American InterContinental University

This is about my experience. Not all online schools are the right fit for everyone. I completed the Bachelor of Healthcare Management and I must say it was a difficult process. More so because I felt overwhelmed with having to complete work every week for 2-3 years. The discussion boards had word requirements which was very annoying due to the struggle to find content. I started the process motivated then somewhere along the lines I began to loathe the school, the work and the fact that it seemed like there were never really any real breaks. I felt the content and it’s delivery was truly uninspiring. Having ADD didn't help as it made it so much harder to complete work. This school is not for everyone. If you have struggled with school in the past. Don’t bother attending this institution. The interactive options are abysmal and sub par. You’re better off going to another institution.

I did the M.Ed. program and have nothing but good things to say. I thought the classes were engaging and challenging. The Instructors were easy to contact and always gave really good advice. Other students were also accessible and working on the group projects was one of the highlights of the program. In my case, all of the other students were teachers in my classes. We had a twice a week online class that was optional, but really worthwhile. The materials used were great and we did the graduate-level research you would expect, and were not just given a passing grade for doing anything. Online studies are not for everybody, and I have taken other course online, but found AIU Online's system the best, and even ended up recommending their programs to the likes of Penn State's online classes that were kind of a joke in comparison. I talked to my instructors more than I probably would have in a brick and mortar college, due to the nature of the online experience. I NEVER had a communication problem, or an unanswered email or chat request. The school is a bit pricey is my only complaint...but I have made the money back in my own career advancement.

I completed my MBA- Human Resources degree in April of this year. As far as the professors, I think it is hit or miss...like any school. Some are very interactive and some you rarely hear from. I will say throughout the program, I never had a professor that did not respond to my questions and/or emails. I had two advisors. The first sent emails and called often to make sure that I was on track, I never heard from the second one that I got around two months before the program ended. I do not think the classes were "easy A's", I actually put forth effort and finished with pretty good grades. I feel like the professors clearly stated what was expected of the students. I will say that there were some students that did not like Intellipath but I loved it. I learned a lot more from the classes that included Intellipath than I did from the classes that were strictly research papers and discussion boards. Intellipath gave me an opportunity to continue studying the information to improve my grade, but you do not get that option with research papers. I think whether or not you like this program will depend on your learning style. I do not retain as much from research as others do. I did not like that every class had a group project as the final assignment, but I am not a fan of group assignments because I like to be solely responsible for my own grades. The only other issue I had was with my refund checks. They were all different amounts (by over $1000) and no one could really explain why. The financial department is not the best but overall the advisors and professors were pretty good. I was on the fast track/accelerated program so my classes so I did not have to register for classes. At the end of the program, there was no hassle...everything went smoothly and I received my diploma within the projected time frame. I have not had any trouble from employers by having a degree from AIU. I would recommend this school to others because there were no major issues with the program.

I have 6 more classes to complete for my BBA with a Healthcare Concentration. Though it has been sometimes exhausting taking 2 classes every 5 weeks and trying to retain it all, I am excited that I had the help when needed and when I didn't need it. They don't just give you "A's" and you have to earn your grade just like in a classroom. I consider online learning more difficult than being in a room one day or two days a week. There is a lot of writing papers and research but it helps what you read and learn sink in. I have a 2.97 GPA which is about a B-. I was a B person in high school many years ago so I am ok with that. Passing is important to me and I am doing that. Financially I don't consider AIU any more expensive then an on campus school. I will be receiving my BBA in 2 years vs. 4 years with a debt of about 36,000.00. If you average that over 2 years, 13,000.00 a year. Not bad for your money at all. The teachers are knowledgeable and very encouraging. I have had one teacher that I could not stand who I thought did not explain themselves very well and who also gave me one of my lowest grades. Hey, I believe we have ALL had a teacher we didn't like so what makes that so different? I highly recommend AIU. They were extremely helpful with everything including my school loans. If I had one thing that I didn't like it would be not being able to have my books in hand for some of my classes. You have the ability to print some but on some classes it would have been nice to have the book in hand to highlight and refer back to. I used my Nook to read the book while writing and accomplishing the work online. Good luck to all the future students.

Going to an online school, you have to expect that you are learning everything on your own. I went to an online school (PCI) and once we finished all of the online course work, you had to do an internship to learn before you received your degree. This is how I feel AIU should be. There is no way that I am completely prepared for a job in my field of study without hands on experience. I do like the fact that there are absolutely no tests and quizzes throughout the course, although I do feel a test or quiz would actually teach me more. I don't really feel like I am learning anything from writing 5-8 page papers for 3 years. I feel like we discuss the same information in a different way in every class (if that makes any sense). Though the people are really nice and helpful. My advisors always call and check in on me every so often. I really think every online school would benefit from having students complete an internship or externship at the end of every degree program. Especially for a degree program such as forensic science. I learn nothing by researching online, but it is my only choice since I am military and work all day.

I finished my MBA from AIU in 11/2002... at about the time I began my Credit Risk career in Banking. 13 years later and making $130K+ annually; I'm not complaining. Now with that being said; I've always questioned the value of the education from AIU and have come to the conclusion that you get out of it what you put into it and... and... what you do with the degree afterwards. After my MBA; I continued learning, continued taking courses, and continued educating myself in areas where I felt I was weak in understanding. I've obtained certifications, attended workshops and went to seminars all in the quest of knowledge and for a deeper understanding of what it is that I do. All of which has benefited my career tremendously. So to those whom think the Bachelor’s degree or the MBA is an "end all" for education that comes with a golden ticket are extremely naive and are very uninformed as to the ways of how the world works.

I think the school is great if you apply yourself, it is an accredited school. All major colleges accept their credits. It does require organization and self application but the intellipath is great! Plus you have weekly live chats and the instructor is available for support when needed. So what exactly is the issue?

