Correspondence courses?

Lee

Hi, folks --

I was wondering if anyone had any thoughts/experiences with astrology correspondence courses. If one wanted a thorough grounding in astrology, is it possible to do it from books, or does one really need a teacher's feedback? If the latter, that would mean a correspondence course for me, since I'm rather isolated and don't have the kind of schedule that allows me to go see a teacher or a class at regular times; nor could I take an on-line class with classes at regular times.

The problem is that correspondence courses are horrendously, horrifically expensive. Before even considering spending that kind of money, I would certainly study from books first for at least a few months, just to make sure I didn't lose interest.

Here are some correspondence courses I found by wandering the internet...

http://www.joannewickenburg.com/id19.htm

http://www.astrologers.com/html/correspondence_course.html

http://www.devineadvantage.com/course.htm

The first two seem to be several decades old, although I'm not sure that makes a difference. They're also substantially less expensive than the third, although the third seems to have far more material (141 hours of tapes, for example, compared with 42 hours of tapes for the first one).

Any thoughts are deeply appreciated...

-- Lee
 

Rusty Neon

I haven't taken them, but "Barnes & Noble University" offers free courses, including an introductory course in tarot and an introductory course in astrology. (However, B&N 'premier' courses do cost money.) I understand that B&N courses are list-based rather than real-time.

Go to the following address and click on 'Browse All Courses':

http://www.barnesandnobleuniversity.com/
 

Astraea

Noel Tyl course

Lee -- you might have heard of Noel Tyl. He is a very well-known and respected astrologer, though he is not everyone's cup of tea. He offers a very comprehensive and detailed correspondence course which you might be interested in looking into. Here is a link to the page on his website which describes the course: http://www.noeltyl.com/masters.html, and how to contact him to discuss particulars.

Joanne Wickenberg is a very competent astrologer, and even if her course is older, for beginning work it would be suitable -- it is very important to ground oneself in the basics.

Carole Devine is also a capable astrologer, but I do not know anything about the course she offers.

The Rosicrucians used to offer correspondence courses at no charge (donations were accepted), and I believe that the same is true of the Church of Light -- both are in California.

I will do some further research and post again here, if I find solid additional options.

I commend you on your desire to take a course -- one can learn on one's own, but the structure, organization and feedback one can get from an experienced teacher are invaluable.
 

Astraea

Church of Light, Robert Mulligan

Lee -- the Rosicrucian website no longer specifies correspondence courses, which does not necessarily mean they are not offered; you might want to contact the organization at www.rosicrucian.org.

The Church of Light offers a 21-lesson correspondence course in the hermetic arts, seven of which are devoted to astrology, and the remaining two to alchemy and magic. To see more information about their course, click here: http://www.light.org/homeStudy.php3

Robert Mulligan offers a very comprehensive correspondence course; I believe it is a four-year program, and quite costly -- but very thorough. His website is www.theastrologycompany.com.

You know the saying: "When the student is ready, the teacher will appear." It will be interesting to see who shows up! :)
 

Keslynn

Barnes and Noble course

I wouldn't recommend the Barnes and Noble course to anyone who wants more than a very basic knowledge of astrology. It's great for those who are really beginners, but if you have some knowledge under your belt (and you probably already have a similar amount from reading this board), then it's frustrating and superficial. Also, the book for the course was too light and happy. I much prefer Donna Cunningham's intro books. They have more meat.
 

Minderwiz

I actually did my Astrology Courses through a distance learning organisation

http://www.bsygroup.co.uk/index.html

I chose to do it that way because in the past I've started into Astrology in terms of reading and not really done more than scratch the surface and then found work, etc took over and I left my 'studies'. So a couple of years ago I decided to really have a go and felt the discipline of having to do pieces of work would force me to keep to a programme. It certainly worked in those terms.

The material tended to be rather basic to begin with, and the assignments are very easy if all you want to do is give short answers. However because I wanted to get to grips with the subject I used the lessons as mileposts for my reading, buying and reading as much as I could afford and then doing the assignments - sometimes questions required internet search because the answers were not published.

