University Of Phoenix Online Truth about UOP Online RIPOFF Phoenix Arizona

I received my Bachelor In Business Administration degree from the University of Phoenix.  I later went on to obtain my MBA at the University of Denver and Master of Science in Health Administration from the University of Colorado at Denver.   My credits from the University of Phoenix were fully transferable to both universities.  That would not have been the case if UOP university was viewed simply as a diploma mill, or did not have adequate accreditation. 

After receiving my MBA at DU I was recruiter and advisor for the MBA and Master of Science in Finance programs for three years.  Recruiting, whether for UOP or DU, or Dartmouth, is a sales job.  If a UOP recruiter is lucky enough to receive a commission for meeting a goal because the school is "for profit" so much the better.  Many of the top universities in the country, including the University of Denver, are private schools and like UOP are "for profit".   

 

I am very familiar with the pros and cons of UOP vs more "traditional" schools.  I believe the comparison is apples to oranges.  UOP has been successful because of supply and demand.  I went to UOP and I'm a satisfied customer and alum.  It worked for me because UOP offered the program I needed at a reasonable cost with more flexible scheduling.  It wasn't Harvard, but then that's not what I was expecting.  At the University of Phoenix you may find there are instructors you don't like, or you may even feel are incompetent.  There will be courses you feel are not relevant, team mates that don't carry their share of the load, assignments you feel are a waste of time, etc, etc.  Take if from me, it is the same at every university, regardless of the ranking, accreditation, or cost of tuition.  

 I obtained a good job after graduation from UOP.  It took a few years but I'm currently a CFO and feel my UOP degree is what got my career started.  I suggest you do your own research with an open mind and do what makes sense for your situation, your schedule, your budget, and your future.  UOP doesn't work for everyone, but it has worked for thousands, including me.  By the way, my son also just graduated with his bachelor' degree in business at UOP.  Good luck

 My coworker got her Bachelors Degree for Psychology from UOP, and she is now moving into a new position where we work from MHPP to Therapist because of Bachelors Degree.  Its legit from what I have seen.

First I am concern about the reports that I am seeing here, I am in the UOP right now, going for my BS  Degree, online, and I have filings that things are not right with this school. How do I know if I should continue or quit? Can someone PLEASE HELP ME!

Despite all the ill-spread gossip, many people are being wrongfully told such things about the University of Phoenix as being a quote "diploma mill" unquote. Personally I'm finishing up my associates in IT Programming, and it has been quite a challenge actually. Sure the first couple classes you go through may seem rather easy, but these classes are to get the students use to how classes are structured, and also as a way to weed out any people who may drop out. They even require you to a month long orientation class period, and usually its during this orientation class that anyone who is going to drop out can, usually without any penalty. If your stupid enough to go through the hell that is called FAFSA and any other financial aid you may apply for, go for a couple classes and decide to drop out, that is YOUR loss, not the University.  And for this disgruntled ex-UOP advisor, I personally asked my advisors if they get paid for per student they enrolled and they laughed and both of them on seperate occassions pretty much told me that is a myth. You shouldn't blame the University of Phoenix for your downfall, if you didn't have such a nasty attitude then you wouldn't have such a hard time finding employment.

I had the unfortunate experience of sitting in on a job interview with a candidate from a 'for profit' school a few years back. He was rather proud in telling us he had a 4.0 average. The manager asked him why he didn't switch to a real college after his first year to continue his 4.0 performance. A real college would have given him very sizable scholarships not to mention a near guarantee of a Phi Beta Kappa key. His graduate school would have been a full ride if he had graduated with a 4.0 average. The candidate didn't have an answer. Next...

Hey "B"

I just have a few basic questions. I dont know if you still are actuve on this thread or not, but i read all of the "rebuttals" and what not and thought I would ask you a couple questions. Before my questions I want to go to school for a Bachelors in Business and Finance/Economics. I also work 50 hours a week.

With UOP the degree i would receive it wouldn't be credible with Fortune 500 companies that i would apply for?

If not, what schools in my area would?

Is the "Job Placement" thing any good? I hear its also a scam.

Thats all my real concerns. Your "Rip-off Report" really helped me in my search for higher learning. And your rebuttals are super funny! Anyway, any sort of info would be awesome.

-Chris

You do realize that accreditation just means a school meets certain minimum requirements ?  No you should never consider a school that is not regionally accredited, but just because one is, does not mean it is a good school. All the major online universities (Devry, Capella, U of Phoenix, Northcentral, etc.) have regional accreditation...and all of them are regarded as far less than the bottom end state schools. That is simply a fact.  Not to mention they charge horrendous amounts.  Harvard has online grad courses for 2K  a class.. most of these online schools are much more expensive.  Texas Tech, Dakota State, Stanford, University of Oklahoma, University of Nebraska...are all well respected state schools with online programs that are far cheaper than UofPhoenix, Capella, Devry, Northcentral...and all carry more credibility.

You wrote that "UOP instructors will not wait for you to understand ... etc" ... This might be true generally -- but it might not be the fault (entirely) of the instructors. I can add my own experience as instructor for UOP -- instructors are actually penalized (in the form of harassment and negative evaluations) for giving extra help, such as extending deadlines (even for technical difficulties) or providing extra material. I do believe it goes beyond the instructors -- it's the profit-oriented system of the corporation (aka, "university") which is rotten and deficient.

I started my degree in the Associate of Arts in Sept. 2010. I recently completed the program in June 2012 and graduated successfully. But I am still not working in my career, nor does the school have any job placement programs in effect to help graduates get to work. I left the school over paying what I actually took out in student loans. Not to mention the fact that I had to contact the Department of Education on UOP back in 2011 because they refused to give me my refund after I had completed an entire semester. I was told that they were holding the money that FAFSA had given to me for education purposes saying that they changed my credit hours which is why I could not get the money right away. That was a bunch of bull according to the Dept. of Edu. because once I got someone assigned to my case, the school was obviously in the wrong and I was rewarded my refund within 3 weeks and I got assigned to a new financial adviser. Bottom line, if you are enrolled or thinking about enrolling, run far away from UOP. This school will leave you jobless. I have decided to continue with my Bachelor's degree at Tory University. Troy is about $4,000 cheaper than UOP and they offer real life degree programs that are meaningful in the modern day job market. University of Phoenix did nothing for me but waste my time. Don't let this happen to you. Trust me, I wish I had listened to all of those reviews and got out while I had time.

If you have already paid for your classes; but have not started yet, you can call the Government Grants Contact Center at 1-800-518-4726 and speak with a contact representative. Do yourself a favor and tell them that you changed your mind about the school and that you want to enroll in another school of your choice. It's money that you will have to repay, so you do have a choice.

i posted help me!! I start the intro classes monday. i got little over 6 grand in grants and 5 grand in a loan. is there any way i could cancel them? or do i stop now and have to pay all that back??? it was already paid to the school. atleast i think so.... so what do i do???? if i cant cancel the payments and give it back and leave the school can i do the classes that cost the 10 grand and then transfer the credits to an accredited school? or dont you think anyone will take them??

If you've only been there a semester, bail out. Switch to a community college. Here's a few reasons why:

1) Much cheaper.

2) With a two-year plan you can have a real associates degree that employers will really value.

3) Most 4-year colleges will accept up to 60 transfer credits from community colleges to go toward a BS program. Try that with UOP.

4) No sales hassles and empty promises.

Ever been to a UOP job fair?  Tell us how it went. Probably not real well.

I have just signed up for online classes and now im scared  to start since i read this i did lots of research of benefits of the school and such but didnt really look into the problems with it. so what do i do? continue and start monday for my intro classes or try to back out if thats even possible!!!! help me!!!! 

I'm not here to fight with anyone.  I will say this, when you are about to go to college you must research all your options, weigh them out and see what's best for you.  For me UOP is just right for me.  I did my research beforehand, I knew about their credits.  But I also know that, as a single mother of 2, it's just right for me.  I've gone to other colleges, some better than others, and I've been mislead by all of them.  All colleges and Universities want your money and they will do anything in their power to get you in the door and enrolled in their school.  They do fast talking, jumping topics, showing the school, but you as the student (who is paying for the education) need to step up and ask questions before enrolling.  It's your money remember that.  As for B.... look you're not the only ex-employee who is slamming their old employer.  Check out other reviews of other colleges like ITT or Virginia College and I guarantee there will be ex-employee who's slamming that school. Your original post was in what...2005.  Don't you think that things have changed since you've left there? 

All I'm saying is take responsibility for your own actions.  All I've read is how UOP did this, and it did that, and blah blah blah.  No it didn't.  You did.  You have a choice in the matter, if you don't like then leave.  Stop wasting your money!

Again every school is going to do the exact same thing this one does.  They're like car salesman, fast talking, get you in and get you out as fast as possible.  I've been to 3 colleges so far and they have all done it.  As for the money, I was told upfront how much everything was going to be and how much of federal aid was going to help.  I don't have to worry about cost, but for those who do you either need to make a choice, talk to business to see their views on that particular degree from UOP.  If they don't respect it or acknowledge that it's a real degree then again move on.  You people need to start taking responsibility for your problems take control of your life and do something about it.  That's been our biggest problem in this country is that people would much rather blame someone else rather than themselves.  You created the problem, fix it.  

B..I've worked for many companies that have done me wrong, but you don't see me slamming them because of it.  I'm not saying your disgruntled, but you're riding that fine line.  

Thank you so much for writing this, you probably just changed my life, or the next 8 months or so at least. I am currently a student with UoP, I officially started today and many red flags went up when I realized the instructors have tons of grammatical errors and the work seems that of a middle school level as do the other students writing skills. I'm not a genius but something just didn't feel right so I googled reviews and yours has been the most helpful. Now looking into other schools, Penn State World Campus, and Strayer, Walden, and Capella as you've listed. So glad I caught this early.

This goes to #11 employee..

AACSB Non-Accredited
Schools

1. University of Phoenix
2. Webster University
3. Keller Graduate School
     of Management
4. Troy State University
5. The University of Texas at Dallas


Also:

2004 the Department of Education alleged that UOPX violated Higher Education Act provisions that
prohibit offering financial incentives to admission representatives, had pressured its recruiters to enroll students. UOPX disputed the findings but paid a $9.8 million fine as part of a settlement where it admitted no wrongdoing and was not required to return any financial aid funds.

Because Phoenix's business programs are not accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), some companies will not provide tuition reimbursement for employees attending Phoenix

AACSB Accreditation represents the highest standard of achievement for business schools worldwide. Being AACSB-accredited means a business school is able to continuously pass a strict set of standards that ensure quality.

AACSB provides internationally recognized, specialized accreditation for business and accounting programs at the bachelor's, master's, and doctoral level. The AACSB Accreditation Standards challenge post-secondary educators to pursue excellence and continuous improvement throughout their business programs. AACSB Accreditation is known, worldwide, as the longest standing, most recognized form of specialized/professional accreditation an institution and its business programs can earn.

You need to start contacting prospective employers in the field of study regarding the value of a University of Phoenix diploma.  I suspect that you will find out that many employers will not consider you as a prospective employee with the University of Phoenix diploma.

I just finished my first year with Phoenix and I a very concerned.

 I do not want to come on this site and bash any one or talk down about anyone, but I am very concerned about my future.

 I have two small children and they along with me deserve the truth.

I just want someone to tell me the truth about what i going with this company before I put anymore money into this company.

If you believe that further attendance at a school is worthless then drop out.  The student loan issue won't go away and it is better to deal with it now than later.  Assuming for arguments sake that you have about $20,000 currently of student loan debt then going to school for another 2 years having a total of $40,000 of student loan debt doesn't make sense.  You can't discharge student loans in bankruptcy.  Sounds like that you already decided a University of Phoenix degree is worthless.

Here is the problem with college.  Most jobs really don't require college but simply one that is reasonably well educated at a good high school and an employer that is willing to spend a little bit of time training you.

Unfortunately, college is used as an expensive and unwarranted aptitude test.  Nor is college necessairly eductation per se.  A credential may or may not be an education.

If everybody goes to college and presumably graduates then the diploma is nothing special.  Back in the 1950s few people went to college making the degree more valuable.

Here is another "dirty little secret".  Smart people go to college.  Smart people make the college and NOT the other way around.

If Lincoln (presumably everyone here would agree that he had great intellect even if they dispute his historical stature regarding his Presidency) went to Harvard then Harvard without a doubt would claim in so many words that "Harvard made Lincoln"

The few true genius high school students don't even have to worry about paying for college.  If you are a true intellectual genius then Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Berkeley will literaly come to you with offers of a full scholarship.

You might ask oneself : How does that affect me ??

We have the worse employment situation since the Great Depression.  I am looking for an entry level professional (assume IT for the moment but even law and to a lesser extent medicine have similar supply and demand problems).  The entry level software engineering position has over a 100 applicants and I have the choice between a UC Berkeley Computer Science grad and a University of Phoenix grad in Computer Information Systems (or Management Information Systems)

Guess who is going to get the job ??

It will be the UC Berkeley grad without a doubt

Why ??

1.  It is not easy nor to graduate from UC Berkeley.  The diploma has value because of its intrinsic scarcity being a top 10 school. 

2.  University of Phoenix who takes almost anybody off the street and has the reputation of graduating almost anybody provided they bring the money results in graduates that won't be as qualified as a UC Berkeley grad.

It's no longer a matter as in the 1950s of : Did you go to college ?? In the 21st century it is : What college did you go to ?? It is almost taken as an offer of proof that every serious candidate for jobs went to college.

I have been going to UOP (reluctantly) for 2 years. I am still going and will continue to go because I cannot afford to repay loans they have taken out for me. I still cannot get a job, even with a high GPA and some knowledge of the field I am going into. I am afraid to stop going because then I will have to repay even if I do not have the money. I wish I knew then what I know now because there is no way I would of ever enrolled in this school.

This is in regards to #7 - Leeland and a few other posts. In full disclosure, I do not nor have I ever worked at or attended UOP. However, I have worked in education for a number of years (not faculty) and in business (executive). I have learned one thing in dealing with "real business" and with "education." Hours and Credit Hours don't really mean a thing. There is no correlation between the number of hours spent in a particular class, and the ability of the student to use the information taught in the class. In fact, there is better correlation to the amount of information given, the way and rigor in which it is taught, and the senses stimulated during instruction (tactile, verbal, auditory, etc.). I would argue that a crappy teacher in a "traditional" university, or any institution, in which a student sat through a certain number of hours was far less effective than a well thought out and stimulating curriculum, via distance learning, physical, or otherwise, in which a student sat through less hours. 

Bottom line, I'm not defending UOP, because I don't know their curriculum or faculty. However, to say that they are less "accredited" because students don't sit listening to some tenured, wack-job professor for a certain number of hours is ridiculous. The mainstream establishment of tenured or unionized "teachers" who try to horde knowledge feels very threatened that humans can learn much more and much faster than their traditional classrooms can deliver. Once you get out of the university setting into real business, that's when the real education begins. And guess what! much of it is done online. 

Don't waste your time and money in going for a "Web designer" degree at ANY for profit school.

Web designers are a dime a dozen and don't make very good money.  The IT market is glutted beyond belief and very few jobs exist.

For profit schools in an effort to "process the bodies", "lure the students", will go out and make claims such as Dice has 80,000+ tech jobs.

Unfortunately the vast majority of Dice jobs are fake due to companies broadcasting.  A broadcast is when multiple agencies compete for the same job.  If 10 agencies advertise on Dice for the same job then Dice counts this as 10 and not 1 job.

I'm looking in to some schools to become a Web Developers Web Developer or Computer Programmer have been looking in to ITT and University of Phoenix, co.

taking in to account that some people are not made to go to a collage and that some also like to gripe about everything. I have not got the answer I wanted from this.
i need to know about on campus not on-line

#1 has someone gone to the University of Phoenix, COLORADO?

#2 I have looked at the U.S. Department of Education and its on there as accredited. where is it saying there not ?

#3 has someone gone for The Bachelor of Science in Information Technology/Software Engineering (BSIT/SE) or a The Bachelor of Science in Information Technology/Web Development

I tried to read everything but some are hard to read its pointless babel and puffery so if this infermation is alrealy on this just point me to the comment number.

Shouldnt people learn to spell before they get all high and mighty and proclaim their higher education?  UOP is a joke.  I have two degrees I have earned through UOP and I gained two pieces of paper, but I know little more than I did when I started.  Its a ploy to rob students for more and more money!!!!  Any one on here that says any more is f*king liar!!

Greetings,

  I believe B-from AZ made thruthful points about the business aspect of UOPX.  As a former UOPX Online student, I was mailed my disbursement approximation dates and amounts from the DOE.  I was never given the excess funds until months later.  I questioned the UPOX financial department and was given excuse after excuse.  UOPX has the upper-hand and there is little a student can do.  I was told I could hand-write a letter stating that I did not wish UOPX to handle any future funding; however, I was strongly told that UOPX financial counselors discourage students from doing so. 
It seems that individuals overlook the fact that UOPX is a money-making business.  UOPX takes thousands of dollars from students, lets it sit in their bank, then reaps the interest gained from the monies.  It's a practical business move made by numerous compaines throughout America; however, this being a University of higher learning, perhaps it shocks individuals more so. 

Being a former student, I was amazed at the quality of students that made it to the final course in UOPX.  (Please remember that I am speaking on behalf of the Online classes, not the actually land campus). Anyone who made at least a 60 on their course work was a shoe-in for future classes.  There were moments where I thought I was engaging in 'conversations' with individuals who had an I.Q. lower than my 8 year-old Labrador Retriever.  

  Yes, I took classes because I wanted the recognition I was guaranteed from my advisors...and it gave me something to do while being an at-home mother.  I won't forget to mention that the advisors will call numerous times throughout the first block of classes, then taper off as one progresses.  When I finally finished and officially withdrew, my advisor and financial aid counselor conference called me to inquiry why I was withdrawing.  Naturally, I told then how I felt concerning the operations of UPOX and their business practices.  Odd how I wasn't given a 'word in edgewise', and rarely had the opportunity to speak while the advisors discussed their children, home life, and co-workers.  I ended their conversation abruptly, and it took the UOPX more than 3 weeks to disburse my excess funds which they already had (according to the Department of Education award letter) for more than 4 months.  

  Individuals will defend UOPX because they are proud of what they have accomplished through UOPX's programs. 
  He or she may be of a select few who did not have any trouble with fellow classmates, their instructors, flexible course hours, sub-par assignments, advisors and the challenge of looking up everything on the internet.  

  I think everyone in the forum has valid points and arguments; however, I would advise individuals to research other online schools before choosing UOPX.  The website www.collegeboard.org is a great research tool for future online students. 

Thanks so much for taking the time to write about your experiences working at University of Phoenix.  I work for a Human Resources Office in a small county in California, and I can tell you that when an applicant lists a UOPX degree on their resume, our analysts pretty much ignore it as if it wasn't there.

My reason for searching for complaints about UOPX today was spurred by a conversation with a friend I had been out of touch with for 20 years or so.  She told me that she had earned a Master's in Accounting.  I admit that I doubted her story.  To put it as kindly as I can, she wasn't very academically-oriented when I knew her in the past - and she was always prone to fantastical exaggerations.  When I asked her more about her degree, she told me that she'd earned it in 2 1/2 years, START TO FINISH (that's without a previous bachelor's degree) from the University of Phoenix.  How is that even possible? Anyhow, I'd read news stories over the years about University of Phoenix having low instruction quality, admissions scams, and most recently, questions about securities fraud.   When I did an online search for these issues, I soon learned that UOPX has clearly been bombing Google until it's almost impossible to find anything negative about them using obvious search parameters.  I did, however, find your article, and I wanted to ask a couple of questions.

I noticed UOPX calls this degree a "Master's in ACCOUNTANCY."  Is there a difference between the terms "Accountancy" and "Accounting"?  Also, my friend told me that she is NOT a CPA.  The reason she gave made it sound as if she decided against becoming a CPA because she is intentionally avoiding legal liability of some sort.  She said that she didn't become a CPA because she doesn't want to be involved in "attestations" (whatever that is).  I asked her about some of the problems I'd heard about with UOPX, and she was understandably defensive about it.  She said that she'd never heard about UOPX credits not transferring to other institutions or problems with UOPX's lax academic standards.  She told me that UOPX is "fully accredited."  I found it difficult to understand exactly what their limited accreditation means (I see you say it means nothing, but people who get degrees at UOPX are really insistent that it means A LOT).  I was able to ascertain that SOME of their degree programs have this accreditation, and others do not - but UOPX doesn't explain which programs are accredited and which are not.  

In the end, incredibly, my friend claimed she'd never even heard about UOPX degrees being evaluated differently IN ANY WAY by other institutions or prospective employers.  I find this difficult to believe.  It might be a combination of wishful thinking and the realization that she's stuck with it now, so she'd better make the best of it.  

Several years ago, I dated a guy who was working on a Master's Degree in Internet Technology from the University of Phoenix.  I don't think I'd ever met anyone who knew less about the internet than this guy - except for my mom...maybe.  I clearly remember the day I lost any respect I may have had for the University of Phoenix when I read a paper my beau was writing for an advanced graduate-level class on internet technology.  In this paper, he discussed the benefits of the internet over the telephone with regards to communication.  The paper was heavy on anecdotes and almost devoid of facts.   It read as if a second-grader with ADD had written it.  He got an A.

My husband is active duty Army, we have 4 children, i own my own business (he helps me run it). I can honestly say he has never read a chapter of the reading in the year or so he has been there and has done extremely well. He has neve had less than a 93% in a class and that was because he was in the field for 2 weeks and with limited cell service he was unable to log on most days. The classes are a joke and as long as you open the book while taking quizes and search key terms your good. JOKE! He is enrolled in the school I am attending, and starting in a few weeks.

I am just curious as to why you are so angry about someone submitting information to the best of their knowledge. I will say first that my husband attends UOPO, and has for the last year or so. I recently enrolled in a different school if this tells you anything. I decided to look on this site to see if there were other people out there having the problems with them that we are having. While sifting through yours and Bs back and forths I found all I needed to convince my hubby to switch to the school I am attending. Jus tone example is my husbands FA was submitted and received by the school 2 months before mine was (we are both using GI BILL so we both get a credit balance after other aids from the military) I received my money last month. He is still waitng for his. UOP says they released it a month ago. NOT TRUE. My point is if you stop googling info on uop and read what students and former employees are writing you might learn a thing or two. It was a little overwhelming looking for actual personal exeriences in all of your posts that really are just ranting and raving. I would really like to know why this subject is so touchy for you. You are acting as though someone is picking on your child rather than a school who is clearly screwing students. Law suits and settlements do not lie. So if you don't mind, I would like to read what B has to say. There is no way he would know what he knows and be so informed if he was clueless as to what he is talking about. Thanks.

Thank you for that link, however it is unlikely that the general accreditation dating back to 1978 will help. We were all very different people, operating in a very different world back then. Personal PC's didn't become common for another decade, and the internet not generally available still a while after that.

I'm actually surprised that the OLS (online learning system) they've developed does not have a more recent accreditation. It should, because as a fuctional application it does have the capability to perform the required tasks, and is getting better all the time. The Android applet on the other hand is still vaporware for the most part. One can remain an optimist however, as software is far more easily corrected than the skills of 'facilitators' (what UoP calls their instructors).

According to the database their Graduate Teacher Education Accreditation Council (GTEAC) - Graduate programs Pre-Accredited * 12/01/2007. "Pre-Accredited"??

If so, why then do they still call their instructors 'facilitators' instead of Professors?   Graduate Teacher Education Accreditation Council (GTEAC) - Graduate programsPre-Accredited

However your link lead me to the core Department of Education, and a great deal more valuable information relevent to educational standards and responsibilities.

I have read a handful of the comments here after having read the report itself.  I do think "B" sounds more like a disgruntled employee and criticizing business practices (in particular to how they treat their employees) more than he is criticizing the quality of education.  That being said, I do believe his points and complaints sound valid and are worth investigating. 

The major question I have is as to the legitimacy of the MBA. It seems to me a large number of people try to defend or attack the quality of education at UOP.  The major question simply remains as: do employers recognize the degree?  This is not an easily answered question (though I hear or see lots of comments that this or that employer won't recognize it as legitimate).  "B", you bring up some important considerations regarding the legitimacy of the degree, but if I'm not mistaken, you mentioned that you too "worked there while receiving an MBA".

You mention also that "...if you think that college education is sending e-mails back and forth and work-groups...".  I'm not here to contest you.  I simply want to ask: What is the difference?  I've had some college, but no degree.  In my classes the professor would stand there and lecture, then assign homework.  The students would go home, do the homework, turn it in, get graded and read the comments.  Occasionally the assignments would be discussed in class, but I never really felt I got much from that.  For the record, I went to two separate community colleges where the classes were smaller.  I imagine in a university setting, this would be much harder to get any of the teacher's time.  So, I ask this: What is the difference between physically sitting there and hearing it versus reading the lecture online?  What is the difference in online versus on-campus education?

These are very important to me as on-campus education for me is virtually impossible for me now.  I want to return to both update my education and advance it.  I can understand that there are certain projects that would have to be done in a classroom setting.  A chemistry lab experiment, for example.   However, there are many fields where I can't imagine a physical presence being necessary.  Computer Science for one. 

Online colleges are there because there is a desperate need in today's society.  However, it seems that still after all these years they are mocked and either no one takes them seriously or bothers to correct the problems.  UOP has been around, and easy or not, maintained its accreditation for many years.  It may be bottom barrel, but its in the barrel.  Someone made an analogy to buying a Pinto for 50k.  I agree, but many of us are left with few options.  So I ask then, are there really any viable options for people seeking online education?  What degrees, from your experience would you recommend?  Is there any hope?  What are you doing with your current degree now?

Thanks for your time. 

That's all they charged in 2005? I am paying $1,805 for each course and I just found out it is taught by facilitators and not actually Professors. I have some guy now that doesn't teach anything. This school is horrible!!! I am in my junior year and I don't know how to get out legally

I knew it I knew it I knew it! I found this because I was curious enough to seek. Originally I was looking at Unleashealth and a little device called a...uh...I forget but it mimics Bob Becks Blood cleaning device thingy.

Someone gave this site a reference on Youtube and claimed that the guy was a Scham ( Ha! I made a Punny)
So, I checked it out. After looking at that, I became curious as to the news I had been hearing of UOPO and what I have heard from other people...D**N!  I thought I was digin' a gold mine. >=-D.  I mean I had heard people have had bad experiences with UOPO but My God!

I thought there was something rather 'phishy' about UOPO...--And I noticed because My Enrollment Advisor Bill Mosely or William Mosely dropped me like a hot potato the second I was enrolled.  --and I mean...the second. His behavior became significantly less...Uh...well now. How could I say? Consistent? Yes, he is an EA but jeez. And Even still Kevin Link is pretty chill but is not as determined as Bill had been.  --And, it was strange because he asked me for referrals too.

Also, I noticed how he kept smacking his lips and saying "now *Smack* let me tell you something *Smack*... We are*Pause* whatever whatever whatever"  It was overtly casual and reeked of a sales pitch. I thought it was pretty funny...at the time.  And I knew this!

I had always thought it was weird...--y'know...--why on earth would a college ask its students if there were any other people they might know needing to attend college?  I have never had that asked to me before, it just felt strange. Am I wrong?

I'd assume that if the college or university was distinguished...--well then, it ought to show in its calsses and students and their achievements afterward and/or during Enrollment. I do not believe this is the case for UOPO. At all...

I JUST enrolled at phoenix and I have to agree with B--Which I hope to god is not Bill...Because that would make him a liar because he is still working there. People trying say what goes on without having worked there is a tough cookie to break.

A. Einstein-Condemnation without investigation is the height of all ignorance.  If you haven't worked there...you can't say that B is wrong unless...you work as he did for yourself.  You may not be able to classify it as true but somehow it is indeed a fact for all you can allow yourself to know.

Annnywho, I do not understand the people that are defending the University? (If you call it defending)  There is nothing to defend it from. If UOPO operates as such. They will burn for it one day.What can you do? Marshmellow anyone?

I know for myself it would not make any coherent sense to attend a university that has as many maaany reports like this; not only on this site but lurking in the classrooms themselves. (One of those students lets me in on stuff) Why would I Enroll? It's not like people just make up these stories? It's very similar to my belief of 'Just fix it'.

Ex: -Why the **ll are Indians called Indians when they are not Indian at all!?

-If I don't believe in buying goods made in other countries....why the hell am I buying them?
-If I don't believe in war why I am supporting our troops? Please test me on that completely irrelevant subject.
-If M. Night Shyamalan is still making s**t movies...why the f**k would I continue to pay and watch them?

This is how I am trying to live MY life and in some areas it is easy to apply that Fixit method. Eeeh, others are taking a little more time. Gotta get that Lazy American Gene out of my system.  My point is to some people that have posted in this thread...If people are telling others this is going on inside UOPO Why the h**l would I Enroll? I mean hey, if it looks like trouble, smells like trounble, and acts like trouble it must be....Trouble.

If I know it is wrong why the h**l would I keep doing it?  It makes more sense to just fix the mistake and get over with it and not repeat such an action!  I have just finished m--well I am about to finish my first two, 9 week classes.  But, I think I am going to reconsider continuing because:

 (1.) I do not believe in coincidence. It just sounds silly.  How can you have disorder and random events in a completely structured reality. The Universe is not something of imagination you know? Coincidence=Random and Timely...I don't think so.  (What...you think your body was just randomly strewn together too)

Toni F
Chase S
Stevie
Amber H

 Are people that I know that have/had issues with UOPO One is still a current student that is getting kicked...No money.

(2.) The splitting hair specifics of the events are not as important as the events themselves...regardless of what perspective I choose it does not negate that these things happened. Period.--and they shouldn't. If I do not agree with them why would I compromise with them? That is a very strange thing people do and I do not know why they do not want to change it?

(3.) After more research so I may not become a Sheepiant (Ignorant Sheeple or Sheepon may often be refereed to as a Sheepiant)  I am sure I will find much more of these stories like the ones posted here. I am sure that will be the point of fair realization that I don't want to be a part of this. I really do not.

Thank you all for your info. I read half of the comments and then lost interest...well a little over half but not too significant.

I hope anyone who reads this thread will Think&Feel wisely. I missed the bell by $9,500.00. Had I known this info before I would have likely wrote a letter to UOPO which I am going to do. I would not have Enrolled but that is better than some other amounts I have heard.

B, I noticed you haven't been on here in quite a while and this is a very old thread...but I do have a question, and if anyone has an answer for me, please respond.

I just signed up online for information yesterday, and although I did not receive the information via e-mail like requested, I received a phone call this morning from a recruiter.  I spoke with him and he told me that I sounded like I would be eligible for a good amount of financial aid, or loans.  So I filed my FAFSA this morning, and then I read this...

When the recruiter called me back a little bit ago, I told him I was no longer interested, he didn't even ask me why and just said ok and goodbye.  It seemed too easy.  Do I have anything to worry about??

