American Public University System Reviews of Bachelor's in Business

I attended a well-respected college in Texas prior to joining the military. After about two years in the military, I decided to enroll in AMU and finish my Bachelor's degree. The online instruction was literally the same as the hybrid courses I did at a state-funded school, if not better. This school is accredited (regionally) and quite honestly, that's the most important aspect. I would say they are probably the leaders in catering to distance education for the military, first responders, government... Read More employees, etc. Honestly can't complain.

Low cost college with accreditation! If you are an adult, returning student this school is a no brainer choice. I looked for years and had trouble finding a program I could afford. They helped me sign up for federal Pell grants and student loans as needed. I am so grateful I will be graduating next year with my Bachelors in Business. You can't even get your job application looked at these days without a degree. Doors are opening thanks to this school! A few tips. For online students make sure you... Read More do rate my professor before you take a class. My first semester I had a bad teacher, and almost gave up on this school. Sadly not all the teachers here are good. If you pick a class and go through the sign up steps they list who is teaching. Rate my professor has been a life saver. I have been able to get all the good teachers since then. Also testing here is much better than some colleges. Many classes allow you to use your course materials when testing. I have a friend at a local university who is doing online testing. They do eye tracking. If you look away for too long they review or reject your test! None of that crap happens here. It's a very relaxed environment. My oldest child is about to go to college. After looking at costs for local major universities I am shocked at the cost! If your worried about status then be my guest and dig your financial hole at another university. This school as great ratings on Niche. It's not that bad here. Good luck, checking out reviews is you first step in the decision making process. Your on your way to a better future!

So far, so good. I have really enjoyed the material and the effort the business teachers have put into their forums, the lessons and the assignments. The administration and financial aid have been easy to work with, pleasant and responsive. The price is very fair, around $880 a class, including an online university library, electronic text books, and help from instructors with fast response time. I learned about marketing, personal finance, accounting fundamentals, entrepreneurship and internet concepts... Read More and I am excited about graduating with a bachelor's in business in a few months. (Currently taking my 10th, 11th and 12th class with them in Marketing 201, Business 235 and Application Software 200.) I would recommend this university.

This school has been amazing, I honestly cannot find the words to describe the caring and considerate staff, and the timely service. I have never had a problem, technical or otherwise that was not addressed promptly. My professors were absolutely professional and considerate of the challanges that online education may present. I work a full time job and I have a busy home life; this school integrates easily with this life. The negative comments noted on this page is not an accurate representation... Read More of American Public University. I will urge readers to call the school and talk to a representative for youself. Please do not let these absurd and negative comments affect going back to school. I will continue to pursue my education with APU because of the cost, the service and their ability to meet the needs of the working individual. I believe that this program assisted in enhancing my career as a Project Manager.

Future students need to know what awaits you with the faculty that will teach you. In the last couple of years there have been layoffs 'only' in the Academic area - the part of the school that is truly needed for students. The upper echelon has not suffered at all during any layoffs, drops in enrollment, and so forth. The upper echelon keeps increasing their fat salaries along with titles such as VP in front of their names to collect free stock. If their goals are met at the end of the year they... Read More also graciously give themselves bonuses. No one else receives these self appointed bonuses in the company. All this goes on at the cost of the backbone of the other employees. For example, faculty wages are 42% below the average payable wage. The average pay for a faculty member at the Instructor level is $38,524.00. Part time faculty have not been given an increase in pay since before 2005. Part time faculty are paid by the student with a payment of $120.00 per student. One student in an eight week course - yes you have just earned $120.00! This of course is before taxes. The new retention effort is targeted clearly at faculty. It is faculty's responsibility to 'keep' students. Faculty are constantly observed by a Program Director, Faculty Director, outside observer, or the Center for Teaching and Learning. Faculty are rated on three levels of engagement for participation and feedback on forums. Each faculty is targeted at least every other eight week start. There are monthly meetings to discuss why a teacher (even good teachers) have a high drop rate and should that teacher be removed from the course. If a teacher is removed from a course it is generally a high volume course and the teacher will loose his or her job because one cannot meet their teaching numbers. Teachers are required to meet their yearly work plan goal on the number of students taught each year, e.g., 500 (which is to be increased for 2016 by 10%). The university has concocted another creative way to layoff (fire) faculty now with what they believe is lack of performance on the retention initiative. Faculty are often told 'you do not want to be on the list.' Lately faculty have also been told (not in writing of course) that you do not want to submit students for plagiarism and students need to pass with at least a C in courses. The other new layoff (firing) tactic is to set up a one-on-one meeting with your departmental Dean. You think it is just a meeting. Alas, you are wrong. The faculty member is blind sided with Human Resources being on the phone. You are told you are not a good fit for the university based on your performance - period. No time to lawyer up. They send you a severance package within five minutes at the end of the phone call, which is generally for three months - clearly not enough time to support you or your family while trying to find new employment. The layoff meter at APUS has become very creative. Employees live in the fear factor of the dictatorship of APUS and not having a job. It is a constant threat held over your head. It is so bad they have started calling a new dean "the litter reign of terror" because no one wants to have contact with her out of fear of receiving a phone call meeting summons to be layedoff/fired. Sadly these are the layoff tactics of this university. Given time they will come up with more creative ways to terrorize its employees with fear and layoff tactics.

I started at APU in July 2014. I am in the middle of my second semester and I am loving it thus far. I chose APU following much research. I found that the number one and two complaints regarding online universities are 1) being dropped from classes due to administrative incompetence. 2) problems with the financial aid departments. I have had no issues in either of these areas. I have found that it is best to get the jump on securing one's classes and renewing financial aid. Although there are protocols... Read More in place to advise students of deadlines; I would never advise depending on others to hold your hand. The key to one's success at APU is getting organized and taking responsibilities for ones actions. The surprising thing is the fact that APU fails to hype its flexibility. For example; I almost chose another university because I did not know it was possible to accelerate ones degree program at APU. Western Governor's, Baker, and a few other universities allow for a quicker graduation time while APU refrains from making such a claim. If I had not added 12 credits to my program, due to adding a minor in religion, I would be set to graduate in one year with a two-year degree...half the time! They don't advise it because it is a heavy workload, but it is a great option. Technically one could take up to 10 classes in a semester. This would mean 5 classes a week for 8 weeks, then 5 more classes for an additional 8 weeks. This would deliver 30 credits in just 4 months. Think about it; this would mean potential graduation in around 8 months. Even I could not handle this load. However, I am taking 4 classes a week which I am barely able to accomplish with A's and B's. I absolutely love this option. And if one desires fewer classes, one could take just 2 classes per 16 week semester (that is 1 class a week for 8 weeks, then 1 class per week for another 8 weeks) and still qualify for Federal student Loans. So, the flexibility is awesome! Currently, tuition is $250 per credit hour plus $50 dollar tech fee per class (250X3+50= $800 per class). This is one of the most affordable tuition in the game. My experience thus far has been outstanding. I am so glad I chose to go with this school. I plan to stay here and pursue my MBA starting this summer. I would really stress the need to take responsibility for ones schedule and to read, read, read...the textbooks; as well as, the syllabus and APUS guidelines. As long as one takes the initiative to master the rules of this university, I don't see how they could have a bad experience. That's all I have for now...good luck.