University of Phoenix

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

University of Phoenix
Motto:	Thinking Ahead
Established:	1976
Type:	Private, For-profit
President:	Bill Pepicello
Faculty:	20,000+
Staff:	12,000+
Undergraduates:	220,000+
Postgraduates:	60,000+
Location:	Phoenix, Arizona, USA
Campus:	Urban
Locations:	204 campuses & learning centers[1]
Website:	phoenix.edu

The University of Phoenix (UoP) is a for-profit educational institution that specializes in adult education. The largest private university in the world,^[2] UoP claims over 280,000 students. Founded in 1976 by Dr. John Sperling and owned by Apollo Group, Inc., the university has now expanded to include physical campuses in 38 states, as well as in Canada, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.^[3] The university offers more than 100 degree programs at the associate's, bachelor's, master's and doctoral levels in various fields of study.

Contents 1 History 2 Campuses 3 Academic Profile 3.1 Research 4 People 4.1 Students 4.2 Faculty 4.3 Notable alumni 5 Criticism and controversies 6 References 7 External links

History

In the early 1970s, at San Jose State University in California, John Sperling and several associates conducted field-based research in adult education. The focus of the research was to explore teaching/learning systems for the delivery of educational programs and services to working adult students who wished to complete or further their education in ways that complemented both their experience and current professional responsibilities. At that time colleges and universities were organized primarily around serving the needs of the 18-22 year old undergraduate student given that the large majority of those enrolled were residential students of traditional college age, just out of high school. “According to Sperling, working adult students were often invisible on traditional campuses and treated as second-class citizens.”^[4]

Sperling founded the university in 1976 in Phoenix, Arizona.^[4]In 1980, the school expanded to San Jose, California. By 1989, the university had become one of the first providing an online program for students.^[5]

University of Phoenix is a wholly owned subsidiary of Apollo Group, Inc. publicly traded on NASDAQ: APOL and is a S&P 500 corporation based in Phoenix, Arizona. With 250,000 students, most of them working adults, the university is the United States' largest private university.^[6] The University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona is a municipal sports arena, best known as the home of the NFL's Arizona Cardinals and the site of the NCAA's Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. The University paid $154.5 million for 20 year naming rights for advertising purposes.^[7][8]

Campuses

UoP has 204 campuses & learning centers in in 38 states, as well as in Canada, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.^[9] While UoP specializes in its online programs, the physical campuses offer additional services like workshops, computers, Internet access, study rooms and tutoring. However, most of its resources are also available online, including several software tutorials, the Center for Writing Excellence (offers an automated system that can review papers for correct grammar and usage), reviews by faculty members, and the Center for Mathematics Excellence (provides math and statistics assistance). ^[10]

Academic Profile

The university offers several different programs of study, all administered through four colleges—the John Sperling School of Business and Technology, the Artemis School (administering art, education, and health fields), the School of Advanced Studies (overseeing doctoral programs), and Axia College (managing associate's degress).^[11] In addition to its traditional education programs, UoP offers continuing education courses for teachers and practitioners, professional development courses for companies, and specialized courses of study for military personnel.^[12] In 2008, UoP was ranked #25 in the world for online degree programs by OEDb,^[13] and the university is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission as a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.^[14]

Admission requirements differ by prospective degree and field of study; however, most require current full-time employment, a satisfactory TOEFL score, and a corresponding benchmark diploma or degree (GED needed to enter associate's and bachelor's degree programs, bachelor's degree needed to enter master's program, etc.). Specific programs may require certain GPAs, so many years of applicable work experience, and background tests and immunizations for on-campus study.^[15] Undergraduate tuition averages $12,000 per year.^[16]

Research

In May 2008, the school announced the formation of the University of Phoenix National Research Center. It is designed to study which teaching methods work best for nontraditional students. The development of the research center is under advisement by a board comprising a former dean of education at the University of Virginia; a consultant on learning and a former official with the College Board; and the president of the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education.^[17]

People

Students

The average age of a UoP student is 35 years old, and most students have full-time jobs and family responsibilities.^[18]. Additionally, nearly two-thirds of the University's students are women. The majority of UoP students study business (undergraduate students representing 29.9% and graduate students 12.9%), followed closely by those enrolled in Axia College (28.1%).^[19]

Faculty

The University's faculty consists of approximately 1,500 core faculty and 20,000 associate faculty members. All have masters or doctorate degrees.^[20]

Notable alumni

• Admiral Kirkland H. Donald: Director, Naval Nuclear Propulsion and former Commander, Submarine Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet ^[21]
• Mary Peters (politician): Current United States Secretary of Transportation.^[22]
• Shaquille O’Neal: NBA basketball player^[23]
• Howard Schmidt: Former Chief Security Strategist for the US CERT Partners Program for the National Cyber Security Division and current President and CEO of R & H Security Consulting LLC^[24]