So this question is for sandra since she is the most recent rebuttal.  I have been talkin to an online advisor over the phone to start taking classes next semester for Business. Do you say that UoP is safe?

I normally do not give any time to these sour-grapes reports. As one of the responders had mentioned...obviously there are personal reasons that someone would get cut from a job or given a negative report. We don't need to go into these reasons...they are your personal issues. I also take issue with someone who reports to be in education...to write such poor commentary. If it is in you to do well with any company, it would show up in your writing.

That said, I have been a faculty member of Axia, Online - instruction for University of Phoenix for over 5 years now. I knew when I started that there were some administration issues on the table, but it had nothing to do with the quality and level of accredited education that was being given by the University. After having read some of the reported issues...and doing my own research...my first thoughts remain...many of these same issues pertain to many universities and institutions...these are not limited to just the University of Phoenix.

I totally enjoy my work at Axia, UOP...and have taught over 50 courses with a wonderful reward of allowing my students to find a great education in a world where they have to squeeze it in with a busy life. It works for them...and it works for me. Some students come in with an "attitude" that this is a waste of time. These are the students that are poor writers, that write the negative commentary, and are also the students that do no apply themselves in class and are on track to failing. Good educators are use to this, they expect this...and this forum for complaint seems to be the same. Thank you for allowing me this commentary. By the way, in researching other online universities...the pay that this university provides to qualified educators and, I assume, staff...is at par or greater than other of the above mentioned universities; just thought I'd share that.

I have to agree with the past two posters. I went 4 years to UoP to "back-fill" a degree due to the economic outlook of the IT world. 20 years experience was not going to always get me a job when competing with new and young talent. At first I was skeptical, and folks at my company would tease a little due to the non-traditional online aspect of the courses; however, it was due to the availability of creating my own schedule that led me to attend UoP. Plus, my company was footing half of the bill. My company did not seem concerned that an education from UoP would not be good enough or they would not have agreed to pay the money. 

All in all, it was a great experience. I also found that the number of papers and assignments was much more than the traditional ground campus schools. I found that I was researching and applying what I was learning right away. I attended a few college classes years ago and from what I could remember, I did not need to write as much nor apply my learning right away. I felt this was definitely a benefit from the education model that UoP uses. 

And besides, either way you look at it; if you want a degree to impress like a Harvard degree. Go to Harvard. If a Harvard or Yale or Princeton degree is not necessary, then ANY of the thousands of schools out there will do. You will take away as much as you put into it anyway.

I just graduated from UOP after completing my Bachelor's Degree in Business and Information Systems. So first a little background on the perspective I am coming from: I started college 17 years ago but couldn't finish due to that pesky thing called "life". I have made a great career for myself as an IT Project Manager at a very large financial institution. However, I discovered that I had hit the glass ceiling in terms of promotions due to my lack of degree. So, I had to find a program that fit into my life and that could meet my goals.

UOP fit the bill. It was expensive, but the program was manageable while working and still allowed me (if I managed my time wisely) to spend time with my family and have a social life. I educated myself about costs and student loans and knew exactly what I was getting into. I was also pleasantly surprised that my extensive work experience and training I had taken through employers would benefit in the form of transfer credits. I CLEP tested out a few others and found that I largely had to complete the foundation (Jr/Sr level) courses only. Some classes were harder than others, but my work experiences always provided a good foundation.

I graduated with an honors level GPA and am looking at University of Illinois for a Masters (at half the cost of UOP). My degree has been accepted, my credits transferred (for prerequisites), and I don't have to take the GRE or GMAT (I point that out specifically because one poster made a lot of hoopla that if you don't have to take the GRE the school's Master's is worthless and I think you'd be hard pressed to question the reputation of U of I).

So, have I gotten what I wanted out of the program, absolutely?! There are reputation concerns about UOP, but for my BS I really don't care. Many of my co-workers don't even have degrees in technology related fields (musical performance, economics?) and are just as good at their jobs as the ones that do and just as good as me. Experience and how hard you are willing to work for what you want is what counts in the real world, especially when you get to my level.

Someone straight out of High School looking to learn a new skill or someone looking to completely change careers may not succeed at this type of program or get out of it what they should. But someone with skills and experience looking to back-fill a degree - there isn't a better program out there. Oh and having worked in the financial industry for as many years I have, people that don't read what they are signing when it comes to financial documents I just have no sympathy. Accept responsibility and learn from your mistakes.

For those of you looking at this thread and trying to decide about the UOP/Axia, let me help you out. I have been enrolled in the criminal justice program since March of 2010. I have currently completed 36 credit hours, with 24 left to go. My scheduled completion date for this associates program is Feb 2012. I was leery at first, especially considering this was an online program, but my fears turned out to be unfounded.  Look, I knew going into this that the UOP was not going to hold the same weight as say Harvard law school, but come on, I am not seeking a six-figure job and neither are most people who attend college. I am 42 years old and my daughter has completed two years at our local community college and one year now at Iowa State University. This has proven to be very insightful because her and I compare "notes" all the time. Consider the following:

My class is all online. Hers is all classroom. I do my communicating with the class via the web and she does hers by sitting and listening to lectures from instructors. What we have both been surprised to learn is that I actually receive a better education than she does. She has little to no homework and all of her instructors are full-time professors at the University. I have a considerable amount of homework that requires constant research and the majority of my instructors are people who hold real jobs in their current field. Also, my instructors are not some group of has-beens. These people all hold impressive degrees and impressive positions at their current employers. My daughter has been absolutely amazed at the level of education and employment some of these instructors have.

Also, just look around in your local community. Almost all schools are beginning to shift to online programs. Just because you're not sitting in a traditional classroom environment, doesn't mean you're not getting a good education. Another food for thought is why do you think so many of these so-called higher-education facilities are so opposed to for-profit schools? The answer is simple. Most of these traditional universities rely on students using federal student loans to help pay for their ridiculously lavish facilities. The multi-million dollar sports programs, the six digits employ salaries, etc, etc. For-profit schools are hazardous to their very existence.

I work in upper-management at my current employer and have so for roughly 15 years. Look, most employers could care less where you obtained your degree. All that matters in most cases is that you have one. If you are looking for a school that gives you a bang for your buck, is convenient for your schedule as a working adult, and does honestly provide a good education, then UOP is a fine choice. I have been nothing but pleased thus far and when I compare it against my daughter's program at the University of Iowa, I really feel good about my decision.

CAUTION: The following Special Notes apply to this online college:
In 2009, The University of Phoenix parent company, The Apollo Group, agreed to pay $67.5 million to the federal government for student recruitment fraud and $11 million in attorney fees to the plaintiffs engaged in a False Claims Act lawsuit. The lawsuit charged Phoenix with paying recruiters using performance compensation (including DVD players and spa trips) based on the number of students they enrolled, which is illegal for schools receiving federal student aid money.

http://www.geteducated.com/diploma-mill-police/degree-mills-list/university-of-phoenix-accreditation

Special Accreditation Report Notes & Alerts CAUTION: The following Special Notes apply to this online college: In 2009, The University of Phoenix parent company, The Apollo Group, agreed to pay $67.5 million to the federal government for student recruitment fraud and $11 million in attorney fees to the plaintiffs engaged in a False Claims Act lawsuit. The lawsuit charged Phoenix with paying recruiters using performance compensation (including DVD players and spa trips) based on the number of students they enrolled, which is illegal for schools receiving federal student aid money.

View list of accredited University of Phoenix Online Schools and

Special Accreditation Report Notes & Alerts CAUTION: The following Special Notes apply to this online college: In 2009, The University of Phoenix parent company, The Apollo Group, agreed to pay $67.5 million to the federal government for student recruitment fraud and $11 million in attorney fees to the plaintiffs engaged in a False Claims Act lawsuit. The lawsuit charged Phoenix with paying recruiters using performance compensation (including DVD players and spa trips) based on the number of students they enrolled, which is illegal for schools receiving federal student aid money.

View list of accredited University of Phoenix Online Schools and

I currently have 12 credits from UOP in Criminal Justice, and I have just started the next two classes.
I read some comments on here, and I decided to look it to transferring to my local college. However, the adviser from my local college told me I could only transfer 6 of my current 12 credits as electives only. She has dealt with this college before, through other students and she has never had a student
successfully receive their transcripts for transfer. When I spoke with my educational adviser from UOP the day before; she looked up the local college and told me my credits should transfer, "no problem."  I am now working on extracting my financial aid and transcripts from UOP, and I consider myself lucky because I could have completed my Associate degree and then figured it out. I feel horrible for all
of the other students currently attending UOP. Don't trust your advisors they work for the school. Good Luck!

 

     Please forgive my cynical tone, but to those many crtics of UoP: Did you not know what you were getting yourselves into? The problems with financial aid aside, all I hear is people whinning about going to school, not getting their dream job, and blaming UoP.

     I see references to companies like Intel not recognizing a UoP degree. I've got news for you, the schools Intel won't accept degrees from runs into the hundreds. As a matter of fact, tech companies barely even recruit in the United States anymore. Here's an idea, how about contacting potential employers about acceptance BEFORE attending school and you're two months from graduation.

      As for the forementioned "hallowed not-for profit" universities, I find it almost comical that some of these schools are sitting on $250, $500, and $750 million endowment funds still insist they are non-profit. Plus, they are just as greedy when it comes to getting their hands on Uncle Sam's dollars and the financial aid screwups are just as numerous.

     If you claim to do your homework in school, then why don't you do your homework about the school? Stop complaining about the evil finicial aid counselor/salesperson and make it right. Pull your aid and go elsewhere. That's the quickest way to get their attention.

     This isn't high school anymore, there aren't many instuctors that are going to take you by the hand through the course of you're degree (that goes for any university). This is supposed to be "big-boy" school, and the ultimate responsibility for your success or failure is the person staring back at you in the mirror.   

I have to agree that if someone cannot finish one school, why would they be able to finish another! BUT.... in my case, I am not going to pay $20,000 for an AA! Yes, UOP has taken out $20,000 in LOANS so I can get an AA that may or may not help land me a job. When I was called about updating my FAFSA, I was told it was to get PELL GRANTS! Not loans, I never would have accepted that. So I am fed up with the money issue. The class assignments at UOP are extremely SIMPLE! A cat could do it and get all A's. All the work is easily accessible online, just google the class and there it is! I think that if I were to do this all over again I wouldn't. It is not worth it. I am a single mom, and wasn't able to get to school so I chose this online BS. Now I am going to be paying for it, literally, til I die.

Let me start off by saying I don't appreciate being called stupid for working hard to improve myself. What I don't understand is why half of the people that posted in this forum are even still in school. To me if your in school six years and haven't acquired your Masters Degree your stupid. From what I have read many people started a program and didn't finish, then tried to transfer to a different school. How stupid is that? If you cant complete one school what make you  think you can complete another. I read about someone going through a year and a half of classes at UoP then tried to transfer. Why not finish what you started? To me that's having regret for a decision you made and to compensate for your lack of commitment you want to attack other students. Well that's not going to fly! I don't care what college you go to it does'nt make you anymore intelligent then anyone else. I know a lot of smart people that are stupid. They attend so called better colleges and stay in them for god knows how long and still don't feel they have enough education to satisfy them. How sad it is to read people hating on other people just because they didn't fulfil their own goals. I have been a student at UoP for three years and I plan to attend Wright State University for my masters program. Not because I don't love the UoP but because of people like you that criticize their students degrees. Making them seem like a joke when they are not. Every person that has received a degree from the UoP had to complete the program. It doesn't matter if you think the class materials are a joke or not. The student meet the requirements to complete the program and they deserve the same respect others get for finishing a degree program. It is ridiculous that people are so unhappy with their own mistakes that they try to discredit the whole system. It pretty petty don't you think? I would think someone with as much education as all of you claim to have would have something more productive to do with their time!

Well, I have been reading anti University of Phoenix posts for several years now and have just sat quietly, reasoning that others have already posted my sentiments. I now feel compelled to tell my story to protect any still contemplating attending UoP.

I originally enrolled in UoP back in the late '90s. I am a pretty smart guy, but I was young and totally wrapped up in the belief that the powerful and influential within the business world had college degrees and I didn't. I was an ambitious african american man, eager yet totally ignorant to the professional world. Having no family members that been to college, I believed that it didn't matter where you went to college, or what you majored in, only that you went to college.

I went to a local community college and earned my AA degree. I worked hard in school and I had a great new job. I didn't want to quit my job, my family couldn't afford to take care of me, and I wanted to move up quickly, so I decided to go to UoP. I whizzed my classes, due to the strong community college training. I was consistently the smartest in the class! However, I was always disappointed in the negative talk I would hear from coworkers and others at my job that had negative things to say about UofP. I would look at people in their University clothing and wait for the day that I would wear University of Phoenix gear proudly. My group and I would meet every week and start the session by fantasizing about the cars and homes we would buy once our degree propelled us up the corporate ladder.

Well, here we are 10 years later from graduation date. I work at the same place, and coworkers respect me because I am smart, hardworking and easy to get along with, yet they know I am not properly college educated. For example, I know how to theoretically merge a company and consolidate large businesses, but I don't know philosophy and other basics that I would have learned in a traditional school. While uneducated people believe that a degree from an accredited institution is all that matters, it goes way beyond that. The UoP does not teach, it fulfills requirements to maintain accreditation. Yes, you can learn there, just as you can go to the library and teach yourself. What you don't get is an insiders view to the minds of the educated. I used to sell myself short and think, if only I can get into the company, then I can work hard and move up. What is missing from the degree is the networking and the rigors that a not for profit academic can challenge you with. I learned the hard way that there is no short cut to knowledge and mastery. The hard work and sacrifice that it takes to educate oneself is the distinguishing quality, not a paid for piece of paper. I have wondered why Intel and other companies have rejected the OoP degree. Think about it: If UoP offered training and discipline that was comparable to other schools, why would companies discount it? The unfortunate reality is that we weren't trained through sweat and hard work, we took the easier way out and everyone knows it. Yeah, we read a lot and met often, but we did nothing compared to a traditional school. If you don't believe me, take a community college math class and compare it to the same class at UoP.   

I am now attending another community college and am enrolled in classes to apply to a masters program. I am hoping that excellent grades and great letters of recommendation can get me into a program that will supersede the University of Phoenix degree. Now that I'm older, I feel the need to be educated. To actually learn statistics and organizational behavior, not just read some articles, write rushed papers and be passed along. I have to go now, I have to work to pay off my UoP loan! Yes, 10 years later I'm still paying it!   

Allow me to initially state that I am presently a student at UOP. I like the way that you presented your experiences, and how you categorically revealed your facts and links for verification. I do not believe that you have a gripe, or that you are vengeful.

What I percieved from your post is a desire to educate, and inform potential students of UOP and their administravitive process. I cannot say why some UOP students succeed, and some fail; but I do believe that capitalism rivals academics at UOP. The suggestion that I would like to add to

your comments is: before deciding to enroll at any on-line campus, get a working knowledge of algebra. Even if your enrollment counsellor tells you that it is not necessary. Another point of interest is: become familiar with at least basic computing before you enroll.

UOP instructors will not wait for you to understand any of this (algebra or computing), will not help you, and will fail you. One more thing to remember if you still decide to enroll with UOP. If there is a legitimate technical issue that has been confirmed with tech support that

 the issue does exist; do not expect leniency from your instructors; because instructors are not credited for follow ups and they will not go the extra mile to get you the grade comparable to your skills or efforts (it's a crap shoot). 

I like my counselor; my counselor makes me laugh, and that is all that I personally require from my counselor; because UOP is so much bigger than it's personel, and most personnel are just trying to live.

At the present time; the roaring lion is winning with it's "campus in every major city" attitude. Can an organization sustain verility while promoting ineptitude? I hope that it is not too late for UOP to change it's image because I would like to see them succeed while assisting others in their success as well, or will they just bail out, "take the money, and run?"

 

Brian Mueller was CEO of UOP (aka Apollo, aka AmwayU) when UOP was first caught using student loan monies to pay sales commissions/Hawiian vacations.

Mueller, now CEO of Grand Canyon College has been caught again in exactly the same scam: violation of the False Claims Act.

It's the same old story: Muller paid his "counselors" sales commissions with student loan monies. The most recent settlement with the US is for five million dollars.

It is also important to note that UOP's  percentage of revenue from Title IV government loans is 89%. The max allowable is 90%. How lucky can UOP be???

Steve Eisman, portfolio manager for FrontPoint Fiancial Services testified before Congress; please Google his opening statement "Subprime Goes to College".

Finally, I was remiss in not acknowledging Rip-Off Report in exposing the Apollo/UOP student loan scam.

Rip-Off Report has provided the the forum for those who have been ripped off by predators such as UOP and Grand Canyon College. Desperate people, searching for a better life are easy prey for UOP and GCC.

I have spoken to the New York Times and have directed same to Rip-Off report. Ditto ABC News. Without Rip-Off Report exercising it's 1st Amendment Free Speech and Freedom of Assembly (us, the readers!) rights, these predators never would have been found out for the frauds they are.

The influence of Rip-Off Report cannot be underestimated: ROR has cost the UOP's of the world BILLIONS of dollars. Investors throughout the world Google "UOP ripoff" and come up with hundred of complaints. They refuse to capitalize Apollo and sometimes even short the stock.

Great work, ROR. Thank you for leading the way in consumer education and empowerment.

It's happened again...UOP (Apollo Group, aka Amway U) has been caught again, this time by ABC News in an undercover sting. For all those of you who did not know, Amway U has had to pay the US back 77 million dollars for using tuition money to pay sales commissions and Hawaiian vacations.

Since B initially reported these violations on Rip-Off report, UOP having eaten over 2 BILLION dollars in stock buy backs still has seen their (Apollo) stock collapse, losing over 46% of it's value despite the buy-backs.

And now, they've been caught again. If anyone out there wants to file a lawsuit (qui tam or class action) simply Google "Nancy Krop"...you'll see the light, folks.

It's over for Amway U...they're done. They're now nothing more than Kaplan or ITT or your local culinary school. For more information simply bring up ABC News and you'll see it all, in ugly, living color.

You did it, B. You really did it.

I am posting this to let everyone know about this program the president just signed. This should help us extremely well with the vultures. Obama passed income based repayment for the loans. Most awesome thing is you file your taxes then file with them and they tell you what you can pay over the year. I made 1,400.00 all year last year :( but this should help a great deal because my loans are in default and NCO group has them. (THESE PEOPLE SUCK IF YOU HAVE AN ACCOUNT IN COLLECTIONS WITH THEM COMPLAIN TO THE CREDITOR AND SEE IF YOU CAN GET IT AWAY FROM THEM!!! My best friend who has Cerebral Pulsay dealt with NCO and they have threatened to sell her wheel chairs, as well as everything in her home and put her in jail. They threatened to call DSS on me for non payment of my bills which is screwed up!) Google it and the website will come up........I can't list it cuz of RR's rules, but it is income based repayment.

Hope this will help everyone.

My comment to JJ........before you go shooting off learn to spell. I'm bipolar and dislexic, I'm not an idiot. It's spelled Grammar. I know I have typo's I don't need someone to point it out for me.

I am now dealing with the banks calling me once a week going where is our money. I managed to get a part time job, which right now is a very hard thing to do, but I only work 20 hours a week there. What's worse is thanks to the new "Fair Credit Reporting Act", hope everyone is secure in their job if your loan through UOP defaults: because now everyone is checking your credit. If you sign an application, there is a new note in the disclaimer which stated they will be checking your background through "consumer reporting agencies". This IS a credit check.

Good luck to all that have been ripped off by these vultures.

Sheila,

The same EXACT thing has happened to me.  I told them that I could not afford to pay a student loan when I was "just" inquiring on the school.  The girl told me that she would get me a student loan and I said that I can only do a Pell Grant & would qualify income wise since I was a working single parent.  She said no problem, but that in order to attend, I would have to sign a promisory note, just in case I wanted to take more classes (more than the grant would pay for.)  I insured that I would not go beyond what the pell would pay for.  I took 2 classes, 3 credits each @ $485 per credit hour and each new classe started every 5 weeks.  When they told me that my next class would need to be English 101, which I already took through another college, I told them that I was not about to pay nearly $1400 to take this class when I had already taken it.  They told me that I could not go any farther or take any other classes until I took Eng. 101, so I quit UOP.  I did not have a choice of what classes I wanted to take and when.  I am now stuck with a wage garnishment because I can not make the Student Aid Commissions monthly payment.  My loan is with 1 company, but they are reporting as 3 companies on my credit report.  This is the only negetive mark on my credit and now I'm screwed.  I currently work in education and due to government budget cuts, my hours have been cut.  This loan is a government loan and they would cut the payment down when I lost my hours.

So, I am with you if you choose to do anything.....I read the recent lawsuit of the whisleblowers and they won a lot of money.  What about people like us that were screwed by these same whisleblowers?  I did contact the law firm that handled their case & have not heard anything as of yet.  2 classed cost me nearly $3000 and the books were free for signing up!

I don't know if you can contact me through this post.  If not, post another report and maybe we can find a way to connect.

 

 

 

I hope they enroll you in a grammer class.

I have a report already listed so I am submitting my story here as well:

I started going to University of Phoenix after another friend of mine told me she was having success there. My classes started in the fall of 2006. I had told the university I wanted to persue a law degree, which they told me "An Associates degree in the Arts of Criminal Justice would be the best way for you to get the law degree." First of all: There is NO LEGIT LAW PROGRAM in UOP. Criminal Justice is great for forensics, or to be a cop. You need a legal studies degree to become a lawyer. Secondly, I think they are doctoring their books because they claim I owe them about 5000.00 (not counting student loans) after I ended up in several bad situations. I failed 2 classes due to attendance, even though I was in my classes 2 nights a week after having to walk 3 miles to the local community college. They waived those, which I felt was awesome of them, and I resumed my courses retaking those classes again and passing them. I then became homeless into my second block. Dispite my luck I had faith, and I passed those 2 classes. The 3rd set of classes I failed. I retook theose and passed as well as my fourth set of classes. My fifth set I again failed. I paid them $1000.00 to reenroll in class again (they claim I owed them 3600.00 and this is before I read the reports) and they told me they would wave the other $2600.00 I owed them as long as I passed my next two classes. I have a pell grant and a student loan, which I use to pay for school. (which they explained to me if I didn't pass the class the student loan didn't cover it I had to retake the class and pay for the failed class out of pocket.) Silly me fell for that one.........I failed those classes too due to an emotional collapse: I didn't understand an assignment and asked a teacher for help. I even provided my cell phone number and asked her to call me to help me. Not only did she not call, but the only response to my question I got was "Read the material I gave you and you will figure it out." I did read it: I didn't understand the assignment which was submitted on ANOTHER WEBSITE other than UOP's and I stated this in a response to the teacher again asking her to call me because I was having trouble and I didn't understand the assignment as far as the other website. I was told again to read and I would understand, so then I stopped going to my classes. After all what was the point if I didnt understand it and they were supposed to be teaching me yet I was not having anything explained to me.
So now I get a letter stating I owe ACS (I guess a company they are tied in with) money for my classes, yet it doesn't give an amount, just says to call them. I also get a bill for my student loan. I had to get a second lender for the loan because my original lender (Wachovia) doesn't offer loans anymore because of the merger with Wells Fargo. I haven't had the best dealings with Wachovia anyways so I went to Bank of America. I get a bill from Bank of America stating I owe almost 2100.00 for a student loan

, plus my original loan from Wachovia was over 5000.00. If the student loan didn't cover the class I failed, why was Bank of America (who only paid the loan on the most recent 2 classes Wachovia covered the rest) billed in the first place? To top it off, from what I can gather, I owe the school something around 5000.00 as well. On credits for a degree that is useless to me. On the up side, my loans aren't in default, so I can go to another institution. Thankfully I also now have a stable home and my fiancee' to back me.
This angers me that I have taken like 12 classes and I know they are overcharging me, AND they also lied to my friend that went there for a teaching degree

. They lied to her and told her a pell grant would cover all the expenses. Now she has a loan in default because she failed a class (due to being homeless as well) and I told her about the waiver then read reports and told her stay far away from them. They sold me on a law class not even worth anything. They claimed they could help me achieve my dreams and accomplish my goals: All they did was shatter them. If anyone from UOP reads this I only have one thing to say: What you did to me was wrong................what is worse is you guys also knew I was a single mother! You not only stole from me but you stole from my daughter. I had nothing and you took it down to less. And to rob an innocent child! How do you people sleep at night? Their "criminal justice" course system is just as big of a joke as they are. Also note to everyone so you know:
These people were just sued by their employees for their business practices. google it. Now just as "B" insinuated about the money that "appears" now we know how.
I have documents to prove I was charged for those classes twice too........what can I do?

I AM CURRENTLY ENROLLED IN THE UOP AND I STRONGLY FEEL THEY R A RIPOFF.. THEY DONT LET US PICK OUR OWN CLASSES THEY WORK HAS NOTHIN TO DO WITH WHAT WE ARE STUDYING AND R JUST PLAIN STUPID. AND ALSO I TRANSFERRED FROM ANOTHER UNIVERSITY WITH CREDITS AND THEY OR ONLY GOING TO EXCEPT 10 OUT OF MY 44 CREDITS AND THEY HAVE THAT I STILL HAVE TO TAKE PSYCHOLOGY COURSES WHEN I HAVE ALREADY DONE SO. MY ENROLLMENT COUNSELOR WOULD ALWAYS TELL ME THAT I HAD TO AUTHORIZE CERTAIN THINGS WHEN SUBMITTING MY PAPERWORK IN WHICH I FELT WAS CRAZY BUT I NEVER CHANGED WHAT I HAD SELECTED AND ALSO I HAVE BEEN ENROLLED FOR 7 WEEKS AND THEY STILL HAVE NOT PUT MY MONMEY TOWARD MY ACCOUNT OR SENT OUT ANY REFUND CHECK. MY COUSIN IS ALSO ATTENDING AND THEY HAVE ALREADY ENROLLED HER IN HER SECOND TERM OF CLASSES W/O HER CONSENT AND TOLD HER THAT SHE COULD NOT TRANSFER OR IF SHE DID DHE HAD TO PAY THEM THE AMOUNT OWED AND THE CLASSES HAVE NOT EVEN STARTED YET..IT SAD THAT THEY WOULD TAKE ADVANTAGE,LIE, AND TRICK PEOPLE THAT ARE TRYING SO HARD TO BETTER THEMSELVES SO I SAY TI HELL WITH THE UNIVERSITY OR THE PEOPLE BACKING THEM UP BUT I WILL SURE BE ON THE PHONE WITH THEM  IN THE MORNING WITH MY CONCERNS..AND I ALSO THOUGH IT WAS FUNNY THAT IN THE GEN 105 CLASS WHEN U MISS A ASSIGNMENT THE TEACHER ALWAYS WRITES BACK AND IN COM/140 THE NEVER GRADE YOUR WORK ON TIME AND ALWAYS COUNT OFF FOR SENSELESS THING... THE FUNNY THING IS ME AND MY COUSIN HAVE DIFFERENT TEACHERS BUTTHE TEACHERS ARE THE SAME WAY..

I am seeking a online company for my son to go to for human resource/business management.....was just going to sign up with phoenix and found 500 reports on them....do you or anyone know of an aacsb accredited online course for me.  Thank you for coming forward when all else seemed to lie down.

Let me tell you, thank you for bringing it all out and being honest. UoP is nothing but unethical liars and someone has got to make them accountable for thier actions and shut them down.  How many law suits will they have to pay for until someone finally shuts them down?

I guess I am not seeing your issue?  You attened UoP without doing research and now you are finding out that only 7% of schools are accredited by aacsb?  And employers are laughing at  your degree and not the way you present yourself on paper and in person?  You are upset that you went to a for-profit school and wonder why they are making money on you?

Let's face it...our educational system is NOT what it used to be or should be. I personally have been out of high school 46 years and the best school I EVER attended was Cass Technical High School in Detroit, Michigan. Back then, you could major in everything to music, 4-5 types of engineering, home economics, math, etc. Everything below 70& was failing so you got an exceptional education.

Since that time, I have taken classes from at least 9 different colleges, all accredited. Next to Cass Tech, my second choice would be Los Angeles Valley College where I receive an Associate Degree in Broadcasting. It is a 2 year school. (I have 10 years of college, a B.A, a teaching credential and have taken several courses for an M.A)

I discovered that even sitting in classes, like CA State University Northridge, a good education is not promised. I finished all my coursework for my Master and at the end of my project...80% completed, I was told that I was missing the first part...which I had begun a couple years previously at a school I no longer worked at. So what do you do?

Like in the lower grades, elementary through high school the system had also failed us. We PAY for the paper we earn. I have not seen that much difference in any of the four year universities no matter where they are located, how much they cost, whether they are classroom, online or correspondence. Of course, in most cases accreditation is an issue. I just say do the best you can...try to keep your expenses down and research carefully because they are all costly in one way or another. University of Phoenix, like others pour out areas like teachers, but now with the crisis, even those fields have difficulty securing employment. It is bad and sad when they can't hold up to their promises, but to be honest, MANY COLLEGES are like that. They offer a "change as you go format."

My daughter was ripped by UOP and we are trying to get more people that were ripped off in the same way.

Her story is that, she is a single mom and thought she was getting a pell grant, to not have to pay anything what so ever for schooling, Her enrollment counselor says in the notes at UOP, that he walked her thru the paper work regarding loan process and told her how much the pmts would be, etc...BUT he never did on that part. He told her she was not getting a loan that it was just formality for in case she wanted a loan. She would have never signed up with UOP if she had known she was getting a loan. She signed because she had trust in this person representing University of Phoenix.

I specifically asked my daughter, if she was sure she was not getting a loan and she said yes, it's all free, because she's not working and she's a single mom.....well they screwed her and now they are saying that she owes $15,000.00 in student loans and that "she signed" which she was TOLD to sign, that it was all formality.

If we can get enough people, we will file a class action law suit. So if there is anyone that was told, they would not have to pay anything on a continuous basis from UOP, and now has to pay those loans, please email us

you can try to get a hold of me: read between the signs or my name at bottom:
rippedoffbyuop dot g...l dot c m

Hope to hear back from anybody
SheilaOnTheWeb

Hi,

If you are in your sixth week of taking classes the only thing you can do is finish your current classes, and give the university notice via email of your intentions of not continuing. Whether the credits are recognized by another institution is up to that institution.

With proper notice any money not used will be returned to the lender. If you are scheduled for classes and do not withdraw you will be charged for those classes regardless of whether you participated or not.

The school will make every effort to convince you to stay. You must stand your ground and do not let the school pressure you to do something you know in your heart is not for you.

Phone calls should be followed up emails with responses from the school confirming what was discussed on the phone. Create a paper trail; phone calls are hearsay. I am glad you have recognized that this on-line program is not for you, but do not fail the classes you are currently attending because you will be liable for any outstanding costs. Student loans and grants are not going to cover a failed class.

