Fort Hays State University

First of all, I would like to state that FHSU is not a terrible school by any means, in fact, there are many redeeming qualities to this school. For example, both mentors I had were on top of it and even helped me graduate a semester early. I also have no complaints with the administrative departments. Not once did I have to wait an excessive amount of time to receive an answer to a question I might have, or trouble enrolling in courses. Even after I took a semester off I was able to jump back into... Read More it with ease. I would also like to applaud the IT department for their work; I had very few instances where I was unable to access the Blackboard website, and when I did the IT department was quick to resolve the issue or respond. Where I had the biggest gripe with this school was with the program and the instructors. First, the program I took felt like it was 90% filler 10% pertaining to what I actually wanted to study, which was cybersecurity. By filler I do not mean GenEd classes, instead I mean there were classes that had absolutely nothing to do with my degree. The program I chose was Networking and Telecommunications with a concentration in cybersecurity which fell under the Informatics department. The problem with this program is that it also included additional concentrations (Journalism, Web and Mobile, Health, Management, etc.) and they were all lumped together with no real separation with concentration. I took maybe 1 or 2 courses that actually had something to do with cybersecurity. Granted, I believe these programs are fairly new, so its possible in the future this will not be an issue, but for the time being I felt very disappointed with the program and feel like I am no better off now than I was when I first started. Second, as an online student I paid more in tuition than an on-campus student would, yet I felt like a second class citizen. I never felt like I was "taught" anything since the majority of the course work and lectures was over PowerPoint or a similar form of media. I took a course where the instructor included pre-recorded videos that dated back to 2006. I understand the material might not have changed much (especially since the course was Geology) but there is absolutely no reason as to why the videos cannot be updated. In another class the instructor had scheduled Zoom meetings scheduled for online students to attend, but if you were unable to attend the instructor stated he would not record the lesson and you were, in essence, S.O.L. Also, there were many times when I would email an instructor and would not hear back for a few days, or at all. Some of the questions I had pertained to either issues in the course, or related to assignments or course work. This made things very frustrating at times.

I enjoyed the classes I took however, the guidance counselor I was assigned was very rude and unprofessional. She didn’t want to guide me in anything. She told me instead of depending on her for answers I should look it up. That is what I was initially doing but someone from the school emailed me and said I was taking the incorrect courses so they sent me her for answers. I asked her if there was anyone else I could talk to. She refused to let me speak to anyone else until I became impatient with... Read More her nasty attitude. No one ever reached out about the situation. Tuition is cheap for a reason. Taking my money elsewhere.

Went to the online BS in CS program for a second degree (first is in Biology from Kansas State). The program is super affordable, and while the learning is largely self-study/self-directed, the curriculum is solid. I was able to land an internship at Boeing and got a full time offer for this fall. If you're willing to work at it, and use other learning resources (APress books, YouTube, Kahn Academy) you'll do fine. If you expect your hand to be held, you're in for a rough ride. A lot of my classmates... Read More are on their second or third degrees (there are lawyers, doctors, and some PhDs taking courses). It'll be awesome to have a second degree without any debt! (The whole degree cost less than a semester at the local college, even though I'm now moved out of state).

I am graduating with my BS in Information Networking and Telecommunications from FHSU this month. I have worked with five other online schools in my academic career before finding FHSU.

The Faculty and Staff were very helpful and even went out of there way to ensure that I graduated on schedule when there was an issue with a class I needed. As with any school you get what you put in and it depends on the professor.

I would recommend this school to anyone who is looking for a degree program online... Read More and I did. My wife is now attending FHSU online.

I was very excited to attend this school. I am a stay at home mother with one more on the way in just a few weeks.

This school made it very hard to attend the school. Getting certain paper work in and no one returning my calls or emails. When I finally did get some one 3 weeks later they had an issue with some paper work but did not try to reach out to me. It was very unfortunate.

after weeks and weeks of battling with them I decided my money was better off somewhere else. If this is the kind of... Read More trouble I have to go through as a freshman the next 4 years weren't likely to be better.

I am sure the school itself is fine but I didn't get that far since student services was terrible.