Western Governors University : Master of Business Administration Reviews

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Cahleong (In Progress) on March 1, 2012 (email verified)

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Great experience so far! Like others have said, this is not for the unmotivated or for those that need constant reassurance. For those that are self-motivated and good with time management, this is a terrific experience. I've had no problems with resources being unavailable. In fact, the resources and materials are far beyond my expectation and needs. The materials that I've been presented so far are top notch; every bit as good as in a brick and mortar school. As most things in life, you get out of something what you put in, so yes, WGU is NOT the place to be if you think you can skate along to a degree. I HIGHLY recommend WGU!

Barbethomas (In Progress) on February 4, 2012

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WGU - Especially Great if your time is limited I am thrilled WGU is not for profit. I am encouraged to be successful even accellerate, not just remain enrolled so someone gets their commission. The only way I could go back to school while working full time is on-line, during the hours I am available. The course mentors I have worked with have PHDs and even called me from home on their day off. I'd say the course mentors I've experienced are excellent. I was able to log-on and have the course mentor show me math problems on a white board just as if I was in class with her, while speaking on the phone. The overall student mentor for my time at WGU is a teacher with a Masters who is overseeing my progress and helping me prepare and time when to take my state skills test. She is fine if we check in less often and so that is flexible. We are currently checking in every 3 weeks and she knows me well enough by now that I will email questions and concerns as they come up. My experience is getting quick responses. The opportunity to accellerate is huge for me as I am returning to school as a much older student. Others here have talked about submitting work and having to wait for results. I have had times when I waited 5 days for results, and times when it was 24 hours. It does vary. Rsults are clear about what needs to be corrected, added or eliminated. Objective exams give results immediately. You always have an opportunity to test again or correct your work. I like the independence. A student has to be self motivated, there is no doubt about that. For me this was a wise choice.

Anonymous (In Progress) on January 30, 2012 (email verified)

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Awesome Experience for Self-Paced Person I have read several of the reviews on this site about WGU that were not that positive. I completed my Bachelor's degree in 2011 with another for profit university that required teaming and constant postings, etc. It was a pain and I was NOT thrilled when my grade was dependent on others. I chose WGU because of the self-paced environment to be quite honest because they pretty much leave me alone. If you want a university environment where you have a great deal of interaction with teachers and fellow students, go to a traditional university or one of those other for profit universities.

Anonymous (In Progress) on January 23, 2012 (email verified)

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WGU Master of Business Administration WGU has a very challenging Masters Degree program the assessment papers that you have to write will challenge your knowledge of the subject and your writing ability to the fullest extent. The student gets several chances to Master the paper and I like that aspect of it, However the mentor and teacher support is absent. This is a do it yourself compentency based program, they provide you with the materials you do the work. This is the most challenging MBA program out there don't let the cross talk fool you. If you dont know anything about one of the classes in the program they provide you with the materials to get you through it but it can take months of self study. Overall for business professionals who already know their fields this is a great program. I have been a student for 1 year and my papers get graded in 3 to 4 days max and they have always provided clarity on what i did or did not do! I would recommend this program for anyone who has a Bachelors in Business or finance and who are great writers.

(In Progress) on October 25, 2011

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From a WGU student WGU is NOT a traditional school. It costs very little in the way of higher education and they offer an accredited degree. Personally I think this speaks for itself. I suppose it is what you are looking for. If you want someone to stand in front of you and read a power point presentation, this is NOT for you. I, personally, am a very independent learner and the only reason I went to class when I was getting my associates was because it was required. In high school I never went to class except for test day and passed with flying colors! (This really pissed the teachers off!)If this is you and and you would like to expand your opportunities with a higher degree than go for it. If you would like to have philosphical discussions with a renound Professor, than this is not for you. I know there are professors who write the course material, but I have never talked to one, nor had the desire to. The mentor conversations are a little irritating, I feel like I have my weekly check in with my mother to make sure I am doing what I am supposed to! Other than that, if you are self motivated and a self taught individual, then take advantage of the great price a flexibility.

