Capella University Reviews

"Determination. Curiosity. Independence. Those are thee of the things that will ensure you get the most out of your education at Capella. The types of courses they had for my program were nuanced and appropriate and there was a consistent demand to call upon critical thinking skills which has improved every facet of my life. The online platform brings a level of digestibility when it comes to time and flexibility in accordance to lifestyle as an adult learner. While I wouldn’t trade my Capella education, there were a few things a which Capella fails, not because they don’t know, but because they don’t see the urgency or importance. 1. Scholarships and financial Aid. Capella’s scholarship and financial aid options are somewhat abysmal. Capella promises progress rewards and continuing education rewards in substantial amounts to attract students to their program. What they don’t disclose is the fact that you only actually get that amount if you slow down your pace with degree completion. The funds are not taken off the top of your tuition. It is broken up in quarters so there is still a chance that you will have to pay them even though you still have scholarship money from them. This, in a way, penalizes high performing students. Should a learner take three classes a quarter, these “progress” and “alumni” rewards won’t apply meaning, they get paid. They also do not give individualized, merit-based scholarships. Your background, major, or academic achievements are not basis for financial aid outside of the standards for the canned scholarships that they may offer. 2. Instructors. I’ve had some wonderful instructors. I’ve also had instructors who fall on the opposite end. Non responsive, offensive, and uninterested. For an educational institution that wishes its students to lean into critical thinking, it would seem that their instructors would hold the same value for that. Not so. I clearly remember asking a question to get more information from an instructor hoping for an open dialogue to learn and expand my idea. I was told “you’re overthinking.” There was no inquisition as to my question and I never got my question answered and ended up answer my question on my own. This was not a one-time occurrence. I’ve waited days for responses only to remind instructors that I was still waiting. The irony: to this day, I still have not received a response. While this was an extreme case it’s not uncommon. Furthermore, I and other learners have experienced instructors short-temperedness, lack of human understanding, and apathetic attitude towards learner-instructor engagement. 3. Academic Advisors. I thought this would be the only place where I could get guidance and understanding about the path I wanted to take. Surprisingly, I was incorrect. My academic advisor could not answer basic questions about the process and was often unavailable to the point where I built my own academic plan out of necessity. Capella frequently sends surveys to its students and I complete them in earnest, but I wonder if they’re read and considered. While this is an educational institution, it’s a business first, and when you get past the degree options and go below the surface, as long as they’re getting paid, there’s no real care past that point. I thought that maybe my experience was unique. It is not. In fact, it’s more common than it should be. I am a more shrewd and aware learner, but it’s not because I had to be that way to learn AT Capella. It’s because I had to be that way to LEARN Capella."

"I chose the flex path for both my BSN and MSN-education. I'm not a great test taker and now that I've been a practicing nurse for 14 years, with parenting and other responsibilities, this path worked well for me. I saw some nurses complete their degrees in one or two billing cycle but I took a little over a year for each degree. Flex path allowed me to write papers on my expertise, hospice. Some where so good I was encouraged to publish. I feel that I learned more about hospice by writing papers using current evidence based practice that I was immediately able to apply to my employment. This improved my job satisfaction and my patients and coworkers as well. I didn't get a raise, though my employer gave me thousands of dollars towards tuition and I never have to go back to floor Nursing unless I choose. I loved that I could spend as long as I needed on a paper and never felt stressed. The support I got from the professors was wonderful. As an adult learner in an online educational setting, I felt very comfortable without brick and morter classroom format."

"Some professors were easy while others made it hard for no reason! Its typical nursing school! I chose flexpath which was easier to breeze through classes and it was affordable . My academic coach was trash. My self and several other students had complaints!"

"I liked the FlexPath format and how I was able to move along. My academic counselor was always helpful but like any other school, there are areas of improvement. It is a good school to attend. The curriculum offered is current and not outdated. If you go through the FlexPath format, be prepared to right and work for it. This degree helped me obtain a promotion in my job."