Any classes you have taken must be paid for before you may get any transcripts from UoP. I suggest leaving on a good note; do not lose your temper. Take the initiative and do not wait for "things to happen." If an email is not replied to within three days send it again and add to the email any concerns about not receiving a reply the first time. You will be working against the clock. If your email is ignored and a class is scheduled for you and you are not withdrawn, then you will owe for that class.

Respectfully,

A former satisfied student.

I am now going on my sixth week. I am taking Criminal Justice online and I am having second thoughts about still attending this place. I want to know how can I transfer without owing UOP? What are the necassary steps I need to take in order for me to have full control over my FA funds? I do not trust the UOP and I want to make sure my funds are safe and going on me, not them if you know what I mean?

Please if anyone can help me with this matter feel free to do so. I am needing all the help I can get. So B if you read this soon please give me some feed back? By the way you are very much missed around here. I agree with everything in you're report about the UOP. I don't get how some will come in here defending them, why?
Is it that they have no heart? And don't care to see the real truth?

I'm looking into UOPO, specifically their Elementary Ed. program. I'm a bit skeptical and even more so when I discovered all these reports. Since you're a former employee, what do you know about that particular program? My admissions counselor is Annie Wan and she's trying to get me started but I'm trying to slow the process to double check this school. I'm enrolled at a local university but I was curious about UOPO as far as the ease of taking everything online. The school district that I want to teach in accepts it but I'm not really sure that I'll be able to get a job after going to UOPO.

What are your thoughts?

I came accross this by accident, and would have to say this is an arguement that is a big waste of time. I can understand people posting their comments regarding both sides of the issue, however, the bashing is ridiculous. I know several graduates from UOP that recieved a high quality education and I know a few people that were unable to make it through the program or had to re-take classes because of poor grades. The facts are:

1. it is an accreditited institution
2. you obtain a valid degree
3. you are only going to get out of it what you put into it (which is true at any institution)
4. potential employers will not turn you away just because you obtained a degree from UOP.
5. I know a professor at a state university that would not hesitate to hire a UOP graduate, and yes the credits will transfer to this university.

All of you students whom have had trouble with the Unversiety of Phoneix online or Axia college with them taking and misuse of the funding that was provided to you by the school or were charge for classes that you never enrolled in and can prove it. I am trying to abtain a Attorney at this time. If you are intrusted in getting involved with me. You mail email me at mkizer@triad.rr.com pertaining this matter. Since there seems to be so many of us out there. Someone has to take the step to get the ball rolling.
mary

My brother went to UOP and seem to have no problem with the school. I go to a community college here in AZ and the advisors don't have a clue as to what they are talking about. I am looking to go to another school for higher education since it is hard to get a computer degree at these community colleges.

I was going to email my brother about UOP and get information about their computer degrees. If UOP is such a scam, then how come my brother got a computer degree there and had no problems getting a job?

Oh guys open your darn eyes. IF B is so bad and wrong then while does the college have lawsuiet pertaining to these act things. Why so many people having problems in the same area over THERE BEING MONEY! You all that are defending the school are stupid and I hope they take you for every penny you have. For us that are smart keep up the work and research and we get the last laugh in the end!!!

MR B,
This is whats going on with me. I wen this stupid unversity for one full year then dropped because i was awarded moeny from finical aid and they said they never recieved any and every semister i was having to pay money out of my pokecket. It got to the point i could not afford that with my four children at home.Now iam going back to tech school here in my local town and they wont give me my transcripts saying i owe them like anther 2900 dallors. its bull crap. Idont know how I am gonna get my transcripts.

I just enrolled a couple days ago at UoP. I havent started any classes not even oreientation. After reading everything on here I am scared and do not want to attend this place. Since I have not started any classes can I get out of it without it costing me? should I contact FASFA and let them know i will not be attending that shool? HELP please

I have a pell Grant of 4310.00 that was scheduled amount that was awarded to me plus, a Stafford Loan of 5000.00 dollars. I was told they charged for that loan. so the loan is now 4951.25. I feel that I am getting ripped off, and I can't prove it.

After reading many, many comments and rebuttals posted here regarding the UoP online, it appears to me that the "success stories" from some are the exception and certainly not the rule for the UoP online program.

Due to my "homework" researching the UoP online and thanks to RipoffReport, there will be one less scam victim, for now.

I am currently pursuing a bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice at UoP.

I went straight into the family business after high school & I pay my tuition out of pocket. I work about 80-90 hours a week for my parents; so I thought I had fallen into a great thing. I really need some advice here. Being a year and a half in... should I continue?

My concerns are:
1. Is this place really accredited?
2. If my credits won't transfer but my degree will, should I get the degree and then do grad work elsewhere? *(assuming the degree will work)
3. I understand people are less likely to hire a UoP grad than someone from a state school, but are they completely worthless?

The retards who could not count, spell, write, or think were in my first 3-4 classes; but now I am with people who are fairly smart & their companies pay for them.

^The above concerns me... why would a large business pay for their employee to attend a joke of a school?


Thanks to any advice/info anyone can give me.

-Ohlord.

After doing some research I am glad that former employee's are telling the truth. I bet the guy from Citron Research who has been exposing this scandal would love to hear from you. I am all for funding students who want to better their lives, but to saddle a person with debt, promises of the ability to transfer credits, I had an admission counselor tell me that I could transfer to Yale and Stanford as they had the same accreditation. After calling both schools and have them laugh I was appauled that individuals who didn't think to verify their boiler room tactics are really being victimized. Would love to chat with the honest person who posted this as I think the DOE needs to hear this stuff.

Every fact in his diatribe from over 2 years ago is inaccurate. I am an enrollment counselor, and I'm not a used car salesman. In fact, I hate sales. We do not have a script to follow with phone calls, nor do we get paid on student enrollments.

Here is how we get paid, just so you all know. 30% of our job is speaking to people over the phone, educating them, and helping them enroll once they have all the facts. We cannot qualify people. If they chose to enroll after I ask them numerous times, "Do you understand how everything works, including the finance aspect?" then it is my job to make their enrollment smooth.

about 30% is student retention, or making sure to cover concerns, address issues, and pull out all the stops to make sure students are doing well and stay motivated and consistent in class. We work in teams of three. Enrollment, Academics (scheduling), and Finance (student loans and payment arrangements). This "graduation team" is dedicated to small groups of students and calls to check in constantly to make sure everything is going smoothely. No other school does this.

the final 40% is how we operate as employees. Firstly compliance with company, privacy, federal, and business policies is so highly stressed, that it's almost big-brother-ish. Our accrediting body (HLC), The Dept. of Education, and the SEC all oversee our day-to-day operations to make sure we do everything right. In 2 years at two separate campuses I have seen the HLC do walk-throughs of each campus twice.

Besides getting along and singing Kumbaya with my co-workers, we have to be experts on programs like FFELP, PLUS loans, Stafford loans, Pell Grants, compliance issues such as ADA, FERPA, GI Bill money, foreign students, and stringent student record protection policies. It's extremely complex.

I am a believer in this company. I acknowledge that their are SNAFU's, but that's why it's called a SNAFU. We try to go the extra mile to help people, and I am so gratified when a student finds their path again after quitting school 23 years ago because they got married and had kids, and are now walking across the stage with their HIGHLY valuable college dimploma from UoP.

Ok, when I first came across this I was very concerned and right away made some phone calls and web surfing to get more information. What I found is they are a legit online college. I called and got the info from the very site you say they aren't. This was also recently done again in 12/2008 as you will see on the report. It does state UOP and not Apollo but Apollo owns UOP so that makes them legit.

Thanks,

http://www.ncahlc.org/index.php?option=com_directory&Itemid=192&Action=s****.>

Hey, b I hope you come back because (this sounds so dumb) but I miss you so much. I was laughing so hard at your witty and satirical remarks as well as the remarks of others. Oh my gosh! I hope no one was traumatized as a result of this debate. While some agree with "b" and some don't most of us have to admit that he has certainly raised points, about UOPO, that are worth pondering and definitely considering. I was flabbergasted at some of the points being raised on this forum.

However, if I was a former/current student of UOPO I would perhaps feel very wounded by some of the satirical comments, rather fact or opinion, that have been posted on this ROR website.

Although I am a graduate of UCLA I noticed that some of the students at UOPO online grammar and punctuation are much better than mine. Kudos... chin up! I know that we all get mocked-- but if you are intelligent it doesn't matter what school you attend your intelligence will persevere. I promise... Honestly, I was accepted into UCLA by over studying because I lacked the intelligence that many students have... For every one hour of their study I had to do three. I always made people laugh but not on purpose. Listen, so to speak, it is your dedication and hard-work that is going to shine through to perspective employers. Don't get me wrong-- you may have to send quite a few resumes in to perspective employers just like all of us-- I promise... it is your determination that will see you through even if you are a graduate of UOPO. It doesn't matter if your are an average student graduating from ANY university-- we all have to start at the bottom-- experience is the dominant factor when it comes to great jobs and high salaries, not that degrees are not important, but experience will take you to the top. On the other hand, I think that it is wise to use the information about UOPO accordingly. For example, I would not suggest someone who read this report and do the research on UOPO to go and enroll.

What I am merely suggesting is that if you have already graduated from UOPO or are soon to graduate is that you "keep your head up" and make the best of the education that you received. Don't give up... if this is any consolation some of my colleagues have a degree from UOPO. I am a high school teacher and I am not the smartest but I am a hard-worker and I just wanted to encourage those that might feel saddened by this information. Just make the best of what you have by letting the knowledge shine through and work for you... Chin up...

By the way, we are discussing education here so please don't be shocked if someone insults your grammar or ability to punctuate accurately. In defense of myself, English was my greatest challenge in college (LOL) but I did excel in math and science. I did really well in math and science so I must admit to you that although I am an educator (MATH Teacher); English in the form of grammar and punctuation are not my strongest points (LOL). The funny thing is that I am so sensitive about this weak that I would never post anything without first running it through spell check.

I hope "b" comes back I enjoyed him so much. I hope I don't ruin the reputation of UCLA by this super ridiculous truth that I am about to reveal-- but I feel abandoned by "b". I enjoyed him so much...

"b" I know people were cracking on you, so to speak, but some of us really appreciate that you had enough guts to make this report. You might not realize how many people you saved heartache. I hope all is well with you-- PEACE

Tara

I feel that as an employee, I must say something regarding the inaccurate postings made by people who have had either bad experiences or were formerly employed by UOP and have axes to grind.

While it is true that not everyone has a positive experience, most do. There are inept employees that probably do not care about the students or the academic integrity of the institution, but, in a company of this size, that is bound to happen. That does not make it right; but it is a fact. However, there are far more people here that do care about the students and do strive to provide a quality educational experience.

Enrollment counselors are the used car salesmen of the company. They make us all look bad. Every time something negative is said in the press, it involves enrollment. B, I'm sorry, but much of what you have posted is inaccurate. Accreditation is hard to obtain and quite easy to lose. Of course maybe it would be easier to give some credence to your words if they were put together in an intelligent, coherent manner.

Those who are paying for their own education in the hope of advancing in a chosen profession should be the MOST concerned about UOP.
A college degree is an investment. It can be examined as such. This can be done with a simple ROI calculation. You divide the returns (INCREASED earnings) by the cost. I am going to use years going forward for this example rather than a percentage. and I am just going to use tuition and not time or lost earnings on the investment side.
Suppose a business degree will give you a 5k boost per year in earnings.
If it costs 16k, you will have paid for it in just over 3 years.
If that same degree costs 48k, it will take almost TEN years before you realize any economic benefit from the education.
Does UOP look so good now?
If you don't realize the expected earnings boost, you are really in trouble.
Hey, you can buy a crummy little car for say 10k. it might be a crummy little car, but if it gets you where you want to go you can be perfectly happy with it and it may have been a good choice. But if you pay 50k for that crummy little car, that you could have got down the street for 10k, you are just a dumb a*s.
Joni

I agree with "T". If UOP was really that bad then why do so many companies approve them on their list of colleges. The military even suggests them, for goodness sake.

Most employers don't look at where you went to college when they hire you, they look at whether or, not you had the motivation to attend and finish the classes. Unless you are going to be a lawyer or, doctor or, similar professional then most people don't care where you went; all they care about is your work ethic and motivation. Otherwise, most would not be employed at all. Who cares where the degree is from? Do you show up for work? Do you do your job knowledgeably? Did you do the classwork? Or, do you just do the bare minimum at work, show up late constantly and turn everything in incomplete?

There are a lot of people out there that have gone to major Universities right now that only brag about where that little piece of paper came from instead of doing their job and doing it right. I don't want to hear about how much Mommy and Daddy spent on you education if you aren't going to use it. Most people going to an on-line college don't have "mommy & daddy" to sponge off of and have to work for a living. They don't have the time to sit on their butts all day and boohoo over they were screwed by life.

This thread is just a bunch of sour grapes that can't hack the on-line learning environment.

I have took two classes and was dropped from one, the school will not reopen for me to speak with someone until DEC 1 I want to withdraw from the school itself, is it a fee. Will they maske me pay for classes that I havent started yet, in the policies and procedures menu it say withdraw before u start the class or later. The classes arent posted I havent accessed them, I need info on withdrawing. Will i have any future charges the classes I had accessed are paid for. there is nothing else I told the if anymore unexpected charges come up I will contact federal I'm just not going to post and be depressed I will send in all the emails that I received from them and statements. to the state, Federal and government I'm not going to be caught in this trap. I'm not getting in debt for nothing.

Wow! PAP seems to be one sold sucker. After reading the "back and forth" commentary i ask why would anyone entertain his brainwashed opinions. "B", you sound like a person that cares about the big picture and should not waste your time with small minded people like him. The guy that sat next to me in class that stopped at the bar or smoked a "doobie" before class graduated with a 3.8. So obviously there is no merit in his self validating statements and rambling about the minimum criteria that UOP meets to obtain these accreditations. Just because they can meet the minimum requirements to get by with accreditataion, doesn't mean we need to be thrown their names and addresses by someone desperately trying to give value to their over-priced degree. Just feel safe in knwoing that "PAP" will never be competition in the job force for someone like yourself. I think of UOP like McDonald's. Just because they are on every street corner and can offer a similar products to quality restaurants doesn't make them quality or healthy. Oh yeah, I'm sure they are licensed and approved to conduct business and sell food. So this argument has little merit. So let's let PAP stay in his fog so he can continue managing his branch of McDonald's with his "degree" from UOP.

Wow! PAP seems to be one sold sucker. After reading the "back and forth" commentary i ask why would anyone entertain his brainwashed opinions. "B", you sound like a person that cares about the big picture and should not waste your time with small minded people like him. The guy that sat next to me in class that stopped at the bar or smoked a "doobie" before class graduated with a 3.8. So obviously there is no merit in his self validating statements and rambling about the minimum criteria that UOP meets to obtain these accreditations. Just because they can meet the minimum requirements to get by with accreditataion, doesn't mean we need to be thrown their names and addresses by someone desperately trying to give value to their over-priced degree. Just feel safe in knwoing that "PAP" will never be competition in the job force for someone like yourself. I think of UOP like McDonald's. Just because they are on every street corner and can offer a similar products to quality restaurants doesn't make them quality or healthy. Oh yeah, I'm sure they are licensed and approved to conduct business and sell food. So this argument has little merit. So let's let PAP stay in his fog so he can continue managing his branch of McDonald's with his "degree" from UOP.

Wow! PAP seems to be one sold sucker. After reading the "back and forth" commentary i ask why would anyone entertain his brainwashed opinions. "B", you sound like a person that cares about the big picture and should not waste your time with small minded people like him. The guy that sat next to me in class that stopped at the bar or smoked a "doobie" before class graduated with a 3.8. So obviously there is no merit in his self validating statements and rambling about the minimum criteria that UOP meets to obtain these accreditations. Just because they can meet the minimum requirements to get by with accreditataion, doesn't mean we need to be thrown their names and addresses by someone desperately trying to give value to their over-priced degree. Just feel safe in knwoing that "PAP" will never be competition in the job force for someone like yourself. I think of UOP like McDonald's. Just because they are on every street corner and can offer a similar products to quality restaurants doesn't make them quality or healthy. Oh yeah, I'm sure they are licensed and approved to conduct business and sell food. So this argument has little merit. So let's let PAP stay in his fog so he can continue managing his branch of McDonald's with his "degree" from UOP.

Wow! PAP seems to be one sold sucker. After reading the "back and forth" commentary i ask why would anyone entertain his brainwashed opinions. "B", you sound like a person that cares about the big picture and should not waste your time with small minded people like him. The guy that sat next to me in class that stopped at the bar or smoked a "doobie" before class graduated with a 3.8. So obviously there is no merit in his self validating statements and rambling about the minimum criteria that UOP meets to obtain these accreditations. Just because they can meet the minimum requirements to get by with accreditataion, doesn't mean we need to be thrown their names and addresses by someone desperately trying to give value to their over-priced degree. Just feel safe in knwoing that "PAP" will never be competition in the job force for someone like yourself. I think of UOP like McDonald's. Just because they are on every street corner and can offer a similar products to quality restaurants doesn't make them quality or healthy. Oh yeah, I'm sure they are licensed and approved to conduct business and sell food. So this argument has little merit. So let's let PAP stay in his fog so he can continue managing his branch of McDonald's with his "degree" from UOP.

I read the main report on this matter and can understand the frustration felt by "B". I too worked there and started taking classes with this "school". First, I would like to say that the responder named "PAP" is incorrect in saying that Harvard is accredited by the same organization. This is what I heard from many employees while working there and it is false and comparing the two is like comparing apples to oranges. To open minded individuals, please look closely at all of the comments made on this matter, some show severe bias and some have merit. The degrees offered by the school are proven to offer 50% of the actual education which was published after extensive research by a professor I had in the past. He had researched 100 proprietary education organizations and found that most schools in this category were aggregiously low on the amount curriculum offered and that the standard fro graduation was far less than traditional schools. This is not something that can be easily disputed since the research was conducted without specific bias and did not attempt to single out and particular University.
"B", you are fighting an up-hill battle. The kind of people that create an institution like UOP are what corporate America is built on. Many of the issues that American economics are having stem from the tactics used by these executives. The sad part is that these executives move from companies like UOP and pollute other institutions and industries with their "at any cost" mentallity. These executives are self serving and care very little about the long term affects of their actions.
For example, I now work for a smaller private school that held a strong reputation in academic excellence that has been recently compromised by the UOP mentality. Just to reinforce the acceptance of this practice, the ex-UOP executive that has moved to my new school was sued for a variety of unethical business practices and was promoted instantly to the top executive position within the company and has further lowered the reputation and quality of the degrees offered.
The fact is that until these unethical executives are exposed and forced to change, nothing will change.

I have been in attendance at UOP for a few years and will graduate in a few months. I have also attended brick and mortar colleges and have experienced success at both. Over time I have learned that there are simply two sides to every story, and then there is the truth. I cannot comment on B's allegations of corporate behaviors at Apollo, but I can tell you it has never been my experience to be pressured by any employee of UOP. It is clear to me that B is simply a disgruntled employee who doesn't have the courage to post his real name to allegations which are likely untrue. B is doing a disservice to himself and future potential graduates of UOP and other online colleges by casting Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt (FUD) without a single ounce of credibility.

Apollo is a for profit college designed to provide a quality education for working professionals. It is true that a UOP degree may not compare to one from Harvard, Stanford or many other fine 4-year brick and mortar schools. It is also true that attending one of those fine colleges is generally impossible for most working adults with a family.

Let me address specifically some of B's points:

B: Yes, advisors are trained to lie and manipulate. I did this training myself they call it the AMOPS process. It is a technique used to manipulate leads into buying a product.

A: So you are basically saying the every single advisor at UOP has no integrity, work ethic or moral compass. I highly doubt it. If my boss asked me to do something unethical, illegal, etc., I would quit. In your own word you were one of their top performers. If everything you say is true, then you lied to hundreds of students. So that would basically make you a liar. Why should I believe what you say now?

B: Yes, advisors are paid off of the number of enrollments. It's called the Matrix; they changed it in 2004 to look more in line with requirements of the DOE. This led to a record number of pay decreases across the board, a record turnover rate for employees, and a mass exodus of their top advisors.

A: Yes, I believe it has been established that UOP was not in line with some of the methods they used to stimulate enrollment. They have discontinued this practice and it is no longer an issue. UOP isn't perfect and I can't blame them for developing employee programs which actually gave the employee incentives for success.

B: No, the degree is not looked upon as being high quality. I attended the ground campus with 2 managers from Intel here in AZ and they showed me a memo that went out to their managers stating that they are no longer allowed to hire graduates of the BSIT program at UOP.

A: Yes, this is true. Good thing most of the people reading this have no desire or plans of working for Intel. It is important to note that Intel's decision also eliminated hundreds of other colleges. In fact, The giant chipmaker now will pay for classes only at business and engineering schools with blue-ribbon accreditation. Blue-ribbon accreditation is only provided by the AACSB. UOP is accredited by the ACBSP.

B: No, you will never be cleared by the collections department.

A: This is simply ridiculous and undeserving of an intelligent response.

B: Yes, EAs will tell potential student that student loans do not need to be paid back.
A: Really? This would be illegal; having knowledge of this makes you an accessory to a federal crime. So why would I believe you.

B: Yes, the CEO once said that he wanted to be the Wal-Mart of education. Obviously without the low pricing.

A: Good for the CEO. There is nothing wrong with wanting to be the biggest education institution in the world.

B: No, the cost of tuition increase has nothing to do with expenses; it has to do with showing income on the books.

A: Yes, the cost of tuition has to do with maximizing profit. They are a for profit school.

B: Yes, there is a promotion every month.

A: Sounds like good business model to me.

B: Yes, you should select your own lender and choose to have the funds distributed to you, even if that means you have to wait to start and pay for the first class out of pocket.

A: My lender has sent all payments directly to UOP. I have never had an issue and have received refunds when appropriate.

B: No the people who defend this place have no clue what they are talking about.

A: Yet another ridiculous comment and undeserving of an intelligent response.

Online learning is clearly not for everyone. It can be very challenging at times and my experience has been that it is far more challenging then brick and mortar schools. Lower division classes at all colleges can be very irritating due to the tire kicker students who aren't really cut out for college. Yes, there are many students who have enrolled at UOP, signed up for student loans, didn't do the course work and ended up getting a failing grade and possibly a bill from the University. Yes, if you owe the University money, they will not release your grades.

If you have nothing good to say, don't say anything at all. There is more credibility in your message if you post both the good and the bad. If you contend to have been a valued employee, who participated in violations of federal law and lied to studentshow are you better? You should be ashamed of yourself and you should have reported unethical or unlawful behaviors to the appropriate authorities.

If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem.

If you continue to do what you have always done, you will always get what you have always gotten.

I don't get it Gina, just why are you annoyed at B? He is only trying to warn people about problems at UOP.
You of course are a very good demonstration of those problems. Let's go through your rebuttal point by point.
1. You state that B is an employee and has an MBA. First off, he states he WAS an employee, and the rest of your point is? Go ahead, help me out, give me a clue as to the hidden accusation I assume this statement contains.
2. B has been doing this for years. He isn't writing academic papers, but even so, I really don't notice a problem with his spelling or grammar. This is contrary to your second to last sentence, "your" is possessive, "you're" would have been correct. More to the point, at least I can figure out what B is writing about, with you I am having a tough time.
3. As a grad student at UOP you know you don't have professors, you have facilitators. So, is your point that the school really does suck, because of a lack of quality, no profs and high cost? If so, why attack B?
4. UOP gave him the degree, why would they question it? Or is your point that anyone who questions the quality of the UOP degree should have it revoked? That's a little scary Gina. Just think about it, whoops, you're a UOP grad student, that might be tough.
There you have it. A UOP grad student, with a four point attack on B, and the points make no sense. Welcome to discussion groups.
Hey Gina, just curious, what advanced degree are you pursuing? I'll bet it is education, huh? Am I right, or am I right?
Joni

To The Employee:
Yes, I am a graduate student with the UOP. Now my rebuttal.

1. You state you are "an employee" with a "graduate degree, MBA."

2. How can you even begin to call individuals "morons" when you cannot spell or utilize spell check. Besides, are you not a "graduate student?"

3. The treatment that I have received from financial aid and the "professors" is rather questionable. I have spent over 30,000 for my degree and the education that I have received is not of "quality."

4. You need a course or two in PR. I would hope the University of Phoenix would investigate your questionable degree and the attack of those who do question the University.

Shame, shame on you for your are lacking in a "quality education" if you indeed even have one. Shame, shame on you for attempting to "even" represent the UOP.

UOP STUDENT
Completed degree course qualifications August 2008
I am so glad I stumbled on this sight and the UOP discussion
I would love to talk more to 'B' the originator of this discussion
I also would love to build a case against UOP for frauding me out of money because I know currently they are trying to cheat me out of money out of my pocket and while this started because I had a zero balance after my student loans and they were going to actually owe me money, six months later here I am still fighting with them and I keep going up the chain, though technically I haven't made it that far up I will eventually. Every month that this is still being in question I get bill that go up exactly $200 and they keep telling me to disregard them and not even a week later I get a threat letter from them basically telling me to pay in full within a week or else. Now the letters are up to $1000.00 but they are telling me by phone or email one day it's 5 hundred something and the next it's seven hundred something. After 3 months I was pissed off and I let them know I was not going to be given the run around. I have been unemployed for one year due to a manager job lay off at an urgent care that was no fault due to my own-economic reasons-even have a recommendation letter from the physican owners stating that and what a great employee and asset I am. I have outstanding background in medical, transfered to UOP because my friend talked me into transfering with her to the polaris location in Columbus, OH. in Dec. 2005. Now that I am finished, no one has laughed at me yet but I can't even get an interview for them to laugh at me. How shitty is that. The financial advisors are noncompationate, liers, and I could go on and on. They do nothing but talk circles, you would not believe the s**t they have said to me even if I told you.

My husband wants me to stop talking to them because he says I am waisting my breath and I should just contact an attorney and channel 10 and 6 on your side to get the media involved. Now that I have read what is listed on here for the past 2 hours or so I am thinking he's right. My education at UOP was sometimes a joke, though I did meet some very intelligent instructors a couple were dumber than I and they were suppose to be teaching me. I did learn quite a bit during my time there, mostly because I wanted to learn. As stated in some previous statements some people that were there did not belong, but on the other hand maybe I was not the one who belonged there and is was a college for the less intelligent. Just cracking a joke, don't anyone go and take that personal. I received A's a few times when I know my work was less than that but, there were times that I received lower grades than the grade that I felt I deserved. I have already informed financial advisor (my last one of probably 20 in the past 2.5yrs) Ruthelle (I can get last names if necessary)and manager financial advisor Dietra (which if I live in Columbus, OH and attend their campus in Columbus why are all of my advisors in Phoenix, AZ?)that I would never again attend UOP and told them about all of the bad experience everyone else made me aware of my first 1.5 years at the school and because I did not have any large out of control problems like they did I brushed it off and they would tell me wait until it's time for you to graduate you'll understand then.

I told both of those finance assholes that I now see their frustrations and wished that I had stayed at Devry online and their school was the biggest mistake that I had ever made and I would not be attending their master's program I was going to take my next $50,000 to another school. Now I can only hope that I can get into another college and not have to backtrack any for a degree I already completed. I should post some of the emails that have went on between finance dept and myself it would amaze you, really. I have never seen such poor customer service skills. I was very civil and patient until 2 months ago and then I snapped, I can't take their lies and deceat anymore. How do you fight a billion dollar company when you can't even get a job. They won't even talk to me on the phone anymore because they can't answer my questions directly and I force them to answer directly because I don't except their circle talk so instead I get a half assed email that is one or two lines.

All I want is my peice of paper that apparently isn't going to get me far and it hasn't done s**t for me yet because I have been searching for a job for a year and I have been completely finished for 6 months now. Would someone with a criminal/law background care to share some advise. I don't care to have any comments about me being disgruntle, angry, bitter, and so forth because though I may be I have every right to be when someone is trying to take money from me, treatining me, and holding my degree basically for ransum.
Ashton
Columbus, OH

I have attended UOP for a few classes, and began to wonder if I was getting what I paid for. After doing some research, and reading many of the post on this site, here is my opinion of UOP, and distance learning as a whole.

No large organization is perfect; many companies have problems with their finances, HR, and staffing departments.

Sure, I encountered some instructors who I felt were at UOP just to get a pay check, and others who really wanted to teach. Think about the people you work with, not all are perfect.

The learning teams are not perfect, there is always someone who does not pull his/her share of the work, again, think about your current work environment. I believe you get what you put into it.

Not all distance learning institutions are without fault. Use the search bar on this site, plug in another distance learning university, and see what comes up. From my research I have found similar complaints with all of them.

I had some trouble with billing, and it did take some time to get it corrected, but the point is, I stood firm, and got it corrected.

I have seen much about UOP not being an accredited university; many of you say the degree is not worth the paper it is printed on. Then, I had to ask myself, if that is true, why would my company, (We are the worlds largest in what we do) have a direct billing option to an institution that was fraudulent? Just does not make any sense.

Distance learning is not with out faults, and is not for everyone. Do some research before you invest; ask tough questions, then, make a decision.

EVERY school faces these charges at one time or another. Every school. You do not become the largest university, accredited I might add, in the US by being unethical or corrupt. When you do so, you lose accreditation from the government from Title IV funding. This is what makes schools like the university of phoenix successfull on top of their degree programs. In regards to credibilty, the univeristy of phoenix has the most number of "direct bill" corporations of any univesity. Verizon, Lockheed Martin, the list goes on and on, just to name a couple. I've seen previous comments from people who claim to have been "top" reps. If they were top reps they would have been making so much money and been enjoying their efforts and being proud of their work that they would never have left. Everyone thinks they were a top rep, if they were the would not have left. I have been a top rep since day one, five years plus now. Anyway, it is all moot, those of us who are achievers will do well and prosper for years to come, while helping people achieve their dreams. The rest of you will gripe and complain as I expect, you have through out your miserable careers and lives! Good luck losers!!!

Hi B,
Thank You, thank you, thank you, thank you! I am a new student of Uop on-line at first I was really excited and I thought I did my homework I was soo wrong first of I did not even know this site existed until today. It took me about a year to decide to enroll the EA was very helpful and I felt appreciated along with the FA and AD, well I must have been looking for someone to appreciate me because I jumped right into that band wagon and I was hyped.

I started in April 2008 I was really excited I should have listened to my gut feeling when I seen people post messages that half of them could not spell, or even understand the question that was being asked. I thought wow how did they get in here? well needless to say I kept on going and I was noticing things like grades just being handed out on a silver platter, so I did an experiment and completely did an assignment all wrong I put all the wrong answers on every single question and still got an A. I was really pissed off then cause I knew then I was just wasting my time and money.