I have read all of the reviews from students about how sub-standard the AIU instructors are, and I wanted to present the point of view of an experienced online instructor who also works for another online university. I wonder how many students know how much AIU pays their instructors. They have high demands via live time spent in the classroom, teaching qualifications and professional experience, but they pay McDonald's wages. Seriously. I am not kidding. If an instructor put in the number of hours that AIU asks for into his or her class, that person would be making less than minimum wage. The other university I teach for pays me three times the rate of AIU. It's the old adage, "you get what you pay for", when it comes to the engagement of the AIU instructors. The low wages make our efforts seem not worthwhile, no matter how committed we are to student success. I feel sorry for the students, of course, but we instructors are wearing ourselves out teaching students who will eventually end up in debt, with a worthless degree--or making four times the wage that we do. With AIU, everything is about the bottom line.

The school has adopted a program called "Intellipath" to basically teach the material. Instead of an instructor who knows the material there is a computer program which is just ridiculous and riddled with errors. Prior to adoption of this computer program the school was acceptable requiring some rigorous academic research and providing some interaction with live human beings. I have taken four or more classes using intellipath and have been very disappointed with the program which feels like taking a government online module.

You want an online degree? Don't do it. I'm a graduate from an online school and now I'm paying back student' loans which are over 100k. Graduated the top of my class with a 3.95 GPA, never been the top of anything when it comes to school but for some reasons I graduated the top of my classes. I remember my GPA in high school was around 1.6. If you are doing it right now, you need to stop because it's a bogus education. There is a conflict of interest there. They want you to keep paying the money they charge you so they will keep giving you your A's. I have never had straight A's when it comes to school and one time I remember doing an assignment that I knew I am not going to ace it for sure. Got the grade back, and got an A. You know when you apply for a real state or private university, there is an application process. But for AIU, I remember when I first send in my application and the next day a counselor called me and say hey you have been approved, congratulations. If you get an education online, there is only so much you can learn from that crap. In a class of 4-5 weeks, you read a thick encyclopedia book and the class will only go over 1/8 of it. Most of the time, the online classes told us to read chapter 1-8 and do an essay. I was like, chapter 1-8 there's no way I am going to read all that in this thick encyclopedia book. So I learned, do it the smart way. Look at the questions they want you to answer, go to the book, read that section then do the essay on it. If you are trying to go to school and get a degree, it's a waste of time because education online is not even close to going into a traditional classroom. If you want to spend all that money, go do it in a real state college. Why spend 40-60k for a degree they going to fax you. The graduation ceremony was a freaking joke. You log on into their website and see Al Gore in a prerecorded message doing a speech. Bottom line, just don't do it. I am paying $400+ a month and that's just interest. The amount of money you pay to these for profit universities are the same you pay at a traditional college. The only difference is that they hold no weight because you are inside your house getting only a fraction of education the traditional colleges are having. I remember going to 20-30 interviews and they just smirk at me like I am joke by having an online education. None of them called me back. By the time you get a master at American Intercontinental University, you close over 100k in debt. Come on even lawyers or doctors don't do that much into debt. It's just a waste of money and time.

I just started this school like less than 2 weeks ago and Im already frustrated with it. the student portal is sooooo confusing to use. The teachers aren't really professional. the financial aid process is straight bullshit. I asked the financial aid office numerous times about the refund check. They still beat around the bush with the answer to my question. Most of the students who attend are ghetto as hell (I see why white people don't really attend). back to the financial aid. I don't care about an award letter. I know my education is paid. I just want to know the refund amount. Hell yea, I wanna know why? because Im using my tax information with my income. So yea, I have every goddamn right to know how much money Im getting back from financial aid. Im a broke college student too like the rest. That refund money is very help for students who are far away from home dealing with parents who have low income. Man... this school I tell ya. It has already pissed me off 'til the point I kinda want out.

I went into this program expecting to get more for my money than what I did. I didn't feel challenged, and honestly feel like my MBA is next to worthless. I agree with some others here - I pretty much taught myself, and professors and learning materials were of little help... and did anyone else notice the spelling and grammar mistakes in the assignment posts?! That can't be a good sign. Don't get me wrong, it was nice to have the flexibility that online courses offered, especially with a demanding work schedule, and it was also great to have been finished so quickly; however, knowing now what I didn't know then, I would have taken my time getting a quality education rather than sacrificing knowledge for a quick degree.

I read the above comments, and comments from other sites. For the majority of the negative reviews about AIU I notice the extent of experience from those complainers is lacking. Prior to getting an MBA through AIU, I received my ABET certified undergraduate degrees in Chemical Engineering and another degree in Physics with a Biophysics concentration and a minor in Mathematics from a public state university. In my early years, I attended a university in the summers since it was closer to home, and another university that was convienently located for the semester I was getting married. This means I have 3 traditional universities, many years, and many instructors with which to compare. All institutions I have attended are mixed with both outstanding and poor instructors. On top of that, all universities are there for the money, plain and simple; education is simply the "product" they are selling, and they would have difficulty keeping their doors open if they continually lost money. While working toward my AIU MBA, I had plenty of difficulty getting everything done by the deadlines, and lost pretty much every waking hour of weekends and most of the weekday evenings to getting assignments completed. Many students probably skipped completing all the reading assignments and the automated course material, and frequently people skipped the live lectures. That is their loss, and at least those people shouldnt complain that they didnt learn enough. For those that say they had to teach themselves, I have found at least 80% of all institutions require you to do the majority of teaching yourself, the instructures give you a path to follow, but most dont spoon feed you. Grow up, become a better student, and feel free to attend AIU (especially since AIU has more accrediations than any traditional ground school you will attend).

I am going use the points made by Anonymous because the comments are exactly mine as well: It's a 13 month accelerated program and I completed it easily, with very little effort. Granted, I have been in the IT field for 10 years, but I expected to actually learn something new. There were quite a few students in my class that really had no business being there. They all graduated, however, which means they had to have gotten at least a B in all classes. Basically, if you're already in the field and you want to pay $30k to have a master's very quickly, it might be worth it. If you actually want to learn something, go somewhere else. This program will not even prepare you for an entry level help desk job Only 14 more years on my loan and I have nowhere near the skills of other IT security folks. Skip school find on the job training in the real world is my advice.

