Chicago School of Professional Psychology Reviews

"This school is a money pit.They flaunt "scholarships" and "fellowships" and then when you received your FA letter you see that the only thing you qualified for was a loan. $10k for two classes...I enrolled in a certificate program that literally cost me $20k for 12 credits!!! I took 2 more classes that added another 10k to my loan debt. They are just in it for the money. I finally had enough and finally called FA and asked for an itemized accounting - NO REPLY so far after 8 days. I'll be going elsewhere, but will have to pay out of pocket for a bit until I can pay off some of these loans. Now about the actual "education" you receive. They use Canvas for classes. You basically interact with your professor and classmates via a discussion board. You have learning modules with reading assignments; complete the reading and then answer the required questions on the board. If you have any questions for your professor you have to email them. True that most are adjuncts HOWEVER I will say that I have had a great experience with them all. They provide a wealth of information and their real-world experience is very helpful. My one main complaint about this school is the cost. It is NOT worth the "discussion board only" education you get. Not at all."

"Yikes. I'm not sure what's going on with the other reviews but I'll be speaking positively about my experience with the school. First off, I attend the DC campus. Due to the pandemic, we attend on-campus classes once a month. I'm in the Ph.D. in Business Psychology - Consulting Track program. I like the program because I feel that I am learning so much in such a short period of time. I feel that the assignments are appropriately challenging and are refining my knowledge, skills, and abilities as a professional in the DC federal government. The lessons are very relevant to my current job. My only complaint is that the assignments are due in such a short period of time. For example, assignments are issued on Mondays. Sometimes, the assignments entail 40+ pages of reading and a discussion post due by Wednesday. Other times, the assignment requires reading four chapters and answering a question or two by Thursday. As far as the school goes, I like it enough. The admins are facility staff are cordial and respond to emails within a reasonable time. The professors are professional and knowledgeable. I love this school. It's much better than my last school where I was also pursuing a PhD."

"Aside from some disorganization, which seems inevitable given the pandemic and merger of TCSPP and Argosy, this has been a great experience so far. The faculty really make this program and their instruction has been both highly educational and invaluable for real world application."

"You will be ok here if you are white. Typical for-profit, gate keeping colonialist school. Dare to complain about a profesor, they will be promoted for it! But wait, that sane person in the point of contact for student concerns so why even bother! If you are in the PhD program, mind that you wont get to pick your chair. This is so important because when these relationships don't work, you will be adding time to your time there meaning more student debt (~$1500 per cr hr). They do have a diversity team, composed by white faculty members! What a scam."

"I'm at the Chicago campus in the applied behavior analysis MS program and have been very happy with the professors and chairs of the department. A couple of the adjunct faculty members could be a little more involved but they also bring real-world experience to their classes since most are still working directly with clients, which has been a very important learning experience. I have learned a lot despite 2020/2021 being so hectic with COVID. The department has tried to do their absolute best to make themselves available virtually and advisors are always available to consult with students about classes etc. Overall very happy with the quality of my education and I feel prepared to enter the field as a future behavior analyst."

"I was at the DC campus for Forensic Psychology and left because the chair was vindictive and created more problems than solutions. He was the Dean's pet and made everyone around him uncomfortable. I was ostracized by him many times and he seemed to get off on his power trip. Nobody liked him, including his faculty and GAs. It has taken many months for me to recover, but I never forgot how toxic he and the so-called Dean were. The campus was a wannabe university that borrowed it's reputation from the main campus in CHI. I wish I went there instead, but I'm now happily employed in the field of my dreams. I should probably thank the horrible leaders of this school for me quitting and pursuing a much more lucrative field."

"The teachers are great and what I learned was exceptional. However, this college is a degree mill. They guarantee jobs after graduation, but if you are working at a restaurant, that counts as employment. They don’t guarantee they will get your a job in your field. The professors will try to help but not the school. Additionally, it’s way overpriced for what you are getting. You aren’t getting anything extra than any other college that isn’t as expensive. They say they are a not-for-profit, but sometimes it seems like they are more for-profit. Additionally, the financial aid department will just encourage you to take out loans when you will never be making enough to pay off the cost of tuition and are unrealistic on your salary post graduation. Do you own research. Look at other schools. The education is great but was it worth it, no. I just hope this helps someone else."

