Complaint Review: University of Phoenix (Online Campus)

This is an accounting of real, honest experiences. Before you read, please take the following points into serious consideration:

1. If you are any sort of University of Phoenix or Axia College staff or other stakeholder, I dont care to hear from you. Your illusion has been revealed to me, and I do not wish to waste any more time reading poorly-crafted lies. 2. If you are a student enrolled with any of the University of Phoenix or Axia College affiliates, please use the critical thinking skills that this joke of an educational organization is trying so desperately to erase from your entourage. You can believe whatever you want, but you are NOT getting an education, and the bill is far too large for anyone to dish out in this economy! 3. I am more than willing to be part of yet another class action lawsuit against the University of Phoenix and Axia College, and to get the word out about the SCAM that is siphoning off $3 billion+ of taxpayer money each year. 4. DO NOT support changes to the Gainful Employment rules set forth by the Higher Education Act in favor of for-profit educational institutions. There are many reasons that the government is attempting to revise those rules, and the University of Phoenix is not preparing students for the employment opportunities they should be able to seek with their qualifying degrees. They are not worthy of financial aid, and taxpayers should not be pouring money into any organization that is sucking out what little the lower-income public has left after the recession.

I enrolled with the University of Phoenix in April 2009, and began my first block of courses in May 2009. From the first week, I had concerns about the instruction and course materials that were provided, but I was able to figure things out with some of my own outside research. The first thing I noticed was that most of the students couldnt put a sentence together. Next, I began noticing that the instructors were not following the Student Handbook in regard to APA Format, and that the course syllabus required students to do many assignments that did not appropriately cover the material. As someone that has always found it difficult to endure what others would consider normal instruction, I brushed it off as an adjustment period that was to be expected while attending a new type of educational facility.

Although the instruction was barely acceptable as a watered-down tutoring session, I was more than content to guide myself. Ive always been an independent student, and I thrive in any environment where I am able to implement creative solutions to problems. Several of my fellow students didnt have the slightest clue what they were covering in the course material, and my comments to the instructors about plagiarism and such went unheeded. It finally became clear that they did not care about the quality of education, and I decided to just go on and complete my degree program for myself. The behavior of other students was bothersome, considering the required discussion assignments that went on every other week in each class, but I knew that I could overcome the adversity that was equivalent to the many descriptions in various pieces of literature deemed the plague of fools.

When I began my program with the University of Phoenix, I was still a military spouse, and eligible for a discount. To date, I am still technically married, but I qualify to file my taxes separately because we have been separated for over one and a half years. While discussing the financial obligations during enrollment, I was told directly that all of the course materials required would be completely covered by the cost for the courses, and that I would never have to purchase any books in addition to those materials. On July 13, 2010, I received the following email (names have been erased for the sake of privacy, since I have not completed all of the steps to fight the University of Phoenix):

Hello _____,

Just a little reminder to let you know that I appreciate your commitment to education, and look forward to helping you fulfill your educational goals.

You are scheduled to begin your next class on:

8/2/10

Here are a few things to remember:

Remember the ACC/250 requires the purchase of a hard copy text If you are unable to attend, please contact me as soon as possible. You can always check your student website, https://axiaecampus.phoenix.edu, for schedule and grade updates.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any additional questions.

First off, I was NEVER notified that this course was going to be requiring a hard copy text, and the online store says to allow 4-6 weeks of delivery. From July 13th to August 2, I would have likely not received the text on time. Fortunately, I was able to move the class back and take another one in its place. The text that was required is Computer Accounting with Peachtree Complete v.16 2009. In the online store, the price was listed at $142.00, excluding shipping. I found it on Amazon for $77, including shipping. However, when I asked why I couldnt just purchase the 2010 version, I was told that the syllabus would be following the older version. In a technological society, I would prefer to be up to date with software. Apparently, they do not update their syllabi often enough to allow for such an extraordinary request. (Please note sarcasm.)

