MBA Reviews

MBA

By: jblairtex (In Progress) on November 13, 2009

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I received my B.S. Degree from a different school. Ashford has been great for the last 8 month towards getting my M.B.A. Their online format, support, and Teachers are great.

Excellent School

By: Anonymous (In Progress) on November 1, 2009

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Ashford University's MBA program has provided me with an excellent education and experience. I would highly recommend it to any professional who is looking pursue an MBA or any advance degree that they offer. All of my professors are PhD’s who have excellent educational backgrounds.

Not a School

By: Anonymous (Graduate) on September 12, 2009

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It's true. I could probably learn as much about business a daily dose of Facebook. The Blackboard system works okay, but whew! the caliber of students-as well as instructors became a source of resentment over the course of the 2 years it took me to complete this program. 
I believe the instructors are told to hand out A grades liberally. I never received anything less than an A.
Instructors often posted some impressive resumes, but were not involved with the class/Blackboard posts; except for a bunch of one-liners.
I have a complete library of business texts now: haven't sold them yet...I could just as easily reread these texts and complete the exercises at the end of each Chapter and learn more than I did through the program.
How could I not mention the lack of credible academic rigor?
I recommend that one might better go to a REAL school.

I am registered for my second Master's Degree now; at a school with real people and real interaction.

Ashford is horrible

By: sandiegoscholar (In Progress) on August 6, 2009

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If you are planning on trying to get a good education or job advancement, do not go to Ashford. This school is a sales company and not a real school. The MBA program is not recognized as an accreditited business school. Most real business schools require some sort of entrance exam, especially the required GMAT for all legit business schools. Ask any employer if they have ever hired an Ashford graduate. They will all tell you no. This school is recognized as a joke all across San Diego County and nobody will hire an Ashford Graduate here. I even asked an advisor at Ashford what companies have been hiring their graduates and she said she could not tell me. The classes are even a bigger joke than the school itself. Any human with a writing level of fourth grade can be a grad student here. I could not believe the posts that people were posting in my classes. I seriously thought I was in a class with a bunch of third graders. People with real degrees from real schools laugh at Ashford students and their graduates.

Teachers Great--Office Staff Not So Much!!

By: client.care247 (In Progress) on July 30, 2009

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I started the week of Thanksgiving 2008, probably not a good idea, was ill for about half of the class. The instructor never answered my emails requesting information about my progress (ie. Whether I should submit missed work, drop).   I ended up getting an F, after my advisor told me to move on to the next class and I did not turn in the final paper (you cannot get an F).  I obtained an 88 on the retake (for another $1500 charge) , plus A’s & B’s on subsequent classes.   I prefer to get my books now from campusbookrentals.com to help defray out of pocket costs.  I have been given the run around on financial aid.   My most recent disbursement arrived on 7/7.  To date, five emails to three different people over the last month have remained unanswered regarding when I can expect my $4000-5000 stipend. By the time it comes my car will be repossessed or just voluntarily relinquished to the loan company. The only way I received my last stipend was to call the supervisor and threaten to drop out of the school and contact a lawyer.  I have considered going to another school but figured there are negatives all over.  I also thought that attending an online school that actually had a physical campus somewhere would be more beneficial than the just freestanding Internet schools.  But, clearly I was wrong.  Another thing you must realize too is that online schooling is still in its infancy.  It really emerged with the dot.com boom.  But no one has as large a market share as University of Phoenix and even they have bad reviews.   You need to do your research on their finances, professors, and login requirements.  Also, what the other students are doing has nothing to do with you.  If they can't put together a full sentence then that’s their problem.  Surely, you can find 2-3 other classmates to correspond on a discussion with.  No one really knows what the perception is in the workplace about online degrees because there really are not enough studies.  But, employers have to realize that when adults go to school online it decreases the amount of time they need off or away from work.  No, you are not going to be able to compete with the likes of Harvard, Yale, or Princeton.  The teachers are all different.  One can be demanding like you are at an Ivy league school and another can obviously be just doing this for extra money in between his real full time job.  It’s what you make of it.  You can skimp on the assignments just to get an A or you can apply yourself so that you can have some real world experience to use.  If it weren't for the financial aid problems and conflicting answers that I get from the office staff, then I would have been able to recommend this school with no reservations to others.  The staff knows that I prefer they not contact me unless in writing because of my dissatisfaction with the advisement that I have received since 11/2008.

I’m surprised not to see an average review

By: thriftymarine (In Progress) on June 11, 2009

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Why do people have to be so polar?  The school is not perfect but it is not bad.  Many of the problems people seem have deal with communication.  I had no issues with enrollment, financial aid, or my academic advisor.  My undergrad issues at brick and mortar school were a nightmare compared to this.

