Western Governors University

I have earned two degrees from WGU, B.S. Business Management (2010) and a MBA Information Technology Management (2016). I have also completed two A.A. degrees at my local community college. So I know what it is like to go to a traditional school compared to an online school. As I said in my title, WGU worked for me. It worked for the current me! I say that because if I would have tried to complete this program when I was in my early 20's I would have failed miserably. I liked the self paced aspect of the school. WGU doesn't have traditional instructors and that was fine for me! Last thing I wanted to do was waste a bunch of time listening to an instructor lecture me about something I could read on my own. Again, WGU worked for me! With WGU you interact a lot, and I do mean a lot, with a student mentor. If you decide to go to WGU and you get a student mentor that doesn't work for you, ask for a new one! The sooner the better. WGU also requires a lot of self motivation. I have a read a lot of the negative reviews and many of the reviewers seem to suffer from self inflicted issues (in my opinion). Let's talk about job placement. I actually got the job I wanted while attending WGU. I have applied for a few other jobs and I have not had any issues with my degree. Is WGU perfect? Nope. Is WGU for everyone? Nope? I would say, if you are considering going back to school you should at least take a close look at WGU and see if would work for you too.

I love WGU. I finished MBA with WGU and learned a lot while doing my MBA. WGU is a great university and it is great for those who are good at the time management and who are self-motivated. MBA with WGU has also helped me to position myself in a better way from my career stand-point. I would definitely recommend this to my friends and family.

I am a working adult. I just finished my first term with WGU. This is a great school. There is a reason they make you submit a resume. I have a lot of real world experience and I can do the work. It is very hard. I do not think I would have done well if I didn't have so much real-world experience. They make you DO the work as if it were a job. If you have never done the job, it's going to be difficult for you in the MBA IT. I earned every credit this last term. I designed an eCommerce site soup-to-nuts. I wrote and entire I.T. project soup-to-nuts. And I took an HR course that required I design an employee evaluation system soup-to-nuts. This isn't easy stuff. You can learn it, I am sure. Just going to take you more time and study than someone who has experience. if you have no work experience, you're going to have a tough time and this school isn't for you. Personally, I love WGU.

First of all, I started this program a couple of months after graduating from WGU with my 4 year degree in Information Technology. Here is my experience so far: This is a very challenging program. Compared to what I had write previously to what I have to write now, there is a big difference. WGU is for someone who is motivated and self-directed. If you don't fit that description, this is not the school for you. Unlike other schools, WGU don't have classrooms or offices where you can visit a professors. They have course mentors that you can contact for assistance via email or the phone. I needed help from the course mentors in my project management and human resources course - they were very helpful. Regarding an issue with the servers being down, that has never been a problem with me. Other than routine maintenance, I don't have an issue with accessing the learning resources. This school is about using technology to learn the material. So there are videos, e-books, online courses, etc., that are part of the package. So you have to be comfortable with technology. Concerning not being able to access the material on your tablet, don't blame WGU. The designers of the courses (e.g., Pearson), not WGU, made the decisions on how their material will be accessed. These are learning companies that countless schools used. If they've decided that the only tablet a student can use with their courses is an Ipad, what control does WGU has in that matter? Finally, you will only get out of this program what you put into it. So you can sit back and moan about how terrible the school is or you can roll up your sleeves and get busy. Or as a preacher said,you can either make a way or make an excuse.

In theory, this would be a great institution to attend. However, many details on the competency based learning are left out. I completed a period and a half and finally could not bear the inconsistencies that there were per course. First off, most course materials are not view-able on tablets, which I tend to use over computers for reading. Also, most course webpages are poorly laid out and are littered with resources that aren't explained sufficiently within the course syllabus or mentioned at all. If you don't mind trying to wrap your head around a poorly constructive site than it shouldn't be an issue. My student mentor was helpful but the other resources such as the writing center and course mentors were less than helpful. I'm a pretty independent student and don't need much assistance but the times I did reach out to course mentors for specific questions about papers they would talk in vague terms and expectations. I don't need someone to hold my hand or do my work but if I ask a specific question I expect a certain response. Also, be ready to write 15 to 25 page papers consistently. I believe I had one under ten pages. Lastly, there is a wall between you and the person who is grading your work. They grade your work and if they think it needs to be revised they will leave you comments. Any clarifications on their comments is impossible as they lie behind a clock of secrecy. Remember this is a resource that reads the rubics for the course and makes their own opinions on whether you meet the requirements. The do not offer any help other than comments. You must than work with you course and student to mentor to discern what is really being expected. FYI: They are not ACBSP accredited. That was my fault.

Working towards MBA-IT. The WGU program is a challenge in some areas and easier in others. It's been fun and interesting to see how some of the material plays out in the real world and I have already seen that it does. Good program, good mentors and never had problem with getting connected online or with reaching a course mentor. Everyone is polite and willing to help. A word of caution though - this program is not for anyone who cannot study on their own. It's an independent program; you do this on your own. WGU is not for a young student just starting out - there is no classroom, no professor to dock you points for not turning in assignments. Just You. For my schedule - working full time and taking care of my two small children this has been great opportunity to get through an accredited program all the while being able to do it from home.

I'm in an MBA I.T. program. The thing about WGU I learned very quickly is that you must be a real world professional to succeed. For instance, in my project management course, if I hadn't actually done many projects, I'm not sure I could have gotten through it. It's not for you unless you have work experience. You're out here on your own. You must be proficient in the use of technology. WGU has excellent tools. The mentors are always willing to help. But you have to reach out to them. For someone who needs to prove their knowledge, and fill in the blanks to round out their education, an MBA from WGU is the way to go. Their grading is strict and you WILL work your butt off. But if you know your stuff, and work hard on your own, you're in good shape. Definitely not for someone young and inexperienced. You could never keep up the pace. I think that is why you must submit your resume to be considered. All-in-all I am very satisfied so far. Tired, but satisfied.

Great way to earn your degree! I'm in the B.S. in Marketing Management program and think its great. I saw one post where I guy was complaining about servers being down, I'd have to tell him to check his own connection. I've been here for several months and have yet to see the servers go down except for scheduled maintenance that they tell you about. WGU is a great school with a great value!

It's interesting to me when I see negative reviews on WGU. I have never had an experience close to negative there. I have completed the BSN and have started courses for obtaining a MSN. The school is outstanding. Whenever I have needed assistance it has been immediate. The site has never been down. The school is run in a professional manner and if there has ever been a problem there is a weeks' notice before any issues. I would recommend this school to everyone. There is always a voice ready to help me and that is comforting.

I have only been at WGU for a month working on my MBA and have experienced several outages. The website is down as I type this so I am taking the oppourtunity to let as many people know to avoid this school as possible. You will experience extreme frustration with all of the technical outages. The IT department is worthless. DO NOT ENROLL AT WGU!

I finished my MBA in IT Management at WGU in February 2011. I was already an Information Security manager with 11 direct reports when I started this program. I found that all of the concepts I learned could be readily applied within the workplace. Completing this program has helped me to better do my job and I feel that going through the MBA program while working in the field has actually given me an edge over others in my area. I couldn't be more pleased with the results and I am very proud to have the degree from WGU on my wall.