I am currently a student at AIU. I like the college and my experience has been positive overall but I am scared. I graduate in June 2014 now I am wondering if I should change colleges because I am afraid of the reputation AIU has. I really want a good job once I finish and I want to possibly continue on to my masters. I'd hate to waste my money and time on a college that employers shun. I do have healthcare experience but I still feel uncomfortable about actually saying I got a degree from AIU. What to do....?????

I've attended a total of 4 colleges. My first was Highline Community College working towards my AA. My second was University of Phoenix Online. My third was ITT Tech. My last was AIU. With UoP and ITT Tech, I took several classes but didn't feel like I was really needing to do the work. I went to AIU and finished up my BBA. I stuck with it because it my in my career field and I actually learned a lot. I'm a person who gets grades when I don't feel I deserve them, whether good or bad. Sure, there are a few professors who are pretty relaxed and will give you good grades, but it actually frustrates me when I know I shouldn't have received 100% if I didn't think I should. Nonetheless, I learned that if I want to succeed in life, I must do my very best. Most professors though are very tough and will pick apart everything you submit. If you look at the list of professors, you will find that most of them are associate (part-time) professors who also work at other colleges. Now, I'm going for my MBA, and it is much harder than the BBA program. I'm already an expert in my field, but I am finding that even though I do a great job at work, AIU is still teaching me things I didn't know. With my experience at AIU, I have been able to apply what I have learned to my job and I have actually improved a lot, and my management has seen it. It's up to you how much you learn. You could coast by, but this is providing you an opportunity with a structure of education. I hear people on these boards complaining about how they "teach themselves" because they have to do research. If you didn't think you had to learn by doing research, then you shouldn't be in college in the first place. The subjects contain so much information, you cannot contain everything within classroom time. You must go out there and do the work to help you learn. And for cost? It means that you'd better be serious. Your admissions adviser doesn't get paid unless you graduate. And for those of you who don't think their parent company is good, they also own Le Cordon Bleu, so that's the sister college of AIU.

This school is great for those who don't need any support and who can deal with probably the worst instructors I have met in my educational life. The requirements to pass a class are minimal as long as you scribble something together on time each week. I am changing schools because I have been asking many employers about the AIU degree and everyone one of them in my field would not take this degree serious. Like many have posted on this site. The school work is not challenging and many employers don't take this degree serious at all. All the accreditation in the world will not make a difference when your employer doesn't understand that they are a highly accredited school. I would say this school is bad for this country. Poor instructors, terrible student advisors, and very costly. If you don't believe me look at their reviews on other websites.

The new and improved virtual campus is just plain terrible. Email notifications do not work, it's slow, and half the time a error page pops up when you click on something. I will admit that I've been with them for about a year now and my GPA is 3.96, however, I've found their group projects to be the most frustrating part of my educational experience. What AIU fails to realize or understand is that they are lumping students who care in with people who don't care for group projects. You can't make people communicate or participate which adds a huge burden on to those who do actively participate. Our of 3 group projects, I've been moved to a different group one time due to no one else participating, had to complete a group project with one other student and as I type this I'm faced with having no one else participating in my group. I'll probably end up taking a F and passing the class with a B because I'm sick of always being stressed and trying to get people to do work. I will also say that I've had no communication from faculty and the only time I hear from anyone is when I make contact with them. When I first enrolled I was told by my admissions adviser that she will be in contact frequently. However, I have yet to hear back from her. I would strongly urge anyone thinking about attending this college to look at other options first and explore all your opportunities. I would strongly suggest attending somewhere that does not participate in group projects, especially if you value controlling your own grades and not being at the mercy of whatever bunch of people your instructor dumps you with.

AIU as a online university was excellent. The instructors were not slacking at all. Don't think that because this is an online school that it is easy because it isn't. I completed three degree programs with them and would refer anybody I know to them. The only issue that I have is that although the federal government approved to pay all expenses, the school would hold all grants and loans until they paid which made me a little upset because as a veteran it showed distrust that they weren't sure they would receive payment.

I am currently attending AIU, and I am trying to find out which CEC schools are in danger of losing accreditation or closing. I would not recommend this school to anyone. I have yet to have an assignment that has anything to do with my e-books, I get all of my information off the internet. I am teaching myself. I also agree with the many comments about classmates who sound illiterate, and don't know what spellcheck, or grammar check is. And, I too have had terrible experiences with group projects. Unless you are bored and like researching and writting, there's not much this school does for you, besides cost you a fortune to teach yourself.

I am currently attanding AIU Online, But I don't think everyone gets an A. I have B's C' and even D.F. You would have to try very hard to get an A.

It's not so much the education that is bad as it is the management of this company. I went attended online course study for my Bachelor's in Computer programming, and I regret it. Everything was going great until I got to the end of my program and I was only a class away from graduating. They added 5 classes on to my program extending my graduation date. The problem with this was, I had gotten loans and grants to cover my entire program, but when they decided I needed 5 more classes, I was maxxed out on my loans and couldn't get anymore. They told me that I had to either pay for these classes or take Clep exams. Well, I wasn't in the position to pay any of this extra money for neither the classes or the Clep exams and so they didn't even let me finish the classes that were covered by my loan, the dropped me from the school and slapped me with a $900 bill. Which make no sense, because my tuition for the classes I was in at the time was covered under my loans. When I asked them why I couldn't finish what I had paid for they told me they didn't receive dispersment for that sememster yet. So I called the bank for my school loans and they said that when the school needs fund dispersed all they have to do is ask for the funds. AIU wouldn't do that, instead they kicked me out of the classes I paid for and gave me a bill. So I ended up with no degree and huge student loans that I can't afford. Over $50,000. I'm not the only one this school has done this to, check out Ripoffreport.com and search them. There are many others who had the exact same experience as I did. Stay away, if you don't have the money at the end of you degree to cover the extra stuff they slap you with.

