Azusa Pacific University

I would not recommend attending APU’s credential program if your goal is to complete the program efficiently and graduate on time. My experience was filled with poor communication, lack of accountability, confusing program requirements, and an overall feeling that students are left to figure out critical issues on their own.

What should have been a straightforward completion process turned into an unnecessarily stressful, time-consuming, and expensive ordeal. Instead of feeling supported academically... Read More and professionally, I often felt like the system prioritized extending coursework and tuition over helping students successfully finish the program.

Before attending this university, I strongly encourage students to carefully research the credential pathway, clinical requirements, CalTPA process, timelines, and total financial commitment. Make sure you document every important conversation and requirement in writing.

I would avoid enrolling in the ELM program at APU if I could go back in time. The school is extremely unorganized that makes unannounced, constant, and changes that do not ask the students for any input before implementing them. My cohort is constantly the "guinea pig group" that are test subjects for new ideas and schedules that usually do not make any sense on why they would change something that already is working very well. The school expects us to be extremely available and flexible while not... Read More being flexible themselves. We have no chance of missing a clinical day or class without facing repercussions or making up missed days which makes no sense, how would we be able to control when we are sick or something significant happens in our lives? Most classes include things like assignments that are just a huge waste of time with no relevance. Even some classes like our Christianity course, are stretched out to being 8 hours long in person when it could be done in 2-3 hours online. They love wasting your time. There is essentially no communication between the school and the students. If there is a complaint coming from the student or some kind of inner cohort conflict, they will not even investigate or gather more information about what is going on before making illogical decisions that just hurt everybody else. There are some good instructors that are extremely smart and kinder than others of course though! I do enjoy the small cohort size as well. There are just little things they do that add up such as not splitting up our cohort evenly for clinical so one group always gets the short end of the stick and has to go to clinicals over a longer period of time into finals while the other group finishes in the first half of the semester and gets the rest of the time off. Also random charges for things like textbooks we don't even need sneak up on us with no warning or anything from the school. All of this is just made worse considering how much we are paying and how many of us are going to be in substantial debt for the subpar program. Certain students are favored or are treated with much more leniency than everyone else which is really frustrating. Exceptions are made for certain students while pushing and holding the rest of us to such high expectations, it comes across as very hypocritical. Especially because even if a student's attitude or behavior is unacceptable or they are failing a class by not putting in the effort the rest of us are, it is swept under the rug which I believe is financially motivated. The biggest gain from the program is the friends I have made that support each other. I could keep going on and on about the downfalls of the program....just save your money and smarts and go somewhere else!

This review is for the mft program located in the Azusa campus. I am very disappointed with my experience at APU. The enviorment is very childish. If the faculty favor you, then you pretty much can get away with anything. However if you are the type of person that speaks up, is bold, free spirited, are not easily controlled and do not allow others to bully you, then the staff will not only dislike you but they will make it very ovbious too. Your emails will many times be ignored, many students will... Read More shy away from you, professors will be rude, and they may even speak badly about you to your site supervisors (during placement) and the list goes on. I learned much more about psychology in undergrad then I ever did in this program. The program takes on many students that are not a good fit for the program or profession and reject many others who are. Go to another school. It is not worth it.

the teachers are really helpful for the ELM program, they are overall very knowledgeable and keen on ensuring that new grad nurses understand the most important aspects and that the students feel well prepared to enter the nursing workforce. Most of the classes are helpful in building foundational knowledge in nursing, though there is indeed ALOT of busy work and assignments that don't really have that much relevance and that you will likely immediately forget once you into the field. I liked most... Read More of the classes and thought the information was important, though there were a few classes that will definitely raise your blood pressure specifically scientific writing, research methods and ethics. These classes all require several papers that you will most likely lose sleep, sanity and your health trying to write..... The assignments take enormous amounts of time that is probably better spent teaching students more practical knowledge.......Despite this though the program does provide quality education and the staff and generally very helpful and supportive. The staff are more than willing to write letters of recommendation, help further your understanding and clarify things. Additionally the staff are honest about what to expect on the NCLEX as well as what can be expected in the nursing work environment. Every nursing school is gonna have some amount of BS, that being said I would definitely recommend this program to anyone looking to go into nursing.

Good overall online program, one of the most affordable ones in the country. However, the classes are very much self-taught, and for paying $2,000 for each class, that's a little crazy in my opinion. Online classes have ZERO lectures and are completely self-led. If you are a self-starter and don't need any hand-holding, then this is a good program. Additionally, the classes are a little sporadic, so you may wait 2 years for a certain class to be on the schedule, which can be very frustrating. If... Read More you want to take one in-person class, be prepared for INSANE parking fees and crazy traffic ($20 per visit). I do appreciate the hybrid choice, though.