I too felt a little pressured into enrolling.  Every other online degree program I talked to used the same tactics.  Get over it people, they are running a business.  With that said I do feel that they are in the business of quick diploma turn around.  It’s not a diploma factory!  My undergrad program at a large Big Ten University made me feel more like a number as they processed me through the educational process.

I have B.S. in Aerospace Engineering.  The online environment was more challenging in the beginning than my undergrad program due to my poor writing skills.  This is something I wanted desperately to improve.  Some of the classes are boorishly easy while others are difficult.   You learn as much as you want to learn.  You can and do learn in this environment.  There are people that feel they have to be in a classroom to learn.  My best friend from college made it trough most of in Aerospace Engineering degree going to less than 10% of the classes.  He was a strait a student.  It just depends on how you learn.

The reason I picked this program was that I did not wand to rely on others for group projects and it was completely online.  I travel a lot and need this flexibility.  I give this program a thumbs up for flexibility and ease of use.  Most of the Professors seem genuinely interested in your educational goals.  I’m not a huge fan of the online environment but made a concession.

i agree

By: Anonymous (Graduate) on May 12, 2009

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horrible xperience, totally blew it going to this school.  advisors tryed to be my friends, did not ever answer my questions.  I made the mistake of believing i would be able to get a degree in 18 months, never thought about quality of degree.  younger brother is going the comm college route b/c it's less and instruction is more detailed and thorough.

Stay the h**l away from this school

By: Anonymous (In Progress) on May 10, 2009

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Please listen to what I have to say and tell anyone thinking about enrolling in an Ashford MBA about what I've been forced to put up with.  The process from the time I was contacted by an enrollment adviser was too streamlined for me to feel comfortable.  I could not believe how easy this person was making everything sound.  He called me 2 times everyday and harassed my wife and sister.  I thought I would give Ashford a try, and paid my enrollment fee.  The enrollment adviser was unreachable and when I spoke to his boss, I was spoken to like some kind of idiot. I only decided to stick with my program b/c I couldn't get my money back.  The classes are a joke.  I could learn more watching the news and looking things up online.  After several months of refusing to quit the program, b/c I didn't want to waste the money I'd already spent, the enrollment adviser contacted me and actually asked me to purchase the company's stock!  What a joke!  I am gplanning to write complaints about the enrollment adviser and his supervisor to the company and the Better Business Bureau.  As for the quality of instruction.... you must be kidding if you think I'm going to even dignify it by giving any kind of constructive criticism.  Now I'm tens of thousands of dollars in debt, and I've been taught nothing.  Someday, if I'm charged with the task of hiring at my company, the last thing I'd do is hire and MBA grad from Ashford.  This program is bush league.

Excellent School

By: Anonymous (In Progress) on April 10, 2009

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I am so insulted by some of the negative reviews that I have read about Ashford.  I am in my second class with Ashford and have found that I am learning a lot, the course work is challenging, and I still have my enrollment advisor calling to check and make sure that everything is going okay.  Before I started with Ashford, I read a lot of reviews both positive and negative.  The negative ones made me question whether I should start with them, but now I am so glad that I did.  I realize now that a lot of the people who wrote negative reviews must have been too dumb to pass the classes or didn't know how to use a computer very well.  Don't let those idiots sway you from getting ahead in the world by earning a degree.  For those of you like me who have a full-time job, kids, and everything else going on, Ashford is a really good choice.  The good thing about Ashford is that you can wait until everyone is asleep to work on your schoolwork; it works around your schedule to a degree.  I haven't been to any of the other on-line schools but I know that Ashford is a really good one so I highly recommend it!  Thanks.

PS: A very good enrollment advisor is Trevor Atchley.

Ashford is Great!!!!!

By: Anonymous (In Progress) on March 4, 2009

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I am currently enrolled in Ashford University.  My enrollment counselor was extremely involved with my first few classes, helping me to become acclimated to the University.  Since then, my academic counselor keeps me up-to-date on everything I need to know.  The classes are awesome.  The discussion boards, for the most part, are challenging and stimulating.  The program definitely ramps up after the first few classes, but it is definitely doable.  I disagree with anyone who feels Ashford is a diploma mill.  While I am maintaining a 4.0, it is very difficult.  The information covered in the coursework has improved my understanding of management principles, which helped me to become a better manager.  I would recommend Ashford University to anyone who is serious about getting an advanced degree, but doesn’t have time to attend a traditional university.  The only caution I would give is that you need to have excellent writing skills or you will not do well.

Ashford's MBA is a great program

By: Anonymous (In Progress) on February 4, 2009

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I am in my 3rd course and have been doing very well, I have a 4.0 and went to a traditional UC school for my Undergrad. The instructors vary on their responsiveness and interaction but that is the same as any college. My enrollment advisor Dana Hunt was there to support me and continues to, i read alot about advisors not supporting people through the whole program, but so far so good. I think for people that dont have hundreds of thousands of dollars, tons of time to sit in a traditional class, or the grades needed to go to Harvard this is best possible school to attend! I would recommend it.