So now it is Sept. and I was thinking I would be receiving the other disbursement of my Pell Grant, when trying to contact my FA she has not even wrote or called back to inform me if I was getting anymore or not. Back in April I got 2000. from my pell grant plus the tuition had been paid through financial aid so I did not think anything of it until Sept 8 I started asking questions and no one will answer me. All I am told is re-apply so like a dummy I did. Then I find this site and my blood ran hot then cold I am currently in my 3rd block I am going to finish this block and then withdraw, so I want to thank you so very much for all the information your posts has been convinced and everyone Else's that I need to run and run fast before it is too late or thousands of dollars in debt.


I do have a question I haven't yelled or screamed at anyone yet. I want to know how do you find out how much your pell grant was? I mean I never got any letters or anything on how much the total was, and what is the best way to leave there without them holding up my transcripts so I can attend another school? or making me pay money back?


Thank you again

PS I Love you!

I read what you wrote, and I am going throug a dilemma with them. I am a high school counselor and met Valissa Armistead the MI enrolmment counselor in Grand Rapids while she was trying to recruit students. At the time I was not intereted, but she would call at least once a week. I finally took the bait, BUT I asked her.........these questions:

I never took online classes, if I do not like can I cancel wit no reprocussions?
(Of course you can Mr. rogers, you have to let us know in the second week of your online class, and complete the class)

NOT TRUE

Then I asked, I am oving to New York in 2011 for a job at the epartment of Labor in Cassadagga New York.
(No problem she siad)

NOT TRUE - NEW YORK doesnt accept their degrees

So, I do not car if it is on my credit report I filed bankrupcy this year bcause o fmediucal bills. Now I have over 40 ulcers in my stomach from their calls and harrassment. They say I owe 1495, and they still have not paud WACHOVIA back.

I only took 2 classes an Wachovia gave them over 4500 dollars, and only gave them back 550.

Can you please tell me what I should do? I filed complaints with:
BBB
Federal Trade Commission
Attorney General
Consumer Reports
MI and US Higher Education

What else?

TY for your tiem

Thank God I am finally out of the Degree sweat shop. The A's were nice, but I could not in good conscience continue to pay $1300 to teach myself and have someone tell me if what I taught myself was right or wrong.

I have moved on, but I felt it my civic duty to warn everyone who has a chance and a choice not to stay with UoP or consider going to UoP.

Mark you, I have had great instructors( actually 4) out of 18. UoP is all about Money and everything else is incidental.

B,

Where you at man? Maybe I'm looking at this thread incorrectly but it appears you are nearly on a 6 month hiatus. Gotta say that this is a pretty funny thread. I can't believe that it has lasted for 3 years. Wow! I've enjoyed reading it, well, most of it. Afterall, B can be quite long winded. We'll just say passionate instead of long winded! HAHA! I stand by most things B says about UOPO. I graduated from UOP and worked there. The one thing I did get out of it was entrance into a reputable graduate program. I have moved on from that industry (online education) and I would recommend traditional schooling over online programs, if possible.

It's worth the short term sacrifice than having to defend your degree to potential employers or schools. But, if you must attend an online program, I would stay far from UOP. There are just so many better options now.

Vigenere

For those who are concerned that their credits earned from University of Phoenix will not transfer to other universities or academic programs, let me put your mind at ease.

At one point, I was highly dissatisfied with my educational experience at UOP - not due to the instructors or quality of the coursework, but due to the teamwork model they have integrated into their programs (but that is another story).

I applied to all three of Arizona's state schools - UofA, ASU, and NAU - all of which are highly credible universities. I live in Tucson, so I spoke to a UA academic adviser in person. He initially made a face at me when I showed him my unofficial transcript for UOP, but confirmed that all of the courses that I had taken would be transferable to the UofA. Similarly, ASU and NAU both accepted all of my UOP credits, no questions asked. True, some did not transfer directly into the requirements for my major (really this was only an issue for the UA) but this was due to slight variations in the curriculum. And let me emphasize the word "slight." The education I have received through my state's school was no better than what I received from the UOP.

Amusingly, UA's Eller School of Management does like to place itself on a pedestal and play Mother Superior when it comes to their program vs UOP's. However, Eller's educational model is based on UOP's - learning cohorts and learning teams are a big part of Eller's BS and MBA programs (and yes - UOP came up with this model first). True, you won't be required to take calculus, but as someone who has worked in business administration for the past 10 years, I can tell you I have never needed calculus (or even algebra, for that matter).

I did wind up completing my undergrad (BSBA) through UOP, and it did have much to do with time already invested. I did not see the point of extending my undergrad an extra year in order to take extra classes (such as calculus) to satisfy some other university's requirements. I also eventually wound up with a competent learning team, so many of the teamwork woes were resolved. Overall, once I had a good learning team to work with, the rest of my studies at UOP were enjoyable.

I had no problem getting accepted into two different graduate programs - again, both at highly credible institutions. I am currently in a graduate program through NAU, but am transferring to an online MBA program through University of Liverpool (if you question the credibility of the University of Liverpool, check out its world rankings - ranks higher than the University of Arizona). For those who question the academic quality of online classes - take a few graduate-level courses before passing judgment. I have found these to be much more rigorous than traditional lecture-based classes!

I also have a friend who graduated with a B.S.B.A from UOP in 1999, then went on the get her master's degree from ASU. She was originally enrolled in a program at the UA, but transferred to UOP due to the lack of student support by professors, counselors, and administrators alike. She did not regret her decision to change programs one bit.

Hope this helps some of you in making a decision in regards to your educational options. Best of luck!

Rowland
B.S.B.A received from University of Phoenix May, 2007


PS - Note to B: Looks like you've been stewing over UOP for quite a while. Time to move on!

I filed a ripoff report on July 19th, but just wanted to mention here that I checked with the head of academic affairs at a state university I transferred to from UoP. He stated that AACSB-Accredited universities' "normal" practice is to NOT accept transfer credit from universities with no AACSB accreditation (aka UoP).

However, you can request the university that you are transferring to, to allow you to take upper-division courses that your UoP credit would be considered pre-requisite. If you complete those courses with a passing grade, then your UoP credit MAY be accepted.

So perhaps not all is lost if you are stuck with transfer credits from UoP.

First, I am speaking from a different prospective than someone who obviously has an agenda and contributed to what he claims is fraud until likely fired. I earned my MBA and BSB from UOP and any claims that these degrees are considered less than another degreee from a more traditional school are wildly exaggerated. I am the Director of Operations for a large software solution company and I work with Intel, HP, Autozone, Google, and Microsoft and with the odd exception of Stanford or Harvard Graduate, I have yet to hear any critical comments about the company. In fact we use 3 different templates used in most of the MBA classes for Gap analysis and Problem resolution. My direct supervisor is the VP of Finance and Operations and has an MBA from a local state college and I shared my studies with him each week and he was more than impressed. In fact he was impressed enough to pay for 1/2 of my courses and when I was done I received a promotion to the executive staff. My company is a subsidiary of a fortune 500 company and that company had to review my credentials before approving my Director position- a title I hold with my company and my parent company.

My take is that success in college, any college, depends on what you put into it. I have people that work for me with degrees from UC Berkley, Cal State Fresno, Cal State Sacramento, and many other local traditional colleges that didn't learn half of what I learned at UOP and will never hold the position I hold.

My one criticism of the school is the legitmacy of the GPA. I finished with over a 3.9 and honors but based on the papers and writings of other students, I don't understand how many could have had grades that would have kept them in the program. If in fact UOP is passing students that aren't meeting minimum requirements, than yes, I agree, there is serious concern. That being said, many of the poor paper writers were gone by the 5th or 6th class so I don't know what actually happened.

There is no denying the fact that this school exists to make a profit and there is a conflict of interest when an institution relies fiscally on passing students.

I may be the exception to the rule but I would like to see an actual survey of fortune 500 company and executive recruiters rather than anectdotal comments. My experience has been very positive and I would recommend the college for people in my situations.

I am currently a student at UoP. Started 08/2005 and I am now a 3.93 GPA with 87/120 credits under my belt. (sigh).

I am however on my way out. I have 11 courses to go to finish my "BS" degree. However it will not be be at UoP. This August I will be transferring to another local college. Yes, I know I will lose some credits. That is fine. I would rather spend another 3 months in school and graduate with a reputable degree than finish now with a one that is ridiculed by employers.

I would not encourage my enemy to attend UoP. I might recommend my mother-in-law (joke).

UoP is a money grubbing business and the students' value (education) for their money is the least of their concern.

The most interesting thing about this is that 2 years ago I had a Math teacher pulled me aside and asked me why I am attending UoP. He actually encouraged me to leave. I did not listened then, but I listened last month when a Stats teacher asked me the same thing.

So last Friday, 07/18/08, I drove to a local campus and I was given the necessary instructions on how to transfer. So to all who are lauding UoP, you might have reasons to do so, but the instructors who advised me to leave may know a thing or two more than you do.

Back story: I am a student in a Bachelors of Science In Business Administration at University of Phoenix (UoP) I'm in my 2nd calender year and what would be the equivalent of my 3rd academic year and currently hold a 3.96GPA. I've never been employed by the University and speak now only as a student.

It was noted above that University of Phoenix does not have AACSB accreditation. In fact, this seems to be brought up quite often by those who speak ill of University of Phoenix. But, did you know that only 15% of business schools have AACSB? Yeah, only 15%. Some of the requirements set forth by AACSB simply can't be met by a school the size or using the educational model as UoP. Just a guess, but imagine a requirement of a ratio of teachers to students of no more than 400 students per academic year per teacher. This can't be met because UoP class operates year round while state schools only go 9 months. I.E. State school teacher teaches 3 classes with 50 students twice a year. That's 300 students per teacher per year. But a UoP Teacher teaches 20 students per class in 3 classes, 8 times per year. 1 UoP teacher has 480 students per year. So if you only look at yearly totals it appears that UoP teachers have too many students, but in reality, have fewer students per class than the state school. It's just that they operate a longer academic year and shorter, more intensive courses. This of course is just a guess, but I use it to demonstrate my point. You can't judge a school based on accreditation unless you know why or why not it was accredited by a certain accrediting body.

Another example is ITT Technical School. They are nationally accredited, not regionally, because one of the requirements for regional accreditation is all the instructors must have at least a Masters Degree in the field of study in which they are teaching. But what if you wanted to be an electrician for small homes? You need the technical expertise which would be best taught by an instructor with technical experience. A contractor with years of real world experience, not an academic who spent their life reading books. Thus the school employs those with the experience to provide the information they feel is best suited for their students. But because not every instructor has a Masters degree, the school is not afforded regional accreditation. Does this mean the school is bad?

Remember, especially in undergrad study, the information being presented at the small local colleges is the same as the Ivy League schools. What makes the quality of the education good or bad is the quality of the student enrolled. The reason why the "best" schools seem to be the best, is because the only admit the best students. So they produce better graduates, not because the school is better, but because their admissions standards are more strict. If all schools so chose, they could all only admit the "best" students and have the appearance of being a great school. But, then it's likely that very few would ever go to college. A school like UoP which gives everyone the equal opportunity to learn admits students of every caliber, good and bad. How much each student learns depends entirely on the student. Just like at a state school, the student who reads his/her material and pays attention in class will receive a better education than the student who spends every night partying and sleeps in class. It's not the school you go to. The real key to the quality of your education is YOU!

I have actually sat and read just about every post on here, and now that I've gotten to the end, I have forgotten what the main point was that B was trying to make, thanks to all of these posts that were here and there and everywhere, and a few that were really hard to grasp the points of. Ooops, I ended with a preposition. I did, however, note the many posters who apparently are English teachers and felt the need to bash on a few who had grammatical and/or punctuational (is that a word??? Better get out my dictionary....) errors. Since I may have a touch of ADD, and the fact that so many people got off the subject, this is all I got out of this:

1. B hated his job. It was unethical and he decided to educate the rest of us on how F'ed up UoP really is.

2. There are lots of posters who agree with B, and hate UoP.

3. There are some posters that like UoP and disagree with B.

4. There are some who have not quite grasped the English language.

5. There are some who point out the language and grammatical/punctuational flaws to those who have not quite grasped it (the English language).

6. There are a few who like to compare apples to oranges.

7. There are still fewer that are very proud of their GPA's.

8. UoP stock has plummeted significantly, and UoP has taken a minor beating with negative press and investigations, etc.

Here's my 2 cents: If you don't like it, or it doesn't feel good, don't do it. If you like it, or it feels good, then do it. (as long as you are not hurting anyone else) It's a matter of personal opinion whether or not online education is right for you. I personally need the structure of the "brick and mortar" schools, and I know this about myself. I happen to attend a school in southern AL and that works for me. What bothers me is the fact that while taking a Sociology class during my undergrad, I learned that regardless of accreditation, southern colleges are not the same educational standards that schools in the east or midwest are. I'll have to dig out that book and find the exact information, but boy, here I thought my 3.93 GPA was awesome.....(ok, you KNOW I had to throw in something about my GPA....)

Also, after reading about the high costs of attending UoP, I'm wondering if they aren't getting away with that based on the fact that it is an online program and people from all over the US and world are taking classes so it can be "justified" as "out-of-state" tuition? Anyone know anything about that? Just curious. I hope that question wasn't already answered because I wouldn't want B to move in for the kill! (just kidding....).

Well, this has definitely been an interesting read. And to be honest with you, I was researching the company American Association of Labor and reading bad reviews on them when I came across this one. And that is the joy of ADD. :)

Wouldn't you be disgruntled having to go through the junk "B" did? I've worked for a similar type of company and if you don't get disgruntled you are either part of the problem, an imbecile or both. By definition someone who says negative things about someplace is disgruntled.

I am a disgruntled former continuing ed student there. I took a Math Methods class last year (I needed it to get re-certified as a math teacher at the post-secondary level). It was a horrible joke. First, they did unbelievable stuff with payment that they chalked up to a new IRN assignment system, and sent me bills for the class after I paid in advance on my own and the class ended. The methods class itself was a complete joke. I am embarrassed to say I have profited from it in the way of recertification as a teacher. Luckily I am known as a great teacher and the class was a square filler anyway.

The class was "attended" by complete idiots who posted nonsensical things and replies to other people's nonsensical things...example:

Post 1: I think every kid should learn math at the elementary school level

Reply to Post 1: I totally agree. Math is a good thing to learn.

Instructor comments: Great insights--you both get an A.

It was seriously THAT bad. On our "final project" we had to come up with a complete unit plan with lesson plans, supporting material etc etc. Naively I spent about 60 hours on mine. It was complete with software development, drawings, NCTM standards alignment etc etc. I got an A. The instructors comments? "Nice work". No advice, no sign he had even read it.

We had to post our final projects for everyone in the class to see and comment on. There were one or two quality posts. The others were complete gash written by people who are likely like mr 3.98 GPA. ONE, was plagiarized. lifted entirely, verbatim complete with same fonts, animations everything from a Rice University Math site. No references, no nothing--just lifted verbatim. Instructor comments? "nice work". I turned the person in to the instructor...comments back? None. I made a post in the chat thing for the entire class that said "Nice work. Copied from Rice University website yada yada".

OK, I have it figured out. This year I need 45 more contact hours for a pay raise (a big one at that). UofPee to the rescue! One more joke of a class and I get my pay raise. By the way, a continuing ed class at a real university (like Harvard if they offer them there) is worth the same 45 hours to our school dept.

Unfortunately, I can't go through with it. Not because I have morals--I don't. The UofPee screwed me on billing again, double billing me for this joke of a class, not holding my credit card for 60 days like they said they would and a few other things that made it impossible to keep going. Too bad they are unethical. If they were just a joke I'd take the class. Unfortunately being an unethical joke is over the line even for a scumbag like me.

Wouldn't you be disgruntled having to go through the junk "B" did? I've worked for a similar type of company and if you don't get disgruntled you are either part of the problem, an imbecile or both. By definition someone who says negative things about someplace is disgruntled.

I am a disgruntled former continuing ed student there. I took a Math Methods class last year (I needed it to get re-certified as a math teacher at the post-secondary level). It was a horrible joke. First, they did unbelievable stuff with payment that they chalked up to a new IRN assignment system, and sent me bills for the class after I paid in advance on my own and the class ended. The methods class itself was a complete joke. I am embarrassed to say I have profited from it in the way of recertification as a teacher. Luckily I am known as a great teacher and the class was a square filler anyway.

The class was "attended" by complete idiots who posted nonsensical things and replies to other people's nonsensical things...example:

Post 1: I think every kid should learn math at the elementary school level

Reply to Post 1: I totally agree. Math is a good thing to learn.

Instructor comments: Great insights--you both get an A.

It was seriously THAT bad. On our "final project" we had to come up with a complete unit plan with lesson plans, supporting material etc etc. Naively I spent about 60 hours on mine. It was complete with software development, drawings, NCTM standards alignment etc etc. I got an A. The instructors comments? "Nice work". No advice, no sign he had even read it.

We had to post our final projects for everyone in the class to see and comment on. There were one or two quality posts. The others were complete gash written by people who are likely like mr 3.98 GPA. ONE, was plagiarized. lifted entirely, verbatim complete with same fonts, animations everything from a Rice University Math site. No references, no nothing--just lifted verbatim. Instructor comments? "nice work". I turned the person in to the instructor...comments back? None. I made a post in the chat thing for the entire class that said "Nice work. Copied from Rice University website yada yada".

OK, I have it figured out. This year I need 45 more contact hours for a pay raise (a big one at that). UofPee to the rescue! One more joke of a class and I get my pay raise. By the way, a continuing ed class at a real university (like Harvard if they offer them there) is worth the same 45 hours to our school dept.

Unfortunately, I can't go through with it. Not because I have morals--I don't. The UofPee screwed me on billing again, double billing me for this joke of a class, not holding my credit card for 60 days like they said they would and a few other things that made it impossible to keep going. Too bad they are unethical. If they were just a joke I'd take the class. Unfortunately being an unethical joke is over the line even for a scumbag like me.

Wouldn't you be disgruntled having to go through the junk "B" did? I've worked for a similar type of company and if you don't get disgruntled you are either part of the problem, an imbecile or both. By definition someone who says negative things about someplace is disgruntled.

I am a disgruntled former continuing ed student there. I took a Math Methods class last year (I needed it to get re-certified as a math teacher at the post-secondary level). It was a horrible joke. First, they did unbelievable stuff with payment that they chalked up to a new IRN assignment system, and sent me bills for the class after I paid in advance on my own and the class ended. The methods class itself was a complete joke. I am embarrassed to say I have profited from it in the way of recertification as a teacher. Luckily I am known as a great teacher and the class was a square filler anyway.

The class was "attended" by complete idiots who posted nonsensical things and replies to other people's nonsensical things...example:

Post 1: I think every kid should learn math at the elementary school level

Reply to Post 1: I totally agree. Math is a good thing to learn.

Instructor comments: Great insights--you both get an A.

It was seriously THAT bad. On our "final project" we had to come up with a complete unit plan with lesson plans, supporting material etc etc. Naively I spent about 60 hours on mine. It was complete with software development, drawings, NCTM standards alignment etc etc. I got an A. The instructors comments? "Nice work". No advice, no sign he had even read it.

We had to post our final projects for everyone in the class to see and comment on. There were one or two quality posts. The others were complete gash written by people who are likely like mr 3.98 GPA. ONE, was plagiarized. lifted entirely, verbatim complete with same fonts, animations everything from a Rice University Math site. No references, no nothing--just lifted verbatim. Instructor comments? "nice work". I turned the person in to the instructor...comments back? None. I made a post in the chat thing for the entire class that said "Nice work. Copied from Rice University website yada yada".

OK, I have it figured out. This year I need 45 more contact hours for a pay raise (a big one at that). UofPee to the rescue! One more joke of a class and I get my pay raise. By the way, a continuing ed class at a real university (like Harvard if they offer them there) is worth the same 45 hours to our school dept.

Unfortunately, I can't go through with it. Not because I have morals--I don't. The UofPee screwed me on billing again, double billing me for this joke of a class, not holding my credit card for 60 days like they said they would and a few other things that made it impossible to keep going. Too bad they are unethical. If they were just a joke I'd take the class. Unfortunately being an unethical joke is over the line even for a scumbag like me.

Wouldn't you be disgruntled having to go through the junk "B" did? I've worked for a similar type of company and if you don't get disgruntled you are either part of the problem, an imbecile or both. By definition someone who says negative things about someplace is disgruntled.

I am a disgruntled former continuing ed student there. I took a Math Methods class last year (I needed it to get re-certified as a math teacher at the post-secondary level). It was a horrible joke. First, they did unbelievable stuff with payment that they chalked up to a new IRN assignment system, and sent me bills for the class after I paid in advance on my own and the class ended. The methods class itself was a complete joke. I am embarrassed to say I have profited from it in the way of recertification as a teacher. Luckily I am known as a great teacher and the class was a square filler anyway.

The class was "attended" by complete idiots who posted nonsensical things and replies to other people's nonsensical things...example:

Post 1: I think every kid should learn math at the elementary school level

Reply to Post 1: I totally agree. Math is a good thing to learn.

Instructor comments: Great insights--you both get an A.

It was seriously THAT bad. On our "final project" we had to come up with a complete unit plan with lesson plans, supporting material etc etc. Naively I spent about 60 hours on mine. It was complete with software development, drawings, NCTM standards alignment etc etc. I got an A. The instructors comments? "Nice work". No advice, no sign he had even read it.

We had to post our final projects for everyone in the class to see and comment on. There were one or two quality posts. The others were complete gash written by people who are likely like mr 3.98 GPA. ONE, was plagiarized. lifted entirely, verbatim complete with same fonts, animations everything from a Rice University Math site. No references, no nothing--just lifted verbatim. Instructor comments? "nice work". I turned the person in to the instructor...comments back? None. I made a post in the chat thing for the entire class that said "Nice work. Copied from Rice University website yada yada".

OK, I have it figured out. This year I need 45 more contact hours for a pay raise (a big one at that). UofPee to the rescue! One more joke of a class and I get my pay raise. By the way, a continuing ed class at a real university (like Harvard if they offer them there) is worth the same 45 hours to our school dept.

Unfortunately, I can't go through with it. Not because I have morals--I don't. The UofPee screwed me on billing again, double billing me for this joke of a class, not holding my credit card for 60 days like they said they would and a few other things that made it impossible to keep going. Too bad they are unethical. If they were just a joke I'd take the class. Unfortunately being an unethical joke is over the line even for a scumbag like me.

This post is not directed at anyone...it is simply information on my experience. Please consider it to be neutral because after reading all of the information on this site I'm not really sure how I feel. So, B - please don't slaughter me after you read this. I am actually a decently intelligent and successful HR professional who also holds an SPHR certification (you can't really be stupid and pass that certification exam). Ok...here goes nothing.

I do have an MBA in HR Management from UOP online. I "graduated" in October of 2006. I'd like to share a few things:

*I have yet to meet a business person who has winced at my degree - just want to get that out there. Oh, and I am speaking about business people at Fortune 500 organizations in positions at the Director level and above.

*I received my BS from Rutgers, The State University of NJ...A decent school back in my day. No, I'm not going to date myself online. LOL. Well, my graduating GPA overall was a 3.43 (a 3.89 in my major which was management). I will tell you that I hated the entire experience. I didn't think it was difficult and I slacked quite a bit especially my freshman year (party party party) - which is why my overall GPA wasn't higher. I had "professors" who literally read from the text book to the class. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, that was their style of "teaching." I was horrified. There were students in the classrooms who did NOTHING. They never participated in class, when we had team assignments they contributed nothing, and some were actually disruptive in certain classes. However, they were good test-takers. This is what earned them their 4.0 grades - the fact that they could memorize information then regurgitate it on a test. I - on the other hand - was not that fortunate. I stink at taking exams...BIG-TIME. What I am really good at is taking information, researching it further, then analyzing it and drawing some reasonable conclusion about it. This is what made the UOP environment good for me. Just for me...maybe not for others.

*A little more about ground schools...yes, like Rutgers. I also had "professors" who could barely speak English. My marketing professor was from another country and his accent was SOOOO thick I could barely understand him. That cost me my 4.0, because when I asked him to repeat himself in class he would get visibly agitated - worse, he wouldn't repeat himself. I missed out on so much information in that class. I ended up reading the text book three times cover to cover...but of course - because I missed so much of what he was allegedly saying in class - I only managed to get a C on the final. When I complained about this "professor" to the Dean...I was basically told, "too bad, get over it, you'll make up the grade since you are such a smart and good student." No lie people. This is what I was told. So, life went on, I graduated and missed honors due to my own doing (too much partying my freshman year), my poor test-taking ability, and the piss-poor quality of a lot of the so-called professors. A 3.43 is not bad right? I can't be called stupid right? Considering I had a 1.8 my freshman year due to spending more time on the consumption of adult beverages instead of studying. Come on, you know you did it too. LOL.

What's the point you might be asking? Well, compared to the quality of teachers, facilitators, whatever you want to call them at UOP...I didn't see much of a difference. Half of the instructors at UOP sucked and the other half were excellent. I had the same exact experience at Rutgers. Oh, and let's not forget about the "professors" who played favorites. That's always a classic.

As far as the students are concerned...at least when I complained about the lack of participation on a team at UOP - something was done about it. Trust me...yes, I ratted them out COLD!!

When I had poor instructors online - because of my work ethic - I still produced quality papers and assignments. How do I know they were quality? LOL LOL LOL...because I read some of the other student's work...that's how. LOL LOL...sorry but it was too funny some of the work they actually submitted...pathetic.

Anyway, I wanted people to read about my experience in both environments. Yes, UOP is not perfect...NO B, I'm not defending them I swear!!! All I'm saying is that my experience at UOP was just like my experience at a fully accredited ground school. No, I didn't research Rutgers' credentials...I am assuming. Sue me. BTW...this is humor not sarcasm. It's not intended to offend anyone.

I want people to know that yes, they should stay away from schools that engage in proven unethical practices. You know what...make your own decisions folks. Some are not bothered by institutions such as UOP...others are. To each his own. Do your research, talk to people - obviously B and others in this forum have had very bad experiences...while some - yes, I will admit like me - have had neutral or positive experiences. Make your own informed and educated decision. If you are currently in the middle of a program and it's going well for you, well then finish it and give it your all.

Will I go back to UOP for my doctorate? Honestly? Probably not. I do need the flexibility of online learning...but I do take issue with some of the information in the news media about the Apollo organization as a whole.

So, ground schools, online schools, UOP specifically...as I stated before: do your research and make your own informed decision...but the one thing I will say here...stop being nasty to each other. There really is no reason to insult one another's intelligence or motives. We don't know each other - even is some of us assume we do...we don't really know 100% who is who on this site unless you state your name here. Stay focused on the issues that are being raised..not on who is raising them or why. All of the issues raised here can be googled online and verified or not. Calling each other names, accusing folks of being disgruntled ex-employees, and insulting people's intelligence is just not nice - further, it really distracts us all from what - in the end - is some good information - accurate or not - it's up to each one of us to verify what is posted in these forums.

Good day, best of luck and God Bless you all. Elizabeth.

PS..wow, was this the longest "two cents" on the planet or what? LOL LOL LOL.
Laugh, it increases your life expectancy.

I've been reading this for a while now and for the most part I agree but there are some instances where I have to say that the student or potential student was very much at fault. Every student completes a FAW...on that faw are about 3 screens that break down everything about your financial aid eligibility and how you would become ineligible...When I worked at UOP I constantly told students to read and understand that when you fail or drop, you owe the school because financial aid will not cover it.

I don't know but it seems common sense to contact the school you want to transfer to and ask them if they accept a certain schools credits. If nothing else, I'd contact the school I wanted to transfer credits to just because it is right from the horses mouth...I have a hard time blaming the school or admission staff for credits not transferring...

Also..BEWARE some admissions rep's will log into class for studnets, the good thing is that this is extremely frowned upon and if caught you WILL be terminated and the student given recourse, but the downside is that it is extremely hard to prove such a thing...

I say if you want the real deal financially and academically, blow off your admissions rep and talk right to a financial aid advisor, they will keep it 100% real and uncut. Want to know why..because they don't want you ruining theit matrix. They get reviewed on defaulted students, studnets failing and students going into collections, more students decide against going to UOP while on that financial aid welcome call.

I was fortunate and I worked at a very very ethical and caring campus. My campus director cared A GREAT DEAL about the success of the studnets enrolled and so did the director.

I too think the school is expensive..but then again, so are prada shoes...if it is too costly, go somewhere else.

if what is written here is 100% true, things looked rough back in 2004/2005...I can't say that my tenure was that bad, I received a hefty raise after my first review and the decrease is not given unless you underenroll dramatically. If you do the minimum you won't receive a decrease, heck I've seen employees miss meets by a landslide and still not suffer a decrease. BUT I do see tale of yester years because some of the more tenured EC's make a nice chunk of change. I'm talking more than 70K- and the most you ever have to enroll to 'meet' is 8 students....I was doing that 1/2 asleep. So even if someone doing 12-15 students a month has an off month, they have so much of a cusion that their review is still gravy and they are easily going up thousands. EVERY 6 MONTHS. It is a great job if you work for a nice ethical and caring campus. I've visited other campus' in trainings and I would not work there for all the tea in China....

I guess it just depends...

I appreciate all of your wisdom and courage, B. You are truely doing us a great deed by enlightening us about this school. I was looking for some advice from someone as knowledgable as you, so here it goes:

First off, I am located in California and plan on furthering my education in this state. With this being said, all the advice about schools I am requesting pertains only to the state of Ca, or including Ca. I have graduated with an Associate's degree (many, actually) from a 2-year community college here in Ca. Some classes I took were on-line through community colleges as well. At any rate, I loved the classes I took online and feel great about them--they were conducive to my education. I am double-majoring in Nursing (or pre-med if I have enough time) and Psychology. I was wondering if I could take any pre-med classes from an on-line school, and if so, which ones. I am on the waitlist for nursing programs all over Ca, so I have completed all the pre-reqs necessary. Most of those pre-reqs are also pre-med requirements.

As for my interest in Psychology, I have been talking in great detail with several on-line campuses, including the UOPO and Walden. Thanks to you, I now know that UOPO is a disgrace. However, I have heard you mention some good things about Walden, so I called some schools in my area (University of Ca. Berkeley, S.F. University, etc...) and asked them what their perception was on a B.S. Psy degree from these type of schools. Suprisingly,they weren't very informative except for S.F. state; they told me that a degree from these school's were accepted but the letters of recommendation needed for the application (going into a Master's or PhD program) usually look a lot more attractive when they are from someone the applicant has met with face-to-face (better still having a traditional student/teacher relationship). This is the only concern I have about transfering a B.S. from Walden into a traditional school. Though Walden offers a B.S. to PhD. program, I would rather get a higher degree at on a traditional campus. Do you have any advice on how I can get straight answers from these schools (about how they truthfully value a former Walden student) and how to go about getting a substantial letter of recommendation from a teacher at an on-line school? I was also told that the "lack of research" from an online program could hinder me if I wanted to transfer into a research specialized program. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

jeff

I appreciate all of your wisdom and courage, B. You are truely doing us a great deed by enlightening us about this school. I was looking for some advice from someone as knowledgable as you, so here it goes:

First off, I am located in California and plan on furthering my education in this state. With this being said, all the advice about schools I am requesting pertains only to the state of Ca, or including Ca. I have graduated with an Associate's degree (many, actually) from a 2-year community college here in Ca. Some classes I took were on-line through community colleges as well. At any rate, I loved the classes I took online and feel great about them--they were conducive to my education. I am double-majoring in Nursing (or pre-med if I have enough time) and Psychology. I was wondering if I could take any pre-med classes from an on-line school, and if so, which ones. I am on the waitlist for nursing programs all over Ca, so I have completed all the pre-reqs necessary. Most of those pre-reqs are also pre-med requirements.

