Regional Board - North Central Association of Colleges & Schools
School Characteristics:
For-Profit, Private
Credits:
121 minimum (Semester Credits)
Tuition:
State Residents: $ 250.00 per
semester credit
Out of State: $ 250.00 per
semester credit
Additional Tuition Information:
This degree is also available through APU’s sister institution, American Military University (AMU), with the same tuition, fees and admission requirements.
Total Cost of Degree:
$30,250.00
Is this an Accelerated Degree:
No
Prerequisites:
High School Diploma or GED Required: Yes (required GPA: No Set Requirement)
They don't really teach here. It's more appropriate to call the instructors "Graders." I've been disappointed with the responses and lack of responsiveness from the instructors and staff in general. I'm an A student, but my grader's responses to questions for clarification include referring me to Wikipedia and the responses are only a few sentences at most. Then instructors make excuses about why their grades may be a few weeks late ("don't have the time because of kids at home, have to go to the gym, have to take my kids to festivals, I teach 3 classes," etc.). First, they're not teaching. They grade. You're teaching if you explain concepts. You don't teach when you just log in and grade work. As a paying student, I expect thoughtful, thorough responses and timely grading. Typically, instructors log in 1-2 times week at most to make a few comments to make it seem like they are being active. One instructor did not even know her own assignments when we asked her. Apparently another teacher set up the classroom and assignments. Unbelievable! Several of us students got together to figure out assignments on our own since we got no response from the grader for almost a week. Complete book chapters weren't properly provided so that we could do assignments either. Otherwise, the online technology is good and the tuition cost is low. It really concerns me when students make more of an effort than the instructors. Instructors also do not follow the school's own citation and plagiarism policy. They will copy and paste from books, online resources and even students' work and not even cite! They should be role models! Instructors have also taken points of here and there for no reason that they can't even remember or justify! Be sure to double-check your grades and ask about points taken off randomly. I dropped several courses because the instructor barely participated the first week of classes. However, since I am almost done with my degree, I will stick it out. I wished the school would monitor these instructors more closely because most of them seem to only take the job so that they can have an easy job and work from home. Too bad because this school has the potential to be better.
I am in my 3rd semester and it has been great so far. Just like any other school there are professors which you like or dislike. Each professor teaches differently and has different expectations. My advise is to ask lots of questions and arrange your assignment schedule to ensure you are successful in each class. So far the courses have been great. I have been able to take both general education courses, major courses and electives.
Name: pagg
Post On: September 28, 2010
Grade: A-
This is the second online school I have attended. I like the classes and feel like I am learning the material. However, as a financial aid student I have to take two classes at a time, rather than staggering my classes like the military students usually do. It is hard to know which two classes to take. Some classes have much more work than others, and if you end up taking two of those classes together, it is almost impossible to do. However, that is the only downfall. The teachers are great and very easy to communicate with. Assignments are usually graded by the next morning. The material is interesting and they have some classes, like Psychology of Combat and Psychology of Disasters, that I have not seen offered anywhere else. The books for undergraduate are provided on a grant.