Criticism and controversies

• The University of Phoenix has vocal critics among its alumni, students, employees and the media. One has created a critical web site.^[25]

• The coursework is perceived by some as trivial, non-challenging, and non-educational.^[25][26] A degree from UoP is perceived by some employers such as Intel, as inferior, and that some graduates have discovered that their degree did not offer the job advancement they anticipated.^[26]

• Many HR professionals prefer job candidates with an online degree from a traditional school.^[27]

• The UoP's does not properly balance value to students vs. and profits to shareholders, e.g. UoP's recent success on Wall Street has come directly at the expense of a declining quality of education to students.^[28] UoP does not have qualified professors or teachers, but rather, facilitators, which encourage students to teach each other.^[25]

• Critics contend that being taught by "just anybody" is no replacement for traditional classes with a professor. On the other hand, others point out that the University of Phoenix only hires "facilitators" who have masters or doctoral degrees thus they have the advanced education and experience needed to teach their courses. Some members of the academic community and employers consider UOP's faculty to be too "come-and-go" and nomadic.^[25][29] Approximately 95% of UoP faculty are part-time compared with an average of 47% across all universities. The University of Phoenix requires that most faculty be actively working in the fields that they teach.^[25]

• University of Phoenix popular MBA program is accredited by the Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP) but not the more prestigious Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB).^[26][25]

• In November 2006, Intel Corporation decided to exclude colleges who lacked the AACSB accreditation from its tuition reimbursement program, saying they lacked "top-notch accreditation."^{[26][25][30] [29]} John J. Fernandes, the AACSB's president, said the University of Phoenix has never applied for membership and feels that their chances of acceptance would be low because they have a "lot of come-and-go faculty".^[25][29] Additionally, there have been published reports that Procter and Gamble and other companies^[31] will not hire graduates of non-AACSB-accredited MBA programs.^[26]

• When calculated by the federal standard used by the Department of Education, UOP's overall graduation rate is 16%, which when compared to the national average of 55% is among the nation's lowest. The federal standard measures graduation rates as "the percentage of first-time undergraduates who obtain a degree within six years". The number is significantly lower at its Southern California campus (6%) and its online programs (4%). The institution publishes its own nonstandard graduation rate of 59% to account for its large population of non-traditional students.^[25]

• UoP has been sued numerous times by several federal agencies. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission settled a second sexual harassment claim filed against the university by a former employee for $225,000 in August 2007.^[32]

• In September 2004, the university paid a settlement of $9.8 million to the United States Department of Education for alleged violations of the Higher Education Act provisions which prohibit distributing financial incentives to admission representatives.^{[33][34][35][36][37]}

• A federal whistle-blower/false claims lawsuit accusing the university of fraudulently obtaining hundreds of millions of dollars in financial aid was filed in 2003 and is currently set for trial in September 2009.^{[38][28][25][39][40]} The university receives more federal student financial aid than any other university in the United States, receiving $1.8 billion in federal student aid in 2004-5.^[25] The lawsuit was dismissed by the federal district court, reinstated by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court declined to hear the university's appeal .^[41][42]

• The university paid $3.5 million in back wages owed to 1,700 workers related to overtime pay and exemption status given to its recruitment advisers, under a settlement reached in July, 2004 with the United States Department of Labor.^[43][44]

• The university is being sued by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for alleged religious discrimination favoring Mormon enrollment counselors.^[45]

• The university settled allegations by the United States Department of Education for $6 million in March 2000 pursuant to a ruling by government auditors that the university's teaching schedule fell short of the minimum time required to qualify for financial aid because it wrongfully included study group meetings among students as instructional hours. The auditors also ruled that the university erred in including cost-of-living expenses for some students when determining financial need.^[46][25][28]

• The United States Department of Education also ordered the university to pay $650,000 for failing to promptly refund loans and grants for students who withdrew.^[28]

• In January of 2008, University of Phoenix's parent company, Apollo Group, Inc. was found guilty of fraud for misleading investors by not disclosing a Department of Education report that harshly criticized the recruitment practices used by the University of Phoenix which led to the $9 million dollar settlement.^[47]

References

External links

• UoP Newsroom
• UoP Library
• UoP Consumer Site

v • d • e Colleges and Universities in metropolitan Indianapolis Anderson University • The Art Institutes-Indianapolis • Brown Mackie College-Indianapolis • Butler University • Christian Theological Seminary • Franklin College • Indiana Bible College • Indiana Business College • Indiana Institute of Technology-Indianapolis • Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis • Indiana Wesleyan University-Indianapolis • ITT Technical Institute • Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana-Indianapolis • Kaplan College-Indianapolis • Lincoln Technical Institute • Marian College • Martin University • Oakland City University-Indianapolis • University of Indianapolis • University of Phoenix-Indianapolis • Vincennes University • Wilson College