On October 18, 2009, I was run over by a car while riding my bike home from work. The driver was on the wrong side of the road, and I have since received a settlement. What struck me was the way in which my academic counselor and instructor reacted. You would think that being run over by a car and being in the hospital would give me some leeway. I had mounds of proof, both visual and documented. My academic counselor said it was up to my instructors to give me time to turn in assignments that I was unable to turn in because I was IN THE HOSPITAL WITH SERIOUS INJURIES. One of my instructors was more than accommodating. The other one treated me as if I was a liar, and gave me a lot of grief about just a couple of days to get my work together. This proved to be extremely difficult because I was crushed by a vehicle and dragged into the street before the driver stopped. Being treated like a liar on top of that was nearly too much for even me to handle. I persevered, and continued working and earning straight As, as usual.

Throughout my program, I contacted my academic counselor and instructors about problems with the syllabi, course materials, testing methods, etc. There were a few instructors who were very helpful, and tried to solve the problems in every way possible. The rest of them were unaccommodating, didnt respond in a timely fashion even when their contact information clearly stated a specific grace period to expect for responses and surprisingly ignorant of the course materials. Some of them didnt have any idea what the assignments entailed, and didnt seem to even read through them before grading. Im a straight A student at any institution when I apply myself, but these grades were far too easy. Too many of the seriously challenged students were also being given As for work that wouldnt be acceptable in any secondary school.

I had an unacceptable amount of trouble in a number of courses. They were Cultural Diversity, a pseudo-logic course (in which the instructor didnt know the difference between a smokescreen and a red herring, etc.), my second accounting course (which was a very advanced course that was definitely NOT suited for someone who only had one introductory accounting class under their belt), and both Algebra courses. The myriad of issues with these courses was staggering, my concerns were never properly addressed, and I was never contacted after I submitted my very clear and concise feedback in the end of course surveys.

These courses were incredibly inadequate, amongst the joke that they call an Accounting Degree program. For instance, the Cultural Diversity course was supposed to be teaching tolerance among various races, creeds, and religions, but the course materials and the instructor were both biased and racist on numerous occasions. The logic course was both vague and ambiguous in various instances, and the instructor marked me wrong on questions that anyone with any real understanding of logic would have seen had multiple answers. For instance, a statement that includes a genetic fallacy could also potentially fall under ad hominen or ad hoc. There are more than enough variances in logic to fill a cornucopia of courses in high school and college. Not only that, but the course materials did not teach students the basics of how to determine which was which.

The Algebra courses were horrendous. I have always been very good at math, but algebra was my weak point. After being out of any sort of math class for over ten years, I had to get back in the groove. My method was to use the Center for Mathematics Excellence, and some other tutorials provided on websites that are not controlled by the University of Phoenix or Axia College. Additionally, I had a friend who is a complete math whiz tutor me. That included flash cards, graphing, etc. He also reviewed my exams to go over the answers I missed, which is something the instructors never did in what I would have thought to be a professional manner.

What got me frustrated beyond belief was the course material, the lack of instruction, and the exam method. When you have a math course with the University of Phoenix, you have to do checkpoints and assignments (exams) on a separate web page. In 2009, instructors were able to access those web pages and actually look over the individual assignments. All of a sudden, in 2010, students had to copy and paste their results into a document to submit to instructors. As soon as that happened, I never received feedback on questions I missed again. On occasions when I asked for instruction on a question I had missed many of them mistakes that should not have been mistakes they completely ignored my requests. My academic counselor was absolutely no help, and I never received credit for answers that I answered appropriately, but which were marked wrong by the inadequate exam system. There were enough bugs in that programming to make Microsoft seem perfect.

Not one of my courses was worthy of a university level of education. I actually learned more from independent research and reading than I did from course materials, instruction, and exams combined. This product is unsatisfactory, and I will be returning it. In any other business, if something you paid for arrives broken, the company is obligated to either replace it with a product that meets the requirements, or to refund your money. This should be no different.