"Highly don't recommend. Most of your professors are adjunct or PhD candidates. You won't be learning from people who have been in the field longer than you have (sometimes I was in the field longer than them!). This school also does not care about minority groups. They talk about diversity and inclusion but their words do not match their actions. Do not expect to be treated equally here. The worst part was the thesis. The thesis process was the most aversive thing I have ever experienced. They kept sending back my thesis approval for the most ridiculous reasons (e.g., they changed their IRB phone number) and took over 6 months to give me approval for an exempt thesis (i.e., no vulnerable population). I took an extension thesis course and will likely have to take a second because of this absurd lack of professionalism from a school that calls themselves "professional" psychology. Unbelievable. Entire experience was soured by this process. And the school has the audacity to blame me and not assist or give me an alternative in anyway so I can graduate. They took over 50,000 in tuition and want me to pay for their mistakes. The least they could do is give tuition back for the extensions (or better yet, not charge a student for an extension that is clearly the school's fault!). Do not go here. You can get a better, cheaper education somewhere else."

"This is a money pit- you finish the course work then they keep you in Dissertation classes forever with no results. They only help who they want to help. My dissertation chair was so bad- I just stopped paying for absolutely nothing. Should have went to USC ."

"Run! Do not waste over 1k a credit hour. Be prepared to not be responded to when you reach out for help or clarification. Be prepared to face plagiarism allegations if your writing is too good. Even if you can prove that you wrote your own paper by giving physical proof, they will not listen. Instructors are allowed to treat you however they choose, so if your not liked enough... tough luck! Be prepared to feel targeted if you ever have a complaint on an instructor. The school will tell you how they have services to help you for anything and then they vanish when you request it. If you truly want to invest your time and money in a school where you may or may not make it through because of uncontrollable issues with no support then this school is for you."

"My experience has been very poor at the DC campus. The classes were useless, I learned very little. The head administrators are unhelpful and often aggressive towards students. This has happened to many of my friends, not just my opinion. They may get angry if you ask questions and we are told to do what they say or get out. One administrator sabotaged another student's internship application out of spite. I was told contradictory things about my training and class requirements, which caused several problems. The school is a "degree mill." If you just want the diploma so you can get a license, pay them to give you one. Don't expect to become a psychologist here."

"The professors were AMAZING. They really helped you with what you needed and went out of their way for you. Small classes hep so you can ask questions. The admin in the other hand was a pain. They always send you to someone else if you have a question and that was annoying. Overall I enjoyed my time there and it was really because of the professors. They all really wanted to help you succeed."

"a day ago Do not enroll in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. It is a program for white anglo-saxon Protestant women only. If you are a black female, male, LGBTQ, disabled and using a reasonable accommodation, or non Protestant Christian you will at minimum have a difficult time and will be likely harassed and repeatedly refered to a disciplinary committee that the college claims is not a disciplinary committee. This school also saves every single piece of paper you ever give them, and will force you to write admissions of guilt that they insists are only reflection papers, then you will see the reflection paper again when you are referred to the disciplinary hearing. They also will wait until near the end of your degree when you are past the point you can transfer credits, near the end of your degree, then start harassing you, so they can get as much as possible because they don't want you to leave and loose your tuition money. This school also sweeps race discrimination, disability discrimination, and sexual harassment claims under the rug. Their modus operandi is to pretend to be so incompetent the school's general counsel can't understand claims and will keep asking for clarification even when the claims are extensively documented, so that the claims can be left at an intake stage, never invesigated, and ignore the claims. Multiple students have made claims to the school, have or are considering filing law suits, and have or are considering filing ethics complaints against professors with their state counseling boards."

"I've just completed my first year of the IP Phd program (trauma concentration). It has been a great experience. The professors have a wealth of knowledge, they are concerned about you're academic well-being and are quick to respond if you have questions or concerns. The university is fast with responding as well. My cohort's field experience was canceled 3 times no fault of the TCSPP, but due to political atmosphere in one country and covid-19 in 2 other countries. They were concerned with the safety of the students and faculty. It has been an absolute please being a PhD student at TCSPP and I look forward to my continued studies and I am very happy that I made the choice to attend."