GO ELSEWHERE!!!!!

By: Anonymous (In Progress) on January 10, 2009

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I have had the worst experience with Ashford!!! PLEASE do your research on this fake diploma mill before giving them your money!!!! I have two degrees already and had simply enrolled for my MBA. I decided to withdrawal the first week of class because of such miscommunication with Ashford! 

ONCE THEY GET YOUR MONEY THEY ARE DONE WITH YOU!!! Sure they are very proactive BEFORE they get your money but once you enroll and sign the papers---don't let the door hit you on the way out. They won't return phone calls, answer e-mails or anything! Horrible horrible horrible. My advisor was Ryan Castro, enrollment advisor Bridget. Don't recommend these people at all!!!!!!

Go elsewhere--to a program that requires the GMAT or GRE--for a good education. This diploma mill hopefully will soon be shut down. Another thing, EVERYONE you speak with at Ashford tells you they are "working" on their degree at Ashford. Well they don't tell you that "working" on their degree simply means getting experience by working at Ashford--they aren't enrolled taking courses at Ashford!!!

Military Spouse's Honest Opinion

By: Anonymous (In Progress) on December 16, 2008

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I am now in my 4th class at Ashford University, and I find this to be a pretty good school. Ashford is a particularly good school for military service members, military spouses and dependents, veterans, and DoD employees, all of which are eligible for free books, discounted tuition at the Bachelor's level ($250 per credit hour), NO technology fees, and they take military credits. These are benefits that I greatly appreciate.

I've read through some of the other reviews who complain about the problems with financial aid and complaining that the classes cram a semester's worth of material into 5 or 6 weeks (depending on if you are in the bachelor's or master's program). Apparently, these people haven't attended a real brick and mortar school. Financial aid offices at brick and mortar schools get just as many complaints about people's financial aid as Ashford does. Unfortunately that is a normal occurrence. As for the length of the classes, has anyone every when to summer school or Maymester at a traditional college or university.  Those classes are usually 4-5 weeks long. It's basically the same deal. I actually found the summer school classes to be more effective than the regular classes. I got better grades then too.

I will admit that the academic advisor's could be better. My first academic advisor was terrible, and I am glad to say that I don't have him anymore. My enrollment advisor was great, and he actually still calls once per class to see how I am progressing.

The technology is fine. I've used Blackboard before when I was working on my undergraduate degree at a traditional university, which has one of the top international business schools in the country (graduated in 2006). It's a simple and effective platform to use.

The classes do seem to require just as much if not more work than traditional ones do. The lessons do require critical thinking so this is not a degree that can be purchased. You do have to work for it. This is not a degree mill. If it was, I highly doubt that the US military would allow TA to be used here. This is a quality education. The books are about $75-$150 per class depending on if you are a graduate student or not (grad student books are more expensive). Those are reasonable prices because books at a traditional college or university cost just as much. The only thing I think that a traditional college has is that one can go to the bookstore and purchase used books, which can still be a little pricey.

I, as well as my husband, has had nothing but a pleasant experience at Ashford. As a matter of fact, my sister-in-law now attends Ashford and is having a positive experience.

You get out of college what you put into it. That is the truth at either an online or traditional school. If you work at it, you will do fine at this school.

My Honest Opinion

By: Anonymous (In Progress) on November 10, 2008

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I am currently a student at Ashford University.  I have completed 3 courses and have a 4.0 GPA.  The books are excellent, the teachers are mediocre, but everything else about Ashford is awful.  The enrollment advisors will do anything to get you enrolled, but once you are enrolled you can never get in touch with them again.  I have left message after message with no return calls.  It is hard to get your financial aid.  They send you one award letter then change the disbursement date two weeks later.  When you threaten to cancel the financial aid they get part of the financial aid disbursed to them so they will not lose any money.  WARNING:  They have just instituted a new financial aid policy.  You must be in school for seven consecutive weeks to get 30% of your financial aid, and the remaining 70% is disbursed after 15 weeks.  It is essentially 9 and 17 weeks, because they have an additional 14 days to mail it to you.  By the time you get your first disbursement of 30% you are into the second class, and the remaining 70% is not delivered until the end of the third class.  For the second disbursement the 7 week and 15 week cycle starts all over again.  So you are in your 5th class and the second disbursement comes at the end of your academic year which is at the end of your first semester starting into your 7th class.  I know this is confusing, but it is the honest truth.  They instituted this policy on October 13 2008, and they did not notify me until November 7.  So make sure you have money to pay for books before you start, because you cannot count on financial aid for them.  You will need to use your first disbursement for the first seven classes, so make sure you buy all of your books with the first disbursement.  I would not want anyone to be in my situation. Keep in mind you are paying interest for the money they are keeping for as much as four months from the day it is disbursed.  They did this "in case you fail a class so they will have the money on hand to pay for the class you have to take over again."  According to the enrollment advisor I spoke to today, people were using their disbursements for car accidents, pregnancies, and medical costs, then they would drop out of school. So, we all have to suffer for what other bad people do. 

