"In my previous academic endavors I graduated one school with a 4.0 GPA and the undergrad with a 3.7 GPA. This experience was really horrible for me and my finances. I feel that I really made the wrong decision. I agonized over writing a review here, because it is in my nature to be positive and also to think of others - the staff, the school spirit with the students - etc. I hope you have a better experience and that things improve with the masters programs to the point that they properly accommodate working professionals, people who support their families."

Rita

Reviewed: 5/8/2023
Degree: Education Administration
Graduation Year: 2024

"This school sucks. I was pursuing my doctorate and I've never been treated so much like a child. I felt like the program was designed for idiots and they forgot that by the time you reach the doctoral level, you've been to college several different times. The professor I had was rude and unaccessible. She wouldn't respond to simple emails. It was very difficult just to ask a question. The way the coursework and discussions are due is unnecessarily complicated and convoluted. It was just a very unpleasant educational experience. I decided to leave and pursue my doctorate elsewhere because I didn't want to suffer through the program any longer. I also didn't like the "Christian" aspect curve that was added to each discussion assignment. I realized that although I'm a Christian, I didn't like feeling forced and obligated to discuss my values and beliefs with others students. It didn't feel like an authentic space to do so. I didn't feel any connection."

Reviewed: 5/4/2023
Degree: Early Childhood Education
Graduation Year: 2024

"Worst school EVER... instructors could care less about the success of their students. Counselors are the same. When you reach out for help nothing is ever RESOLVED all they do is give you the run around. Do yourself a huge favor & LISTEN TO THESE REVIEWS... I SURE WISH I HAD...."

School is a disaster in the making

Reviewed: 4/24/2023
Degree: Nursing
Graduation Year: 2018

"The school is a disaster in the making because students get away with plagiarizing and when instructors report them for plagiarizing instead of disciplining the student the instructor gets slapped on the hand and sometimes discipline to the point that the instructor is let go. University would rather have students who plagiarize and keep enrollment up then to work with instructors who maintain integrity and promote overall learning. I just now found this or I would have written this review a long time ago. Knowing some of the instructors personally I know this to be fact as they have showed me what has happened to them when they have reported someone for plagiarizing with proof yet they are the ones that are terminated. Students should not be allowed to plagiarize especially for University that promotes christianity. I'm not sure that the Bible would condone plagiarism since it is the same thing as stealing."

Jennifer S.

Reviewed: 4/20/2023
Degree: Social Work
Graduation Year: 2024

"Like others have said, I am seeing many negative reviews. I do not identify as Christian, however I am spiritual, and thought that this would be an amazing opportunity and it has been so far. It almost sounds like some of these comments are referring to a completely different university in regards to staff being unresponsive because nearly every single person I have contacted at this school has gotten back to me within the same day. My enrollment counselor would follow up with me weekly until the second class arrived and my Student Services Counselor was very informative and emailed and called me when I left him a voicemail the very same day. I honestly was a little fearful to begin online school, thinking that I was in for a stressful experience when my time here so far has been anything but. My teachers are great, helpful, and so kind. Also, the professors do not shove Christianity down students' throats, it is mentioned occasionally and is even taught that Christians should be open minded and accept everyone at the university and in the real world which I find to be a very important lesson. It is important to remember that this is a Christian college and if someone does not want to hear about Christianity at all, then there are plenty of other online colleges to choose from that are not Christian schools. The only negative thing that I must say is that I am currently in Bachelor of Social Work and it is not accredited but it is in candidacy status. The masters degree that I was hoping to get here will not lead to licensure which I'm sad about because I absolutely love GCU and will have to find another online college to go to where the degree will be accredited. So my advice would be to do your research before enrolling to make sure your degree counts and can lead to licensure, if you are going into counseling. Other than that, I have no complaints and this has been such an amazing and helpful experience so far."

