation by The State Bar of California, through its Committee of Bar Examiners, due to reporting a five-year cumulative bar exam pass rate (MPR) of 39.7 percent for 2020, when a minimum of 40 percent is required under Rule 4.160(N); the law school raised its MPR to 41.9 percent as of July 1, 2021, and its probation was lifted.

Rankings

* Ranked 148th out of 205 on U.S. News Best Online Programs ranking for its Bachelors Programs among National Universities in 2013 "U.S. News Best College Rankings".

References

External links

Official website
{{Law schools accredited by the California Committee of Bar Examiners Private universities and colleges in Arizona Private universities and colleges in California Distance education institutions based in the United States Educational institutions established in 1996 1996 establishments in Arizona Rock Ventures