Pennsylvania State University

I studied Psychology through Penn State's World Campus. The flexibility afforded by the online program cannot be overemphasized, but this does not mean that it was in any way "easy." In fact, having a history of traditional brick-and-mortar education, I can safely say that the online program was "no joke;" it was rigorous and thought-provoking, with no room for slacking off. There were multiple due dates each week, and weekly discussion posts that mandated references to assigned activities. The discussion... Read More posts were respectful and often necessarily challenged the reader to re-evaluate their previously-held assumptions and ideas. Group work was certainly possible with the online platform and helped to engage the student in real-life, virtual interactions. The downside of the online program was that some professors were not as easy to interact with as others and had less comfort utilizing the online platform.

Admissions was attentive and professional. Accessing financial aid, billing, grades, online library, etc., all made simple through one-access point! The online platform, Canvas, very easy to navigate and I recall very few technical outages during my entire 18 months in a master degree program. Program advisor was supportive and responded to calls and emails in a timely manner, easily provided me with the answers I needed. Instructors were professional, challenging, and fair. The course design, lectures,... Read More reading material, and assignments were structured in a way that you can feel your knowledge base progressively increasing; you're genuinely learning at PSU World Campus. The veterans program on campus is setting the standard across the nation! The potential for students to engage in university activities and join student organizations is continuously developing and with a passionate university staff helping it along. 4 universities ago, I had not attended one that I would have rated so highly. I have no regret attending PSU World Campus. As a veteran, it was especially helpful based on their military friendly, and I mean TRULY passionate about supporting veteran's higher learning and integrating from military service to civilian life. Find a program! The pricing and overall education experience have been well worth it. PSU is highly reputable.

I want to state that I received my bachelors degree at Penn State University World Campus (PSUWC), and pursued my masters, but ended up transferring out to another university to finish my masters. I am a 4.0 student, with a high IQ, high EQ, and am a diligent student; no slacker. I am an insightful person who needs little direction. With that being said, if you attend PSUWC, especially as a grad student, be prepared to do EVERYTHING alone. You will likely not have an advisor (one will be assigned,... Read More but they will either no longer be employed or impossible to reach). Your professors may or may not answer emails and may or may not grade your work in a timely fashion. The assistant to the grad school, who is supposed to be your point person, is this sweet elderly lady, who LITERALLY KNOWS NOTHING! She has NEVER been able to answer a question for me; she literally does not know anything other than contact information. There is no consistency between courses or professors, many of the professors work full time and have NO time to even answer a question. The written lectures are rife with grammatical and spelling errors - literally almost every lesson I have ever read! And the errors do distract from the content. Your assignments are the same, read a lot of material, read a lengthy (and often useless) online lecture, and write and respond on discussion boards with classmates. The discussion boards are torture because most of the students write at the 7th grade level rather than the grad school level, but you are required to respond to their unintelligible writings with something of substance. It is easy to get disillusioned and dispassionate fairly quickly. You virtually have no support at the university, so in order to succeed, you should ensure you have support at home. Also, there is a great deal of group work in 90% of the courses, and if you are a hard worker like myself, you will often carry the load of 5 people. This sucks because, these group projects usually begin the first or second week and last all semester, so you are working on normal coursework, while carrying your group. And your professor will tell you that grades are issued individually, but they are NOT. If you get an A, your entire group will get an A, even if you had no help - this gets old - but it is common knowledge, and even some professors will tell you that many group members will be social loafers. I would advise to get a master's degree at at different online university if online is what you desire. Penn State World Campus grad school is a joke and a waste of money!

I attended the online Penn State World Campus to obtain my Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing (BSN). Although I was a registered nurse, the program prepared and reiterated that I was not just a registered nurse but a professional healthcare worker. Every paper written and all communication had to exemplify diction of a professional. While taking classes and working full time, I was able to use what I've been learning to become a more professional nurse. I became a better advocate for my patients.... Read More I improved my time management skills. Lastly, I carried myself like a professional nurse. Had I not attended Penn State's World Campus, I don't think I would be the nurse I am today.

Penn State is an excellent university. I was able to maintain my military life style and continue my education. Professors are rigorous yet extremely engaging and willing to help. This is definitely not a university for those seeking an easy degree. There are plenty of opportunities to interact with the faculty and other students. I was able to work in two different research labs and improved tremendously my skills and network. If you are willing to put in the work this is definitely an university... Read More to be proud of.

Let's face it if you're looking for an online education program you already know the degree plans available are limited. Still I knew the need for a quality education in this day and age it of up most importance. Being active duty I needed something that I could activley pursue from around the world. I constantly hear guys I work with recommending a wide variety of schools because either they are cheap, easy, or accepted a bunch of their bullshit credits. With Penn State you are receiving an education... Read More with a name that will be recognized. I'm not saying all classes will be insanely challenging or even too easy. I do know I'm being challenged a bit harder than someone from Ashford or Pheonix. I also know the resources they provide in order to learn outside the classroom are very impressive. I can get math tutored 3000 miles away, while my tutor gives me instruction as I work problems on a tablet as if it would have been a handwritten piece of paper. I can still attend some lectures, time permitting, to watch instruction and ask questions. If I am unable to attend a live lecture I can still review the recording. Your expierence may cost you a bit more but thats the price to be awarded a degree from a top 50 ranked national university.

Here is the quick and dirty review for Instructional Design. If you would like to pay top dollar for a curriculum that is over 10 years old Penn State is fine. If you are a teachers who would like to learn a little more about technology to use in the classroom the degree is fine as well. However if you are like me and work for Fortune 100 companies they are antiquated. I left the Master's Program and went somewhere else. Some of the people in the department were pioneers in distance learning, but... Read More unfortunately this does no help for those trying to be cutting edge.

Penn State world campus offers a very educational Criminal Justice program. For the majority of the program I had very knowledgable professors who taught me a great deal. I know they were continuing to add more versatility to their program as well. I specifically enjoyed my last two years, where the focus of my courses were strictly CJ related. I would recommend PSU world campus for those who have families or cannot attend regular courses. Many of my classmates were in the armed forces, police officers,... Read More or those wanting promotions. My only complaint is the advising office was not always helpful and the cost is a bit steep.