Complaint Review: University Of Phoenix Online - Phoenix Arizona

I must admit that I am surprised to read all of the negative postings of experiences that former or current students have had with UOP online. I have never had an advisor misguide me or put me off. I have always received prompt and courtious responses from each individual. My academic advisor has even saved me from having to take five classes by giving me the information to clep our of them. As for the instructors some have been better than others but for the overall exprience I have not felt any different than I did towards my traditional instructors at a prior university I attended. The cost are inline with another former private university that I attended and do not seem above or beyond. I have never had any funds misapplied nore "lost" as one person posted. Maybe the exprience is what each student makes of it and if the student is negative maybe that is reflected in their correspondence towards others and that is why they are having so much difficulty.

For anyone interested, I just read the following: By Associated Press September 14, 2004, 10:49 AM EDT PHOENIX -- The nation's largest for-profit university was fined $9.8 million by federal regulators who concluded it was so focused on boosting enrollment that it pressured recruiters to accept unqualified students. The fine against the University of Phoenix was the largest ever imposed by the Department of Education. The federal investigators' 45-page report detailed several examples of compensation and sales practices that the government said were illegal or unethical, according to Tuesday's editions of The Arizona Republic, which obtained the report... The entire article may be read at address shown below: http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-university-audit,0,6236822.story?coll=sns-ap-nationworld-headlines

Jason, it is fortunate for you that thus far you have had a good experience with UOP. However, your letter is indicative of the short-sightedness that I personally believe plagues the very University you seek to defend here. "I PERSONALLY have had no problems; therefore they do not exist." Scary thinking when carried to it's logical conclusion. If you would research the problem, as many of us who have been cheated by this institution did, you would find that this particular web site is but a postage stamp in the ocean of complaints. UOP has, in fact, been sued on several occasions, has several lawsuits pending, and there are several class action lawsuits in the works. Evidently, your assessment of the situation is incorrect. In regard to your thinking that any employer HAS to accept a degree, you are remiss. There is a reason you pay more for an Ivy League education than a correspondence course. Employers WILL consider the educational institution, and DO in many cases base their hiring decisions on the school attended, especially in certain areas of employ. Regarding people expecting to be "spoon fed" or lead by the hand through their education, I think the problem is not so much a "give me my degree" demand, but a plea for there to be staff on hand to answer questions and clarify issues, as there is in a brick and mortar setting. While many of the instructors are just find, some are not there for the student body. The expectation that the student put in X amount fo time and effort should be met half way by instructors who are there to instruct, and often, that is NOT the case - but that's another issue that will ultimately be settled in court. My suggestion to you is to enjoy your very, very expensive (albeit rather sub-standard( education, do well, get good grades, hopefully a good job as a result, because you will need it to pay off your gargantuan student loans, and while you are at it, hone your research skills. Best of luck to you. (And, no, good people, I did not spell check this...do forgive me!)

I don't understand why there's so many complaints against University of Phoenix. One individual complained that they didn't learn anything. In my opinion, this is nobody's fault but the person complaining. UoP gives students the resources (books,lectures, simulations), if you don't learn, you're obviously not doing the work. UoP isn't there to spoon feed you. As far as the service at UoP, I've never had a problem. The advisors and counselors have always been extremely prompt when it came to answering any questions I've had, and I've been attending the online campus for just over two years. The school is regionally accredited, so a graduate from UoP can take their degree anywhere in the world. Employers HAVE to accept the degree. In summary, as far as I can see, all of the complaints against UoP are illegitimate. These complaints represent a small minority of students that have either not applied themselves at the school, or have ran into unual circumstances that the typcal student will NOT encounter.

One individual complained that they didn't learn anything. In my opinion, this is nobody's fault but the person complaining. UoP gives students the resources (books,lectures, simulations), if you don't learn, you're obviously not doing the work. UoP isn't there to spoon feed you. As far as the service at UoP, I've never had a problem. The advisors and counselors have always been extremely prompt when it came to answering any questions I've had, and I've been attending the online campus for just over two years. The school is regionally accredited, so a graduate from UoP can take their degree anywhere in the world. Employers HAVE to accept the degree. In summary, as far as I can see, all of the complaints against UoP are illegitimate. These complaints represent a small minority of students that have either not applied themselves at the school, or have ran into unual circumstances that the typcal student will NOT encounter.

Kudos, Tracey, on going back for your degree, and I am glad that so far you have had the same experience I did at UOP: a first rate admissions and financial aid advisors who know their stuff, are helpful and chatty, with personality plus and a good caring attitude. The problems seem to arise when you are headed for your designated area of study and you will have to switch counsellors. I thought I could expect the same treatment. My first conversation with my new "advisors" was a one way conversation. My questions were constatnly met with, "I'll ask my supervisor". My financial aid advisor was the worst excuse for one on the planet. What I knew about financial aid could fit in a thimble, and yet I know more than she did. I had to remind her that my aid was available. She let me into the last class I took, assuring me that the aid was good to go - and when the class was over - here comes the bill and some sorry excuse as to why the financial aid did not come through. My repeated requests to get to the top of the chain of command over there ended at a supervisor who spent the bulk of an e-mail asking me not to be too hard on his "best" advisor, rather than explaining why they did not "tap" my financial aid, and then subsequently waited out the pell period. This is a matter of trust, as you say, and I truly hope that you have a better experience than the bulk of us here. Just make sure your financial aid is in order BEFORE you take any of the over-priced classes. (That's another story altogether....) Best of luck to you....

I have just enrolled in UOP for August '04. I have been working with the greatest admissions counselor, and the financial aide counselor is also really awesome. I'm reading all these complaints and rebuttals, and the rebuttals really do seem more like what I've seen and the service I've recieved has been exemplary. As for the contact (or lack thereof for some of you), my admissions counselor has given me his cell phone number if I ever need to call after business hours and made himself 100 % available to me anytime I happen to need him---Saturday, 12:00 am Wednesday---absolutely anytime. I can't wait to experience everything else, and trust and believe that I will be coming back to give POSITIVE feedback and rebuttals as I go along.

I am a recent graduate of UOP (Jul 04). I have never experienced the problems read here. My counselors always responded to my emails and phone calls. Not always the same day, afterall, they do have several hundred or maybe thousands of students to take care of, but I always received a response. As to the charge about the value of the degree, in two years of classes with hundreds of classmates, I have never heard of any employer who has refused to honor or discredit the degree.

I am a recent graduate of UOP (Jul 04). I have never experienced the problems read here. My counselors always responded to my emails and phone calls. Not always the same day, afterall, they do have several hundred or maybe thousands of students to take care of, but I always received a response. As to the charge about the value of the degree, in two years of classes with hundreds of classmates, I have never heard of any employer who has refused to honor or discredit the degree.

Just wanted you to know you are not the only one with UOP. I was told it would take me 2 years to finish up my BA and cost me about 22K. After doing 2 years, and paying 26K so far and still had about another 2 years to go, I dropped. You are right about the instructors. Most of them will not help you. I would ask for help, better examples, and feedback. Some instructors would tell me I needed to drop the class and take it undersome one else. Some would tell me if I couldn't get it out of the book, off the internet, or from hiring a tutor I should drop the class. I received very little help from my academic advisor and financial advisor. I ended up taking two algebra classes I didn't need because they wouldn't listen to me about transferring them from my associate degree program. After I took the classes, paid for the classes and wasted my time, they said it wasn't necessary for me to have taken them. Because of their screw up with the finacial aid, they delayed me 3 times. The books are a rip off! It is a racket they have going. I would tell anyone, beware of UOP!