Also after lessons on the basics the course moved to more chart interpretation (and the second course was strongly based around intepretation as well as knowledge) - this really made me think and work and draw on intuition as well as reading.

For me the exercise was worth it - and once registered I got reductions or '2 for 1' offers on other courses (hence I did a Tarot course 'free') The materials were not brilliant - fairly basic but as a 'script' for reading they worked fine.

The feedback on assignments from tutors was useful - though I have to admit that far more useful was actually trying readings for people and asking for their feedback. I learned more from actually doing than simply reading - though the reading is nescessary. I also learned quite a bit from other Astrologers - and continue to do so - many of the posts on these forums I find extremely helpful and AquarianGoddess in particular has helped me an awful lot.

Since I started, I've seen several professional organisations that offer courses but they're more expensive than I paid for (and mine wasn't cheap) or more specialised or indeed both.

You can of course, set your own course of study and avoid any course fees - depends how well you thing you will keep to it.
 

Lee

Thanks, everyone, for your input so far! It's very helpful to me.

Astraea, the Noel Tyl course sounds wonderful, but the impression I get from his site is that he's gearing it towards already-practicing astrologers, or at least astrologers who have had some experience in interpreting charts. Carole Devine's site, for example, says the Tyl course is a good course to take after one takes her course.

The Mulligan course looks particularly interesting. That was one I hadn't seen in my internet forays. I like his uncluttered website! I'm sort of comparing his course to Devine's. He offers 144 classes for $2700, while Devine offers 94 lessons for 1410. If one took the entire course to the end, it would break down to $18.75 per class for Mulligan, vs. $15 per lesson for Devine. Of course it's hard to make a comparison because for all we know, one teacher's class or lesson might contain three times the material of the other's. But at least it seems as if the Mulligan course, while expensive, isn't that much more expensive on a class-by-class basis than Devine's.

They both appeal in different ways. The Mulligan course seems very well-organized, which is a plus, and seems to rely on written materials as well as the cassette tapes, whereas the Devine seems to be mostly the tapes. They both have favorable quotes from Mountain Astrologer magazine, which they quote on their sites. Devine has many favorable students' testimonials which make the course sound very attractive.

Devine offers a demo tape and booklet to preview her course, which I've e-mailed her and asked for. I'll keep you all updated on my experiences with all this, if I decide to go forward.

Thanks again! :)
 

Astraea

Mulligan and Devine

Lee -- I will be interested in learning what you decide. Thank you for the input about the Noel Tyl course. It seems to me that you'd be safe with either Bob Mulligan or Carole Devine. I know Bob Mulligan a little bit from conferences. He has an esoteric bent, but is also very knowledgeable about the business aspects of an astrological practice; he used to be the president of the Organization for Professional Astrologers (OPA). I wish I knew more about Carole Devine, but the extent of my knowledge is that she is an experienced astrologer with a good reputation, and that's all to the good!
 

Lee

Thanks Astraea, it's reassuring to know that you have some knowledge of Mulligan. One is always afraid with these things that it's just someone who has decided to make a course, but it's good to know the person has a good reputation.

-- Lee
 

Astraea

Lee -- I just want to add that Bob Mulligan's course has been offered for many years, it is not an upstart. I believe that I first learned of it about ten years ago, and it might be older than that.

I keep having the feeling that I need to refer you to Robert Blaschke. He is an astrologer I respect to the nth degree -- experienced, ethical, sensitive, and a superb teacher. He operates the Earthwalk School of Astrology. Mr. Blaschke formerly resided and taught in Oregon, but he has recently married and relocated to Florida.

I have never heard that the Earthwalk School has a correspondence arm, but if it does, I urge you to investigate taking courses from Robert Blaschke. I have attended many of his classes at conferences, and can't say enough for him. I have not been able to find a website for him (apart from the On-Line College of Astrology, for which he used to teach), but his e-mail address is ewastro@earthlink.net, and his telephone number is 1-800-778-8490 (that's the ordering number for his books, but it's the only one listed for him and he usually answers the phone himself). His snail mail address is PO Box 1013, Safety Harbor FL 34695.

Well, just relax and let the information sift and settle. I know that the best answer will come to you when the time is right -- that's astrology, for you!