Jana

Reviewed: 4/19/2023
Degree: Healthcare Administration
Graduation Year: 2024

"I have a Doctorate already and wanted and additional degree. I do not recommend this school for anyone. Ever heard of the 1980-1990’s universities mail order class degree mills? The online programs are the very same at this school, but worse. Instructors are not qualified or don’t give a darn as the class is an extra income. The tasks set forth to do are so vague and abstract that one is clueless as what is required. There is very little contact with instructors. There is no complain system intact. There is no “Dean”. All they have is student services who is useless. The school is nothing more than predatory seeking money. Not sure how they got or keep their accreditation. Spare yourself and go to a real university."

Indiana

Reviewed: 4/19/2023
Degree: Cybersecurity
Graduation Year: 2021

"I withdrew from a class within the first week because they miscalculated my financial aid. They came after me for over $1,000 reported it on my credit and hurt my credit score. I was forced to pay them $1,000 for a class that I never took and withdrew from because they miscalculated my financial aid. This is a predatory institution that should be penalized for causing undue financial harm to their students."

Manda

Reviewed: 4/6/2023
Degree: Special Education
Graduation Year: 2023

"Do not go to GCU, they do not care about your education, your career, or your “purpose,” they care about your money. They have great counselor that bring you in and get you set up then during your time with them you have about 10-12 different counselors who never respond to emails. They continually mess up grants and scholarships leading you to pay out of pocket or if unable to have to take out dreaded student loans. They advertise they haven’t raised their tuition in years but they sure know how to jack up other student fees so they can be “honest” in that statement. They try to cram “Christian worldviews” down everyone’s throat (as if Christians are the only people who can be kind and good hearted moral people) but the school’s real god is the almighty dollar. Let also not forget as you move closer to your graduation they tense to be more problems with getting into needed classes to graduate to prolong your time with them and continue to pay them. Lastly, when you are finally feed up with their games and ready to transfer many (and I mean many) of the credits will not transfer so it’s like starting your degree program all over again. The classes do not prepare future teachers for real world classrooms and I’m sure schools like this is yet another reason teacher turn over rates are continuing to climb. This school has been such a waste of money and time."

James Jimenez

Reviewed: 3/29/2023
Degree: Organizational Leadership
Graduation Year: 2024

"This is the worst school you can go to. I caught two fellow students plagiarizing papers I had to edit for the group and the professor had no issue with it. I got my undergraduate degree at CSULB and 70% of the class at GCU in the master's program would never be able to pass at Long Beach because most of the students write at about a 6th or 7th grade level. How does a person get a passing grade with horrible grammar and sentences like "a leaders responsibility is to lead the group." It's a slap in the face to have to pay money for this. If the student were caught plagiarizing at Long Beach State, they would have been put on academic probation or kicked out of the school."

Sylvia

Reviewed: 3/28/2023
Degree: Counseling
Graduation Year: 2025

"Please believe these students when they tell you this is the worse school ever! What Jennifer stated is exactly true! I am going through the same thing now. I have not received my disbursement and it's going on 2 months. When I asked for thr financial aid department they said that they did not have one and I could only talk to my studen service counselor which handles both. I asked how is this legal?? How can you call yourself an university with no financial aid department! I was appalled. I even called my Mohelia to let them know what was going on. They also couldn't believe this. I don't understand how schools can get away with things like this. I already had a rough time last year with ending up homeless because of my lender and had to go to court over it now I'm trying to further my education and got scammed!! I even asked do I need to fly to the school just so I could get my check because I will if I have to because this is ridiculous. PLEASE PLEASE DO NOT GO TO THIS SCHOOL, IF YOU DO YOU ARE GOING TO REGRET IT AND THEY ARE GOING TO KEEP YOUR MONEY."

Sneal

Reviewed: 3/28/2023
Degree: Nursing
Graduation Year: 2022

"I had an excellent learning experience. The instructors were helpful, the counselors encouraged me till graduation. I have no negative feeling about this school.A friend that I recommended the school to graduated right after me and we are enjoying a wonderful nursing career. Would have gone back if they had Masters program in psych."