This school is VERY expensive and the instructors are a joke. Not one instructor fallows the schools procedures or processes. Example I copied a paper form the internet and the schools GREAT similarity score software “software is junk” gave me a 100% similarity score and I got an “A”. Then I have submitted a paper that I did and the similarity score was 40% and the instructor gave me an “F” and said it was being submitted to the school for submitting another student’s paper. I have talked to other schools and students and they don’t have this similarity software. If you are paying big money for a degree that you want to learn about I would not go to this school…..

I attended AIU for my Bachelor in Business Administration and it was great. The courses were very challenging but I made it. As for financial Aid, I had no problem, infact they helped me when I ran into some difficulties. The professors I had were good and bad as you find in any other college. I really think AIU is better than the university I am going to right now for my Master's in many ways and I enrolled in another university because I just wanted another school for my graduate degree. Finally, these students who go to school for the wrong reason and not doing there work just complaint and cannot see that the problem lay with them. In other words, they need to find something better to do because every college has their ups and downs.

AIU gives you the opportunity to get your hands on to a college degree with a lot of flexibility. In order to do well, you've got to read twice as much materials in one week than you usually would have to in a regular University. If you are in it to barely pass, this is NOT the University for you. The information is practical and applicable to the real world. If you don't put all of your effort into your studies, just like anywhere else, you're not going to be learning very much. What makes this University unique is that it integrates different ways to learn, instead of just reading. You get a program called M.U.S.E. which gives you the opportunity to watch videos, interactive media, and audio which adapts to your individual learning style. This University is the most proactive, progressive and ahead of its game. In the brick and mortar Universities it's quite the opposite A.K.A: beaurocracy. Change is this University's language; it is very comfortable with change, which is extremely rare in any University (You get no red tape). Advisors and teachers in AIU, 3 times out of 4 have been outstading in their work and their behavior towards me.It is for entrepreneur-minded people, not to for students waiting to be baby sat. Every term, students fill a survey which lets the University know what things it needs to change and whether it should fire bad teachers. You've got to work hard and need to have a very strong drive to succeed. It really depends on how much effort you put into it. If you wear AIU with pride the school will be well regarded. I'm commited to this school, knowing that through my success the school will look amazing, because it is amazing. When somethings is "different" or "new" most people don't accept it, it takes time, and if you are ok with putting up with that responsibility, go for it. This is America, the land where you get to choose how you learn. God bless us all. I'm a 4.0 student, majoring in International Business, and have attended for a year and a half.

My experience at AIU – Online has been great up to this point. In my opinion the Pros and Cons are as follows: Pros: The staff is very supportive and knowledgeable. As in most schools, some of the teachers are more engaged then others. However, all of the teachers up to this point have been available when necessary. They offer tons of content on their library which is extremely helpful when doing assignments. The support they provide for each weekly assignment is fantastic. They try to meet everyone’s learning style…they provide an overview of key learning’s via short videos, audio and PDF documents…this is a big deal for me. Most of the books for each class are provided online which for me is helpful when trying to search for certain topics. Lastly, they offer weekly tutoring sessions for all classes. It’s up to the student to choose if they want to participate. Cons: The biggest is the price. They charge double what most schools charge. Most classes can be taken at others schools for ½ the price. Also, they can be pushy at the beginning. They will call you 24/7 until you make a decision about attending…once they get an answer they become less pushy. Overall, it’s about what you want to put into the school…I think this is the same for any school you attend. The more time you put in the more successful you will be at the school. The reason I was willing to pay more for this school is because of the support they provide and their willingness to provide information to meet different learning styles. I found other online schools give you a book to read but do not provide any videos or online tutorials to support what you are learning.

I have been a student at AIU since 2009 and have had multiple issues with the University. Anyway, since I have been to the school I have learned somethings; however, it was not because of the instructors but instead because of my browsing the internet and reading my textbooks for the answers. 99 percent of the instructors barely understand what they are trying to teach and when it comes to grading the assignments they usually put down generic feedback and pass along an "A" for the assignment. There have been numerous times I have received feedback with another students name on it. That tells you how much they are paying attention. I actually tested them one time and did a discussion board post that was so horrible I should have gotten a zero for lack of effort. Needless to say, I received an "A" for the assignment. Now there are some instructors (the other 1 percent) who actually pay attention and grade your assignment according to your work. You can usually tell based on their feedback. However, these instructors are few and I am sure they do not last long at AIU. The financial aid and student accounts department is the worst of all! I have had the most problems with receiving my stipend. If tuition is due they will make sure they get their money on time; however, when it is time for you to receive your stipend you will end up waiting months. It's sad when you know your money is there but can not touch it because the school is holding it in their bank account to accrue interest. When you try to talk to someone about it you get the run around. Then when they get tired of trying to come up with excuses they will tell you another department handles expediting the stipend; however, when you ask to speak to them you are told they do not talk to students. A previous review posted on this site said that it is good they hold your stipend just in case you fail the class or withdraw you would not have to pay them back. That is a crock of S***!!! They stated that the college staff should not have to hold your hand. If that is the case they should not hold your hand when it comes to you paying them back if you did fail or withdrew from the school. Bottom line, AIU is all about getting money. They will do anything to get it. The only reason why I am still attending the University is because I have gone so far I hate to quit now. However, I will make it my business to make everyone aware that the school is a scam as well as ensure that people do not attend a University that only care about what they can get out of the student.

Let me keep it real for you here. First of all the financial aid office is open 7 days a week. You are assigned a lead fin. aid advisor that has a team of people available to help you. Your stipends are not issued for 10-12 weeks, usually after the quarter, which is in your best interest. Why? Because if you fail the class you will need that money to pay to retake it and if you withdraw you will not owe money you spent on living expenses. Secondly, all of the professors have to have Master's degree or PHD and have at least 10 yrs experience in the field. If you have a professor that is not up to par, they are everywhere. My experience has been, out of the 6 professors I have so far, I had problems with only 1 of them. In the end we worked it amicably. Now as far as the technology goes, they use a program call MUSE, it allows you to learn a summary of what you are studying based on whether or not you are a visual, hands on, or auditory learning. I love the program because I learn using all three. This school has a regional accreditation with the Higher Learning Commission and is a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. They also have a programmatic acreditation for their School of Business I don't remember the name off hand. Call them and find out. So all of you people that are mad because you were being irresponsible and didn't do what you were suppose to need to stop complaining and get back to school and get your education and make a better life for yourself. I have been to 5 colleges and have 2 degrees so far; working on my third and no holds your hand through the process like they do. You have to pay for your education; so to say they are just about the money is a gross injustice. Why? Because if you have never been to college before; its your first time; they will not charge the first time if you fail the class they will offer you another chance to take it over or leave without charging. So before you start beating a company because you are unhappy with yourself, your life, your accomplishments, and lack discipline; think first. America has changed for the better in some ways and the worst in others. This is for the worse using a open forum like this to disperse your lies about school that has done nothing to hurt you.

