American Public University

American Public University is the place to receive the finest form of education. The online environment is suitable for working adults who have to juggle work, education and cater for family needs or responsibilities as well. In my experience, I gained indepth understanding of course content through the virtual classroom analysis of subject matter. The professors were great and had and they had a complete command over their respective fields. They were very critical and helpful as well. They skilfully steered the course towards meeting the objectives outlined in the program. I do not think I could ever receive this kind of top-notch education from any other institution, be it in a traditional or online environment. Self-disciple, motivation and the quest to learn and know more are added advantages of enrolling at APU. As a result of the knowledge that I gained from APU, I have been able to publish a number of scholarly articles in peer-reviewed journals. For example, The State of Iraqi Democracy, Afghanistan after the US Withdrawal (Peace and Conflict Monitor), The Syrian Conflict and Superpower Politics, Understanding the Structural Dynamics of the Russo-Chechen Conflict (Journal of Global Peace and Conflict),The International Experimentation in Democratic Governance (International Journal of Current Research), and Reconciling Huntington and Mueller's Theories of Conflict: A Critical Analysis of Race, Culture and Conflict (International Journal of Current Research and Academic Review). I will recommend American Public University to anyone seeking a great university and a great environment to study. You will never regret it, I promise.

After graduate from the university long time ago, this is my first step back to school majoring in International Relations and Conflict Resolution. This became a real big challenge for me in terms of time and fund. When I registered this online school, I did not expect to have great instructors on online study and considered the study would not be too deep as in the classroom study. In fact, the class is so challenging and made me do more research and read more articles to have an argument on each topic and issue in the class forum. The need to write an essay of each topic and respond to other essays as well as to defend my opinion and analysis was highly valuable. Most of instructors have a wide experience and always respond to any question I asked and guide the forum conversation so well in a wise way. They treated us as a 'mature' student who does not need to be guided step by step because all the rules, policy and guidance were provided prior to the beginning of each class. My program is still in the progress but I had already an advantage of this program by applying some knowledge I received during the class session in my current job. I paid the school from my own pocket so I never known how to deal with financial aid.

Don't be afraid to ask for help from your teachers, ask them if you can get some advises before submitting your final paper. Learn to write a good research papers, if you don't learn it in your first class, you will have hard time to write your capstone. I recommend you to take International Law as your electives, it's a interesting class to take, i loved that class.

I was curious about the feedback, as my experience has been nothing but positive in 95% of the time I attended the school. Instructors are pretty diligent, the assignments are many and require a lot of writing. The forum is good for student interaction on specific topics, the interaction with the professors here could be more active. I felt it took some work to complete each course, and have had prior experience at brick and mortar schools like UCLA, Maryville and feel there was more work required in the online program than in the classroom. I had no problems with the financial program, although, my only real issue was corresponding with the school admin, or advisors where you talk to a different person or receive email from different people each time. In many cases, they don't have the prior correspondence you've already sent and require re-sending the same info. All in all, a great experience, more work and not easy "A's". Reading the credentials of the professors will give you an idea.

Great program. Some instructors were far more challenging than others. Overall I learned a great deal and feel enriched with the new knowledge and skills I have attained.

I am presently attending APU taking my last class in order to complete a Master of International Relations and Conflict Resolution and all I have to say is that my experience has been positive, worthwhile and fulfilling. I have never had an issue with their Financial Office, I myself have applied and gotten my financial aid on time, easy process to apply and reapply, really not a big deal. They are also very good in sending you reminders of all sorts via email, for the financial aid, for the start of the semester, etc, etc. The times that I have needed assistance, again I have had an answer from Office staff, Counselors and Professors within a 24 hr period, and I have used both email and phone to contact them, with no issues at all. Classes and Professors again are excellent, some Professors tend to be tougher than others but that is normal in every institution, so every class experience depends on the professor at hand. Overall, you do have to be disciplined in the sense that you need to take aside time to study (as in any other college or university), read the materials, work on research projects, lots and lots of reading….discussion is a must every week, since it is an online degree, so you have to access the class and discuss learned material with the Professor and students…other than that it has been a smooth process at least on my own personal case and I will definitely recommend this institution to others planning to achieve higher educational goals.

With this online school, you can expect flexible scheduling for working professionals as well as a very affordable tuition and course materials. In an online format, you miss out on class lectures and group discussions, but the school attempts to make up for this with forum posts and some Powerpoint presentations. Course websites tend to be very organized allowing you to work ahead and access articles, lectures, etc at any time. My biggest complaint about AMU and the IR program is the lack of instructor participation. While professors may have years of experience and multiple degrees, very few instructors take the time to critique coursework and engage students on discussion boards. Making good grades isn't too difficult, and with little professor oversight, it's difficult to stay 100% focused and motivated about each course. If I had the money and time, I would much prefer a regular university, but for the price and convenience, AMU is a solid choice.

So far, the courses in the IR program at APUS are interesting and challenging. Lecture notes, assigned readings (of which there are plenty), and the online discussions in the several courses provide different viewpoints and theories about a myriad of subjects and topics related to the field of IR. Until now, my professors designed the courses in such manner that student participation is mandatory and therefore the exchanges of ideas among students are great! Until now, professors have been very professional by stating their expectations in a clear and concise manner, grading on time and provided constructive feedback, most of them have been easily available through e-mail to ask for clarifications or explanations in order to complete assignments. Based on the professor’s comments and lecture notes, one can see that their knowledge and expertise in the field of IR is unquestionable. The APUS interface is also very user-friendly and I never have experienced the website not functioning (except for maintenance during a couple of hours and that was usually communicated by the university administration to the student body well in advance) and the online library has an extraordinary collection of databases, journals, and e-books. In the GRADUATE International Relations program, the students come from diverse backgrounds (military, non-military, other countries [such as myself], ethnic…) I am sorry for students who have had unfortunate experiences at APUS, but the graduate IR program is really a good program that is challenging, very global, and interesting. I LOVE THE PROGRAM AND LOVE THE SCHOOL!!