As for my interest in Psychology, I have been talking in great detail with several on-line campuses, including the UOPO and Walden. Thanks to you, I now know that UOPO is a disgrace. However, I have heard you mention some good things about Walden, so I called some schools in my area (University of Ca. Berkeley, S.F. University, etc...) and asked them what their perception was on a B.S. Psy degree from these type of schools. Suprisingly,they weren't very informative except for S.F. state; they told me that a degree from these school's were accepted but the letters of recommendation needed for the application (going into a Master's or PhD program) usually look a lot more attractive when they are from someone the applicant has met with face-to-face (better still having a traditional student/teacher relationship). This is the only concern I have about transfering a B.S. from Walden into a traditional school. Though Walden offers a B.S. to PhD. program, I would rather get a higher degree at on a traditional campus. Do you have any advice on how I can get straight answers from these schools (about how they truthfully value a former Walden student) and how to go about getting a substantial letter of recommendation from a teacher at an on-line school? I was also told that the "lack of research" from an online program could hinder me if I wanted to transfer into a research specialized program. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

jeff

I appreciate all of your wisdom and courage, B. You are truely doing us a great deed by enlightening us about this school. I was looking for some advice from someone as knowledgable as you, so here it goes:

First off, I am located in California and plan on furthering my education in this state. With this being said, all the advice about schools I am requesting pertains only to the state of Ca, or including Ca. I have graduated with an Associate's degree (many, actually) from a 2-year community college here in Ca. Some classes I took were on-line through community colleges as well. At any rate, I loved the classes I took online and feel great about them--they were conducive to my education. I am double-majoring in Nursing (or pre-med if I have enough time) and Psychology. I was wondering if I could take any pre-med classes from an on-line school, and if so, which ones. I am on the waitlist for nursing programs all over Ca, so I have completed all the pre-reqs necessary. Most of those pre-reqs are also pre-med requirements.

As for my interest in Psychology, I have been talking in great detail with several on-line campuses, including the UOPO and Walden. Thanks to you, I now know that UOPO is a disgrace. However, I have heard you mention some good things about Walden, so I called some schools in my area (University of Ca. Berkeley, S.F. University, etc...) and asked them what their perception was on a B.S. Psy degree from these type of schools. Suprisingly,they weren't very informative except for S.F. state; they told me that a degree from these school's were accepted but the letters of recommendation needed for the application (going into a Master's or PhD program) usually look a lot more attractive when they are from someone the applicant has met with face-to-face (better still having a traditional student/teacher relationship). This is the only concern I have about transfering a B.S. from Walden into a traditional school. Though Walden offers a B.S. to PhD. program, I would rather get a higher degree at on a traditional campus. Do you have any advice on how I can get straight answers from these schools (about how they truthfully value a former Walden student) and how to go about getting a substantial letter of recommendation from a teacher at an on-line school? I was also told that the "lack of research" from an online program could hinder me if I wanted to transfer into a research specialized program. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

jeff

I currently attend UOP, or it's "sister" college rather...Axia -- and I'm looking forward to the day when I graduate (9/21/08). I was "talked" into doing this McCollege thing by a friend that got his Bachelor's degree through UOP. All I can say is, I don't talk to that friend anymore and I cannot WAIT to be done with UOP.

I've read through these posts, and I do agree with some points about how the classes are a bit of a joke. I work full time, therefore I do my homework when I get home in the evening, usually around 7-9pm. Luckily, I'm a single girl with no kids, so I have time to devote to it - I just don't understand how these women with families, kids, a house, laundry, dinner to get on the table and a dog can do online courses!! Anyway, I take two courses every nine weeks. I have an assignment (or "DQs") due on every day except Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays.

I gotta tell ya, there are a lot of times that I just don't feel like debating the differences between the United Nations and the World Trade Organization, or trying to find out what the benefit to Linux over Unix is....and I have "fudged" my way through many assignments, with excellent grades. That being said, it DOES depend on your instructor. Some could give a flying leap IF you turn in an assignment at all. I'm convinced that MANY do not even bother really reading them once you do. Although I'm not proud if it, I have literally copied and pasted info off the internet into a "1050 to 1750 word paper" and gotten excellent feedback on it.

I have had one or two instructors that were hard-asses and I knew from the beginning that I wouldn't be able to get away with such nonsense, but for the most part, if you're good and bullshitting and embellishing - you can do great at UOP. Every class I've taken, I've gotten an A or B in.

I'm on the way to completing my Associates Degree, which I have a feeling will be completely useless in my future. However, since I only have about 4 more months to go, I'm going to finish it out. Of course, the "counselors" are already on me to sign up for my Bachelor's...but I told them that THAT was not going to happen.

I'm tired of being tied down to UOP. I'll be glad when its over!

B,

I am about to graduate next month from South University. I was just wondering what your thoughts were on the quality of South University's education, if any?

I'm glad I didn't chose UoP 3 years ago, that's for sure.

J.B.

Some lessons Ive learned after having been screwed by a 'business/career/trade' college.
1)If the school is Private, stay away from it
2)If the school is for-profit, stay away from it
3)If the school offers people the ability to finish a course offered at a public college or university in less that half the time it normally takes, stay away from it
4)Do the credits transfer to other PUBLIC colleges and Provincially funded universities? if not, stay away from it
5)are there multiple posts about the institution on educational forums and on the internet in general that are negative in nature, if so, stay away from it
6)Does the school offer job placement assistance, guaranteed high paying jobs after graduation,scouts/employers from companies that come to the school to look for grads,a 70-90% graduate employment rate and a whole bunch of other really over-the-top guarantees?!,if so,stay away from it
7)Does the school have multiple 'campuses' spread out all over the country?if so, stay away from it
8)Is the school on the third floor of a scummy building? if so, stay away from it
9)Does the school seem to change names every couple of years? If so, stay away from it
10)Does the school go through a constant change of instructors and management? If so, stay away from it
11)Does the school employ ex-grads as teachers?, if so, stay away from it
12)DO they advertise on tv, have a 1-800 number and do they have glossy print ads? If so, stay away from it
-If I would've had a list similar to this before I enrolled in that institution, I would've thought twice about making said decision...It doesnt get any simpler then this. Basically your "bachelors" is not really a bachelors, and your little "masters" is not really a masters! Employers know what to look for, and all these "business" college certificates arent worth jack.
Bottom line:DO YOUR RESEARCH!!

Curtis

Thank you for your help! I am transferring to Walden at the end of the term. I feel like such an idiot..... I guess I had just heard good things about UOP from other people, I didn't even do any online research. Never again!

I have had direct experience with current and former employees of Kaplan. With that, most of the comments I have heard from the current and former employees lead me to believe that Kaplan's sales methodology is not far off from UOP's. As I understand it from word of mouth, Kaplan has a BOILER ROOM environment for the enrollment personnel. High pressure on the sales force tends to result in high pressure on the consumer.

In the end, you're probably going to find a better source of info by looking for reports on Kaplan in ROR. To test, I looked up Kaplan in the ROR search field and 6 pages of consumer comments came up.

I think I may remember you mentioning something about Kaplan in one of your earlier posts.... any thoughts?

Jennifer,

Has it changed? Yes, for the worst I am afraid. But I believe that if they are to continue to exist in this competitive market, they will soon have to make some significant operational changes. If not, they will only be able to prey on the un-informed and unaware consumer. If you would have known 1 year ago what you know now, you probably would have made different decisions. The word is out on UOP, it is just not strong enough to counter the dominate market presence they retain at this point.

The telltale signs will come mid 2009 after the Bush administration is out of office and new blood is in key positions at the US DOE. Hopefully, a significant crackdown on misuse and abuse of Federal Title IV is on the way. If UOP is forced to comply with the rules surrounding sales reps and Title IV usage, enrollment will take a hit. Enough of a hit that I believe they will need to reposition their stance in the stock market which, at this point, is highly focused on enrollment growth.

With regards to your specific choices; they depend on your academic status. There are plenty of other online bachelor programs out there. Most will take anywhere between 60 and 90 credits in transfer. So if you are more than 30 credits away from finishing your bachelor degree at UOP, you can transfer elsewhere. This will most likely save you a significant amount of money. UOP's tuition is ridiculously high when compared to the quality of the degree.

Follow your gut. I personally have a hard time giving money to an entity that is wholly corrupt. But then again, I do pay taxes Who does that money go to again? Oh yeah, totally corrupt corporations with no-bid contracts

I have been enrolled in UOP for over a year now and I have worked really hard keeping my GPA up. Then, I find this site and I feel like an idiot. Is all my work really in vain? I had no choice but an online college after my son was born with a disability. This forced me to stay home as he cannot be in daycare or anything like that. I didn't just want to stay home and do nothing else productive, so I decided to start at UOP. I originally heard from many people that UOP is a GREAT online school, one of the best.

But now, I'm starting to regret my decision. What do I do now? Has it changed in the almost three years since you originally posted this?

I know that I have worked hard, and I know I am not one of those lazy or dumb students that many people think attend UOP. Maybe I made bad decisions in the past, or I would have been at UNT, where I received a full scholarship. I don't regret my life decisions, but should I regret my education decisions?

Please give me some insight as to where to go from here. Should I finish the rest of the year and then transfer? Advice would be greatly appreciated!!

-Jennifer

You will only get from a college or degree what you put into it--period. Anyone that thinks that they will simply "plug-in" to a college and become brillant or make a return on their investment is foolish.

If you go to UOP make sure you demand the quality education that you expect--and then make sure you deliver on your end. I have heard so many complaints about hard work, long hours, and too much research that it makes my ears bleed and take pity on those that think that they can get an education without breaking a sweat or writing a check. The strange thing is, you will find the same complaints at any other school...it's the squeaky wheels that will never succeed. And you'll find a lot of squeak on this forum.

I received my BSIT from UOP a few years back and I'm happily making $110K because of it. The college is accredited and growing.

The one failing is that maybe that they don't weed out those few that aren't ready or able to get a college education.

Seriously, not everyone is cut out to have a college education.

Firstly, I would like to thank B and everyone here for expressing their opinions.

I am an UoP student. I was taking my BS in Bus. Management but stopped when my father passed away in 2005. I have a year worth of classes left before graduating. Fast forward to now. I just returned to UoP. This time I decided to take a certificate course since there is an immediate need for it in my job. I've been in the certificate program for 1 week now and everything is going well. For now, I feel investing in the certificate program at UoP will benefit me. I've already discussed this with my manager [at my job] and completing the program at UoP will help me with my pending promotion.

My major concern is obtaining my BS degree. After reading all your posts, I feel the same as many here. A BS degree should have credibility and have weight. It shouldn't be a joke. I mean, why work your a** off to get one, right? So, I am so grateful to have stumbled on this site.

Because of my schedule, online learning works best for me. I will see if I can transfer my UoP credits for my BS Bus. Management degree to one of the other online schools mentioned earlier. I will finish the certification program at UoP but for my BS degree, I have to go to an online school that will give me a degree with weight and credibility.
Thanks!

Don't be as concerned about online colleges, as you should be about bad colleges online or ground. Many traditional universities now online degrees. The debate about good reputation is subjective at best. As you can read in this blog, there are many who feel UOP has a good reputation and many who disagree.

In the case of Everest University Online, they are ACICS accredited, better known as National Accreditation. This is often considered as a lower level of accreditation than regional. It may not be an issue but if you ever plan on applying for graduate school or transferring credits into a regionally accredited university, you may find that a nationally accredited degree or credits will not be acceptable.

Look around, take your time. There are many good institutions out there offering online degrees. Reputation is subjective. Just make sure that you don't feel like they are only trying to sell you a degree. Call UOP and see what they say, I'm sure you'll get the pressure approach. Talk to some other institutions and if you get the feel they actually are trying to help you, you're probably safe as long as that institution is regionally accredited.

Don't be as concerned about online colleges, as you should be about bad colleges online or ground. Many traditional universities now online degrees. The debate about good reputation is subjective at best. As you can read in this blog, there are many who feel UOP has a good reputation and many who disagree.

In the case of Everest University Online, they are ACICS accredited, better known as National Accreditation. This is often considered as a lower level of accreditation than regional. It may not be an issue but if you ever plan on applying for graduate school or transferring credits into a regionally accredited university, you may find that a nationally accredited degree or credits will not be acceptable.

Look around, take your time. There are many good institutions out there offering online degrees. Reputation is subjective. Just make sure that you don't feel like they are only trying to sell you a degree. Call UOP and see what they say, I'm sure you'll get the pressure approach. Talk to some other institutions and if you get the feel they actually are trying to help you, you're probably safe as long as that institution is regionally accredited.

Don't be as concerned about online colleges, as you should be about bad colleges online or ground. Many traditional universities now online degrees. The debate about good reputation is subjective at best. As you can read in this blog, there are many who feel UOP has a good reputation and many who disagree.

In the case of Everest University Online, they are ACICS accredited, better known as National Accreditation. This is often considered as a lower level of accreditation than regional. It may not be an issue but if you ever plan on applying for graduate school or transferring credits into a regionally accredited university, you may find that a nationally accredited degree or credits will not be acceptable.

Look around, take your time. There are many good institutions out there offering online degrees. Reputation is subjective. Just make sure that you don't feel like they are only trying to sell you a degree. Call UOP and see what they say, I'm sure you'll get the pressure approach. Talk to some other institutions and if you get the feel they actually are trying to help you, you're probably safe as long as that institution is regionally accredited.

Don't be as concerned about online colleges, as you should be about bad colleges online or ground. Many traditional universities now online degrees. The debate about good reputation is subjective at best. As you can read in this blog, there are many who feel UOP has a good reputation and many who disagree.

In the case of Everest University Online, they are ACICS accredited, better known as National Accreditation. This is often considered as a lower level of accreditation than regional. It may not be an issue but if you ever plan on applying for graduate school or transferring credits into a regionally accredited university, you may find that a nationally accredited degree or credits will not be acceptable.

Look around, take your time. There are many good institutions out there offering online degrees. Reputation is subjective. Just make sure that you don't feel like they are only trying to sell you a degree. Call UOP and see what they say, I'm sure you'll get the pressure approach. Talk to some other institutions and if you get the feel they actually are trying to help you, you're probably safe as long as that institution is regionally accredited.

I have recently been looking at taking some online college courses. I have researched UOP and also Everest University Online (or so I thought) I would assume UOP and Everest have similar policies on enrollment, pricing, accreditation, etc. Now I am extremely concerned with the whole idea of online college. Does anyone know of any that actually have a good reputation?

This is in response to the former enrollment advisor's letter about the University of Phoenix. In the very first sentence the lack of education is apparent where the word "that" is placed before the pronoun "I." Anyone who has trudged through the University of Phoenix's writing reviews will recognize "that" is not appropriate in the sentence as the word is used. Additionally any numbers from one to nine should be spelled out and digits used only in expressing numbers 10 and higher. The second sentence would have been better written if the person had "recently resigned my position as one of the highest paid advisors" rather than "I recently quit" as the sentence lacks academic clarity. The sentence about receiving payments on enrollments in 2003 is incomplete lacking appropriate grammatical composition. For those who read and do not know what MBA/MKT stands for these two abbreviations should have been spelled out for those less fortunate.

The above paragraph is just a small example of the errors throughout your complaint. You should also be aware a "person's lively hood" is appropriately displayed as "livelihood" not as two separate words.

Before you complain as a disgruntled former employee about the University of Phoenix, you should have your academic abilities assessed by a college or university of your choosing. The belief is that should you choose to accept this challenge, you will find that the best thing you did for the University of Phoenix was to resign as enrollment advisor.

As a University of Phoenix alumnus with Honors Distinction that I earned by toil, sweat and diligence I must admit that I am elated that you were not my academic advisor OR my enrollment advisor. The negative attitude of your presence at the University of Phoenix is emanated throughout the poorly written complaint filed on this website.

Step back and take a look at the real problem which is not solely one person's fault but as anything in life, what the individual makes of one situation or another.

Sincerely,

T

I don't even know where to begin. I just spent ten weeks of my life in UOP, time that I will never get back, let alone the money I wasted and the massive brain suck of discussion groups that should more appropriately be called a "sharing of ignorance." I learned a lot though. Like, never do this again. There really are people out there who have jobs who are not very smart, to put it mildly. You may not meet them in real life, but you will at UOP.

I signed on for the UOP BSIT/Visual and Media. I am a published writer, and an artist, and have some background in advertising and live in a small town, so I thought cool, I can become not just a muddler with web pages and brochures but a real expert. I was one quarter away from having completed my bachelors with honors in ancient history at UCSB, but don't live there anymore, so that was out. But here I could learn real marketable skills as opposed to attic greek (which I loved by the way) and be qualified for a real job, as opposed to real estate market speculation which is what I have done in the past to make money. The syllabus was perfect, just what I and a lot of other fools wanted to learn.

I poked around a bit at on-line colleges, but UOP seemed fine, I wanted that skill set. I had two friends who had just finished in accounting and another friend who took his doctorate in geology. They all talked about how hard it was, and how worthwhile and just what a wonderful, demanding and fulfilling experience it was. And UOP made it real easy to sign up, since I really don't have much patience with paperwork and once I had made the decision I wanted to start right away. Also, living in AZ, I thought it would have brand recognition, which it does, but not in quite the way I thought.

At least I got out quick. That is all I can say in my defense. The first class was a joke, a big group hug with everyone posting to the discussion groups about; how excited they were, how happy and proud their families would be (this must have come from ECs, because it was a real dumb idea, your 2 year old does not give a crap if you have a degree, he wants lunch), how they had always failed before and now were going to make it, how their jobs and careers would be enhanced by the UOP degree. At least that is what I thought they were saying, because no one could write a clear sentence. They couldn't spell, they couldn't read, they couldn't conjugate, they didn't know what conjugate meant... I don't know about the rest of the class, but I asked my Learning Team (Ignorance Team) and they all got 100% on everything, even the stuff that I didn't do for them.

Okay, so I thought, well this is the very first class. Everybody in the entire school has to do it, so there are some dummies here, after this I am in upper division and they will have learned something. I was unaware for the first three weeks that these were all bachelors candidates, there was another lower level somewhere out there.

Next term I doubled up classes and got business and computer systems. I had an AS in econ, summa c*m laude, I don't know why that wouldn't suffice for business systems, except that UOP wanted another cash prize out of my hide. Needless to say, these classes were MARGINALLY better. About one-fourth of the students could spell, and some had really mastered their APA formatting so that they could have arguments about it in their learning teams.

So they offer ONE WEEK, of business finance, from which one is supposed to be able to deal with reading balance sheets, income statements, understand Sarbox, and common business ratios. No problem for me, I never cracked, or clicked, a text. But I already knew that stuff. My fellow students were lost deep in the desert of ignorance, where they remained. I queried my learning team, just to see if anyone had learned anything, I really couldn't judge because I already knew this stuff. Not one of them had any idea what to even do with the material they had supposedly just learned. The last DQ of the week was, "What is ROI?" Not one person had a clue. The posts rambled along with stuff like, "I think if a business spends money up front it is a sign that they care and are confident." This is not an exact quote, I can't remember bad spelling. Or, "I sometimes wonder about investing so much in school because it takes time from my family and children and housework and job. But I know when I am successful that it will be 100%." Point is, this isn't a question that is answered with I feel, or I believe, it is a boring business calculation that anyone who can google can at least take a stab at. But their lack of any comprehension at all proved my point that although we had been required to look at the financial docs of a virtual company, and do similar calculations for individual papers for class, no one had learned ANYTHING.

My other class was computer systems. The text had an acronym for every paragraph, I looked at it once. I had to write a paper on the databases I use in work. Well I work at home, my database is my purse, briefcase, console of my truck, door of my truck, and finally to the desk, where eventually it all gets filed. I also pointed out I use some databases for mailing, and accounting. My fac was not amused though, because I hadn't written it in APA third-person format. OMG, it never occurred to me that the pile of crap on my desk warranted academic writing. She did kindly suggest that I seek out the Center for Writing Excellence, and they could show me how to do it, "I would love it, they would really help me." At the same time, one of my LT partners turned in her section of a paper I was supposed to edit. The virtual org. was a 50 million grossing company. She was supposed to determine the computer needs for the F&A office, just the office itself, not the entire company. Now I hadn't expected her to be able to figure this out on her own, so I simply told her, there are 8 employees, all need compatible PCs that work with the server and the ERP software, and the four management people need laptops. So she came back with the solution, we would recommend PDAs. I flipped out. My fac, who had recommended I needed writing help, suggested I turn over the reigns (sic). All because I suggested to the fac that Nancy's A grade at the end would be meaningless to her, because she wouldn't know if that was A as in apple, or A as in ate.

So I finally pulled my head out of my rear and did some research. And of course withdrew from school immediately. I don't even know how I will ever again face my friends who went all the way through this joke of a school and went into debt, when they could have just gone to CC for practically nothing.

I went ahead and made this post long, just to demonstrate what really happens in a UOP Learning Environment. If you are reading this and thinking that well, this is all just ranting, well it is, but I tried to show with examples what really goes on in these classes. I would not hire a UOP grad. I would wonder about their intelligence level for having survived it. And that skill set I wanted, well I can learn C++ on-line for $120, my son is doing it for fun, much more rigorous than UOP. For me that same class where I would have learned nothing due to herding my team all the time, would have cost me a grand.

B is absolutely right. This school was designed to shake down government guaranteed student loans and grants. That is its only purpose. It is a big cash machine based upon how many bodies are enrolled. I was fortunate in that I have had enough real college experience and had been successful enough in college in the past to know that this is not what school is supposed to be about. So I got out. I feel really bad for the poor students who are doing this for their kids, or a promotion, or whatever, and are going to be saddled with enormous debt at the end and very little to show for it. The DOE should absolutely shut this place down, but then that can be said about a lot of colleges, even not-for-profits, that shake the government student loan tree and pay fat salaries to administrators and offer really poor educational quality. But UOP has to be the worst I have ever seen.

Joni

I never actually received any money from Phoenix so I may not actually be an ex-employee, but here is my story. I have a doctorate in business administration from USC, I have been awarded two separate Senior Fulbright Scholarships, I have published over two dozen articles in professional journals, including two in the Harvard Business Review and I have taught in a dozen MBA programs around the world. I cite these facts to establish that I am an experienced, highly regarded professional.

About five years ago, Phoenix made a major effort to recruit faculty so I thought it might be a good way to supplement the meager wages paid the State of California. The first step was making a personal presentation to a "cattle call" at a Phoenix facility. I was truly embarrassed for all other applicants. How they could have gotten that far, was a mystery to me. In any case, after the cattle call, a Phoenix representative took me aside and said they would like me to join the faculty. The next step was to complete a Phoenix "training" program. Understand that I had been teaching these courses for over twenty years with the highest student ratings.

So I showed up to meet with a much smaller, much more diverse group of "students". A man and a woman conducted the training session like Prussian generals, i.e., you will do this, you will not do this, but the bottom line was that under no circumstances should you ever flunk a student, do anything to discourage at student. In short, your basic job was to be a cheerleader and do eveything possible to keep the student enrolled.

What I found particularly interesting was that neither of training instructors had ever actually taught a class in anything. What was also of interest was that they both drove the absolute top of the line Mercedes Benz.

After about four weeks, they got around to course content. I will admit that I have encountered some pretty bad MBA programs in my travels around the world, but Phoenix stuff was in class by itself. I couldn't pass off this crap to students and have any self respect whatsoever. This didn't seem to bother my "class mates". In any case, I quit.

A couple of years later, Phoenix came back to me and asked if I would like to be faculty in their online school. I said tell me more. I was told that the first thing was I would have to take a spelling tests. This is after twenty-four published books with almost a million copies sold!! I think you can figure out how the online program at Phoenix works for yourself.

Since then, I have had experience with five more online schools and the conclusion is inescapable; online universities are ONLY interesting in enrolling unqualified students who can obtain government grants or loans to cover the "tuition".

So that brings us back to B's observations about money and the bottom line (no joke intended) is that students in online universities get screwed coming and going. Mores the pity.

I tried UOP for over a year and a half and I was not happy with the education that I was getting for the amount of money that I was paying. I felt that most facilitators (they are not called instructors) didn't really teach. Where we, as students, were required to post three times a week we were lucky to hear from the facilitator once a week. They usually posted a document that was meant to 'explain' the week's teachings. Often they were following some sort of script for the class. One even admitted that they had to follow what UOP wanted them to teach so their hands were tied as to what they could do.

As for what these facilitators told us about their background? How do we know it's all true? Some of them would post a few pages about what they accomplished and I always wondered why they would be teaching at the UOP when they were clearly over qualified to even teach. Ever hear the saying, "Those who can do, those who can't teach"? I never really believed that until attending UOP.

I was enrolled in Information Technology where they kept pushing the business and project management side of IT. That was not what I signed up for. I wanted to learn programming, what I was promised, not Microsoft Project, which is what I go.

Group projects were a joke. Usually one person did all the work but everyone got credit for it. I complained over and over about the group projects and was told that they were required to emulate 'real world' experience and that all colleges did this. I work in IT and these group projects aren't even close to how the real world works. Sure we have meetings but most of the time you do your part

I needed to take six weeks off for surgery and they told me it was fine but after three weeks they had me listed as dropping out. When I finally did drop out it took weeks of resending paper work to achieve. When I had to contact anyone from UOP it always took a few days to do so.

I started back at a local college, going back to the traditional class room where we meet once a week and there is no such thing as group projects. This college, a highly reputable college, accepted every single credit from my community college Associates Degree but not one from UOP. So that makes a year and half completely wasted there.

In my opinion, nothing beats face to face learning. When you don't understand something the professor is right there to clarify and respond to questions. They have office hours where you can stop by at any time.

If online learning is working for you than all power to you but this was just not for me.

Brian Mueller has an extra e. I know its just typo and I am not nitpicking. I love what you wrote and wish something could be done. What about contacting our Congressmen or another government official? Incidently after the name on most of these it is @apollogrp.edu or @phoenix.edu. (sometimes both, I was in the IT department)

Thanks for the most insightful and intelligent contribution to Ripoff Report!

I didn't think it could happen again: Apollo Group (aka UOP, aka Amway U) stock, despite a $438 million dollar Apollo buy-back has now, again, been halved!

Chairman John Sperling drove the stock up to $82 with the buy-back, then, Apollo insiders exercised a million shares of stock options with YEARS remaining on the options.

The post-class-action-lawsuit-loss stock bashing was impressive: $82 to $55 to $41; another 50% stock loser, which no buy-back could forestall.

I doubt we'll see another buy-back; Apollo's cash reserves are dwindling. UOP now even has it's own lawsuit web-page, claiming it'll turn the Sept 2009 Plaintiffs, "on their heads". Yeah, just like they turned the Chicago cops on their heads, huh?

Naturally, to stem the tide, Amway U has hired more salespeople and spent a bunch more on marketing to capitalize on W.C. Fields profound philosophy: "there's a sucker born every minute". Rather than upgrade infrastructure and bring in quality professors, Amway U has simply decided to sign up more chumps, thereby dumbing-down their sorry programs even further.

Here's the next bold step for UOP: the "high-school dropout direct to Master's" program. It's seems that UOP conferring (or should I say anointing) "Master's" Degrees on GED students ain't cuttin' it. No, let's get radical: simply grant a Master's to a kindergartner and bypass education altogether.

"Pay the fee,
get a B,
that's the way,
at UOP!"

B. only got nasty with those who came in nasty.

He has already told us why he left, and he has never openly admitted he was one of the EAs who lied to people.

Over the last couple years many people have come into this thread and wrote the exact same gibberish as you - it has all been covered.

And how exactly is B supposed to make the changes over at UOPO? he doesn't even work there anymore. Plus, if you would have read the whole thread before opening you mouth, you would have seen that B has been very passionate about online learning and has discussed his philosophies with us.


(Sorry B, just in case you wanted to respond, just figured I would give you a break since you have responded to one of these every month.)

James,

While I know this blog is long with many entries, you should probably do your reading before making a comment. I could care less which language you would want to debate in because it is obvious that regardless of the language, you seem incapable of extracting the critical points from the reading material. Most of what you ask above has been asked and answered in prior posts. As for my responses turning rude, if you would have paid attention you would see that this happens under one of two circumstances. First, a UOP supporter enters my thread to defend UOP with no valid supporting documentation to refute my claims. I have provided multiple, factual points that can be verified by simple searches which no one has been able to counter.

So when people enter this blog spouting personal testimonials saying UOP is this great place and that I am lying, I go on the attack. It becomes obvious real quickly that they have no foundation to their claims, only personal testimony built on the fact that they are students and feel the need to defend the institution. Second, most of the people I go after, go after me first Just as you did here.

As you can read above on MULTIPLE occasions, you are not the first fool to chalk my posts up to be being a disgruntled employee. Since you asked for explanation, and you obviously need it spelled out for you here it goes.

As stated in my first few posts herein, there are good people at UOP. People who try to do things right, who try to do right by the students they assist. This does not overshadow the comprehensive issues plaguing UOP from a corporate standpoint. One individual or group of individuals is not going to change that place in any meaningful way because those who could act as change agents at the executive level are the ones creating the issues from the top down. As stated in many posts herein, I was very successful while I was there, I also did things the right way. I did not see the need to lie or manipulate students to get them to enroll. I did see others doing this because they did not posses the skills necessary to meet their job tasks without cheating or lying.

When I started at UOP, this problem existed but did not become systemic until approximately 2004 when the corporate culture changed drastically. Brian Muller went on a crusade to grow UOP. He instilled a cheap labor model, increased hiring but UOP did not increase prospective lead flow. Law of diminishing returns means more people working the same amount of leads results in a decrease of results per person. While it was obvious that many advisors were struggling to meet their minimum job performance expectations, the executive team made no attempt to rush adjustments to the performance expectation plan or compensation system. Many employees became desperate to keep their jobs by hitting their monthly performance goals. When you mix desperation with lack of resources, people resort to shady tactics in the name of self preservation.

When it became obvious to me that this was happening more and more, and the frustration was rampant in the organization I started to realize that things were turning for the worst. While this was just one of the many issues plaguing UOP, it was the one that impacted me and my associates the most. When the choice I had to make was between resorting to lying and cheating to hit my monthly goals, or simply leaving my position I chose to leave.