Now on to financial aid issues, which are as numerous as my dispute with the mis-education the University of Phoenix has displayed. First of all, I was never properly instructed on how to fill out my FAFSA forms. Every phone number, fax number, and email I was given by the University of Phoenix staff to use for contacting FAFSA reached University of Phoenix staff. Using the FAFSA web page to find the information I sought was nearly impossible, so I read through the terms and conditions over and over again. Basically, the statement given to me by my recruiter that my financial aid and academic advisors were experts in those capacities was completely false. To top it off, I was never able to apply for and receive a Pell Grant (which I was eligible for the second time I applied) or any sort of scholarship, which is stated to be an option by the University of Phoenix.

This expert of a financial aid advisor didnt know anything about FAFSA that I couldnt read on the student web page for the University of Phoenix, and refused to do anything to solve the problems that arose. For example, the second time I applied for student loans through the federal aid program, there was a THREE MONTH delay. Why? That is a great question, and I am still trying to find out the details. I applied for the loan in the last week of December 2009, and was not able to attend my next block of courses until March. They could only tell me that they had lost paperwork, then messed up paperwork, then needed me to jump through this and that and the other hoop so that I could get back on track with my degree program. The nightmare of going through all of those hoops while still recovering from my accident and working through the holiday season was enough to send me into a nervous breakdown.

I have not received one itemized statement showing all of my financial aid disbursements, costs, and upcoming financial information even once from the University of Phoenix. My financial aid advisor has told me on numerous occasions that I need to look at what they call an itemized accounting of those things on my student web page. When I finally sat down and did the math (I went into accounting because that is what I am very good at), there were a very troubling amount of discrepancies. The total amount of student loans I have received is clearly stated on the FAFSA statement, yet the University of Phoenix amount is OVER that. Where did the extra money come from? There is not one Pell Grant payment there, even though I was eligible. No one is willing to tell me anything about that.

When I put in my official withdrawal on September 17, 2010, all of my course materials and courses had been paid for in full by my federal aid loan. I have the statements saved on my computer, printed out, and also archived in two different email accounts, just in case. Although everything was covered, the University of Phoenix returned the money that was left over from my last disbursement, and is now claiming that I owe them $1200 some odd dollars. If my federal student loan covered all of the courses up to that date, as well as the two courses that were coming up, how is it that I would owe them anything? Before they sent those funds back to the federal aid office (which they have refused to disclose details for also), my balance with the University of Phoenix was positive $2,230. Meaning I had that much in credit.

Now they are trying to say that I owe them money for costs that were not covered by the loan because I violated the attendance agreement, which is entirely false. One of the final straws in my decision to finally get the hell out of the University of Phoenixs clutches was the process of applying for another series of student loans for the 2010-2011 school year. All of my costs up to that point were covered, and my financial aid advisor actually stated that fact in her email to me about reapplying with FAFSA. Once I outlined the errors in the University of Phoenixs accounting on my student web page, my financial aid advisor told me that it is a different department that handles the accounting of funds, and that she can only view what I can. Basically, yet another run around where no one will take responsibility for the mistakes that should NOT be occurring on ANY professionally-handled students financial records. At the very least, they should be corrected. Have they been? No.

While looking over the financial accounting that the University of Phoenix has been recording on my student web page since April 29, 2009, I came to the realization that they have been sending me partial refunds of federal aid money, and sending other payments to FAFSA. There is no explanation for that practice. No one is willing to explain to me why those refunds were being split up, sometimes unevenly. My understanding was that any excess federal aid money should have been refunded to me. The response from my financial aid advisor has been that they send the money back in accordance with the Department of Educations requirements, and that my federal student aid balance has been lowered as a result. That has not been recorded ANYWHERE. I have the federal aid statements in front of me, and there is absolutely no accounting for any refunded money, present or past.

I could write 20 more pages about the unethical and illegal practices I have uncovered over the last 18 months, but I think its clear that there are some serious issues that need to be resolved. The University of Phoenix is operating in a way that only benefits Bill Pepicello, and takes advantage of people who are desperate to receive an education that is flexible so that they may simultaneously make a living and provide family support. This corporation does NOT care for the quality of education. They care about making the most money while keeping costs as close to the bottom of the barrel as possible. If you are thinking about enrolling with these hucksters, please look up online courses with your local community college. You will save thousands of dollars, a lot of migraines, and possibly a nervous breakdown or two.