I have attended AIU for four years now and have always had difficulties with the financial aid department. Financial aid claims to have an “Additional Funding Team” that projects how much and when you will receive any excess financial aid in the form of a stipend. This alleged “team” does not speak with students, so trying to contact someone directly is fruitless. The financial aid department directs any and all responsibility for additional funding to this unknown team and will provide only copied and pasted answers to your queries; “when will I receive my stipends?” or “I have a positive balance on my account, why can’t I get my stipend?” (None of which will answer your question). You are told that the "Additional Funding Team" will send you a schedule of approximate stipend disbursement dates and amounts, but they take their sweet time doing it (sometimes 2-3 months) as the loan money (which has already been received by the school and is reflected in your account balance) sits in their hands and accrues interest in AIU’s bank account (which financial aid will adamantly deny) while you struggle to make ends meet until AIU decides that they will release your money to you. In the past, persistently calling financial aid and addressing the same concern over unreleased stipends has seemed to help, due mostly in part, I’m sure, because they’re tired of hearing from me. I am not impressed with this school what-so-ever, and not only for the difficulties I’ve had with financial aid, but also because I am placed into classes with many other students who can barely speak English, much less articulate a semi-decipherable assignment submission. You can’t help but wonder how these students made it this far…until you realize that somewhere, somehow, their cost of tuition is being paid to the school and, in essence, that’s all that AIU is really concerned about. I am currently in my final degree program at AIU and have decided to stick with it until it is completed, but only out of convenience; I know the layout of the virtual campus like the back of my hand, understand exactly what is required of me to pass classes, and have two full sheets of names, numbers and direct extensions used to reach various departments and their staff (this is invaluable as it has taken four years to amass this list and I refer to it regularly as a means to avoid having to weave my way through generalized departments and subjected to call transfers that invariably lead to voice mails providing no immediate assistance). I have had four instructors (out of 25) who actually seemed to enjoy their role as an online proctor as evident in the comprehensive feedback left when grading assignments and the ample amount of interaction they had with the students; they seemed to really care that the student understood the material that was being taught. Three of these four instructors have since left AIU, perhaps because their perception of teaching students online had become somewhat jaded through their experience of having to pass undeserving students just so the school could continue to pocket their tuition. Is AIU a diploma mill? Yes, I would have to say so and base it on nothing more than the caliber of students who are now in their Master’s program but have yet to grasp the sheer basic fundamentals of proper grammar, spelling, citing or referencing. This only ascertains my belief that AIU values money more than education.

Avoid this school at all costs. The support staff have no idea or knowledge of the workings of online schools. For example, I asked them, "what learning platform does AIU use, Blackboard e-college, or Moodle." The admissions people did not even know. They could not even access there own software to tell me the course for the major that I'm interested in. For basic online school knowledge I give this school a failing grade. Avoid, avoid, avoid.

As everyone mentioned in previous posts, this is a really great learning experience if you are self-motivated. I graduated in 2006 and have enjoyed every opportunity to expand my knowledge and craft in Digital Design. A college education is only the beginning. If you require personalized one-on-one attention then, this is not the institution for you. Each class builds upon previous ones and you will fall far behind if you miss one or two days of study. Many of the instructors work in the industry for which they teach; of course you may run upon one or two who are horrible, but overall, every instructor I had went well beyond the call of duty to advise and encourage quality work. The only negative I would cite are those students with whom you are paired to complete team projects...some of them were truly slackers and contributed little to the team. For the most part, I got a great return on my investment.

I recommend AIU to a person that is determined to succeed and ready for a challenge. They provide exceptional materials for each course and the AIU faculty remained professional and knowledgeable throughout. Each class consists of 5 intense weeks of a 12-16 week course! If you have ever taken a summer 5-8 week course, this is very similar. Your education is what you put into it! Do your work, be on time, and follow the rules! Lucas K. Williams

AIU nonetheless a good and resourceful university who runs its program both on-campus and off-campus. I love its program and offerings. Interestingly MS IA is only offered online by a limited set of universities which makes this degree valuable !

I am currently in this college. It is a great place for the parent who isnt able to attend a traditional college. Those who say its not hard or who state that it is not a good place to go and they dont learn anyting are just being pompous jerks. frankly if you didnt learn anything its your own fault for not trying. Furthermore, if you thought it was easy your sorley mistaken. It is far more challenging than a regular college as it is harder to do projects and group work and the db's are tough. you dont have one on one with a teacher to fall back on as in most regular colleges. I found it very tough at times and i am far from stupid. Those who put down this school are just pissed because now us stay at home mothers and single parents can be someone with a career instead of listening to the cruel words that come from the mouths of ignorent jerks that put us down. AIU Online is a great school and i for one have learned much here and will continue with my bachelors in Janurary. I will soon thereafter open my own business and i have learned a lot of what i need already to do that. I had decided i needed a degree and more learning to use what i already know into today's workforce. I can only say if you have thought that AIU wasn't a good place to get a degree or that it was too easy than maybe you should have been open minded rather than open mouthed and you might have learned. Why go some place to learn if you think you already know it all anyway. That's not trying to learn thats trying to toot your own horn. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK AIU! There may be teacher you dont agree with at times , ive had my share but thats with any school not just an online one.