While this was explained in previous comments, you seemed to overlook those points because it did not support your claim. Typically a tactic of those without a clue.

Saving my own skin? From what? I will openly admit that when I started this blog 3 years ago it was done to expose UOP for what they had become and what they still are today. I was angry that an organization with so much potential to be a positive force chooses not to be. There is no reason for it to resort to the practices it engages in except the greed of a small few. In the end, I did help grow an organization I believe now to be inherently evil.

For that I do have regrets. Like with most traditional concepts of sin, the intent is what matters. My intent was positive but I am none the less guilty of contributing even if it was unknowingly. When I realized that no amount of effort would change things internally, I left in the hopes that other organizations in the online education field operate in a more ethical and positive manner. Luckily there are some that exist.

With regards to this blog, it is obvious that exposing potential consumers of UOP and existing users of UOP to the truth has an impact. The impact is on the only place that UOP cares about, their wallets. What you will see in coming years is UOP facing some major issues in the public arena. My points and stance about them as an organization has been validated on multiple occasions via lawsuits, government actions, and accreditation visits.

I truly hope that UOP rights the ship. I believe there is much riding on their success for an entire industry and millions of people who use online education. I just know that it will take a major blow to their bottom line to effect any significant or meaningful positive change. Perhaps the lawsuit of 2009 and temporary suspension of the Title IV funding could do it. Unfortunately, billion dollar organizations can buy their way out of trouble.

One more thing about your inability to pay attention. You say that you see no evidence of me trying to fix anything or provide a solution. Hello? Did you even read this blog? If you had, you would notice on multiple posts I try to offer guidance and assistance to those with questions. In fact, look a few posts up from this one where the guy was asking about Regis U.

Regardless of the language you use, when you comment on something without actually knowing what you're talking about, you sound like a fool. Yes, I am going after you here but if you notice you're the one that started it. If you're going to swing first you better be d**n sure you're going to be able to swing last.

First, I would like to know why your so upset B. I am going to chalk you up to disgruntled reemployed. I am going to tell you why. You never mention anything about the circumstances in which you finally left. You clearly have no remorse of the part you took. Indeed, I bet your money spent just fine.

You openly admit that you were part of the dubious practices going on. You clearly state what the Matrix is and how it works. You admit to being one off their highest paid people.

Now all of a sudden you are going to go Paladin on us? I do not believe you. Although I agree that there are things that are seedy things going on, (I am student trying to get out) I do not believe you created this thread to help others. I believe you did it because you are angry over something personal. Your tone is that of some one with a vendetta. Please do not tell me you quit because of seedy practices. If these practices are as horrible as you claim, a person of moral character would have gotten out long ago. I would have. I find it hard to believe that, after being one of their best for years, you would just go Paladin. I have yet to see you show any remorse for the part you took in this. Do you feel bad at all over it? I am getting the impression that you just might be trying to save you own skin. There is more you are obviously not telling us.

Also your mean character is clearly showed in you rudeness to others and your inability to debate the issues without becoming juvenile and insulting. This destroys your credibility. You seem like a man in the know, please tell me you are doing more than sitting at your computer trolling this thread.

You act like a crusader, yet you do not mention what other steps you have taken to solve this problem. I would like to know. In my humble opinion, people should not complain that much about an issue unless they are actively working on a solution. I have seen you offer none.

Before you start in on my spelling and grammar, I would like to invite you to disscuss the issues in German(my first language) with me. I doubt ill ever come back to this thread again, so maybe not.

First of all I find it ironic that the advertisement on this page right now is UOPO.

Second, wow three years worth of threads, took me a while to go through them.

Before I start, B if there is anyway to get in touch with you I would love to throw ideas back and forth, as I am writing a piece about "non-traditional" universities, hopefully for the Chronicle of Higher Education.

Now into the nitty gritty. I have been looking into getting into UOPO as an instructor, i could use the extra money and it would help me with this piece. I have already worked for Strayer, DeVry and a few other non-trad universities, although I taught on the ground most of the time. (I would like to mention that I am a dedicated professor, and do make sure that my students get the most out of a truncated class. It's not just about money to me.)

I also have had some experience with online education from the student standpoint, I have 2/3 of my masters from a Norwich University Masters Program. (although paying out of pocket has led me to put a temporary halt to it.)

I have come to the following conclusions about these types of programs:

First, I do believe that there is a place for non-traditional learning, and that venue is most likely going to be the most effective in an online setting. I think Asynchronous is probably the way to go, as synchronous seems to void the aspect of "learning on your own time."

Second, I do believe that degrees from the major online universities, are indeed, of less value (on the job market) than a degree from some of the worst brick and mortar CC and universities. Why do I say this? Because my research has shown it. (I will argue quality of student later, but I do want to mention that B&M institutions also let riftraft in, and that UOPO is not the only school with "morons") Also, this opinion is not because both of the degrees i have completed came from B&Ms.

TO those who have said they are employed in education during the course of this thread: were you employed in education BEFORE going to UOPO? If not, are you situated in a locale that Teach For America wouldn't even touch? Down here in Florida there are teachers that slip by on just HS diplomas, let alone a degree from any institution. I know that most public schools in the north will no longer consider UOPO degrees when looking for teachers. Why? Because they know the quality is much less than what their own institutions can provide, and their own institutions produce more than enough teachers for the north. It is not just Intel that does not want UOPO grads, the state systems of higher education in many states will not hire on someone with just UOPO graduate degrees anymore. If UOPO grads are not good enough to teach the populace, why are they good enough for business? I think this just strengthens B's point (i believe you made this point about a year ago) that the flood of UOPO grads that are subpar (and there are some that are NOT subpar) is leading to the deterioration of American business capabilities. In other words, a glut of unqualified graduates are bringing down the standard for US business.

TO that one poster that claimed she was an adjunct, big whoop - I was an adjunct at a CC before I graduated my BA. Lets turn it again, are you an adjunct at a UOP ground campus? I think there may be a good chance that you are. Academic nepotism at UOP seems to be rampant. Don't believe, just go search for some UOP professors on google many will have degrees (and a lot of these it will be their only graduate degree) from UOP.

As B has stated, working professionals are not always the best teachers, especially in a 5 week period. IF your only credentials is working at UOP and getting a degree there, are those really credentials for teaching?

Third, the education is subpar in general. YEah, I know some of you have worked real hard and you may be learning much, but in general the courses are easier at these non-trad universities. This is due to many factors B and others have stated over the years (
I was teaching a course which should have never been taught in the 8 week hybrid (online and in classroom 4 hours a week) form DeVry uses at its ground campuses. I should have known something was up when three weeks into the course i was told by my dean and by my mentor that I had to "dumb down" (exact words) the course because of many excuses made by these faculty members, a few of which include: students could barely read; form sentences; were not interested in your subject; were aloud to plagiarize in other classes, so it is ok;could not sit the whole four hours or take physical tests; amongst other excuses. Ok I thought, I am teaching a 400 (4th year at a normal university) course - there should be some standard.

at the end of the class, I had one student who showed up to three courses and did not participate online (required) - I failed them. I had another student who was not smart enough to at least change up wikipedia articles before submitting a paper. Since he came to every class and he participated, I gave him many chances to redo his work, he did and he got a C. (Although he begged for an A because his GPA needed it, I do have standards and probably breeched them by not failing him in the first place.) Everyone else in the class received an A or B, although only two deserved it. Anyway, my dean asked me why would I fail said student and mark the other so low? Well I thought that was obvious and I told him. He then replied, "well we have to keep them enrolled."

The student who got a C had been given a B, because they had attended every class, and the Dean thought that should count for something. THe failed student was given an A!!!! WTF? The dean would never answer my questions about said student's grade. If you are going to keep someone afloat, give them a C not an A. But... I am pretty sure I know why they were given their grade. On the last day of class, this last student showed up in a pretty provocative outfit and had to talk to me urgently after class. For you UOPO graduates (sorry could not resist the poke) i will explain it to you. I was offered favors for grades, and turned her down. I guess she just went up the food chain.

Anyway, I have not had the same experience at Strayer and they seemed to have a more teacher friendly policy. I am trusted with my grades there. So this just goes to show that not every non-trad university is the same, as UOP may not be like that on the ground, but I have been told by instructor friends that it is, in fact, that way online. As B has pointed out, there is a heavy curve to keep students in attendance. For-profit universities are often misguided in the way they handle academics.

Okay that was a long example, but I will get back to the thread at hand.

I do believe that if UOP was perhaps reshaped it could be much better - however I personally would never risk a degree from UOP because of all the situations that have tarnished their name. Even if they change names (ie firestone, bridgestone anybody?) people are still going to associate them with crumby education. Much safer for people to start programs with Universities that are less known, but still offer decent programs. For that matter I would stay away from ITT because of the flak it has taken in recent years. I am going to take a look at NCU's programs just to see what a "not-so-popular" school is like in the online arena. Although my PhD is going to be from a B&M, but then again I am in the Humanities and it is near impossible to land a tenured job with an online degree... This is probably a bias that won't fade for another 20 years.

And since I have forgotten many of the points I wanted to make in this overly long point, i will leave on this last note.

When I was searching for PhD school (and this is all traditional schools) I searched for one with reputation in my field that would allow me to get a job afterwards, one that I wanted. This philosophy needs to be taken at the BA and MA level with online and trad schools. Is the UOP degree really going to get you where you want to go, or is the name recognition so bad that no one is going to hire you. Just like in the academic world, employers like hiring committees at Universities, know a bad school name when it comes up on the application.


Yeah many UOP grads have found success (like 2 out of 100k are in fortune 500s! lol) but the numbers are skewed because so many people already had those decent jobs first. BUT, I have good news for all you UOP graduates as you flood the market. Since the degree is becoming so common, in 20 years it will be worth something - even if UOP continues to just stamp diplomas. Why? because UOP graduates will be the vast majority of the workforce, so there will always be someone willing to hire one!

One correction to something said before by a poster,
"who would hire a UOP graduate over an IVY leaguer?" The answer: another UOP graduate.

How may Rip-Off Report contributors have been railing for a class-action lawsuit against UOP? (aka Apollo, aka AmwayU...I'll hereinafter refer to UOP as "Apollo"; it's not a University, but is the "Amway of Education" and carries about the same respect).

Well, the Policeman's Annuity and Benefit Fund of Chicago filed a class-action fraud suit against in Apollo in the Phoenix-based US District Court. The case was tried in Phoenix, in front of a Phoenix jury, who found, by a 12-0 vote, on January 16th, Apollo guilty of FRAUD.

Damages of $277 million were awarded to the Chicago cops and Apollo shareholders.

Apollo was begging for this; they had these stats on their side: since 1996, this was the fourth securities fraud case, out of 2,218 filed, in which the jury found for the Plaintiff (0.18034% success ratio). Based on the prior 10 years' cases, Apollo went in with a 99.81% chance of winning--and lost, by a 12-0 vote of Phoenix jurors.

What was the case about? Apollo failed to inform it's shareholders a 1.5 billion dollar taxpayer rip-off fraud lawsuit against is going forward against Apollo. The trial is set for Sept. 15, 2009. Yes, folks, it seems your student loan money, your tax dollars, have paid for sales commissions and Hawaiian vacations. Heck, you even blew 157 million on a "University of Phoenix" stadium in Glendale in a two-business bidding contest which Apollo CEO Brian Mueller stated was necessary for "credibility". The other bidder? You guessed it, "The Pink Taco" (love that name!) Mexican restaurant bid 30 million.

John Sperling, Founder and Chairman of Apollo read the writing on the wall: between Jan. 14th and 16th (jury verdict) Sperling, and his brother Peter sold over a million shares of Apollo stock at $82 a share. How did Apollo's price get to $82? They repurchased $438 million of their own stock! Today, Apollo closed at $55. (Funny, the stock options sold had seven years remaining on them).

John Sperling knows there's a sucker born every minute (that's you, ROR chumps). That's how Apollo makes money. Apollo knows you can't bust on your federal student loans--you've got to pay 'em back, even if you bankrupt.

Apollo has done this before: their stock was limping at $5. The "51% rule" (for federal student loan funding, a school had to offer 51% of it's classes on-campus) was keeping Apollo from making an on-line killing. John Sperling sent Apollo lobbyist Sally Stroup to Washington so that Sally would grease the palms of John Boehner and Tom DeLay. Once Bush was elected, Boehner and DeLay pimped Sally to Become Undersecretary of Education (in charge of student loans!!!). Sally immediately granted an "experimental" waiver of the 51% rule to Apollo and the stock soared to $100. Eventually, Boehner tried to make the waiver law (as part of the Katrina Relief package!) but that got tabled. Once Boehner became House Majority leader, the 51% rule was rescinded and Apollo ran wild. That, readers, is how your student loan monies turned into sales commissions, rather than educational infrastructure and salaries for great professors.

As of this writing, Bank of America has revised the Apollo stock target price from
$90 to $58, citing "corporate tuition reimbursement risk." Translation: Intel won't pay another dime for it's employees getting a crummy "education". And, the stock has been downgraded to a "sell."

Will Apollo go away? Of course not. There's a sucker born every minute. And, like Amway, Apollo has found the perfect siren song to lure the suckers: an on-line home study MBA, no pre-qualifying, hell, you don't even need a BA to get an MBA: a GED will do

Apollo is the Amway of the Millenium: like Amway, they bought stadium naming rights (Orlando's Amway Arena); like Amway, it's wildly expensive, yet has a horrible reputation; like Amway, it's nothing more that an MLM scheme with an "educational" twist; like Amway, Apollo will never go away: there are just too many suckers out there; like Amway, Apollo shatters lives.

Why would I put this essay at the bottom of "B"s thread? Because, B's factual, insider approach has yet to be impeached or refuted. Read the beginnings of this guy's thread regarding the Intel memo. Then, Google UOP and Intel; B had the 411 on Intel/UOP months before the media broke the story.

I appreciate your work, B.

They didn't even have all my classes in my schedule listed at first, and didn't change it until I mentioned something about it (Planned Obsolesce/Failure?). They for some reason started distributing my "excess" funds in two checks instead of the usual one check. I don't know why they would do this unless giving them a few more days of using my money to their benefit really makes any difference. I told them to take my loan money, and they did, but then when my pell grant money arrived they sent it to me about two weeks after the money had been dispersed to them. I just recently received my 1098t form and on it the list my taxable income as being much lower than what it actually is. They basically lied and said they took my grant money part of my loan money, and made no mention as to why they are about $1,000.00 short on the form. Wouldn't that get ME in trouble when I file my taxes here in about a week?

I am going to this school for Information Technology, and ever since I enrolled I've had the thought that I've made a huge mistake . Going here for my associates degree is going to end up costing $19,000+. I am pretty sure that I want to transfer out of this school into one that is actually accredited in my field. The problem is that I have no idea what other schools would be good to go to, and would accept the credits from uophx. I don't want to waste the over 5k I have invested already. I currently have a 3.84GPA, and if you have any suggestions for an American citizen living outside the US currently please shoot me an e-mail or a reply to this message. Take note that a ground school isn't for me, because I have two very young kids (2 years, and 4 months). I seek a well accredited institution, and (no seriously it's not a joke) want to get my Bachelors from M.I.T. but I know that they will NOT accept UOPHX credits. Hell I wouldn't accept UOPHX credits if I were a gas station manager, let alone an actual real accredited university. You know what the biggest thing that angers me is? The instructors think that because they are employed by UOPHX they are geniuses. God, they might as well be Apple employees.

Thank you, N.

Thank you B, yes it helps a bunch!

What other schools "may not matter but I live in CA" for an online degree in IT would you reco?

Tia,

Regis was one of the first traditional ground campuses to really embrace the online format. With that, they are ahead of the other traditional entities offering online courses and degrees. They are well known for the quality of their K-12 Masters of Education programs. I believe they have a few other offerings outside of Education as well. From what I know, they appear to have a solid program and good brand name. From what I have heard, they still treat admissions much like a traditional entity even for their online offerings, possibly requiring a series of essays to enter or even the GMAT or GRE exam.

I would say for education based programs, they would be a good option but please do your homework on their comprehensive services for out of state online students. Compare that to the overall time/cost investment vs. some other entities. The time/cost includes the pre-test costs if they still require those. Most of your for-profit online entities will not have the same testing requirements. Although Regis is a good program, I'm not sure any additional efforts or investments would pay more of a return to you than with any other online degree program from an accredited school.

Hope this helps.

Tia,

Regis was one of the first traditional ground campuses to really embrace the online format. With that, they are ahead of the other traditional entities offering online courses and degrees. They are well known for the quality of their K-12 Masters of Education programs. I believe they have a few other offerings outside of Education as well. From what I know, they appear to have a solid program and good brand name. From what I have heard, they still treat admissions much like a traditional entity even for their online offerings, possibly requiring a series of essays to enter or even the GMAT or GRE exam.

I would say for education based programs, they would be a good option but please do your homework on their comprehensive services for out of state online students. Compare that to the overall time/cost investment vs. some other entities. The time/cost includes the pre-test costs if they still require those. Most of your for-profit online entities will not have the same testing requirements. Although Regis is a good program, I'm not sure any additional efforts or investments would pay more of a return to you than with any other online degree program from an accredited school.

Hope this helps.

Tia,

Regis was one of the first traditional ground campuses to really embrace the online format. With that, they are ahead of the other traditional entities offering online courses and degrees. They are well known for the quality of their K-12 Masters of Education programs. I believe they have a few other offerings outside of Education as well. From what I know, they appear to have a solid program and good brand name. From what I have heard, they still treat admissions much like a traditional entity even for their online offerings, possibly requiring a series of essays to enter or even the GMAT or GRE exam.

I would say for education based programs, they would be a good option but please do your homework on their comprehensive services for out of state online students. Compare that to the overall time/cost investment vs. some other entities. The time/cost includes the pre-test costs if they still require those. Most of your for-profit online entities will not have the same testing requirements. Although Regis is a good program, I'm not sure any additional efforts or investments would pay more of a return to you than with any other online degree program from an accredited school.

Hope this helps.

Tia,

Regis was one of the first traditional ground campuses to really embrace the online format. With that, they are ahead of the other traditional entities offering online courses and degrees. They are well known for the quality of their K-12 Masters of Education programs. I believe they have a few other offerings outside of Education as well. From what I know, they appear to have a solid program and good brand name. From what I have heard, they still treat admissions much like a traditional entity even for their online offerings, possibly requiring a series of essays to enter or even the GMAT or GRE exam.

I would say for education based programs, they would be a good option but please do your homework on their comprehensive services for out of state online students. Compare that to the overall time/cost investment vs. some other entities. The time/cost includes the pre-test costs if they still require those. Most of your for-profit online entities will not have the same testing requirements. Although Regis is a good program, I'm not sure any additional efforts or investments would pay more of a return to you than with any other online degree program from an accredited school.

Hope this helps.

Hi, sorry if double post but don't see my original post. What are your thoughts regarding Regis University? Simple online degree bashers need not respond.

What is your opinion B and other intellegent people that are posting here.

TIA!

My husband is in his 4th week of class and is interested in transfering to a different school but we are unsure of what will happen with his financial if he does this and now we are concerned with what will happen with the money that has already been given to UOP and the the two classes he is currently enrolled in through them. Do you have any advice as to what to do so that we do not come up with the same problems that others have come across?

Rocco came and played a game, a game he could not win
Elitist pride and undue ego, these traits were Rocco's sin
It's better to be thought a fool and simply close one's mouth,
Than to speak of things from ignorance and remove a single doubt
My daddy is a lobbyist the execs, they bow! you hail
Give poor old daddy's back a break and quit riding on his coattails.
Dartmouth is a top end school, a great place to begin.
But even at Dartmouth, as you prove, d****ebags still get in

I would take a different approach here if you really want anyone to take you seriously.
At first you just appeared misinformed and a bit illiterate. After a few exchanges now you're revealed yourself to be a spoiled, elitist, ignorant, entitled, brat who rides his fathers successes as if they were his own. You are officially the male version of Paris Hilton.

Saying I win is typically code for, I'm getting my a** kicked in here and I have to pretend like I don't care and this is my last posting

What else you got Rocco?

So u have assessed my intellect based off of a couple of posts and u call yourself logical? No the executives don't hang out with interns... USUALLY! My dad is a lobbyist i could get them on the phone right now if i bitched enough to him! U and I both know brick and mortar institutions are the best way to go if u want a better career!

Sitting in front of a screen all day can't teach u the things u need to know to succeed in life but college can. Say wat u will with ur online UOP mba but wat it comes down to is the statisics which show that online grads don't far as well in the job market as regular grads!

Im an undergraduate at dartmouth and u were a fly by hight con artist with a fake mba! I win =)

Ahhh, so disappointed.

See Rocky, I tried to keep this civil with a bit of sarcasm. It is obvious that your lack of intellect and insight into this topic leaves you resorting to insults and incoherent points. You revealed yourself truly with one comment. I AM AN INTERN (KPMG is a big company, I'm sure all the executives hang out with interns....) While I don't doubt the legitimacy of KPMG in the tax and audit field, the fact that you are an intern only proves many of the points I made earlier. The fact that you are an intern demonstrates that you lack significant knowledge and more importantly, the insight experience brings. This is why you're an intern. I am not knocking interns here, I hire interns too. I'm only knocking one intern who believes they know more about a subject they obviously know nothing about. In fact, your whole comprehensive doctrine surrounding online education seems to have been hijacked from a few other people's opinions, given that those opinions conveniently align with your belief system. Here's a thought, try thinking for yourself. Better yet, go experience something before you comment on it.

Elite? Perhaps you are referring to Ivy Leagues. Great, tell me this you educational fascist, what prompted the "Ivy League"? Let me give you a hint, it had nothing to do with academics If college athletics make institutions elite, then I guess the national champion each year means that's the best academic institution.

Do this, read through that series of posts between the two of us. Try to do this without personal bias, consider it an intern research project. Ask yourself, if you were a 3rd party reading this exchange, would you consider the points you make valid? Considering you have been completely outclassed in every aspect of this discussion I would figure you would just quit. I sincerely hope you don't because this just adds to my blog. The fact that you take the stance you take, but make the points you make, only supports my case that people who take issue with online education typically don't have a good reason why and cannot face the fire when it comes to a logical debate. Every time, without fail, they do what you have done.

With regards to my life and your LOL. You're an intern. Enough said.

Yes, a blog is a dorky hobby, but I obviously embrace it. You want to call me into question? Let's put it this way, you're basically calling me a loser. This reflects poorly on you. Not because you're a bad sport, but because if I am a loser, you just got your a*s demolished and dominated in every way by some loser. Where does that leave you?

Anything else there Rocco? If not, the secretary on the 3rd floor is out of paperclips so get back to work.

U worked for UOP and were low paid to do so i take it u don't have that gr8 of a job now right? I intern with KPMG ( sure hope u know the signifigance of that) and ive had several discussions with some of the hiearchy there and they believe online education for an undergraduate is a joke! Im not gonna debate with you anymore on the validity of online education b/c u can't debate the statistics of low job placement and lack of networking possiblities!

Im sure estanford or ecornell is just had hard to get into as the real institution and i never said many good colleges don't offer online programs! I SAID ELITE! Throw ur online piece of paper around all u want but instead of doing this how about u tell me where u are with ur life lol. So u as an employer would take excuses lol. Where the hell have u been corporations don't give a flying s**t about ur family or your feelings!

Diva,
Did you take a class? By this I mean did you enter the class by logging in and posting 2 or more times in any given week?

If you did, you owe the money. Disclosure of failing to meet the minimum academic requirements for admission is your responsibility. They will say that you claimed to be eligible for the program you entered, so they allowed you into the program on good faith.

Their application for admissions requires that you submit minimum confirmation of educational background. If you did not enter anything on the prior educational history and can prove that your application shows you were ineligible and no one told you, you may have a chance to fight it. This is not impossible and I've seen advisors alter applications to show minimum requirements just so they can get the enrollment. However, you'll have to prove the advisor altered your application. The only way to do that is to prove another IP address, other than they ones you typically use, accessed your application website by logging in as you at any point in the admissions process.

Good luck with that.

In the end, 99.99% chance you will need to pay the money owed

Your comment: As an employer would u rather have an employee who had a rigorous concrete daily college schedule or an at your leisure online program?

Your tactic here is extreme contrasts. On one hand you place traditional education in the category of rigorous and on the other hand you place online in the category of leisurely. This is often seen in the with us or against us mentality. It is not that black and white. Having to show up at a specific time in a specific location does not mean the course was rigorous. Being able to access a course of study when your personal schedule allows you to does not mean the course is leisurely.

To respond to your statement above, I will do so as an employer. When I interview a candidate there are many elements I am looking at. Education is simply one of the elements. Educational background is a pre-screening qualify, not the determining factor in the quality of the candidate. As I review a resume, if I see that a candidate completed a bachelor or graduate degree and it is apparent they did so while working full time, it speaks volumes. If you assume that all online students simply lounge around all day and have no other responsibilities you are mistaken. If you want to talk about rigor, work an 8-9 hour day, commute an hour each way, pick your kids up, cook them dinner, help them with their homework, put them to bed the go to school. Traditional education has left these professionals largely without a viable option. Online opens the opportunity for them. Leisurely? I think not.

Let's also talk about the need for both theory and application. Reading Dr. Spock's book on raising a child and actually raising a child are very different things. This is not to say that theory isn't important. You learn a great deal of important foundational knowledge as an undergrad. But how you apply that knowledge in practice is critical. This is why internships and work-study programs are so valuable. So as an employer, who would you rather hire, someone that has all theoretical knowledge (traditional bachelor graduate) or someone who either completed internships as part of their program or who worked full time and attended an online college? For me, the fact that I know they obtained both the theoretical knowledge and the application experience is extremely valuable.

If you want to test this theory go find some young children. Spend two weeks explaining to them how to ride a bike, let them read a book on it, but don't let them get on a bike until they successfully pass a test over the information learned in the past two weeks. Once they pass, put them on the bike without training wheels and push them How many of them do you think will simply ride away smoothly vs. crashing? Next try the same thing with swimming Welcome to the world of business. This is why a bachelor degree from a traditional or online institution with no experience will only get you an entry level position 90% of the time. Who would I hire? Whoever the best candidate is. Let's be clear on something. Any degree, online or ground, guarantees nothing except and opportunity that may not be there unless you have it.

Your comment: If u come in to do the exam 10 minutes late well then u fail it!

Unfortunately, my employees must be late every now and then. If I assume they don't have lives outside of work, I'm foolish. Being 10 minutes late does not negate the need for their job to get done. This is a time management issue, not a something relevant to how well they actually do their job. You are contrasting social etiquette skills to theoretical & application based knowledge. Yes it is important personally and professionally to be on time. But if you think the only place you can learn how to do that is traditional college you are fooling yourself. This point has no relevance to traditional education quality being somehow superior to online or to the idea that traditional students are superior to online students. In the real world if I fired somebody every time they were late, I'd be dealing with a dysfunctional turnover rate and a production problem. Thus, out of business.

Your comment: In my opinion u simply don't get an adequate education without the deadlines and mandatory classroom time periods!

By this comment I can only assume you have no experience or limited experience with online education. If you did have experience, this comment would not have been made. Please try to avoid taking a stance such as this when it is obvious by conducting even the most minimal amount of research that online education does retain deadlines and even a mandatory class/time period at the majority of institutions.


Your comment: If online education isn't inferior to traditional education then how come most of the elite institutes do not offer online degrees?

Again, please do your research. Ever heard of Cornell (eCornell), Stanford, even Harvard? I would include the links but ROR blocks them out. There are literally hundreds of traditional, well known, well respects campuses offering online degrees and courses. Did you know you can get an online MBA from Colorado State? Here's one more, ever heard of Thunderbird College? Check them out and see if they are or are not considered one of the top business schools in the world then see if they offer an online degree


Your comment: Its wat you do that counts and online graduates simply don't cut it in the real world in my opinion!

I'm an online grad, I do very well in the real world. Please quantify what counts as cutting it. Considering two factors: 1. Online enrollment significantly outpaces that of traditional and even traditional education now offers online. 2. Online students are already in the real world. I would say your statement lacks weight.

Is your contention that a graduate of Colorado's St.s MBA program online is inferior to the graduate who attended ground? What if they did a mixed online/ground program? Is only the degree valid?

Your comment: Would people want to vote for a senator who sat at home on the computer all day during his college years?

Who knows. What we do know is that Americans are more than willing to vote for a coke sniffing, draft-dodging, alcoholic, C student with a speech impediment for a double term. I'm guessing online education is low on this list of no-no's when it comes to politics if good ole' Jorge is still in office. Let's face it, he's set the bar pretty low. Most people could trip over it, online degree or not

My EA nor the AA never verified my previous schooling info. I have graduated from high school yet, so how did I even attend college? Now I being sent to collections for non-paid courses. Can I fight this?

I guess u and I have different views of education. I view education as a way to make yourself seem more appealing to potential employers and to gain practical real life skills. As an employer would u rather have an employee who had a rigorous concrete daily college schedule or an at your leisure online program? College is more about when you do the work than how u do the work or how well u do the work even. If u come in to do the exam 10 minutes late well then u fail it! Obviously u might learn more material if u can do it unrestrained by dates but in real life there r dates and deadlines.

In my opinion u simply don't get an adequate education without the deadlines and mandatory classroom time periods! If online education isn't inferior to traditional education then how come most of the elite institutes do not offer online degrees? Without the job placement and prominent alumni to back it up, wat is a university? I believe its the impact the university has on the world that makes it a worthwhile organization! Without that its just a paper mill.

Just having an impact on the minds of those who participate is simply not enough! Who cares wat you know or wat u say? Its wat you do that counts and online graduates simply don't cut it in the real world in my opinion! Would people want to vote for a senator who sat at home on the computer all day during his college years?

Normally I welcome criticism focused at UOP. In this case, the comments you make are directed at online education in general. As I have stated many times in my posts herein, I am a supporter of online education. UOP is the issue, not online education. Because of that I'll put some time in here and respond to your points.

You began your post with What is UOP's career placement rate? As with any online institution, it is relatively low. This has nothing to do with the quality of education. It has to do with the student demographic population at an online college verses a traditional entity. If you look at the research (Check Eduventures) the overwhelming majority of online students are 1. Adults. 2. Professionals. This means they are already in a career looking to advance within their organization or field. It becomes obvious that a college with 1000 bachelor graduates or master graduates that have never held a career position would have a much higher career placement rate than an online college with 1000 graduates already working in career. Don't let a generational bias be your gauge for academic quality. One has nothing to do with another.

Your second point has to do with AACSB (I assume that's what you meant when referring to AASCB) AACSB Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. Only institutions with business programs are eligible for AACSB. This has no reflection on their other academic offerings and programs. This is not a gauge of institutional academic quality or regulation as with regional accreditation. It is simply a gold star for a specific school within an entity. There are plenty of great institutions, online or traditional, that do not have AACSB accreditation for their schools of business. This point has no real relevance to the argument surrounding the academic quality between online and traditional. If you research the AACSB you'll find the focus of accreditation surrounds the full time faculty ratios and backgrounds, not the academic program delivery.