"I am finishing up my doctoral degree in education (higher education specialization). Overall I had a great experience at Capella! Each class was 10 weeks. There were 10 core classes and then 6 advanced doctoral classes where I wrote my dissertation. I became very close with my cohort. My mentor was attentive and available. The work is challenging yet manageable. I feel a sense of pride that I am almost done with a Dr. in front of my name! If I had to do it all again, I would still choose Capella!"

"This school has exceeded my expectations in every way. Each assignment has a clear purpose and intent to assist in my career goals. The teachers are helpful, educated and professional. Financial aid is helpful any time I’ve contacted them, the only thing negative is calling financial aid sometimes takes 45 minutes. I can totally handle that. I’m SO excited to continue my education and so glad I made this choice."

"I love the learning format at Capella! It allows me to manage my busy schedule AND work to achieve my academic goals! I work as a college educator at another university… when it came to taking the next steps for my personal education… I CHOSE CAPELLA! At Capella, I have earned my Bachelors, Masters and am currently working on my Doctorate degree!!"

"Best decision ever… I am know enrolling into the Doctoral program… No negatives or drawbacks… I was able to work around the clock and complete my degree quickly. No other schools offered the flexibility or convenience that I received here at Capella."

"Excellent program for working adults who can work independently with limited instruction. Perfect amount of flexibility, and you can use your prior work experience to move through your specialization. Highly recommend the flex path program for affordability."

"I am so happy I chose Capella.I researched other schools but after a referral from a friend, I chose Capella. I have learned so much already and applying it to my job. Flex Path is a great alternative for working professionals. I highly recommend Capella!"

"Don’t do it. I wish someone would’ve told me sooner. There are plenty of other schools. You literally teach yourself, besides writing papers you don’t really learn anything. You’re not prepared for the state exam, there’s nothing done in the program to prepare you for it. They make the internships extremely difficult and it’s really embarrassing to community partners. There is no communication, and there’s no way for you to connect with people on the phone. Most other MSW programs are much shorter. I wish I would’ve paid attention to that. Now I wasted a bunch of money and chose to go to another school. I will never refer anyone to this school."

"Would you believe me if I told you I finished a program that takes most students 12-16 months in less than 3 months? With Capellas flex path program I was able to do a RN to BSN with almost 2 weeks to spare to my 12 week deadline. By choosing the flex path program you get to go at your own pace, which is amazing for us who work full time jobs. They charge per 12 weeks rather than per semester or course. I was offered the options to use a program called Sophia, which is free, and in that program I was able to complete 9 credits of general ed that got me closer to my BSN & I was able to do it before starting the 12 week mark. That left me with only 8 courses to take of the actual program. The professors were very understanding, and really good at grading my assessments quickly and fairly. I even had to retake two courses but was still able to finish before the 12 weeks! Of course, you need to dedicate the time. It is all about how much you want it. The pricing was also amazing because for 12 weeks it was about $3000 and some change. $3000 for a bachelors degree? Whereeee? All in all Im very content with the university and program. Everyone was great from counselors, to coaches, to professors. I highly recommend this program if you are a RN whom is looking to further her career and obtain a bachelor's in science of nursing. Hope my review can help."

"Most of these negative reviews are from people that didn't understand the billing structure and/or have no concept of "competency based" programs. ASK QUESTIONS BEFORE YOU ENROLL. My enrollment counselor, Randy answered everything for me. I knew what program points vs credits meant, I understood I had to have EVERY class closed out and completed by the end of the billing cycle, not just assignments turned in. I knew there was no instruction, it was all competency based evaluations This program BUILDS on your knowledge foundation. This programs forces you to apply concepts, ideas, research and critical thinking to papers and speaking assignments. You should not be taking this program if you don't understand how to write a paper, or don't understand how to back up your ideas with clinical evidence. If you are not comfortable writing 30+ papers to finish a program, this is not for you. I enjoyed writing the papers, doing the videos and figuring out my own ideas; it's what we do as nurses. No one gives us detailed directions for our patients, we often walk in with a general idea of what's going on, and through our own assessment and collection of data do we form our working diagnoses. That's how these papers are. The directions are vague and very lengthy but using the competencies scored and scoring guide, I was able to get Distinguished on every assignment in every class. Thank you Capella!"