"This is one of the worst universities in North America. They lure students in claiming to provide financial assistance through graduate assistantships, but don't have any positions available. It happened to me and it was already to late to apply somewhere else. Tuition is way too expensive and everyone I know is in serious debt because of their loans from here. The President is not to be respected and has done some sketchy things to my classmates and professors don't seem to like her. The faculty turnover is embarrassing as they used to have some decent professors but nobody knows any of the ones here now. I don't feel challenged and had more stringent expectations in my undergraduate psychology courses! I would probably go online before I came to this excuse for a school."

"I really loved how challenging this program was. There were several times I felt myself being challenged. The Professors and Doctors who have taught my classes have helped me so much in growing and retaining the information I learned throughout the degree."

"I must admit this was one of the few programs that allowed me to complete an entire online MA in Forensic Psychology. I'm one of the lucky ones who was able to get a degree out of interest in the topic, not to further my career. Therefore, my standards were already tailored to my needs, and less to the prestige of the degree. So for that, TCSPP was just fine for me. However, the program is expensive. Thankfully I have the Post 9-11 GI Bill to cover my expenses or I would have been very angry mid-way through. The program goals were confusing from the beginning. Originally I was enrolled in the DC Campus, even though I applied for the online campus. So after my first semester I had to transfer programs. The communication was very hit or miss on this process until I finally received notice it was complete. The instructors were mostly good, until they were very bad. I had a handful of fantastic instructors through my core classes, and then they got bad. It's like they brought in the bench warmers of PhD Instructors who were grading me on my performance, but couldn't even put together a coherent sentence. The grading rubrics were not consistent instructor to instructor, and what one instructor docked points for in grammar and formatting, another one praised. Be prepared to be frustrated through most of your courses and go with the flow. It's an easy enough program if you just want to get an MA for a hobby, but I'm very glad I don't have to count on this degree for my reputation in the Forensic career field."

"“They Lied To Me, Twice, Without Saying A Word” This review is harsh, so I want to recognize the one faculty member who was not just the most talented psychologist I have ever met, but also the only CSPP faculty member who could hold your attention. Most of all this person who earned the right to privacy is the only person who truly and sincerely cared about and supported me and the rest of us. Lie 1: I started at CSPP in 1987. By the 1980’s, managed care became entrenched in our health care system. CSPP would know that, as most faculty had a part time practice, and would also recognize the difficulties I’d face making a living due to managed care. Not one word. Lie 2 ; Most psychologists in IL work in private practice as independent contractors, unless they have the bank to open their own practice or can afford to live off receivables with no benefits of any kind. Independent contractors work for pimps and get treated like hoes who fail to make bank. I went back to school to get the education and training needed to provide the best therapy for patients. If I wanted to open my own business, I’d get a degree in business. If I wanted the thrill of working on commission while living off receivables, without benefits, I could have walked through my local indoor mall, my local strip malls, or find a drug dealer or pimp. They are honest about what to expect when working for them, unlike the liars on CSPP’s faculty. Of course, drug dealers and pimps con marks. CSPP saw me and my classmates as marks, and conned us."

"After having graduated and having had multiple interviews no employer seems to appreciate the value of this degree. I have networked my butt off. Increased my LinkedIn network by 500+ since starting the program and I still have not found a job. Get this degree to end in recruiting and job requires nothing."

"I just knew that this school was what I needed to further my career in forensic psychology, but boy was I wrong. There are some professors who love what they do and care about your educational experience. Then there are those that are simply there for a paycheck. Since my fourth semester at the school, I’ve been having consistent issues with canvas and then with the school website itself! Since I could get IT by phone, I emailed them. I received one email about a ticket each time, then nothing else. With lack of communication from them, I took my computer to have it serviced. Turns out, my computer is fine all around. I reach out to the director and she tells me it’s my connectivity issues. NO ITS NOT! I explain the entire situation to her and don’t receive an email until a week later. The professor knew the situation and wouldn’t even allow me to makeup work that was missed due to every issue. Talked about PISSED!! Unfortunately, I’m at the end of this semester and the issues have continued. When I am able to get onto the school website I try to get assignments done. And by then, it’s too late for discussion work. It’s hard enough to be earning another degree while having a husband and 4 kids and working full time for the government. Who has all day to troubleshoot software and deal with this. Then out of frustration I accidentally said the “f” word...the director hasn’t stopped conversing about that!! I understand how bad that was, but where was that consistency of communication when it came to my canvas issues?! This is honestly the worst graduate school experience ever!! Law school issues were better than this!"