I might be a bit biased as I graduated from the Master of Information Technology (MIT) program as one of the first graduates in 1999. At the time the school was very progressive and IT was a rapidly emerging field. The quality of the instructors and students were excellent. As students we were involved in alot of productive team based projects. Overall, my experience as a student was excellent. Its unfortunate to hear about a great program/school taking a hit. I think a big corporation took them over in 2000 so it probably turned into a different culture.

So, I have been with AIU for a while now. Actually I have done all of my schooling through them and have been working on my MBA with them. I chose AIU because it was prety much the fastest track to a degree as possible. I didn't shoose the degree because of its prestigious reputation. I just wanted to get a college degree just so I could have one...that probably doesn't make sense to most of you but that's how I am. My experiences have been a toss up. I enjoyed the undergrad program. It was interesting. The teachers are hit or miss, some are helpful and others are a complete waste of time. I suppose you will get that from any school. I like the flexibility of the school, I don't have to attend class on any particular day and can do all of my work on the weekend. I graduated with a pretty good GPA, a 3.90. I worked for that GPA, but not everyone does. I notice that a lot of people do not give forth their absolute effort and use their full potential. I only wish that i could find out how the others are being graded. I worked hard for my grades, but I know that this school will pretty much pass anybody if you put your name on a piece of paper. I really do not like the school administration. The school has not been helpful when I have needed them. There have been a few times that I have deployed or moved and I needed time off to take care of things and they gave me a really hard time. The staff is never attentive to your needs and you have to call them back, because they won't call you back. It seems that I have had a different student advisor about every three months for some reason. I'm not too sure why, but I do not like it. Whenever you have a problem you deal with a new stranger. I did have one really good student advisor but that was a while back and she is no longer my advisor. One thing that I really like about the school is that they do your schedule for you. You don't have to worry about registering for schools, and the books have always come in the mail on time. As far as value goes, I don't pay for the program so it doesn't apply to me that much. But, if I had to pay for it out of my own pocket I would definitely not go to school here. It just isn't worth it. You can get better programs from schools that are accredited for less money. When it comes down to it, this is a for-profit school. They are looking to make money off of you....and god do they give it to you with the sticker price.

Just finished my program. I am sure glad my GI Bill paid for this piece of paper. Let's see, I opened my books 7 times in the whole program. I finished on the Deans list. This school is great if your employer only wants to see if you have a degree. Do not think that you will be prepared for a job that requires skills. Please do not go here if you want to learn about your future job. Now, if you are like me and you are just checking the block by all means give it a look. I make over 60K with my current job,and did not need the degree to get hired, so for me it was a way to break the glass ceiling to get a raise. This school is a rip off for people coming out of pocket to attend. I would laugh at former class mates going into debt to attend my former school. The school is great if you are group leader that compiles everyones papers and do a grammar check. I love the one class mate I had who sent me a paper that sounded like he was part of the old YO MTV RAPS DJs.

AIU is an extremely UNTRADITIONAL school. This is what makes it immensely valuable in our world today - especially in the IT field. Schools adhering to antiquated techniques and approaches are slow to produce trend changing business/technology integrators. To establish my credibility I will say that I have attended a hand ful of institutions – in each instance I had a purpose of obtaining some knowledge base in my curriculum. I did not seek degrees I sought knowledge. Today, the trivial (waste of time) TRADITIONAL schools teach you NOTHING about the real world. Imagine taking computer courses without a computer – ridiclious and absurd, but many traditional schools will have you believe this makes them refined – what? It makes absolutely no sense. AIU provides knowledge and real world experience from day one. I learned not from people who “could not do” therefore they “taught”. I learned from people who COULD do and taught because they LOVED their ability to DO. This is a major difference between AIU. AIU is in a class by itself that is way beyond the majority of institutions built on reputation and veneer. For example, I learned project management from an high six figured manager who told us and taught us what his days were like. This was not some nobody – write a paper professor – who THINKS they know something. This was an industry proven professional. No wonder the second I graduated from AIU, my career took off. I knew what the professionals were already doing! I copied them accordingly. In all of the schools I have ever attended, NEVER have I walked away knowing that I could succeed in the way that AIU enabled me too. I have seen an entire website dedicated to bashing this school. Yet, after nearly 8 years of education I find myself looking back at AIU and thinking wow – nothing comes close. It is truly a school that breaks the cookie cutter education mold – stripping the waste of education and giving you the vital ingredients for success. Simply put, AIU is way ahead of its time.

So the truth is, At AIU I graduated and I feel like I did learn some things in the classes that we did things in. Some classes felt like the teacher was giving us busy work (I am a teacher I KNOW what busy work is). In some classes the teacher gave specific outlines to what was expected very detailed in others you were guessing at what to include in your papers. I hope that if you choose AIU you learn something that you can use, I did.

I have finished my BBA at AIU online and am currently in the process of following through with my MBA. I have mixed feelings about the school for a few reasons. Most of the reasons have already been addressed in the forums. The teachers are really hit or miss. You can tell that some of the teachers actually care about the work that they do and others don't. For example, some teachers don't even have the decency to hook up the microphone to do their online lessons. Not to say that they are all this way, but it is extremely irritating when I go into a classroom and it is like being in an online chat instead of going to school. The school is EXPENSIVE! I am not playing around! The amount of money that it takes to finish to complete a degree is probably comprable to completing a degree at a state university. On the flip-side. AIU enables the students to complete a degree in a very short amount of time which is a great deal for a working adult, like myself. This has obvous advantages and setbacks. The learning retention of an accelerated learning classroom environment is not the same as a drawn out two year program. The classes are 5 weeks long. So, it feels like you are just getting onto the class and then it is finished. Which is good and bad i suppose. The books are included in the tuition. So there is not really any additional costs. It all comes in one package. But either way, you are paying for it. The school itself is a business, there are a lot of people on here saying that they are pushing the students hard to continually pursue their education.....no sh**. Every school does that. The people that you will be in class with are typically not A students. The people that were still enrolled during some of the last classes I was particularly surprised at their poor work ethic. It could have ben that they had "senioritis". However, there were a fairly good amount of people that put forth a genuine interest in the quality of their work. Getting an A, is not necessarily an easy thing depending on the teacher. There were a few that I didn't have to work at though. Group projects are a complete disaster. The lack of communication between the groups. If you are lucky you will partake in a functioning group. If you are unlucky you will end up doing the entire project yourself. Which happened to me a couple times. People will come in at the last minute and expect to gain full points for piss poor participation. Part of the reason that I continued to stay with the school is because I am already familiar with it. I already have the student mindset and am geared toward further enhancement of my career potential. After all, a higher degree is just a check in a box.