With regards to online accepting anyone, and that somehow being a bad thing, well I guess that point depends on how you look at it. Yes, top Ivy League & traditional institutions try to limit enrollment to the top percentile by pre-measuring tests & essays. Good for them. What about the other 98% of high school graduates? What about the other 3 billion working Americans that might want to advance their education, learn something, and better themselves? Is your stance that only certain people should have the privilege of learning? Is it fair to require a professional with 20 years experience to take a test geared towards recent graduates of high school? If that same business professional fails to hit a high score on the GMAT, does this mean they shouldn't be able to learn in a master degree? If this is your stance please consider this. Unless you are a wealthy, white male, not to long ago you too would have been viewed as someone not worthy of learning. Let's go ahead and put the academic elitism away for now.

An individuals potential is not always apparent via testing. Do I feel that there should not be some measurement of academic integrity? No. However, I believe that like most things, the proof is in the pudding. If someone should be failing a class because of sub-par academics, then they should fail the class. Many online colleges treat their students just like traditional colleges. Failure is failure. UOP tends to pass people just so they can get the next courses tuition dollars. This lowers the academic standard. This however, is not a gauge of online education, just UOP.

With regards to waking up in the morning and going to class. Kudos to you. But I don't remember simply waking up and going to class as being an indicator of your standard as a student, or the quality of an institution. Some folks have a job and a family. In your world I guess those are excuses and the only valid way to learn is to do it the same way as you. Again, academic elitism. Let's be real, when you learn is irrelevant. Your next point is on how you learn: Online vs traditional face to face. Okay, so this is essentially a proximity argument then? Great! Along those lines I should learn more when sitting in the front of the class than in the back. In fact, any interface outside of interpersonal face to face relation of knowledge is somehow invalid. This means that although you read an author's books, you didn't really learn anything because he or she didn't relay it to you in person. So pretty much any medium, TV, books, internet, music, telephone, video conference, etc. These are all things to be avoided as they are invalid forms of communication or relation of information

It's amazing that those mediums are so popular today considering that there is no way people are getting the same information they would if they were there in person. Okay, I'll put the sarcasm away for now. If you are going to say that online education is inferior simply because of the modus of delivery, you are taking a stance that fails every legitimate litmus test. It is not when or how someone learned, it is what and if they learned. If quality and legitimacy are measured by face to face medium, you can tell my online stock broker that I really don't need to pay him because his services don't count. I'm sure he'd disagree with you and his fat salary seems real enough

The difference between being an academic and being an academic elitist is this. An academic believes their way of learning/teaching is the best way for them to learn/teach. An academic elitist believes their way of learning/teaching is the best and only way for everyone to learn/teach. Kinda like being religious, or being a religious fanatic. It's a big leap from praying to jihad.

Last point about state schools ASU is a state school. ASU is by no means the gold standard of academics

In the end, if online is so far inferior to traditional, why are so many traditional entities offering online degrees? It either is or is not a valid form of education. It cannot be both. So we're much better off judging an individual institution's quality based upon track record and merit. The online vs. traditional argument no longer applies. There is too much grey area.

Enough with the academic elitism. The problem here is UOP, not online education.

If all of this is true and it really is a diploma mill that would lead me to believe that most people who recieve degrees from this institution don't recieve job offers in their fields of study before or after graduation. I mean that is kinda pathetic its not even accredited by the AASCB. Even the lowest ranking state colleges where I live are accredited by AASCB.

I cannot believe some moron on here would compare this diploma mill to Ivy leagues. Ivy leagues accept only the top GPAs and test scores while this ripoff accepts anyone. U don't even have to take SAT, ACT GMAT, OR GRE!! WTF is up with that?

I love how the person defending UOP tries to bring up GPA lol. Who cares wat gpa u get in a fake online university? It doesn't count in real life if the school itself doesn't count! It sicken's me how people think that their online degree is just as valid as the one im working so hard right now for!

My degree is from a college where u have to get up in the morning and be there at the same time every day. Its not some online joke where u trade emails lol. I meet people face to face and learn how to deal with REAL people in REAL life not over the phone or on the internet!

Seriously Just go to a state school so u don't have problems with the validity of your degree

Wow, your letter really hit home. I have been doing TONS of research lately on these three colleges and have been appauled. I am going to be brief because the more I talk about it them more upset I get... I recently transfered over to finish my degree to UOP. I started with WIU back in 2003. I was told I get a 20% discount on my classes because I am a spouse of active duty military and I was sold! I thought finally I can finish my degree online since we move around so much, needless did I know I was going to get the short in of the stick at the end.

Anyway to make a long story short I never got the 20% discount was transferred over to Axia to finish my associates (which I did), then UOP which I just completed my second class (and my last one) and just found out I paid 20,241.00 for an associates degree..unbelivable. It is not so much the amount but the fact that I was lied to and now they are saying they have nothing to do with WIU and they never offered a 20% discount at WIU or Axia...go figure. Of course no one works there anymore that helped me like my counsler who enrolled me Sanjeev the 20% guy... If anyone had the same military discount or knows about it the 20% back in 2003 I would greatly appreciate your help in proving them wrong! Sincerely, Kim

You'll be upset when you receive your first bill from UoP, and realize you agreed to pay $15K for an Associates degree, when you can enroll in a local community college and pay no more than $5K for the same degree.

I'm still in UoP, but only for another two weeks.

Response to Current Student in Wisconsin

Ladies and gentlemen who might be reviewing this post, please, please, I beg of you, read Mr/Ms Current Student's post. Notice he or she mentions a 3.5 GPA. This is the type of student you would be in class with Scary right?

If this guy or gall can pull a 3.5 GPA, I have a retarded hamster that will graduate Valedictorian

Current Student: Thanks again for supporting my cause, feel free to come back and post any time. Your post was freakin' awesome

A friend of mine was contemplating signing up for Phoenix Online Classes and she wanted me to help her to fill out the financial information. She was a stay-at-home mom that did not have the time for campus classes. The cost was astronomical, but they made it look appealing to her because of the convenience of time. I put my phone on speaker so she could hear the conversation, then called the Registration Office at the University of Georgia in Athens. I asked them if they would accept credits from The University of Phoenix Online and they adamantly said no. If a school is in the "University System" they will accept credits from one school to the next - so if UOP is supposedly accredited, then why won't UGA take their credits on transfer? It's pretty clear to me. My friend decided not to enroll. Good call.
C

A friend of mine was contemplating signing up for Phoenix Online Classes and she wanted me to help her to fill out the financial information. She was a stay-at-home mom that did not have the time for campus classes. The cost was astronomical, but they made it look appealing to her because of the convenience of time. I put my phone on speaker so she could hear the conversation, then called the Registration Office at the University of Georgia in Athens. I asked them if they would accept credits from The University of Phoenix Online and they adamantly said no. If a school is in the "University System" they will accept credits from one school to the next - so if UOP is supposedly accredited, then why won't UGA take their credits on transfer? It's pretty clear to me. My friend decided not to enroll. Good call.
C

A friend of mine was contemplating signing up for Phoenix Online Classes and she wanted me to help her to fill out the financial information. She was a stay-at-home mom that did not have the time for campus classes. The cost was astronomical, but they made it look appealing to her because of the convenience of time. I put my phone on speaker so she could hear the conversation, then called the Registration Office at the University of Georgia in Athens. I asked them if they would accept credits from The University of Phoenix Online and they adamantly said no. If a school is in the "University System" they will accept credits from one school to the next - so if UOP is supposedly accredited, then why won't UGA take their credits on transfer? It's pretty clear to me. My friend decided not to enroll. Good call.
C

I feel that everyone that has something negative to say about University of Pheonix must be just plain evil. i have been enrolled with th university ofPhoenix since august of 2007 and i love it.

I talk with each of my councilors at least once a week and they explain anything new that is taking place and answer any questions that I have about my classes or the school. They are a grop of individuals who do not deserve alll the slander.

I believe that the writer of this repeort is just angry because they lost their job, get over it and move on, yo ay you were one of the top paid, if they were so bad you wold have worked there for the years you did and yu would especially wouldn't have went to the university yourself.

i have had nothing butgood things happen to me since i started this school. i t i right for me i go to school when i have time and i am doing great currently averaging a 3.5 GPA. i couldn't ask for a better school. When i need tutoring i just go to my campus in brookfield and they have workshops you can go to online. Other universities and colleges that i have researched have never been this dedicated to ther estudents and my instructor comments o eveyones discussion question and its like we all get one on one time with our instructors.

All i can say is that with out the University of Pheonix I don't know where i would be i have always wanted to go to college but i have two kids and work third shift as a receptionist and it just is not possible with my schedule but when i heard about UOP then everything changed and it chaged for the best. Now i m much closer to forfilling my dream of strting my own business as an event coordinator.

Thank you to all the staff and faculty and UOP. I really love you for giving me this oppurtunity that would never have been possible without you.

Argosy is a private for-profit entity. They typically have pretty good programs, services and support online. They do have multiple ground campuses throughout the US. Tuition is often a little higher than most people prefer, right around $1400 per online course and $54000 for a full 120 credit BA degree. That works out to $10,920 for a 24 credit hour academic year. This is due to the fact that Argosy uses Federal Funding and they know you are eligible for loans in the amount of:
$7400 yr 1
$8300 yr 2
$10,500 yr 3
$10,500 yr 4
$10,500 yr 5
Referring to a 24 credit hour academic year 120credits/24credits per year = 5 years.

Grand total = $47,200 in loans. So if you don't qualify for Pell Grants too, you're paying approximately $8,000 out of pocket for tuition assuming you're not transferring any credits. In my opinion, that's expensive. But that all depends on if you're starting as a freshman or a junior.


With regards to Fort Hays, I know very little about them. What I do know about traditional campuses trying to offer online degrees is that in general, they're not very good at it. In the movie Fight Club Brad Pitt makes a comment about "sticking feathers in your butt does not make you a chicken..." This rings true with traditional education entities suddenly offering online courses. There is more to online than just translating ground based curriculum into an online format. I would be weary of many traditional education entities who offer online. They don't invest money into servicing the online student's needs. They treat you like a ground based student, the problem is that you're not a ground based. I would drill them on their services for online students before enrolling.

If you're coming in as a freshman or sophomore, take a look at Rio Salado Online out of Arizona. It is a member of state funded Maricopa Community Colleges. You can get your AA degree for around $7200 then transfer elsewhere. If you're coming in as a junior or senior check out either National University for their psych program ($1215 per class) if you need to use a Stafford Loan. Or Northcentral University ($825 per class) if you're not planning on using a Stafford Loan.

Either way, good luck.

B

I've been enrolled with UoP for approximately six months now, and I can't stand it. The assignments are hard to understand, or even find to complete. Luckily, I have a federal grant, which is paying for my time there, but I'm dropping out at the end of this semester. I was all about UoP, until I started to realize the price for the education.

At UoP, I'll spend approximately $12K-15K for an associates degree, while I can goto a local community college, and have a better hands-on experience, for less than $5K. I can understand how UoP is getting money, simply because I work a full-time job, have a family, and have a son. I'm constantly busy, and wanted an easy way out. But, I've realized a simple conclusion, YOU CAN'T FIND AN EASY EDUCATION! So, with all that being said, quit trying to take the easy route, as it'll be much more difficult in the long run.

They are accredited, but as previously mentioned, it doesn't mean anything. I've learned that employers take an "online degree" as a waste of time and money.

The simple advice I can give, don't waste your time or money. It'll be tough, but find a local community college or university.

B-
I have enjoyed all of the information that you have provided! I was considering enrolling at the Western International University- initially, I was turned off by the "hard sell" approach that I have encountered so far. If they are so great, why are they trying to push me into enrolling?? After reading all of the comments on this thread, I will definately be looking elsewhere.....

In my research, I have come across a couple of schools- I am interested if you or anyone has any insight. I have read reviews- but it is so hard to know whether a disgruntled few are the minority or the majority! I am searching for an online program for psychology.

There is a school here in IL called "Argosy University" which apparently used to be associated with the IL Professional School of Psychology(associated with, or took it over- it is unclear to me). They offer live classes and online, and also have a PsyD program, if I decided to go for it.

The other school I found was Fort Hays State University- which I found on a "10 Best Buys" sight for online tuition costs....the tuition seems very reasonable, and it appears to be a real "brick& mortar" university. Appearances can be deceiving!
I realize I might be crossing lines here-that this is not a forum for online college reviews, but everyone involved in theis discussion seems very knowledgeable about this, and figured I could take the ridicule if I am angering anyone....
I will apologize for any typos, grammatical erors and mispellings- its been a long day, cut me some slack!

I appreciate your feedback, thank you for saving me from WIU!!

Let's not confuse dissatisfied consumers with outright exploitation of tax dollars, investment dollars and misleading/unethical business practices. You are attempting to confuse the real issue through misdirection. Do you work for the Bush administration, Big Oil, Big Auto? Similar tactics have been used lately to justify the war, and lack of recognition regarding climate change.

Perhaps a better analogy would have been comparing UOP/Apollo to Enron, World Com, Global Crossing, Tyco

Here is one real issue. Last week Apollo lost a lawsuit filed by shareholders and must pay $280 Million in restitution ($5.50 per share). This was the direct result of Apollo's failure to disclose a scathing review regarding unethical recruitment practices by the US Department of Education. It was determined that Apollo willfully and intentionally withheld this information from its shareholders.

This leads us to the second real issue. UOP is in the business of education. Their regional accreditation is through the HLCNCA. As a sub-note here, this is not the same either Princeton which is Middle States or Yale which is New England Association. This is typically the catalyst for Federal Title IV Eligibility. As many realize, Title IV consists of Federal Grants, Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans, and Loan Forgiveness Programs. As Federal Programs, this means that American Tax Dollars are used to fund these programs. In the case of UOP, at last count they used approximately $2 Billion in Title IV monies. As an organization that generates approximately $2.5 Billion in revenue annually, where do you think the vast majority of the money comes from? Next point. Federal Monies were created and intended for the purpose of assisting eligible persons in obtaining a better education. The intent of these monies was not to be used for corporate profiteering. As mentioned above, the recruitment practices of UOP have been, and continue to be questionable. Specifically regarding usage of Federal Monies to entice would-be students to engage a degree program without using personal monies.

Often, it is not disclosed to or understood by prospects, that enrolling in only 1 course does not allow them access to the Title IV funds. UOP has a notoriously high default rate on Federal Loan and Grant faults. Title IV Safe Harbor Rules exist to stop entities from using what appears to be no out of pocket temptations in the recruiting practices. While UOP stands by its POLICY of compliance for the compensation matrix for enrollment, the PRACTICE has been and continues to be one of paying enrollment advisors bi-annually based upon the number of students that enroll for, and successfully complete, 1 course.

In short, the PRACTICE at UOP, regardless of the policy they put forth, is to pay enrollment based upon enrollment performance. Because UOP is a Tile IV entity, access to money is an obstacle easily overcome. In the end, UOP is using Title IV Tax Payer Dollars, to entice students to enroll with limited out of pocket expense, in order to pad new enrollment numbers and revenues to report to shareholders and attract new investor monies. Brilliant? Yes. Ethical? No.

So your point, and comparison to Ford it irrelevant and avoids the real issue. Dissatisfied customers are merely a symptom. The illness is far worse than any one symptom. I would agree that Ford shares a similar illness called corporate greed. They simply go about manipulating the American consumer through lobbyists, pseudo-science, and limiting government interference when it comes to their product's environmental impact. Don't worry, eventually the truth will come out regarding big oil and auto makers. The truth regarding tobacco is now front and center in the TRUTH television campaigns. These show the lengths Big Tobacco went to hide the truth about their operations and product. We will see the same type of social revolt against auto/oil because of the environment sometime in the future.

No matter what company one deals with, eventually there will be dissasified consumers. Does this mean the company is bad? Go ahead and check the number of dissatisfied Ford customers.

I was an Enrollment Counselor for UOP for nearly two years. I was one of the oldest employees there, being 50 when I started. UOP is a University designed for the adult learner.

I never lied to students. I didn't have to. UOP is a fully Regionally Accredited College the same as Princeton or Yale. The classes are geared towards the returning, older student: those working full time with families and additional obligations but the desire to complete the education put off over their lifetime.

Are the classes structured differently than a traditional college? Of course. Adults do not learn in the same manner as younger students. Adults learn by experiential education, younger students by rote. Therefore the learning team structure of the program.

Are recruitment personal paid by-the-student? No. That would be a violation of Accrediation Rules, just as paying Atheletes to attend a college is a violation. Do violations occur? Of course, and they are dealt with.

Are the degrees worth the paper they're written on? Ask any UOP graduate with a Bachelor's or Master's degree in a teaching position. Name me one school who would say that just because the Bachelor's degree was from University of Phoenix they are not qualified to teach.

Finally, look at the CLEP program. Why can one take a CLEP test, Score a 50%, and yet earn six credits toward their associate degree? Does that make the associates any less valuable? Or is one simple earning college credits for what oone may have learned in their lifetime.

1. Because you receive a paycheck from this college, you really are Polly Anna about it.

2. You shouldn't undermind the problems that many students have with business colleges as yours.

3. This web-site has saved me money, and many of the things that are complained about are true.

4. Consumers need a uncensored web site that allow a victims to give the facts about their own situation.

5. Shame on you, for trying to stamp out their right to do so.

I am currently a student of Axia College, and will be earning my Associate's Degree in Business Administration in two weeks. The last two years working with this college have been comprehensive, intensive, and sometimes exhausting. Yet, it is one of the most rewarding and educational experiences that I have ever had. Whenenver I needed help, there was someone there for me. The class schedules were rigorous, but specially designed to meet the needs of busy working adults.

Without a college like the University of Phoenix, I could never have gotten a college degree, and I will be forever grateful. And YES, they are fully accredited, work with government agencies, are accepted by the FAFSA program, and you can receive your Pell grant through them. This is no easy thing - not every college is accredited like this, and employers have exhibited respect and admiration for the degree. I live in Michigan, but I visited Arizona, and went to the main campus. I was more than happy with what I found there.

Also, there are satellite campuses all over the country, including Ann Arbor, MI (home of the University of Michigan). Disgruntled former employees should stop trying to ruin other people's dreams, and find something else to kvetch about. UOP is a real college, run by real people, and is accepted in the real world.

Regarding the market saturation of UOP in the US and around the world, I would say that brand recognition is a different situation than brand quality. As UOP was one of the first to market in the late 70's and 80's they have had a 20+ year head start over most any other entity. This means that people recognize the name brand of University of Phoenix. However, this in my opinion has no relevance to UOP's true brand quality. Again, in my opinion UOP has been a great success at building brand recognition/expectation but a terrible failure at delivering on those expectations. After all, Enron had great brand recognition for a while but how was their quality? You would find it difficult to locate someone who did not recognize Michael Jackson or Britney Spears as they both have great brand recognition, but this is very different than how people personally feel about these two celebrities. High brand recognition and poor deliver is why blogs like this one and many others exist about UOP. Keep in mind, this blog and this entire site will retain mostly negative feedback about any institution or entity listed. Hence the name Rip Off Report.

With regards to your possible experience as an international student with UOP, I cannot speak from first hand experience as an international student and I was never an international advisor at UOP. I would tell you to ask your current enrollment advisor how long he or she will hold on to your file before handing it over to an academic advisor. For most regional students at UOP, the EA holds this student file for 1 class and then passes it off. This is where a significant decrease in customer service occurs. Most of the academic advisors at UOP are overworked and underpaid dealing with 300-500 students at any time. Beware that your support in the UOP program by advising may significantly drop off after your first course. If you are self-directed this should be no issue. The one positive I can say about UOP is they retain the most robust international academic and enrollment team anywhere in the industry. They are years ahead of pretty much any other online entity.

There is no reason to rush this. I would postpone starting right away and explore your options. Check out Walden, Capella, Argosy, Northcentral, Strayer, Grand Canyon. They all have options for international students. If it turns out that UOP is still your best option then start classes. I think you will find a better option exists.

I came across this discussion by accident, looking for other information UOPO. I am suppose to start UOP this coming week, now I am having second, third, fourth and fifth thoughs about it.

But my situation is a bit different from all of you, I am an international online student. Maybe 'B' can give a little advise on the possible pit falls that I might face. I am not reading alot of positive feedback from people who started UOPO, I am really concern at this point.

Here is a college that is known world wide, there has to be some good structure in there. Every where you look, there it is in your face UOP/UOPO.

Talk to me!

g-man
International Student

I just wante to thank the author of this thread for opening my eyes into the world of private education. I am a Student at Southeast Community College in Lincoln, Nebraska, and I am studying Criminal Justice. I am returning to school to better myself, and my family. When I first applied to SCC I was interested in studying networking, and systems administration. After several months of little factual information, I was able to determine that their program was basically intended as vocational tech, not as prep to continue into a bachelors program. This prompted my to revert back to my original major in Criminal Justice, as I did not want a degree that would be worthless.

After declaring Criminal Justice as my major, I spoke with the Chairman of the department to get an idea of what direction I would need to go in order to get a bachelors from UNL after SCC. I was advised by this person that UNL would not accept Criminal Justice credits from SCC, much like no one will accept their Networking credits either. He then advised me that if I wanted a bachelors degreee, I would have to apply to either Bellvue University or Hamilton College.

Upon reading this thread, I did some serious looking into both of those schools, and was shocked to find out that they are little better than UOP. Hamiltons website would not even give specific information, it simply wanted you to give out large amounts of personal information, and await contact from them. The Bellvue website was vastly more informative, but I learned that for Criminal Justice the only offered what they term as an accelerated degree program. R

Further reading about it leads me to believe that the program is conducted in similar fashion to what I have read about UOP. To top all of this off, the cost per credit hour is nearly twice that of UNL or most other colleges.

I sincerely want to thank B for exposing the kind of things that private colleges will do in order to make money. I can honestly say that his postings on this site have saved me from making a costly mistake. I must also say that I am shocked that the local community college is so corrupt. I was born and raised in Tempe, AZ, and attended MCC part time off and on for a few years. After dealing with MCC and the Maricopa Community College system, I am shocked at all the differences between them, and SCC.

Thank you B,

Thanks for the info. That's pretty interesting. Just be prepared for the backlash to come your way for pointing this out. Most people do not take kindly to truth when it takes them out of their safe little comfort zone.

All brick & morter colleges and community colleges offer on line classes now at reasonable state tuition rates. If everyone would just stop this Bull$#*& of attending these rip off places of higher education, you would not be getting yourselves in a financial bind, or having these rip off companies trying to ruin your credit. Then UOP, AXIA, STRAYER, CAPELLA, and who ever else Jon Doe for profit schools will close up shop and be gone for good!

These on line schools are a 100% rip off. I have taken a few on line classes through one of my local community college's and I am satisfied to know that its 100% accredited and transferable to any 4 year university, no questions asked.

Please everyone, stop giving yourself a heartache

I came across the TaxPayers Against Fraud web site (wtaf.org) that listed Keystone Mercy Health Plan's $5 million fine
and the University of Phoenix's fraud case for illegal incentive payments to school recruiters both in a link dated
11/31/06

CLICK here to see why Rip-off Report, as a matter of policy, deleted either a phone number, link or e-mail address from this Report.


interesting connection:

Keystone Mercy recommends University of Phoenix for their employees and eligible for their tuition reimbursement plan.

How Keystone Mercy, a non-profit processor of federal Medicare claims, can be oblivious to University of Phoenix's EEOC
settlements, low level of instruction, low graduation rate, inflated tuition, lack of accreditation by the Association to Advance
Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) for their MBA and lack of GMAT, and the largest fine in history imposed by the Department of Education
makes me wonder if Keystone is just plain ignorant or willfully ignorant perhaps due to a vested interest on Keystone's part
such as stockholders in Apollo Group Inc (University of Phoenix's parent company) or promotions/positions secured via University of
Phoenix's worthless degrees.


Troubles Grow for a University Built on Profits 2/11/2007
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/11/education/11phoenix.html?pagewanted=2&ei=5088&en=5c8573d57de4bffe&ex=1328850000

KEYSTONE MERCY HEALTH PLAN TO PAY GOVERNMENT $5 MILLION
TO RESOLVE CIVIL LIABILITIES UNDER THE FALSE CLAIMS ACT
http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/pae/News/Pr/2006/oct/Keystonepress.html

University of Phoenix fined $9.8 million by feds
(largest fine ever imposed by the United States Department of Education)
http://www.bizjournals.com/wichita/stories/2004/09/13/daily21.html


EEOC settles claim with University of Phoenix (religious discrimination)
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has sued the University of Phoenix,
alleging religious discrimination against non-Mormon enrollment counselors 9/28/2006
http://www.aznews.us/university_of_phoenix_favors_mormons,_eeoc_says.htm


EEOC settles claim with University of Phoenix (sexual harassment)
http://www.newschannel10.com/Global/story.asp?S=7002114 11/29/2007

UOP poster said this,

"Don't be upset with the person who worked you over..."

I'm guessing anyone who's ever done business with you had trouble walking for a few months...But hey, if you can sleep at night, Rock On!

I will not argue that the onus is upon the consumer to educate themselves and scrutinize their options prior to rendering a decision.

I am not even going to get into the comment about the Federal Gov't being a business. I don't remember that part in the constitution Obviously fiscal responsibility is not this administration's strong point.

You made a couple of comments that need to be examined. First you say that if a person can't afford UOP don't go Later, you ask if an individual would buy a used caror a house without inspection? What we know about buying a car or a house is this: The vast majority of people who buy a car or home use a loan.

Typically, the type of car or home they buy is highly dependent on their ability to qualify for a car loan or home loan. If they cannot qualify for the loan, they do not get the car or home. This is not the case at UOP because of Title IV. Borrowers do not need to qualify for a Title IV Loan based upon credit or borrowing history. UOP knows this and they use this fact to sell loans to a sub-prime borrowing market.

Considering UOP uses about $2Billion a year in Federal Title IV, and considering UOP's extremely high loan default rate per capita, UOP would not be in business if suddenly Title IV loans required a credit check. We have seen what happens when you lend money to sub-prime borrowers in the housing market. It makes a mess.

Yes, the onus is on the consumer. Why is their no obligation by the corporate entity to operate at some type of minimally ethical level? Money Trumps all things and as long as there is profit to be made by those in power, any action can be justified even illegal wars.

You say that you can't stand people who claim they have been duped. Perhaps you are projecting your own ability to scrutinize and be skeptical about things on others assuming that others retain the same ability. Unfortunately that is not the case. If it hasn't been obvious in the last two presidential elections, approximately 50% of Americans are easily duped.

Education is critical to remedying the lunacy, backward thinking, and brainwashing that has somehow convinced the majority in this country that scrutinizing government and for-profit corporations is unpatriotic. UOP is an educational entity and they participate in the same practice of taking advantage of the trust some people place in others.

Especially individuals that one might safely assume have their best interests in mind. I am guessing many Catholics thought it was safe to leave their little boy with a priest. I am guessing that many prospects who speak to a UOP counselor assume this individual will act in their best interest. While you may know better, others obviously do not. For this reason, information such as that which is provided herein is necessary. At minimal, someone who comes here and reads this will know to be weary of what they are being sold and conduct their own research.

With regards to offering opinions about personal experiences rather than brushing off the responsibility onto someone else, all I have done here is share my experiences and opinions, I have also taken on the responsibility for many things.

What I will not take responsibility for or will I accept any excuses for are things I saw happen as an employee. Management decisions and directives were made knowing full-well that such decisions would have a negative impact on the workforce and student population. Beyond that, anything that was viewed as something UOP could get away with was okay regardless of how unethical. Of all the shady things I saw happen, the only time I saw individuals terminated were in cases where there was a paper trail. Forged documents, forged applications, forged FAFSA applications, fake SFA agreement, etc.

While the onus is on the consumer, it is time for the consumer to start holding these entities to a higher standard. As it is the American people working within these entities, we can no longer afford to mentally segregate our actions as employees from our actions as individuals.

I will not argue that the onus is upon the consumer to educate themselves and scrutinize their options prior to rendering a decision.

I am not even going to get into the comment about the Federal Gov't being a business. I don't remember that part in the constitution Obviously fiscal responsibility is not this administration's strong point.

You made a couple of comments that need to be examined. First you say that if a person can't afford UOP don't go Later, you ask if an individual would buy a used caror a house without inspection? What we know about buying a car or a house is this: The vast majority of people who buy a car or home use a loan.

Typically, the type of car or home they buy is highly dependent on their ability to qualify for a car loan or home loan. If they cannot qualify for the loan, they do not get the car or home. This is not the case at UOP because of Title IV. Borrowers do not need to qualify for a Title IV Loan based upon credit or borrowing history. UOP knows this and they use this fact to sell loans to a sub-prime borrowing market.

Considering UOP uses about $2Billion a year in Federal Title IV, and considering UOP's extremely high loan default rate per capita, UOP would not be in business if suddenly Title IV loans required a credit check. We have seen what happens when you lend money to sub-prime borrowers in the housing market. It makes a mess.

Yes, the onus is on the consumer. Why is their no obligation by the corporate entity to operate at some type of minimally ethical level? Money Trumps all things and as long as there is profit to be made by those in power, any action can be justified even illegal wars.

You say that you can't stand people who claim they have been duped. Perhaps you are projecting your own ability to scrutinize and be skeptical about things on others assuming that others retain the same ability. Unfortunately that is not the case. If it hasn't been obvious in the last two presidential elections, approximately 50% of Americans are easily duped.

Education is critical to remedying the lunacy, backward thinking, and brainwashing that has somehow convinced the majority in this country that scrutinizing government and for-profit corporations is unpatriotic. UOP is an educational entity and they participate in the same practice of taking advantage of the trust some people place in others.

Especially individuals that one might safely assume have their best interests in mind. I am guessing many Catholics thought it was safe to leave their little boy with a priest. I am guessing that many prospects who speak to a UOP counselor assume this individual will act in their best interest. While you may know better, others obviously do not. For this reason, information such as that which is provided herein is necessary. At minimal, someone who comes here and reads this will know to be weary of what they are being sold and conduct their own research.

With regards to offering opinions about personal experiences rather than brushing off the responsibility onto someone else, all I have done here is share my experiences and opinions, I have also taken on the responsibility for many things.

What I will not take responsibility for or will I accept any excuses for are things I saw happen as an employee. Management decisions and directives were made knowing full-well that such decisions would have a negative impact on the workforce and student population. Beyond that, anything that was viewed as something UOP could get away with was okay regardless of how unethical. Of all the shady things I saw happen, the only time I saw individuals terminated were in cases where there was a paper trail. Forged documents, forged applications, forged FAFSA applications, fake SFA agreement, etc.

While the onus is on the consumer, it is time for the consumer to start holding these entities to a higher standard. As it is the American people working within these entities, we can no longer afford to mentally segregate our actions as employees from our actions as individuals.

