About Online School

It’s hard to find or say something about the online school superstar, the University of Phoenix, that hasn’t been found or said already. The University of Phoenix is by far the largest online school in the United States and one of the largest online schools in the world with a participation program rivaling college distance learning programs such as CLEP while having a course selection as broad as its chief competitor, Walden University.

However, do they have a Walden University level of respect? For all of their style, how much substance does it really have?

Strengths

• The University of Phoenix’s online school offers degrees of all levels in Teachers Education, Nursing, Counseling, and Business.
• The University of Phoenix is considered one of the best online schools to obtain a masters or doctorate in Teachers Education, and teachers education graduates, and a Teachers Education degree from this online school may be one of the few degrees offered that is taken seriously in the field.
• Some of the University of Phoenix’s alumni include Shaquille O’ Neal and Lisa Leslie, and if they can find time to complete an online school degree with the University of Phoenix, anyone can.
• The University of Phoenix’s online program is extremely flexible; more than any online school in the United States. While in-person classes may be attended on any of the schools 500 campuses worldwide, more focus is placed into the online school aspect.
• The online school tries to do a good job of educating its students, but with a majority part-time staff, there’s only so much attention the professors can give to their students.

For all others, its use at your own risk.

Drawbacks

• The University of Phoenix’s public perception, unfortunately, is almost as poor as DeVry University, another online school. Undergraduates of the University of Phoenix are unlikely to have their degree taken seriously post-graduation, which will often result in their getting less-desirable jobs in their chosen field of operation.
• For example, I personally know a graduate of the University of Phoenix’s online school who remarked that the University of Phoenix is only good if you already have a job.
• This may even be questionable, as the University of Phoenix has a low rate of graduates who achieved raises and/or promotions after obtaining a degree from this online school in comparison to traditional college or even Walden University.
• At $12,000 a semester, the University of Phoenix is very expensive, and I’m sorry to say that the money may not be worth it.
• An estimated 16.9% of those who apply do not graduate from the school within six years even though they pride and market themselves as a school which applicants can graduate from in 18 months.
• Less than 2% graduate in this span of time, and almost all of this percentile were finishing their degree with the University of Phoenix’s online school and started it at a traditional college.

The University of Phoenix is a decent online school, but it doesn’t come close to the real deal as much as it would have its students believe.

If you are or were a University of Phoenix student, how did your experience shape up? Drop a comment and tell us!