Jennifer

Reviewed: 3/25/2023
Degree: Clinical Psychology
Graduation Year: 2025

"Stay far away from this school. They are all about money. They require special classes in the beginning that do not transfer to other colleges after forcing you to complete a semester or face severe financial repercussions. They do not have any finance department and take forever to refund any excess funding or financial aid needed for book money until well after the class ends. This school forces students to go through a counselor for everything, and most of the time, you cannot get ahold of them, and when you do, they are rude. Most of the professors are not helpful and unresponsive to questions. I chose this school because it claims to be a Christian college, but its ethical financial stipulations are unforgiving and greedy. The school has people that recruit and convince you to enroll and are very persistent while putting on a facade that they care and will go above and beyond to ensure success and all that goes away after they have you financially committed to at least a semester. I wish I had gone elsewhere and saved a ton of money and time on classes I cannot use at other colleges."

Luna Alvarez

Reviewed: 3/21/2023
Degree: Business
Graduation Year: 2025

"I guess I should have read the reviews before attending this university. The professors should not be called professors. They lack ethics and don’t help you with anything. You are teaching yourself 100% of the time. What are we paying for? Materials and assignments? I think that school has been a waste of my time even though I learned a few things ON MY OWN. They don’t care if anyone learn different and need help l. Yet they teach you about the development of learning and how everyone is not always taught the same. Well, they don’t care about that. Their online program is so confusing and they don’t really help you navigate. If you’re online you’re on your own. Don’t apply for online because they say it’s “non your time” because it’s bull. They need better ways to teach in many schools. They just know how to drain your pocket for the work and ethics you’re putting in. Hmmmm, maybe I should have been called professors by the professors there 🤔 get me some respect since we are teaching ourselves especially if we leave the class with a good passing grade. Applaud yourself in the back if this was you and you attended online, I mean it’s even possible for this to happen on campus. I had to no longer attend, the frustration, confusion, stress, and how many times I kept getting upset attending this university was draining me and making me super depressed. They claim to be Christian school yet after like 3 classs all that is out the window 😂. And their actions don’t show Christian like behavior. Thanks anyways for this very he’ll like experience."

Sam

Reviewed: 3/16/2023
Degree: Clinical Psychology
Graduation Year: 1900

"I only attended GCU for one class before ultimately deciding it was not the right program for me. The online platform is very difficult to use, assignments must be submitted as specific attachments and I spent hours trying to upload homework assignments correctly. Once I decided to drop out, which was after 2 weeks, I was told I was past the point I could receive any money back and would have to pay full tuition. I tried to fight this but ultimately ended up paying 2k for 2 weeks of class. Ridiculous. They are very difficult to work with and ultimately are just after your money. I wish I had read the reviews prior to going."

Anonymous

Reviewed: 3/5/2023
Degree: Nursing
Graduation Year: 2021

"Worst school i ever attended. They lie about clinical placements and then students cannot complete their degrees because it is hard to find clinical sites who want to partner with the school. How did i get fooled like this ? Will never recommend this school"

Gabrielle Rafail

Reviewed: 3/1/2023
Degree: English
Graduation Year: 2025

"If it weren't accredited, I'd think GCU is a scam. They try to keep students paying and going to school for an extra full year by forcing them to take 1 class at a time for several semesters. There is no need to do this, and it is strictly for profit. They will not be accommodating either. If you choose to pull out, there is no refund offered after only 1 week of the course. It's a trap. Don't go here."

