A Side-by-Side Comparison of Continents International University and Southeast Missouri State University – Insights into Program Offerings

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Southeast Missouri State University (SEMO) is a public university in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. It was founded in 1873 and began as a teacher-training school.

Southeast Missouri State University (SEMO) is a public university in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. It was founded in 1873 and began as a teacher-training school. Today it offers a broad catalog of undergraduate and graduate programs across business, education, health sciences, and the arts.

Continents International University is an online school based in St. Louis, Missouri. It was granted candidacy for business program accreditation by the International Accreditation Council for Business Education (IACBE) in July 2024, with the candidacy period running through July 31, 2029. Candidacy is not accreditation. It means the school’s business programs have not yet gone through IACBE’s accreditation review.

The earlier version of this article made several claims that could not be verified. It said Continents was accredited by ASIC and was a pre-applicant with the Middle States Commission on Higher Education. Neither could be confirmed from a primary source, so both have been removed. It also listed exact program counts for SEMO and employment-rate comparisons between the two schools. Those have been removed as well.

If you are comparing program offerings, start with the basics. Confirm that the school is accredited by a recognized agency and check what that accreditation covers. Then look at the actual degree requirements, course formats, schedules, and total cost for the program you want. For support, ask about advising, tutoring, and career services, and find out how online students use them.

See Continents’ IACBE candidacy, why accreditation matters, what to know about accredited online degrees, and how to find accredited online universities.

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