I will not argue that the onus is upon the consumer to educate themselves and scrutinize their options prior to rendering a decision.

I am not even going to get into the comment about the Federal Gov't being a business. I don't remember that part in the constitution Obviously fiscal responsibility is not this administration's strong point.

You made a couple of comments that need to be examined. First you say that if a person can't afford UOP don't go Later, you ask if an individual would buy a used caror a house without inspection? What we know about buying a car or a house is this: The vast majority of people who buy a car or home use a loan.

Typically, the type of car or home they buy is highly dependent on their ability to qualify for a car loan or home loan. If they cannot qualify for the loan, they do not get the car or home. This is not the case at UOP because of Title IV. Borrowers do not need to qualify for a Title IV Loan based upon credit or borrowing history. UOP knows this and they use this fact to sell loans to a sub-prime borrowing market.

Considering UOP uses about $2Billion a year in Federal Title IV, and considering UOP's extremely high loan default rate per capita, UOP would not be in business if suddenly Title IV loans required a credit check. We have seen what happens when you lend money to sub-prime borrowers in the housing market. It makes a mess.

Yes, the onus is on the consumer. Why is their no obligation by the corporate entity to operate at some type of minimally ethical level? Money Trumps all things and as long as there is profit to be made by those in power, any action can be justified even illegal wars.

You say that you can't stand people who claim they have been duped. Perhaps you are projecting your own ability to scrutinize and be skeptical about things on others assuming that others retain the same ability. Unfortunately that is not the case. If it hasn't been obvious in the last two presidential elections, approximately 50% of Americans are easily duped.

Education is critical to remedying the lunacy, backward thinking, and brainwashing that has somehow convinced the majority in this country that scrutinizing government and for-profit corporations is unpatriotic. UOP is an educational entity and they participate in the same practice of taking advantage of the trust some people place in others.

Especially individuals that one might safely assume have their best interests in mind. I am guessing many Catholics thought it was safe to leave their little boy with a priest. I am guessing that many prospects who speak to a UOP counselor assume this individual will act in their best interest. While you may know better, others obviously do not. For this reason, information such as that which is provided herein is necessary. At minimal, someone who comes here and reads this will know to be weary of what they are being sold and conduct their own research.

With regards to offering opinions about personal experiences rather than brushing off the responsibility onto someone else, all I have done here is share my experiences and opinions, I have also taken on the responsibility for many things.

What I will not take responsibility for or will I accept any excuses for are things I saw happen as an employee. Management decisions and directives were made knowing full-well that such decisions would have a negative impact on the workforce and student population. Beyond that, anything that was viewed as something UOP could get away with was okay regardless of how unethical. Of all the shady things I saw happen, the only time I saw individuals terminated were in cases where there was a paper trail. Forged documents, forged applications, forged FAFSA applications, fake SFA agreement, etc.

While the onus is on the consumer, it is time for the consumer to start holding these entities to a higher standard. As it is the American people working within these entities, we can no longer afford to mentally segregate our actions as employees from our actions as individuals.

I will not argue that the onus is upon the consumer to educate themselves and scrutinize their options prior to rendering a decision.

I am not even going to get into the comment about the Federal Gov't being a business. I don't remember that part in the constitution Obviously fiscal responsibility is not this administration's strong point.

You made a couple of comments that need to be examined. First you say that if a person can't afford UOP don't go Later, you ask if an individual would buy a used caror a house without inspection? What we know about buying a car or a house is this: The vast majority of people who buy a car or home use a loan.

Typically, the type of car or home they buy is highly dependent on their ability to qualify for a car loan or home loan. If they cannot qualify for the loan, they do not get the car or home. This is not the case at UOP because of Title IV. Borrowers do not need to qualify for a Title IV Loan based upon credit or borrowing history. UOP knows this and they use this fact to sell loans to a sub-prime borrowing market.

Considering UOP uses about $2Billion a year in Federal Title IV, and considering UOP's extremely high loan default rate per capita, UOP would not be in business if suddenly Title IV loans required a credit check. We have seen what happens when you lend money to sub-prime borrowers in the housing market. It makes a mess.

Yes, the onus is on the consumer. Why is their no obligation by the corporate entity to operate at some type of minimally ethical level? Money Trumps all things and as long as there is profit to be made by those in power, any action can be justified even illegal wars.

You say that you can't stand people who claim they have been duped. Perhaps you are projecting your own ability to scrutinize and be skeptical about things on others assuming that others retain the same ability. Unfortunately that is not the case. If it hasn't been obvious in the last two presidential elections, approximately 50% of Americans are easily duped.

Education is critical to remedying the lunacy, backward thinking, and brainwashing that has somehow convinced the majority in this country that scrutinizing government and for-profit corporations is unpatriotic. UOP is an educational entity and they participate in the same practice of taking advantage of the trust some people place in others.

Especially individuals that one might safely assume have their best interests in mind. I am guessing many Catholics thought it was safe to leave their little boy with a priest. I am guessing that many prospects who speak to a UOP counselor assume this individual will act in their best interest. While you may know better, others obviously do not. For this reason, information such as that which is provided herein is necessary. At minimal, someone who comes here and reads this will know to be weary of what they are being sold and conduct their own research.

With regards to offering opinions about personal experiences rather than brushing off the responsibility onto someone else, all I have done here is share my experiences and opinions, I have also taken on the responsibility for many things.

What I will not take responsibility for or will I accept any excuses for are things I saw happen as an employee. Management decisions and directives were made knowing full-well that such decisions would have a negative impact on the workforce and student population. Beyond that, anything that was viewed as something UOP could get away with was okay regardless of how unethical. Of all the shady things I saw happen, the only time I saw individuals terminated were in cases where there was a paper trail. Forged documents, forged applications, forged FAFSA applications, fake SFA agreement, etc.

While the onus is on the consumer, it is time for the consumer to start holding these entities to a higher standard. As it is the American people working within these entities, we can no longer afford to mentally segregate our actions as employees from our actions as individuals.

B --

I can understand that you might disagree with the enrollment practices at UOP. I submit that it is still a business! All colleges, universities, and even our Federal Government are businesses with profit in mind. I think it is the wise student that realizes this. People should (granted in my opinion) choose schools for a variety of reasons.

UOP fit my life style and budget just fine. If a person can't afford UOP don't go. If you don't like the education, leave. If you need an advisor to tell you how to read a class schedule and set your classes up, find one. As for the enrollement staff who ran to the building at 4am -- kudos to them. Get the sale. Should I believe that no other school is as interested in increasing enrollement? It is a buyer beware world where no one person deserves more consideration than another.

I have worked hard for all I have. I take full responsiblity for my decisions and the consequences. My disagreement with some of the posts on this site are in that they discount the student's responsibility in the entire transaction. I can't stand people who claim they have been duped. How is this possible? Do your homework. Be prepared for the consequences of your actions. Don't be upset with the person who worked you over -- learn from it. If anyone thinks they have been "tricked, sold, duped, lied to" it is their responsibility to determine the facts BEFORE signing anything. So, if in fact UOP treats enrollments like they are selling used cars -- they are pretty d**n good at it. Would you buy a used car without information? A house without an inspection? Your education is just a big purchase and should be treated as such.

How about offering opinions about personal experiences rather than brushing off the responsibility for the outcome onto someone else?

I recently EARNED my MBA through UOP Online. I have gone to the 'brick and mortor' schools to earn my two AA degrees and BA degree. I chose UOP Online because of my fathers good experience with UOP and my personal need for flexible education.

This is an apples and oranges comparison. To make this point valid you would need to go take and MBA program or courses at a traditional ground campus. I would even recommend trying an MBA at a UOP competitor online. Somewhere with at least a minimal screening process. Walden or GCU for example. Then you can draw contrast.

I found the MBA program to be as challenging, if not more challenging than my traditional education experience.

Considering your traditional coursework was at the AA and BA levels, if the UOP masters degree was just as challenging, you have a problem. The masters degree should be more challenging that an AA or BA.

I think that there are some important points to be made about accusations against UOP for less-than-honorable enrollment practices. Let me start by saying I have not worked for UOP in any position, nor do I know anyone who does. My enrollment experience was this -- I made the phone call to UOP. I asked to be enrolled.

Yes, you would have been known as a floor call in UOP jargon. Your group would make up approximately 1% of the total conversations had on any given day at UOP. What that means is that they vast majority of the people enrolling have been solicited by phone. I could tell some stories surrounding how valuable these floor calls were viewed by EA's desperate to hit their enrollment numbers. But that would be another story.

I will share one story as it is relevant to my next point here. I remember (before the overtime suit in 2004). UOP Floor Calls were distributed based upon a phone login. The earlier the advisor logged into their phone in the morning, the higher the chances were that they would receive a floor call.

What this meant, is that advisors would be waiting outside the building at 4AM for the doors of the building to open. When they did you would see dozens of people sprinting to their work station trying to log onto their phone to get into the call queue. That is how desperate people were to get enrollments.

To make my point, if you think that an individual would be willing to show up to work 2-3 hours before their shift, sprint to the phone to login, refuse to take a break or lunch before their floor call came, BUT somehow not be willing to bend the truth or outright lie to a prospect to get them to enroll, you are delusional. So yes, I concede that not every student at UOP was duped into enrolling or lied to, it does not change the fact that many of them were.

I did have some poor experience with changes in counselors, advisors and such, but to be perfectly honest -- I didn't need these people.

That is fine, you were obviously self-directed. Not every individual shares that trait. Some need and deserve assistance. Wouldn't you expect some level of service for $1700 a class? This is online, the classes don't cost that much to facilitate. The reason the academic advisors often don't care is because they slum them out and don't pay them nearly enough. If UOP cared about service or retention, Academic Advisors would make more than Enrollment Advisors.

I chose UOP because I work 12 hour days. I have two children and a husband that desire a little attention too. I leave my house at 630am and return any where from 630pm to 830pm. I also work rotating Saturdays. I would 'attend' class all times of the day.

No one is faulting the working busy adult for wanting education. UOP has brand recognition strength, but weak brand delivery strength in general. There are many other colleges that could have delivered education to you around your schedule.

Right now there are others doing better and cheaper than UOP. UOP is still growing, but these other institutions are taking huge chunks out of their market share. Hopefully this forces UOP to do it better. They have such a huge head-start, I believe that will take a while.

I would encourage any prospect student to get information from a variety of sources before enrolling at any school.

I couldn't agree more. That is why this site exists. Maybe it would not have deterred you from calling and enrolling years ago or maybe it would have. It depends on whether or not you consider yourself a shrewd consumer.

Do we stigma those who started at community colleges? Compare the cost and enrollment procedures and those influences that affect enrollement. How about any college that visits high schools to intice children to enroll in their school? Schools that pursue athletes? Schools that actively pursue the children of well-to-do alumni? I am sure Harvard has enrolled students that we laymen might not think are Harvard caliber.

This issue here is lying to students to get them to enroll. The issue here is misuse of Federal Title IV funding (tax dollars) in order to turn a prophet. The issue here is price gouging for years as a monopoly existed for online education. The issue here is failure to demonstrate any type of ethical compass for their employees or students. The issue here is lawsuit. The issue here is shady stock gifting. The issue here is violation of Title IV Safe Harbor Rules. The issue here is lack social responsibility. Get it?

There is a major difference between recruitment and what UOP has done. There is a difference between sales, and doing whatever it takes to make the sale. If an organization is taking the shady used car salesman approach to sell you a degree, just like some used car lots, what you are getting just might be a lemon.


With regards to the alumni of UOP. I am sure there are still some pretty impressive people in the program and a few more that have graduated from there. What I can tell you is their reputation has come under serious scrutiny because of the SEC investigations and HLC mandates. Considering it takes 2-3-4 years to finish a degree in most cases. I would assume that many of the graduates you saw had enrolled prior to these issues coming to light. If nothing changes, I doubt we will continue to see "A-list" alumni coming out of UOP. One things for sure, they wont be employees of Intel...

Reading this "ripoff report" has been interesting to say the least. I would like to offer insight into my experience with UOP Online.

I recently EARNED my MBA through UOP Online. I have gone to the "brick and mortor" schools to earn my two AA degrees and BA degree. I chose UOP Online because of my fathers good experience with UOP and my personal need for flexible education.

I found the MBA program to be as challenging, if not more challenging than my traditional education experience. As in traditional classes, I had my difference of opinion with some instructors and always had one or two students in class that I just didn't mesh with. I actually had worse experiences in traditional school.

I think that there are some important points to be made about accusations against UOP for less-than-honorable enrollment practices. Let me start by saying I have not worked for UOP in any position, nor do I know anyone who does. My enrollment experience was this -- I made the phone call to UOP. I asked to be enrolled. I was asked my background, my GPA, my reasons for wanting to be part of the UOP program, and my intentions for my new degree. I was not asked to take the GMAT. I did well on SAT's and the OCS exam for the US AirForce (I was one of two in testing session that actually passed the pilots exam). I have always done well acedemically. No enrollment counselor had to sell me or convince me. I made a choice on my own. I take pride in that. There must be some credit given to the fact that student initiate contact with the school.

I did have some poor experience with changes in counselors, advisors and such, but to be perfectly honest -- I didn't need these people. I attended class, completed assignments, and EARNED my grades. Please don't fault UOP students simply for where they have attended. I can produce all of my papers and am confident they will earn the same grades at any other traditional school. As for the problems with transferring credits, I experienced this problem at traditional schools! I earned an AA in poli sci and when I transferred to an out-of-state school to finish my BA, I found that I would have to re-take two classes to complete my BA because the credits did not include TEXAS specific ciriculum. I find that no different that UOP credits transferring or not transferring to other schools.

I chose UOP because I work 12 hour days. I have two children and a husband that desire a little attention too. I leave my house at 630am and return any where from 630pm to 830pm. I also work rotating Saturdays. I would "attend" class all times of the day. I could log in during lunch or downtime and read and read and read and read, take notes and be prepared to offer my "attendance" at night after making dinner, doing laundry and sending the kids off to bed. I don't have the luxury of living with mom and dad and attending a traditional school. I found UOP to be challenging (and please, no comments on my ability to enroll at any other traditional school -- I can prove that I can) and most importantly, easy to fit into my schedule. I am now pursuing a change in careers to allow me to spend more time with my family while not taking a pay cut. I have not had any prospective employer disqualify me from an interview because my degree was earned at UOPO. In fact, I took today off because I have an interview for another job.

I would encourage any prospect student to get information from a variety of sources before enrolling at any school. I also offer these final thoughts:

Do we stigma those who started at community colleges? Compare the cost and enrollment procedures and those influences that affect enrollement. How about any college that visits high schools to intice children to enroll in their school? Schools that pursue athletes? Schools that actively pursue the children of well-to-do alumni? I am sure Harvard has enrolled students that we laymen might not think are Harvard caliber.

If UOP is so terrible a school, why then do persons in US Govt, Arizona State Govt, Superbowl, and other prestigious organizations agree to appearances or associations with UOP - in particular UOP Online. (You should have seen the faces at our graduation ceremony presentation!)

If the education is so poor, why is UOP so popular with adults with established careers and reputations, why are many of our military attending, and WHY is attendance so wide spread. You should have seen how many people flew to Phoenix to graduate this summer from the online program. The online program graduates have to go to Phoenix if they want to "walk". If this was just a piece of paper - bought and paid for, why would so many flock to Glendale, spend money, just for a walk across a temporary stage? We students take pride in our accomplishments, thats why! We don't just "feel", we know that we earned our degrees and will go on to contribute!

Kudos to all students who have earned their degrees! Every school has their fair share of employees, students, and community advocates who have disputes, disagreements and complaints. Take everything with a grain of salt!

At the risk of diminishing your post B, just a brief point.

The problem is not with any one UOP employee, but rather a corporation which practices bad business. The scope and breath of problems at UOP can, in my opinion, only be explained by leaders who have placed profit far and above the interests of students. How else could you have one of the corporate officers at UOP, according to a US Dept of Education report, openly speaking of subverting government regulations meant to protect students (while benefiting from tax payer dollars in the way of student loans)?

The saddest thing of all is that the folks at the top, who set policy, procedure and practice, will likely walk away from the table being handsomely rewarded for their work. All the while rank and file employees come to sites like this "carrying the water," defending this school. Sad sad sad.

With all the directions I could possibly take this I am going to go pretty easy on Ron as it is apparent from his post that he is a very delicate flower.

Dude, grow a set.

Let's start with the basic misread of the name of this site. Rip Off Report seems to denote the concept that if there is a business that makes in onto this site, the content of the posting does not rain praise down upon that business. If you didn't want to hear what UOP has done, is doing, and will keep on doing to many consumers, I would say you should probably avoid this site. Especially considering that mine is not the only thread in ROR about UOP. There are many more. Also, knowing your delicate sensitivities I doubt your shrink would condone you looking here. That's like sending a young bulimic girl with body image issues, a years subscription to both Play Boy and Fine Dining Magazine.

Next, I mention repeatedly that there are 'good people working at UOP trying to do things right'. Obviously you feel you are one of them. I will not debate that claim. However, this does not excuse you, as it did not excuse me, from contributing to the perpetuation of a corrupt entity which regardless of any good it might serve, cannot amend for the damage is has done and is doing. I tried to change it from the inside. It did not work and I was still enrolling students into a program that does not have their best interest in mind. You are in the same situation. Who knows, maybe you will have more success than I did attempting to change things for the better there. I highly doubt it.

Next, your anger, angst, ire, resentment and malcontent are completely misplaced. You are essentially blaming the victims of UOP for making you feel bad about the fact that the company you work for, screwed them over. If you want to be angry, be angry at UOP for what they have done. Right now you are angry at those who have told their story and at me for giving their story validation. I do not blame you for thinking this way. Most individuals can self-justify anything the 'group' they belong to is involved in no matter how heinous. They simply say 'I'm not doing it' even if the company, group, system or country they exist within is doing it. This explains the crusades, the inquisition, the Holocaust, Nagasaki, Hiroshima, Darfur, and most recently, Iraq. Indirect association does not cleanse you of being complicit. When it comes to UOP we are both guilty, this is my penance. What will be yours? You are only stupid if you fail to realize the truth of what has been said herein.

Next, as for this website being dedicated to all things negative, obviously as stated earlier you missed the point where ROR is a site (not mine) dedicated to listing negative reviews about businesses. Where I differ, as you can see from the posts directly above this exchange, I offer legitimate advice in the hopes that it will help people make informed decisions. The negative comes when people enter my specific thread with the intent of defending UOP using false claims and invalid rhetoric. I have not had a single person negate the claims made herein because everything I have said has been validated by investigations, lawsuits, employee/consumer testimonies, DOE reports, AZDOL reports, stock reports, etc. Most people who enter this site on the attack are doing so because of the issues discussed in the paragraph above. They are angry because of the claims made against the group they belong to and need to defend it because they feel they must defend themselves. How is it that you and others can differentiate yourselves from the unethical and questionable practices at UOP, but you are unable to differentiate yourself from UOP when someone attacks it? Seems strange!

Next, (people need to understand what UOP is and let it be). I couldn't agree more. If more people were aware they would let UOP alone and UOP would have to change or go out of business, thus solving the problems. The debate is not whether UOP is trying to be a traditional university. The debate for me is 'should a business, posing as an educational institution, be allowed to: A. Utilize tax dollars through Federal Financial Aid as a for-profit business. B. Be allowed to continue to operate in an unethical and duplicitous manner?' I vote no and I write about why herein. You vote yes, but only because part of the money being exploited from US Taxes goes to pay your salary. If you didn't work there or never worked there, how would you feel about the situation? Exactly!

You may think you wasted your time in this blog on ROR. Obviously it bothered you enough to keep reading and write back. If what I say lacks credibility, why did it bother you, why did you write? My purpose has been served here because now you can't claim ignorance to the problems of the company you work for. Whether or not you acknowledge the problems is your choice.

I am not the problem. Do you blame the smoke alarm for the fire? You may not like what I have to say. You may not like to be waked at 2:00am to a loud smoke alarm. You can take out the batteries or choose not to read this blog. That's the amazing thing about choice. But if you make that choice and remove the batteries or ignore the obvious I point out herein, you can't cry about it when you get burned. And from what I have seen Ron, you strike me as someone that just might cry.

Based on the comments I have been reading here, it appears that I might as well just quit my job, drop out of school and simply give up on everything that i believe and apologize to everyone. This is because I am aparently stupid enough and unethical enough to believe that I am living a legitimate life and earning an honest wage as an enrollment counselor at the "evil empire" of the University of Phoenix. Gosh, I was so deceived as to actually believe that I was helping people better themselves by going to school when they could not go to school any other way. I was even stupid enough to believe that it was a good thing for me to also go to school and complete my own degree after being unable to get back to school after several years.
To the likes of B and others, I am so upset I cannot even express to you my anger and frustration. You have effectively destroyed the validity of my vocational and educational goals in your arrogance. It's as if people like me and the folks I am helping have a second chance at college that are unable to attend a traditional school are somehow unworthy or ineligible of even having a place at the table.

Go ahead and tear me to shreds in this forum. Go ahead and insult me and destroy my character. I'm sure I've even got a few grammar and spelling errors, too. Call me stupid and unethical because of where I work and where I go to school. Pronounce doom and non-success on me because I somehow was unable to to go to a traditional school or work somewhere else. The biggest mistake I've made is all the ridiculous amount of time I've spent on this website tonight instead of working on my paper!

This is nonsense! I work at U of P and most of the negative portrayal by B and others is just a lot of whining. Yes, it is difficult, but for heaven's sake, the portrayal of us all being a bunch of monsters is absolutely demoralizing. I have had it! There is geniuine concern in our division for the well being for students. i am NOT being pressured by management to get "asses in the classes" or any other such nonsense. I have read so much nonsense in these websites it is amazing. Some of you people out there are willing to believe anything negative! And you call us the suckers??!! Gimme a break!!

B is just more compelling in his posting because he is willing to take more time to spew his views here. He is really on a mission to promote and magnify anything negative about U of P possible. I don't know why it is so important to him to magnify and emphasize everything that is negative. There are so many more things that are positive about U of P. There are thousands of students and employees who are happy and finding a second chance in their careers or educational goals. It may not be Harvard, but it is a legitimate, accredited school that is recognized by employers. It works for thousands of working adults like myself who would not otherwise be able to go to college at all. If I had unlimited resources and options, U of P may not be the best choice, but for the working adult it makes sense.

People need to understand what U of P is and just let it be. It never has been nor is it trying to be a traditional university, so stop trying to judge it as if it were! I spend my whole life trying to be positive and B and this entire website is completley dedicated to all things negative. What a waste. I need to get out of here. I am thoroughly depressed and seriously feeling like quitting my job and quitting school. This is NOT because I am feeling "rescued" by all these wonderful postings, but because you have all made me feel like a total loser. i honestly feel like ai would be better off now to be NOT in school and just working a dumb job at a fast food place or something based on what I have been reading here. Thanks a lot.


OK - go ahead and start tearing me to shreds.

I am going to talk to an advisor from NEU on Monday and ask if they have had any issues transfering from UOP/AXIA. For the frogram that I want to get into the only requirment is that you have an AA Degree. Assuming there are no issues I think I will stick with Axia just because I can get my degree so fast. The cost is not an issue since my work will pay for all of it.

I agree with you though the other stuff you said in other posts regarding UOP. I work for a very large company and have spoken to many recruiters. Like Intel, they are not very fond of Schools like UOP. They much prefer more recognized schools. With my approach I will still get my degree from NEU which is a nation leader.



Thanks for you help

If you want a quick online AA degree from college you won't deal with any issues, check out Rio Salado Online. Rio is a community college out of Phoenix offering AA degree programs. Also, their tuition is like $65 per credit for in state and $130 per credit for out of state. Better deal than AXIA plus no worries about transfer later on. Rio will look like any other community college when NEU sees the transcript.

Should you choose to stay at AXIA, I do not see any reason as to why your AA would not transfer. AXIA is regionally accredited. Typically transferring an AA into another college means that they will scrutinize your general education courses to make sure you have the required English, Math, Science, Humanities, and adequate electives. What you may find at NEU is that when you declare your major, that specific major may require additional English, Math, Science, Humanities or Elective credits as pre-requisites to the major courses you need for graduation. If you know what you will be taking at NEU I suggest you look at the pre-requisites and try to take similar courses in your AA program as your elective credits.

Good luck

Has anyone tried transfering credits from UOP/AXIA college to Northeastern Univerity ?

Because I can get my Assoc. Degree in 1.5 years from AXIA, I was thinking about just getting my Assoc. Degree there and then transfering to Northeastern Univerity. They have a degree completion program there and to get into the program you have to have a Assoc. Degree.

Anyone try a similar approach ?

Thanks in advance

I just want to sincerely thank the author, B for telling us about her experience. I am a recent college graduate from a state supported university in NC and while job searching yesterday I came across some opening for enrollment advisor positions at UOP in Charlotte and Atlanta. I applied to both and got a call today about the position in Atlanta. I chatted with the lady who was nice but didn't strike me as very professional. She told me there would be a group interview next week for the enrollment advisor position at their campus in the Dunwoody area of Atlanta.

Normally I would be thrilled about a job in Atlanta since I love the city but my gut told me something wasn't right. I did some research and was brought here and after reading comments from user Tim, B, and others I will not be wasting my time by going to a group interview for this position in Atlanta next week.

Thanks for saving a big headache for me! I can't think you all enough. I want to get into a career in Higher Education but not like this.

UOP is accredited through the HLCNCA and recently received ACBSP accreditation for their school of business. (Although I am not confident they will be able to retain ACBSP)

The public is generally unaware or uninformed regarding what it means to be accredited. Unfortunately the HLC has somewhat of a notoriously lenient reputation when it comes to enforcing accreditation standards. Basically the HLC expects certain governance rules to be complied with by any college they accredit along with non-specific academic rules. Essentially they want the institution to operate honestly and demonstrate that students are learning at the level the institution claims.

What the general public does not realize is that the HLC is very slow to place an institution on probation or pull accreditation. They must consider the comprehensive impact of taking such action especially when looking at UOP. Consider UOP's 250,000+ students, 5000+ employees, etc. Punishing the institution means punishing these people as well.

Typically the HLC will conduct site visits and make recommendations to the institution. If that institution continuously fails to comply they may then choose to put them on probation until the issues are remedied. Only as a last resort where an institution has blatantly demonstrated an unwillingness to comply or shown they are incapable of complying with the HLC pull accreditation. The HCL seems infinitely patient with institutions demonstrating effort towards compliance without ever fully complying.

UOP will never lose accreditation from the HLC.

Is it still the case that UoP is not accredited?

Are you the only employee at the UOP? Why isn't Nixxon able to obtain accurate information about getting his money back, or not being charged, from his sales person, or an academic advisor? Are students provided this information upfront, in a clear, concise manner? If so, why do so many seem to come to this site for accurate information!

Don't post anything in the class. No messages. No goodbyes. No explanations to the instructor. As long as you do not post, then you will not qualify for attendance. If there is no attendance, then they cannot charge you for the class.

No matter what your enrollment counselor may try to feed you, don't give in and tell him you want to put it off for right now. They may insist on setting a firm date in the future but just tell them you want to hold off till you feel ready. You will still owe for the application fee and possibly the books but you won't owe the tuition on the class. Additionally, since you won't have attendance, they will not be able to certify you for financial aid so the loan won't go through either.

Outside of the many comments that could be made regarding this post I will be gentle because it does well to support my point that much of how UOP operates is based upon sub-par academic standards.

Plagiarism is still such regardless of providing sources. True learning and true demonstration of learning requires that a student show capacity to express attained knowledge in their own words, testing, hypothetical or real application of said knowledge. If you have read the content and feel that you cannot summarize or express mastery of content in a manner better than the original author then perhaps a quote or paraphrase is relevant. But to say that you are using another individual's private work to complete major portions of your assignments is an indictment of your lack of dedication to the learning process as well as an indictment of the institution allowing you to do this. Well written, college level papers use citations as a way to support and enhance the proprietary writing of the individual. What you describe in your BSBA program is plagiarism. The fact that you may be getting away with it at UOP is irrelevant.

You sum it up nicely when you say I'm not really concerned about comprehending anything since I just want the degree. This should anger those who support UOP more than anything I have said because it demonstrates that someone who openly admits they are not concerned with learning has been able to prosper at UOP.
From this I can draw 1 of 2 possible conclusions. You are either being less than honest in an attempt to psych-out readers and appear to support UOP while at the same time presenting a devastating picture of the entity you claim to support. Or you are telling the truth in which case I would say that only a fool believes that there is nothing to be learned and your whole premise of obtaining a degree simply to show that you have one, assuming that will somehow align competitively with MIT, and being able to go through a program without learning anything is highly flawed. If what you say is true and UOP's degree is on par with other respected institutions of higher learning, you could have gone to MIT and pulled off the same feat. If not, it is reasonable to assume you would have only been able to pull off this feat at UOP, that learning standards are lower, that UOP is (rightfully so) viewed as sub-par, and the degree you obtained means nothing so in then end you would have been better off not wasting the time and money in the first place.

If you only wanted a degree you could have contacted Redding University and they would have given you one.

I hope this site is still active. I need help. I too got sucked into the UOP life. I went in last Tuesday (7-17-07). I signed the paper work and was off to get Sallie Mae to give me a loan. Well Friday night I got a call that my father passed away. So, now that my situation changed I am hoping to be able to "un enroll". I was scheduled to start class this Wednesday (7/25/07). Since I am going to be moving out of state to help my mother out is there anyway out of the UOP? I did not attend class nor did my financial aid get approved (I called and stopped that last night). I called UOP Friday night and was told that since it was less than two weeks till my start date I have to pay for the application fee and the class that I am NOT going to be attending. Anyone know if they can do that? Do I have a way out? Please help I am freaking out this is to much to deal with and I need help! Thanks!!!!!!!

I am almost done with my BSBA degree at UoP. What I really like about the online classes is that , 90% of the time, I can write my papers during my lunch break at work and the teacher will see the effort that I have put into it. Writing the papers is not as hard as people think. I have my own system. I copy everything from the web, but I make sure to cite my references. I color code the references (say red or blue) then the parts of the text that I am copying from the web are also color coded to match their associated reference. Then, I just type zz or other characters, say qq, at the end of each sentence that I copied.

Finally, just replace all these characters with your citation. This saves a lot of typing. I actually figured out how to complete a 5000 word paper in an hour using these legal methods. I'm not really concerned about comprehending anything since I just want the degree. I've already learned what I need to know to compete with the nerds from MIT. I just need the paper to back me up. UoP rocks for those on busy schedules that want to complete their degrees in only 20 minutes a day. I know once I've graduated, that I actually mastered myself and created a system that will make me successful with other projects I face in the corporate world.

Want to get a degree that will command the same respect and value as one issued by a so-called "traditional" college or university?

Yes---> Enroll at a traditional college or university.

No----> Spend your money at a corporate institution that tells you what you want to hear in order to get your money.

Have you shared your UOP concerns with your chain of command?