Its amazing how this instutition can do what other colleges cant do. I attended two other collges before attending AIU and have been very satisfied on everything AIU does for the students. As in life, nothing is free and life is what you put into it. AIU gives you the tools to accomplish your goals and as part of that, you have to be pro active to accomplish your learning abilities. Great job AIU.

I have mixed feelings about the AIU program. Overall, you get out what you put in, as with anything else in life. A student could coast through this with a "C" average pretty easily, but that is no different than most state and community programs. I have a pretty broad perspective,as I have completed coursework at a brick-and-mortar community college, a b&m private university, Axia College, University of Phoenix, and now AIU. What they all have in common, for the serious student, is the lack of competition for admissions and grades. What I mean is, if you are a reasonably intelligent and dedicated student, you will be competing with yourself for grades, not your peers. My one big problem with the program is the hit-or-miss faculty. Again, this is not a major difference from the other programs I have attended. What the online programs in general, and AIU in particular, suffer from is the lack of choice. On two occassions, I requested transfers out of courses. One was granted, and one was not. So, I was forced to take a class that I was looking forward to with an instructor that brought nothing to the table, and in fact made serious errors on fundamental topics. The University deserves credit for trying to fix the problem, but also must take the blame for hiring a well-educated know-nothing. In summary, I would rate AIU above the other online programs I tried, and about on par with the "real" schools I've attended. I fit the "busy working adult" model to a tee, and therefore have no alternative. For me, AIU was the right choice, if an imperfect one.

I am presently attending AIU and finishing my last 2 classes there - no no no - not because I'm graduating with my associates! But because I have basically been scammed. I am working to get an associates in criminal justice administration at AIU and from the get go I was very clear with everyone that I spoke to that my intentions were to move on to a bachelors in forensic science and work in CSI field work as has been my lifelong dream. Well out of all my classes, 18 to be exact, only 3 of them have anything to do with criminal justice and 7 of them have to do with business. This always confused me but I listened to the reassurances given by admission and student advisers but the feeling never went away. So I started talking to academic advisers from 3 other online schools and 1 from my local branch of OSU - and it was unanimous a degree in criminal justice administration "is good if you want a job as a legal secretary"! NOT WHAT I SIGNED UP FOR! I've worked to get the grades I've gotten so far but curriculum has not been challenging in the slightest, quite boring actually. So I'm switching to ITT Tech School Criminal Justice where I will hopefully have better luck. They have 13 CJ classes (10 more than AIU). So if you want a degree in business AIU could very well be your ticket but if you're looking into something else - you may want to look elsewhere if you want to come out with a degree that amounts to something more than the paper that degree was printed on! Good bye AIU! All I can hope now is that they don't harass me with phone calls now that I've asked for withdraw papers to be drawn up like they did when I was signing up with them.

This school has a history of intentionally misleading students in order to increase enrollment. I completed the Master of Information Technology program in 2003 and learned as much as you would by spending a week on the internet. Classes went from basic to basic, some instructors didn't really even lecture. My advisor told me there was an 80% placement rate through career svs upon graduation, but for my class there was a 0% placement rate, not one person got so much as an internship. Employers don't respect the degree, you'll pay thousands in student loans for a useless piece of paper.

i completed my associates here. I don't agree with the other reviewer. If everyone got an A, there would be LOTS more on the Deans list. I am a 4.0 student and work hard and feel like I deserve what I get. There has only been one instructor on here (Psychology) who never lectured.. just sat in there for questions.. but even HE didn't detour me from choosing AIU to further my degree. I love AIU and would reccommend it. It is a little pricey but it allows you to finish early.

This school is for busy people who have careers, but little time to attend a traditional university. I would not recommend this school for those just out of high school. It is fully accredited. I have been attending AIU Online for the past 6 months, and I am very satisfied. I am a husband and a father of 2, and also a business professional. This school has a curriculum tailored to people like me. I have also been able to apply what I have learned into my work.

My experience with AIU has been great thus far. The courses have been challenging and resourceful. However, there are some lecturers who are reallya arrogant and aloof.

Everyone gets an A. Illiterate morons get an A. EVERYONE gets an A in this school. It's laughable and way too expensive. Only 1 of my 6 or so teachers responded at a reasonable adult level on the bulletin boards - the rest were 1 sentence responses, if anything. If you're thinking about getting a BA \ AA at this school, make sure you flesh it out with supplementary certifications appropriate to your career. As far as getting a BA, and expecting to go to a reputable graduate program somewhere, you'd absolutely have to do amazing on your GRE. Otherwise forget it. Oh yeah, wayyy too expensive.

I go to AIU currently and have to say it isn't a mill, I have to work hard and with little time off. I am working in the field as a Network Administrator as I go there at night to build my resume. I have learned things there I was able to apply directly to my work, and I have checked out all my teachers, every one of them has a doctorate and works in the field they teach. Most of the teachers I have had were tough on making sure you don't just copy and paste stuff from the internet, they have something that determines if you copied built into the system. I have gone to regular schools (state college, Tech College) and these guys are as good or better and the teachers are FAR better than you would likely get from a small school. People that hate it are merely upset non traditionals with REAL WORLD EXPERIENCE are also getting degrees and competing with them. You have to try here, I am able to keep about a B and I have 3 tech certs that I passed with over 100 points each CCNA A+ Network+ I have seen all the negative stuff out there, but In 2009 not much is relevant. Yes they hard sell, yes they are online, but you have to work and the teachers really are what make this college worth it.