As I reflect on my journey in attending Azusa Pacific University, I remember researching colleges and hearing other students experiences and hoping for an experience like the ones they portrayed. In my time at APU, I now recognize that my experience was not like those who went before me, because it was been my very own experience, one I would not trade for the world. Azusa Pacific University is so much more than a University, APU fosters a community that truly meets individuals where they are at... Read More as they develop and grow into who they are becoming. APU has an Orientations and Transitions program that helps students seamlessly transition and allows students to develop their own community from the beginning of their college experience. APUs office of Student Life including offices such as: Athletics, Residence life, Center for Global Learning and Engagement, and Student Center for Reconciliation and Diversity. These programs offer outlets that enhance the college experience profoundly. APU is a unique university that aims to develop academic scholars while also enriching each individual to reach their highest potential and ultimately helps them pursue their vocation and calling. As you may be contemplating what college to attend, may it be a place you can call home. Although where we have come from is integral for shaping where we are going, the place where we settle is a foundation for what makes us who we are. Home may look like a professor inviting you into his home for a home-cooked meal with his family. Or maybe home is a conversation of processing change and transition with a friend and having that friend simply listen and understand. Whatever version of home you may find yourself in, may you embrace the middle stagesthe middle of fear and bravery, of promise and fulfillment. May you learn from where you are and may that sustain you to wherever you may be going.

I attended Azusa Pacific University from 1985-1989 as a Music Major. I actually began my college education at Stanford University as a Music Major but actually considered dropping my major while there as my experience as a music major was less than I had hoped for. APU was a dynamic place for music and I was able to be involved in several different music groups that traveled throughout the year performing at various events and churches, as well as in the Summer through several different states. While... Read More I wasn't sure at the time what my ultimate goal would be as a music major, I knew that was my "calling." The University Choir I was in helped to prepare me for my future work as a choral director and I loved the community I was involved with. For most of my time at APU, I was a double major, adding Communications as my second major. I loved my classes in that arena and always felt challenged and accessible to my professors. They expressed genuine concern for me, which continues to resonate with me as I now teach at a university myself. Although I only graduated with the Music major (6 units shy of my Communications degree :/) what I learned through that major also helped to prepare me for the public speaking I regularly do. I highly encourage APU as an institution to become equipped, not just as a student, but in life.

I thought APU would be more accepting but unfortunately I experienced a lot of racism on the campus. MSW program is average but there was no safe space for students of color which was bizarre to me because they actually accepted a wide range of diverse students. Students of color may have different needs than white middle class students and this was not acknowledged or addressed in this program by professors or staff. This program has high quantity work but low quality engagement with material which... Read More was disappointing for me because the learning environment should be invigorating and foster growth. This program is not necessarily interested in that instead its trying to make you into a cookie cutter of what they believe is a professional social worker. No need to think outside the box for this program. All you have to do is feed them their own jargon back.

APU offers a very holistic, comprehensive, and service-centered approach to nursing. The professors are excellent and not only teach well, they model superb nursing care. The 4+ year course is demanding, but one emerges well equipped to enter any nursing specialty with confidence and current knowledge practice. Clinically skills are not deferred until undergraduate prerequisites are completed, but taught in the freshman year and applied in the second semester. Thus, even though baccalaureate nursing... Read More programs have a reputation (among nurses working in the field) for lacking in clinical time, nothing could be farther from the truth. Student nurses at APU are not only exposed to various specialties, but clinical rotations tend to be longer and more in-depth due to the length of the program. In addition, a social-service focus is very much emphasized, so that their nurses are not so much poised to 'get out there and make money' but motivated to seek the improvement of health in under-served communities.

The Leadership program at Azusa Pacific University is a strong program, preparing students for a variety of careers in various areas including ministry, coaching, academic leadership, arts leadership, and beyond. The faculty are actively engaged in their field, bringing new lessons and topics to each course, keeping the degree relevant. This program is available online, in person, or a combination of both, which is perfect for an adult student returning to school. Very practical degree, that empowers... Read More students to move beyond their current jobs and prepare for a market as leaders!

I am currently in the ELM Nursing program at APU studying to become a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner. The academics are outstanding. The professors are very knowledgeable and available for any help that a student may need. The classes prepare students for the NCLEX and for their careers. The program is very quick and intense. Their is a lot of work and it does not allow for a consistent job because the schedule changes constantly, however it is completely manageable. Students get a... Read More variety of clinical experience including med surgical, rehabilitation, Obstetrics, pediatrics, critical care and community health. The last semester is a 7 week residency in the hospital. This program is wonderful and I highly recommend it.

Azusa Pacific University has one of the best psychology programs in Southern California. The rate in which students get a job in their field after graduation is incredible and that is due to all the hard work and dedication that the professors put into teaching their students. I have only been there for one semester now and I already feel as though I will be successful as a therapist after graduation. The professors are truly there to help you succeed in your studies and your career. The faculty... Read More will work with you and be flexible as long as you communicate your needs. I could not have asked for a better school to attend and professors to bestow their knowledge unto me for my masters program.

Having worked for smaller companies and doing contract work for a start-up tech firm, I have realized that my place is within the large corporate culture. As frustrating as the red tape, lack of agility, and passing of responsibility can be, that is where I belong. I had the privilege of being in Jon Wallace and Peggy Campbells Senior Seminar course; we spent a considerable amount of time discussing ethics and how we, as Christians, need to be in the hard places to spread Gods light whether that... Read More be on the mission field or the board room. In my short time in the workforce, I have faced circumstances that did not seem right, and despite being young and new, I did the hard thing and raised my hand. Not only did I receive a quality education with real world application that has paved the way for my success, but that education is grounded in faith and values.