I will like you to kindly help me research on the acceptability of
NorthFace University Computer Science Undergraduate program and let me
know if upon completion,i will be accepted to study Masters of
Software Engineering in other well recognised universities in the
North America or Britain like MIT.

Dear Babddj, 

There are several factors impacting your prospects of being accepted
into a reputable master's programme such as the ones offered by MIT.
The reputation of the university you went to, while imporant, is not
the most important factor. It is much more important to have a good
GPA, to score good on your GRE (and similar entrance examinations to
graduate school), and to do well in interviews, applications essays,
etc.
(Sites to learn more about it: 
www.gre.org
www.gradview.com) 

In other words, as long as the university you're going to is
accredited, there are more important factors than its name.

NorthFace University is accredited: "Northface University is
accredited by the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and
Schools (ACICS) to award bachelor and masters degrees. The Accrediting
Council for Independent Colleges and Schools is listed as a nationally
recognized accrediting agency by the United States Department of
Education. Its accreditation of degree-granting institutions is
recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation."
(SOURCE: NorthFace University, Accreditation Information
<http://www.northface.edu/public/about/accreditation.htm>).

As for its reputation, NorthFace is new, so no reputation has been
built yet. However, there is some criticism in majto computer science
departments on NorthFace that might be worth considering. NorthFace
programme, of finishing the degree in half the time, does not include
any additional education. Some department heads find it problematic,
among them an MIT professor:
"It sounds like an institution that has identified a need, but will
come out with programmers instead of people really trained to think
critically,' said Eric Grimson, a Massachusetts Institute of
Technology administrator."
(SOURCE: Paul Foy, "'Programming U.' Bucks Traditional Schools",
Originally published on Associated Press, August 9th 2004
<http://apnews1.iwon.com//article/20040804/D848JD9G0.html>).

"Haym Hirsh, chairman of the computer-science department at Rutgers
University, is not a Northface believer. He doesn't think its
intensive focus can't inspire the kind of "out-of-box" thinking that
goes with a broader education.
Hirsh said he wouldn't recommend Northface for teenagers graduating
from high school.
"It's all spin for themselves to put themselves on the level of a
MIT," he said. "But I think there is a legitimate need for what
they're doing" - for returning students or career changers."

"At MIT, computer-science students also take biology, calculus,
physics, chemistry and humanities.

"We believe our students need to have a perspective on the world,"
MIT's Grimson said. "You can't just go hacking in your room.""
(SOURCE: ibid.). 

None of us could predict the future. It could be that the reluctance
of some administrators towards the NorthFace system, would mean that
you'll have a hard time proving yourself to their admission
committies, it could be also, that after the first classes have
provied themselves, there would be little problem in that aspect.

It should be noted, that on its press releases, NorthFace themselves
stress the fact that their programme are "industry oriented" and that
graduates of this institution are expected to integrate into the
industry, and that might imply that they are less expected to step
further into research or higher degrees.

I hope this answered your question. Please contact me if you need any
clarifications on this answer before you rate it.

Search terms: NorthFace University; "ranking"/"reputation"

To get the full picture of what Northface University is take a few
things into account:

First they are accredited by ACICS.. to get an idea of the sort of
schools accredited by ACICS take a look at the list that they publish:

http://www.acics.org/library/AccreditedInst.pdf

Northface University is on the list.. but take a good hard look at the
company they keep..  The DOD Polygraph Institute in California, ITT
Tech, the Golf Academy of San Francisco. You can learn a lot by the
company that Northface is keeping. Also keep in mind this fact:
>>A private partnership under North Face Learning 
>>acquired Morrison University in Reno this spring
>> in order to get accreditation.

http://deseretnews.com/dn/view2/1,4382,510036018,00.html

By all accounts Morrison University was a second rate Business School.
And somehow this accreditation was acquired by a bunch of venture
capitalists, and transfered to Northface University. Interestingly
this acquisition was a very good business decision, as it opens the
way for students to receive federal student loans.

Contrast that to Regional Accreditation which is explained in the link below:

http://www.chea.org/Directories/regional.asp

Regional accreditation is the gold standard for academic accrediting
in the United States. There are thousands of regionally accredited
schools, and when looking for a school, do not settle for less.
Regional accreditation guarantees a standard of excellence that will
be recognized by other schools.

Northface University's program is only 28 months.  In a program that
lasts approximately 10 quarters, a prospective student should ask
"what am I missing".  In a traditional program science, mathematics,
and computer science fundamentals are stressed.  At Northface
University, it seems, they are missing the Science in Computer
Science.  A look at th curriculum shows that you will learn to use
Visual Studio, and Websphere Application Studio, but in ten years
these tools will be so changed that you will not recognise them.

There is a reason why traditional computer science programs teach what
they teach.  In fifteen years will c# or Java be used?  maybe. Will
finite state automata, discrete mathematics, or the fundamentals of
algorithmics be important?  absolutely.  If you want to do graduate
work in computer science don't consider Northface University, the
Computer Science GRE will be as foreign to a Northface graduate as
space travel is to the indigenous people in darkest Africa.

The reputation of the school is very important as are your GPA and
scores on exams such as the GRE.  Despite what numerous books on the
issue say, everything else (i.e., recommendations, essays,
extracurriculars, etc.) is not very significant.  Go to a school with
a decent, established (not necessarily excellent) reputation and do
well there.  Good Luck.