To people who say the school doesn't have anything to offer. Like the person who said they went through the IT and has been doing it for ten years already. What do you expect, maybe if you ask questions about what they have to offer instead of just signing up and assuming (DUH) you would have saved yourself some money. I've been installing shower enclosures for 8 years,"hey boss send me to Ohio to that shower door company who teaches you to install them, and pay for the air fare and hotel room for a week" Oh wait I already know everything their teaching,maybe I should have called and asked them what they have to offer first!

This school was great, the teachers did a good job of presenting concepts and material. Out of the 18 months that I attended the University I only had one professor that was unreasonable in regards to grading and communication, and her class review reflected that. My only complaint with the school, which I knew going into it, was with the cost. I was attending Fresno State University before this at a cost of 5-7k for my degree vs. AIU for 30k. What you are paying for is the convience obviously, and if I couldn't finish classes online I wouldn't have been able to graduate, so thank you AIU. I am now attending American Military University for my grad studies, which I do enjoy more than AIU and the price is much more reasonable.

I am about to finish with my degree in BA and am going on to my MED! I love the school! Yes there are some professors who do not respond well to comments but I have found more of them that give detailed information. Also I have had a few that will give you their home number to contact them with questions! I was even allowed to go back and correct a paper after I had turned it in! I loved my classes and felt I learned alot! What really irritates me is the fact that many people believe it is not a real college yet it is accredited. Yes the classes are fast and some more challenging than the others yet worth every penny I have invested! My Masters admission advisor has been beyond helpful in every aspect by providing me with information I had no idea existed! I feel important and have felt that way since the begining! I would do this again anytime!!! The only sad part is not being able to walk the stage~

I am in the last throws of my Masters degree program in IT with AIU. I have read a lot of reviews online regarding this institution (negative, bitter, good etc) and I have come to conclude that AIU is generally a good school, perhaps not the best and lots of room for improvement. My particular areas of concern was the quality of the faculty and instructor feedback. Instructors' bio seemed solid but assignment reviews by instructors were less than academic, instructor comments were too simple, vague and not constructive. After course submissions are graded, students have no way of knowing what areas they have done well or need improvement (such APA, formating, sentence structure, paper theme etc). Of course as a graduate student I am able to self critique my work but I expected some informed and intellectual perspectives on coursework submissions by students. Comments such as "you did a good job" don't suffice. Overall, I found the experience extremely challenging and intense. This program requires effecient time management and strong self-discipline to succeed, it is certainly not a cake walk as some have suggested. The Discussion boards I thought were productive and refreshing. The collaboration technology was perhaps the best experience. Overall it is a good school and I think in the wake of the SACS suspension and subsequent reinstatement of accredtion status; AIU Online has improved tremendously in terms of quality of service and course delivery. The main problem as indicated earlier was instructor feedback and student course work review. Graduate programs are meant to expand your horizons and expose you to new thoughts, trends, technologies etc and provide you the resources to research and learn about things you primarily would never have known. if you failed to learn something it is likley you did not take advantage of all the resources available. I personally learned a lot in the MIT program particularly in the Object Oriented Application Development and Project Management courses.

AIU is a great school and was instantaneously recognized as a good school by advisors from Penn State Ogontz, when I used to work with them. In my capacity as the Assistant Director of Education for Willow Grove Naval Air Station, in 2002-2003, we established a working relationship with Penn State Ogontz and a few other schools, as well. I was advising one of our military members to be careful in applying to AIU, as I thought it was a diploma mill. The advisor from PSU was quick to point out that AIU was not only a good school, but was NOT a diploma mill and was fully accredited by SACS. After a little research, I enrolled in the school myself and was rewarded with a great learning experience, although I worked my butt off to get it! Don't be fooled by the naysayers who don't apply themselves to their programs; this is a good school. You will get out of the program exactly what you put into it. Don't be afraid to challenge your peers and instructors; that's what online education is all about.

I recently graduated from AIU with a BFA in Visual Communication with a specialization in Web Design. I worked very hard and graduated with a 3.9 GPA. I am a veteran professional in the Multimedia area, so most of the courses were fairly easy for me, but there were some classes that were quite difficult for me, but I managed to do well overall. In order to be successful at AIU, you have to be self-motivated, there is no hand holding at all. You get out exactly what you put in. I worked hard therefore I learned a lot, however I had many classmates whose work was absolutely horrible, but somehow they managed to graduate – I don’t know how. Personally, for me I need a degree to move ahead in my career, so the experience was overall OK. However, I would not recommend this program to someone who would need to rely on these classes to actually learn the field. In cases like these, you would graduate with a degree, but not really have enough skill to be successful in your career. I NEVER once heard from my academic advisor, and this pissed me off. However, everyone else (especially my prior learning assessment advisor) were great. If you are self-motivated and need a degree to move ahead, AIU is a great choice; however, if you are looking to learn a craft and need individual attention, I would not recommend this program.

I just completed the Master's in Information Technology. It's a 13 month accelerated program and I completed it easily, with very little effort. Granted, I have been in the IT field for 10 years, but I expected to actually learn something new. I can safely say that the only thing I learned was the way DES works, and for that I paid $30k. Even worse, there were quite a few students in my class that really had no business being there. They got almost every discussion question wrong and by the last class one of them still did not understand what a Trojan Horse was. They all graduated, however, which means they had to have gotten at least a B in all classes. Basically, if you're already in the field and you want to pay $30k to have a master's very quickly, it might be worth it. If you actually want to learn something, go somewhere else. This program will not even prepare you for an entry level help desk job. Also, they are accredited, but on probation for the 2nd year. The probation expires in December. If they do not pass, they lose accreditation.

Great school. Great faculty. Wonderful use of technology. Accelerated degree MBA program is intense! Dedication is required with at least 2 hours per weekday of study and an additional 6-8 hours on weekends. Preparation for classes requires prior reading of between 2-6 chapters per week. E-Library is very helpful in completing research assignments. I love it! The most satisfying degree program i have taken.

I graduated with a BFA in Digital Design from this school. The program was fast paced and intense, but doable. The teachers were very good. I got a good solid education from this school and would advise anyone to go here as well.