It is owned by a for profit company called Bridgepointe Education, LLC in San Diego, CA.  The real Ashford University campus is in Clinton, IA, but the support for online students is in San Diego, CA.  The Better Business Bureau has processed a total of 22 complaints about Ashford University in Iowa, and 10 more complaints about them in San Diego.

I would not recommend this school to anyone.  Financial aid is to pay for books and expenses for you to attend school.  I already have my Bachelor's Degree, and my previous brick and mortar school was not run in this unprofessional manner.  My recommendation is to look else where.

Ashford MBA student with fair review

By: rinish720 (In Progress) on November 8, 2008

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When I was first thinking about enrolling I couldn't stop getting help and then slowly as I finished enrolling it slowed down dramatically.  My financial advisor was always there to help answer questions but the company (thats what it is, not a school) started a program two weeks after I enroll that does not allow the student to have any left over financial aid at one.  Instead, the student will get 30% after seven weeks and 70% after 14 weeks.  This put me in a very bad position since I was about to make a huge move to start a new job with a company that hired me based on me working towards my MBA.  The bookstore will screw you the first chance they get.  The technology is horrible.  After three weeks the blackboard program that the school uses crashed and the professor was forced to give us all full credit.  They'll let anybody in, anybody.  A person can learn from the material and some of it is challenging.  The professor that I have had thus far was very intelligent and genuinely cared about the students learning.  The financial aid department outsources out to a company outside of the United States and the employees and advisors are all students looking to get you enrolled so they can get a free tuition.  The school is accredited and my MBA will be legit but being that Ashford has had a few different names not many people will have heard of them.  I do like the fact that the school is primarily a brick and mortar school and that allows me to be a graduate of a school with an address, however, if I had the opportunity to do it all over again, I don't that I would choose Ashford.

Ashford made my degree possible

By: Anonymous (In Progress) on October 15, 2008

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I have read all the comments that range from horrible to great.  I completed my B.A. through Ashford and I am currently completing my MBA.  I agree that there do seem to be plenty of classmates who cannot write very well, but I do believe we are all entitled to an education.  In addition, you can only get what you want out of the education.  I agree that some of the classes seemed very easy; however these were classes I had much experience in out on the job.  There have been plenty of classes I have spent 8 or more hours on just one assignment because of the difficulty.  Again, this was in my accounting classes which I did not have much experience with on the outside.  I do not think Ashford is the greatest school out there, but I do think it is the greatest online accelerated program.  As far as responses from those who work there, I have seen that they are slow to respond and this can be cumbersome, but they do eventually get back with you.  I agree they do need improvement in this area; however, I do not think this is the worst school ever nor do I think it is the greatest. It is what it is and I graduated with my BA in Organizational Management with a 3.92 and currently have a 4.0 in my MBA.  Depending what you are looking for, this is a school that can meet your needs.  Good luck to everyone pursing their degree whether it be through Ashford or another school of your choosing.  An education is something to be proud of no matter where you get your degree.

Good School

By: acurr2002 (In Progress) on September 23, 2008

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Overall I am Happy with Ashford, I have read most of these post, and find that the most disgruntled students are the ones that are seeking finantial aid. I have never had to deal with that side so cannot comment on it. The military and my company have paid for 90% of my education, and would not pay if Ashford was not acredited..... This is a good institution, I have never had any problem getting a hold of anyone. They might not return your call in the next 5 minutes, but they do get back to you. I am in my 8th class working toward an MBA.

Happy with Ashford University's online MBA program

By: 88gmale88 (In Progress) on April 24, 2008

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I'm in the middle of the MBA program at Ashford University. First of all, I'd like to say that I've been pleasantly surprised by the quality of the program so far. As someone who earned their bachelor's degree at a traditional campus school, I was a little apprehensive about going to class online. But I've found the program to be quite challenging, yet not so difficult as to be frustrating. Everytime I need help, my instructors are there to help me. Also, my advisor (Bill) was extremely helpful when I first enrolled. He answered all my concerns about going to school online including the cost, how long it would take to graduate, the admissions process, etc. He always makes himself available if I'm having issues. I know from reading other reviews online that not everyone has had a similar experience with their advisor. So I would recommend anyone who is interested in learning more about Ashford to contact him. His email address is william.saltmarsh@ashford.edu. I'm sure he can help you out. 

Anyways...I'm pretty pleased with my experience so far.  I have recommended the program to some of my colleagues and I know at least two of them have joined me at the school so far.

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