Eric M

Reviewed: 2/23/2023
Degree: Cybersecurity
Graduation Year: 2024

"I have read about 30 of these reviews and most of them are negative so far. I know many will read this and just pass it by or look at the length and say no thank you, but please if you are struggling ask for help if you are on the fence find a friend or a councilor, help is available and there are far far worse schools and educational experiences that will leave you wanting. I can completely understand being frustrated and even hurt when you believe your expectations are not being met and I would like to say that I respect those that have shared their reviews good or bad it takes heart to share your experience on a public forum. I must also respectfully state that I have had my share of instructors who I felt we did not see eye to eye and or get along with in the online setting but the written word is one of the most informal lines of communication we have and it can be difficult to portray your needs through writing. I have had grades I did not agree with and even assignments I thought to be tedious and unfulfilling and at times a waste of my hard-earned money and time. I will also agree that it does feel like an attempt at times to convert you to their belief system. Though I could not respect myself if I just got on here and followed bashing of a school I have come to love, it is hard to adjust to new things and new ways of thinking I mean look at the crusades and what people did in the name of being Christian then. We must evolve as a people just as well as individually. I was out right appalled at the beginning of my Christian worldview class. I would also like to point out that I am not Christian, and I have not accepted their views or beliefs. I will say that I have adopted their attempt to love everyone and try to be helpful as much as I can, yes being human makes that difficult sometimes because I am blinded by my own emotions and thoughts. In majority of the courses, we get instruction on how to use critical thinking and ethics to our advantage. I feel that if we could take a step back and use those skills, we would be far less quick to the cut on an incident or experience that caused us to want to give a less then flattering review. However please note you are allowed your own opinions and thoughts that is the main point of everything GCU offers. They also provide a plethora of help and literature to those struggling at school, home and even life. I do not believe any issue that has ever come up with my funding, grades, and beliefs to have ever but me in an impossible situation with the university. GCU does not have to be one of them make your expectations known and follow through on information you are given it can make a world of difference. Thank you if you have read this and I hope it can help!"

Sara Mijee

Reviewed: 2/16/2023
Degree: Early Childhood Education
Graduation Year: 2023

"This is not a real school; it is a money making factory! I was there for a semester and I had the most horrible experience at GCU. I chose this school because it is a Christian school but it was a big mistake. GCU has no CHRISTIAN VALUES. I think its just a name. The advisors won't answer your email; it takes a week to email back. They would not release your transcript because they made up some scholarship that was never applied for my tuition. I had to go for a surgery for the first week that I wanted to withdraw but they charge me $2000 which is way more than their tuition. I would NOT RECOMMEND this school to anyone! I wish they negative star. I would give -5 stars!!! That's how upset I am with them!"

Dorsel Edwards

Reviewed: 1/27/2023
Degree: Nursing
Graduation Year: 2022

"GCU is the worse school I have ever attended. All they care about is Money. There are not standard rules and each professor makes their own rule. They are rude and unprofessional. I would never recommend this school to anyone. Do not waste your money or time with GCU""

MorganD

Reviewed: 1/25/2023
Degree: Elementary Education
Graduation Year: 2024

"Looking to waste your time, money and patience? GCU is right for you! This college is rude, unorganized, and just looking for your money. In the amount of time I had any association with GCU (2 weeks) everything about it was a red flag. They came to my work for a recruiting events and gave out all the right answers, so I began the process of enrollment. At the beginning of enroll (transcript already sent), I was told i'd graduation in 1 year(only reason I picked this college). Then it was moved to graduate in 1.5 years. Then, it was 2 years. And finally, it was 2.5 years. Aside from the inconsistent answers, I noticed they only have a graduation rate of 41%, when my classes started I noticed why. In the first day of my first class, it was expected that I post 3 discussion posts and have 8 additional replies. Which is a lot for just an introduction class. They work load is outrageous when compared to other colleges my fellow teachers attended. So workload and pushing my graduation date out, I decided I would drop out and attend a college close to home with friends who are attending and know what it is like. When I decided to drop out, it took several days for someone to reach out to me. When I finally received an email about it, the guy was very rude to me. He stated i would never find a college where I can graduate within a year and good luck with my expectations. Well, my luck took all of 5 minutes to find a college with a fast track program and were actually nice to me! So GCU has a very low graduation rate, inconsistent answers to everything, only in it for the money and very rude. I hope this review helps anyone considering this college. I read ALOT of reviews before deciding on attending, after ignoring all the bad reviews I discovered first hand how bad GCU is. Good luck if you decide to ignore the reviews like I did!"