"I highly recommend Capella's Flex path program to working professionals who already have working experience. I finished my undergrad in 1 year (having previously completed an AAS) and my MBA in another two years. Building off of almost 10 years of professional experience, I found the coursework to fill in gaps in my professional and educational experience that have prepared me for the next season of my career. I found all of the course content and instruction to align with modern and best business practices. My guess is the majority of poor reviews come from students looking for a traditional classroom experience and/or who have little to no working experience that provides much of the foundation that enables you to quickly learn and connect dots/theories/practices to my everyday work."

"DO NOT DO IT!!!!!! Read this CAREFULLY. Their program requires 88 credits. Do a simple online search, most others require 60. All of their courses are 10 weeks long. Most other MSWs are 8. More course work, and more money for your degree. Their internship requires TWO SITES/SUPERVISORS. This is a MAJOR pain in the ass if you’re a working adult with limited options. The practice education team is TERRIBLE. They don’t respond, they don’t care."

"I just completed the RN to BSN program with the flexpath, 100% online, completed in one term (12 weeks). I started in May 2023 and completed mid-July 2023. It was challenging, the professors were great, for the most part. It was a lot of work, and I learned a lot. I loved the flexpath program because I was able to work at my own pace. I have a BS, so I am experienced at both writing papers and effective study strategies. My BS was completed at a great brick and mortar school, Nova Southeastern University. I highly recommend Capella, and I am going back for my MSN. Capella offers a great education experience for a very fair price. I started my BSN with Walden University. Walden had a lot of busy work that honestly did not add anything to my education, just added unnecessary stress in my life. Walden has 2 very cumbersome practicum, that makes absolutely no sense, as the minimum requirement for any BSN program is an active RN license. The last thing I need is to spend time getting hands on experience with practicums when I have been a nurse for 20 years. Huge thumbs up for Capella."

"The worst school I have ever attended. I hope this school gets what it deserves-closed down. I hope someone reads this before attending. I finished all my courses on time. However, they still charged me for another billing session. Additionally, the “payment plans” consist of biweekly 500 or 1000 payments accordingly. Do not go to this school unless you want to be screwed over, or broke by the end. Good luck."

"I had an amazing experience with Capella! I completed the flexpath general psychology bachelors program. I transferred in with an associates degree. I was able to complete my degree in 3 months! I am so grateful for Capella. I really enjoyed my classes and all of my professors were amazing! The assignments were mainly all essays, but the professors provided rubrics! It’s crazy to think that I was able to accomplish a goal that I’ve been struggling with. The competency based model is perfect for anyone who wants to accelerate. I struggled in colleges that were not competency based, but I excelled at Capella."

"Capella's online format seems perfect for the fulltime teacher, however their lack of communication, response, and clarity regarding the number of classes needed to reach requirements for financial aid, semester/ billing start and end dates, and credits required versus credits attainable through coursework is beyond frustrating. Initially, I did not have any issues with their FlexPath program, but over time it has become one issue after another, with extensive hold times to speak to someone regarding any issues I have had, a chat bot option that works inconsistently, and a website platform that continuously has issues with updating and accessing your learning plans in an online only learning environment. Because of these issues, I am INCREDIBLY unhappy with Cappella Online and do NOT recommend it to ANYONE trying to complete a Master's program with financial aid options in a timely manner."

"Capella is not transparent. When there is a problem you receive absolutely no help. They hire some people that are not qualified to teach. There is administration is careless, uneducated and unhelpful. I received my masters degree in psychology and started my doctorate, but now I am switching departments, because I have already spent a lot of money in the doctoral degree in psychology. I could not be more unhappy!"