American Public University

Having limited exposure to online classroom environments, as well as having been out of school for over twenty years, I was hesitant in my pursuit of an online masters degree; however, my internet search was clear--APUS was, by far, the clear choice for accreditation, reputation, quality, and value. The APUS Humanities program is based on the Great Books of Western Civilization, which can be limiting for students who wish to explore additional areas of interest more in depth (such as the Near East or ancient Egypt). Indeed, these areas are covered in HUMN510, albeit very quickly. Opinions and reviews of professors are subjective, so I will not get into it here; however, my assessment of the professors in this programs is as follows: they are qualified, accomplished, knowledgeable, involved, and responsive. They are the real deal; I have experienced no "hacks" thus far. Indeed, they are kept quite busy; many carry several undergrad and graduate classes, as well as sit on advisory boards, attend conferences, supervise other professors, etc. Regardless of other activities and responsibilities, each of my professors was engaged throughout each week, and returned graded assignments within a week or two (at the most). Expectations are high, so bring your 'A' game. Grading is hard, but fair. Again, your mileage will vary from one instructor to the next, but this is no program to stroll through. If you are in search of a degree mill to obtain a masters for the sake of having one, you may want to look elsewhere. The admin staff--front office, financial aid, student services, librarians--is friendly, helpful, and eager to assist. The online library seems infinite; there is no shortage of resources for your papers and research. I have even had books loaned to me from outside libraries via the Interlibrary Loan System. Consistent with perhaps any other academic setting, I have had classmates who were intelligent and engaged, sarcastic and pedantic, and B.S.-ing slugs. In one of my classes I was the ONLY student! If you are serious about a solid education at the graduate level, APUS is worthy of consideration. Be prepared to read and write, and read and write. Each class is different, however, and they have creatively approached changing the work demands throughout the program. For instance, HUMN500 is a research and writing class requiring some small essays and one term paper. In HUMN510, a moderate paper is due about every three weeks. Several two- to three-paged papers are required in HUMN520. The demands are challenging, but your reading and writing ability will improve dramatically. The only downside I will assert is the inability to "specialize" in any area. Sure, there are some electives offered wherein, based on selection, one could become more learned in, say, world religion--entire classes are offered in Hinduism and Buddhism, for instance. This program is more structured in western human culture and thought throughout history, as reflected in literature, treatise, and poetry, from the beginning of recorded history (Sumer/Babylonia) through modern time. Finally, many of the required reading materials are made available at no cost to the students either by links or uploads provided by the professors. While this can be beneficial to cost savings, I have purchased many of the books through Amazon (which were cheaper than what was offered at the student store).

I have attended several online universities over the years, and APU is my least favorite. As compared to other online universities, the weekly assignments and expectations are way overloaded. This is my biggest complaint with APU. Too much is expected on a weekly basis for the class. The other issue I have is that many professors somehow twist the rubric to their liking and grade papers too harshly. They say they use a rubric, but deduct way too many points for small infractions like a period or a comma in a footnote or bibliography. Another issue is that each instructor has the right to choose whether to use MLA or Chicago-style or Turabian, and there are many small differences between these styles. I wish they would choose one style and stick with it. In the Humanities program, classes remain at 16 weeks, which is way too long for one class to last. Eight weeks is plenty of time for one class, and I don't see the point in dragging out classes for 16 weeks.

I am pleased with my first class. The instructor was exceptional and the support from the librarians, bookstore and academic team were great! Every time I needed something they were patient while explaining things to me and were willing to give of their time. I first thought of pursuing a masters degree four years ago. I spoke with many counselors from many online universities across the country and also considered brick and mortar schools in my area. When I came across the online Masters in Humanities degree at APUS, I said, "Bingo!" I found what seemed to be a perfect fit for me. I was anxious about starting and nervous the first week of my first online class, but I'm very pleased so far and look forward to my future classes.

If you have a ton of time and all the money to complete the program quickly then go for it. I took a year off to care for my ailing father and was dropped and had to reapply. That resulted in a complete change in my program and extra course work. They allowed me to appeal but it was only a formality and there was never any real consideration given. With the new requirements I wasn't able to meet their deadline for completion and with 11 months left in my program they wouldn't let me register for classes since they didn't think I would finish in time. So with 11 months to the deadline I couldn't take any courses and had to apply for an extension. Basically it is always some problem and obstacle. I'm paying to take classes why wouldn't you let me pay you and register??? Every time I'm close to finishing they somehow find a way to add more time and requirements. Once in the classes, they're fine. Some good readings and discussions in a lot of classes, in others there's some needlessly tedious work which can be a struggle while working full time.

Perhaps because I received my Bachelor's Degree online, I easily blended into the online environment at the American Military University. I had only minor IT issues navigating the classroon or uploading files, but the technology of the classroom was predominately reliable and easy to use. What impressed me most was the professional pedigrees of my professors. All of them had extensive intelligence community or military backgrounds and many were still currently working in the profession. I found the text books to be current, relevant and valuable. I noted a comment by one student that the professors 'baby sat' their rooms. At no time did I have that experience, even with one professor deployed overseas on active duty, the mentorship and instruction was constant and supportive. Lastly, while I did not need financial assistance at AMU, I did at my first online university and experienced some of the same challenges noted here by other students. I am of the opinion that the issue is more about bureaucracy at the federal level than anything else when it comes to the hurdles in obtaining the lending approvals and dispersements. I am very proud to be an alumni of AMU and member of three AMU affiliated honor societies and would encourage anyone seeking an online to degree to pursue AMU for your education.

I heard of APUS through family who went there and enjoyed it. I had been given the biggest run around from Columbia university MO. for the last year about my student loans so I transferred to APUS. I have over 190 credits and when I emailed APUS to require about courses, I told them that I lacked 3 courses from obtaining my bachelors and wanted to finish ,as well as go on to masters. I then paid to have transcripts sent. I was put in master program. I thought it was because of all the credits that I had but did ask if I needed to do anything else and was told ,NO that they had it all. I was thrilled and registered. I started and was in the 5th week when I was asked for my conferment date for bachelors. I told them that I didn't have one and had told them that. I also was disbursed my student loan check already. Then I was told that I I would be dropped due to falsifying my record and I let them know that I saved all emails and could prove what was said, the tune changed and I was told that I could enroll in the bachelors but had to wait for July of this year to enroll, which I understood. About two weeks late I was told that I had to pay them 7, 779 dollars before I could register. I informed them that I owed the federal government and checked my direct loans and was aware they had disbursed to their financial aid office 7,779 dollars. They had sent me 5, 773 dollars in a disbursement check . I told them that I was disabled and there was no way I had that type of money ,especially when they had not disbursed 7,779 to me. A week later , I received another check disbursed for 483 dollars in my account. I asked about it and nothing was said. I then told them that this was ridiculous and I owed them nothing, they made the mistake and I was not taking any fall for their error. I have heard nothing. I called FAFSA help line and they didn't even have a clue . Now, I am in debt for 49,000 to government and not sure if I can get into another college. I enjoyed the courses, the instructors were great but I have seen these online colleges are shady and it is about the money not the students. I have never seen anything like it.

I am thrilled with the course work, the method of presentation, the feedback and timing. I love being able to work on this whereever I am at & instructors have been very timely in responses and help. I would recommend this to anyone who loves being independent.

Do not attend - useless program, outdated books, students are not up to par and discussion are high school level. A waste of time and money.