The website does not list functional phone or fax numbers, no email addresses, and the "Contact Us" tab merely pops up a laughable email form.

There is no information on the principal officers of the school and no information on the faculty members. No "About Us" section; no "FAQ" tab; no "Careers" tab; no tab whatsoever on the registrar's office or on any of the administrative offices.

No catalog, with detailed description of all disciplines, courses, and the requirements for taking them. No site map.

There is a login section. Login into what? To check what? Who is eligible to have a login account?

Can I look up detailed description of all courses I took at the PTI on this website? Can I request for my transcripts on this website? Can I apply for admission on this website? Can I register for courses on this website? Can I get a detailed description of all fees students pay on this website? Is there a directory on this website that gives the names, department, and official contact information (phone numbers, fax numbers, and emails) of employees of the institution? Can a parent verify from this website that his or her ward is a bona fide student of the PTI? Can I, as a student, look up the library's catalog and checkout books online from this website? Can I obtain information on the business hours of administrative and non-administrative staff here?

Can I do a virtual tour of the PTI campus on this website? Does this website have information on the amenities students should expect to enjoy when admitted? Can a student find on this website a student handbook that lists the expectations of the institute's management for students as far as acceptable behavior is concerned? Can a student look on this website and know where to go or who to contact for help on any matter?

Woefully, the answer to all of these questions is an embarrassing "No"!

I remember the agony a fellow alumnus of the PTI went through in trying to describe to a course evaluator in Finland the details of a course he took at the PTI.

The evaluator requested for the website of the PTI so as to obtain the details of the course in question. You can imagine how embarrassing it was when my friend replied that the PTI does not have a website on which such a thing could be done.

The World Education Services in New York merely needed a phone or fax number so as to enable it verify the authenticity of the transcripts of another alumnus of the PTI. This, too, was an impossibility.

No functional phone or fax numbers could be found anywhere. This verification had to be done the old way, through mail services, that lasted for eternity. Moreover, had my friend not aggressively pursued the case, the verification request would still have been sitting somewhere on somebody's desk at the PTI.

Needless to say, these are the lucky ones. I know of another alumnus of the PTI who has been struggling, without success, for about two years now to have his transcripts sent to a university in the United States.

It is not necessary to make this over-complicated and try to reinvent the wheel.

The PTI can look at the websites of other institutions and simply follow their lead. Even the websites of elementary schools here in the US will be good enough!

But seriously, there are thousands of websites of North American and European institutions of higher learning to follow.

Even the website of the traditional ally of the PTI, Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, can serve as a model.

There is just no excuse for the mess that is PTI's website.