Walden University Reviews of Master's in Counseling

My experience at Walden has been excellent, the education and support I have received is better than many other brick and mortar. I began this program while living in NYC, at the time one of my coworkers was completing the same program at "one of the best NYC colleges". we constantly compare the work. In the end we both agreed his program was a joke, in addition he was always on the phone with academic advising trying to figure things out. Walden has knowledgeable instructors and the office staff... Read More will always do their best to help the students. I now live in FL where I am completing my internship and I could not be happier with Walden.

You have to work hard. The good: fast paced and I have been able to get support when I need it. Nearly all of my professors (aside from one) graded fairly, consistently, and quickly. I needed time off and they were able to quickly accommodate my needs. The bad: financial department is slow. Ordering books is not always easy as some of them are custom for Walden and thus cost more. Sometimes you get the one professor who seems like she has something to prove and grades you radically different on every... Read More assignment. That was only one professor. The due dates are normally very regular but every now and again one pops up that is different and if you don't pay attention it can cause problems. Basically, you get out what you put in. If you pay attention and work hard you will do fine.

Do not enroll in Walden it's a scam. TIME TO DEGREE COMPLETION AND OVERALL POLICIES: I enrolled almost three years ago as it is one of a few CACREP accredited programs in counseling. I was told I would finish my degree in two years, three years ago. When and if you make it to complete your field experience beware. The email address listed in the field experience manual is incorrect and hasn't been for some time. I was forced to wait two terms because I sent in paperwork to said email address as instructed... Read More to do by academic advising and heard nothing. You will have to complete excessive amounts of documentation and the office of field experience will drag things out as much as humanly possible. Once you jump through all of these hoops they may or may not remember to register you for the course. As a student you are not allowed to add or drop any courses without speaking to academic advising. Oh, but wait it gets better, getting ahold of your every changing academic advisor is like trying to track down bigfoot. Even when you schedule appointments with them your assigned advisor is rarely the one who calls you back. I the three years I have been there I have spoken with a counseling program advisor twice. Most of the time you are sent to advisors for other programs who have no clue what your degree requirements are. Whatever you do please do not have any health related issues. I was placed on academic probation because I received C’s in two terms worth of classes causing my GPA to drop below the required 3.0. The reason you ask, I had cancer. Walden’s disability services did not consider cancer to be a short term disability and I was told that I would have to completely withdraw from the program which may or may not cause me to lose credits when I re-enrolled. So yes I was only able to get a “C” in the two terms I took during chemo and surgeries, because as I was told by financial aid and advising “you should have used your time away from work to focus more of your academics, it may have helped you get your mind off of your health problems”. FINANCIAL AID: First off their financial aid process is horrible. They do not notify you if there is any issues and let you find out when you get a bill. Every support staff I have ever spoken to or email has taken excessive amounts of time to respond. However, their "policy" is 1-2 business days. They use an outside vender to process refunds which is scary to me as far as security is concerned. FACULTY AND COURSES: The faculty teaching the courses are inconsistent with grading what may be an "A" paper for one will be a "D" for another. As far as the discussion boards are concerned which are required weekly, the instructor will give you the response requirements then count off if you do not exceed above the requirements. You are required to read 5 or more academic journal articles per week per class and find a way to cite them in your discussion, weekly assignment, and discussion response posts. Most of the counseling program text books are custom editions thus forcing students to order from Walden's bookstore and pay several hundred dollars per text book with a tiny $500 budget. There has not been one single term that I have not had to pay out of pocket for materials. You have to complete an online form that can take up to two weeks to be processed to get your book advance from financial aid, when there are only two weeks between terms. This forces students to pay for inflated expedited shipping costs so that they don't start classes without their materials.

I am a student in the early stages of the Masters of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. Walden is perfect for working professionals who want to have academic preparation with a flexible schedule. You must be a self-starter and willing to work. Walden will support you but they will not spoon-feed you. I have enjoyed most professors. I like the accreditation, online format, and 24/7 Student Support. Your degree will be what you put into it. Put nothing in and you will gain nothing. Put hard... Read More work in and receive much. The resources are there but you have to make it work. Walden's financial aid and billing areas need an overhaul. They are difficult to work with. Walden professors, academic advising, enrollment advisors, and student support are great. I am grateful to be a student at Walden-and proud of the degree I am warning.

I felt compelled to write a review because at THIS POINT in my academic career at Walden I am pleased with the level of education and instruction offered and much of the negative reviews sound like personal issues and a lack of accountability. First, every institution is out to make money. There are no schools with free tuition and all instructors and administrators need to get paid for their job. If you have experienced poor "customer service" then consider moving your concerns up the ladder until... Read More something is done. Second, online school is not for everyone. If you need additional supplements or instruction than what is already created for the program, maybe you should reconsider and go to a brick and mortar. (My philosophy is do not apply if you have never successfully taken an online course) I am in my third term in the MHC program and I must admit it is not a piece of cake. There are discussions due weekly, mandatory responses, written assignments due weekly, a final project, along with an expectation of superior writing. As a full-time employee I cannot help but wonder "What did I get myself into?!", but then I realize, if it were that easy to obtain a Masters/Doctorates degree the world would be a scary place! As for Practicum and Internship requirements, it is clear from the beginning that these are the students responsibility. The site provides a disclaimer on the degree information page and the one credit introductory course reminds us of these requirements and responsibilities. Furthermore, there is an assignment to encourage students to find possible local internship locations and to research the state requirements for licensing. My sister attends an accredited university for the same program, brick and mortar, and she does not do nearly as much work throughout the semester; however, I have found that the 1-2 projects assigned to her demand a lot (20-30 pages) and one overlook can affect the course grade drastically. I would much rather do shorter weekly assignments and have more chances to a successful course. So far I have a 4.0 and it was not easy BUT very doable. Each program is developed differently by the program directors so I cannot speak for all. Hope this helped.

I went to a brick and mortar undergraduate school and honestly this was pretty disappointing (University of Utah). I think much of schooling is really disappointing in general; with this said I work in the middle of know where and am over one hundred miles from other places to go to school. Walden works for me and I think that i learn as much as from another school due to my own efforts and am able to complete a degree in the boonies. I think that Walden compares to most online schools, I feel that... Read More I am essentially on my own and pay a lot for this. This works for me because I am already a supervisor in my field and need further education to progress. I think that Walden is good if you already have expirience in your field and just need to complete a requirement for advancement. All said and done I would be happier with less tuition.