Zanzibrute (Graduate) on September 29, 2011 (email verified)

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Productive use of my time attaining my Bachelors I attended WGU for 3 years and got my Bachelors in IT with an emphasis in Network Management & Design. I definitely enjoyed the experience and was exposed to many different subjects, although there were times that I just wished it was over already. The way it works is that you're assigned an overall mentor that tracks your progress and calls you weekly to check up on you. I felt a bit bad at some weeks because I didn't accomplish much that week because my job or life constraints got in the way. It kind of felt like you were being watched & checked up on, which I didn't enjoy too much but it did make me more productive as a result. The courses were mostly assigned learning resources, such as a website or chapters in a book that you had to read. Afterwards, you either had to take a final, get a computer certification, or write one or more papers. There was another mentor (aka professor) for each class that you could ask questions to, but I rarely interacted with them & just learned on my own. They did hold weekly conference calls to discuss certain sections of that classes curriculum, but I never dialed in to one of those. I graduated over a year ago and in the meantime, have gone through two periods of looking for a job (I had a contract job that ended). During the job search, no recruiters or hiring managers I talked to asked excessive questions about the school or disparaged it in any way. A few asked about the name & when I told them it was on online school, they seemed interested or like they understood & they went on to other parts of my resume. I could see how the school could be seen as an impediment for some younger graduates who don't have much experience on their resume. Having been a hiring manager myself though, I can't blame them, they discuss what they see on the resume and if it is sparse, they'll look for things to talk about. At this point, I'm seriously considering going back to WGU for my MBA. Honestly, the biggest thing holding me back is the fact that I'm not sure how it would look on my resume with both my BS and MBA coming from the same online school. Also, another tip is that it helps you get through the course if you can get friendly with other students that are roughly on the same track as you so you can be study partners, bounce questions off of, etc. Ideally, you'd have a friend or two who joined the school around the same time as you and have a similar curriculum. I hope this was helpful and good luck on your education journeys!

Anonymous (In Progress) on September 16, 2011

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Still wondering about the challenge Since everyone has an opinion, I guess I will be the one that really can't judge...yet. I transferred in with 30 credits, I have been at WGU now 4 weeks. I have already completed 19 CU's. I have yet to be challenged. Before you say it, I have completed the some pretty hard courses. I guess if you are an independent learner, its for you. I couldnt stand brick and mortar. Learn at my pace. So far great.

Anonymous (In Progress) on September 10, 2011 (email verified)

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Unhappy MBA Student Since I have been at WGU for a while now, I can give you the a realistic view of this school. I am well past the excitement phase. The problem with this program is not anyone in particular, but the way the program is set up in general. After about 8 months, I realized that I just cannot take any more self teaching. There is no interaction with the "class mentor" unless you have a question. There is no interaction with the other students. You have a mentor who calls you every week to check up on your progress. At first it was nice because everything was new, and I had questions about the online setup and the program in general. Week after week I kept getting a call, and it got to the point where I felt like I had a boss checking up on my work progress. The one aspect i liked was that I had access to all course material for only about 30 bucks! Last week I get an email saying the price is jumping to about $130. An over 300% increase for no difference in material? Lame. The way the classes are set up, you can totally bypass the reading material & exercises and skip to the final projects, the only part that is actually graded. Here comes the fun part: a third party that you have never met does all the grading. Did I mention it takes them about 10 business days to get your paper back? Everything is graded pass/not pass rather than percentage, so its either accepted or rejected. If it's rejected, you are expected to fix what they say is wrong, even if what they say is not correct. There is no two way communication available. This can become very frustrating. WGU if you are reading this, this is what you need to actually have a legit MBA program. 1. Drop the class mentor 2. get a professor on a live webcam feed 2. Offer realtime student interaction while the professor is teaching 3. Have assignments that actually require the student to read the material 4. Have exams/projects that actually match the material 5. Have the professors grade your material on a percentage rather than a third party on pass/not pass I honestly can say I have learned virtually nothing since I started at WGU around 8 months ago, so optimistic at the time. I did read the material, but when the projects do not match the material, you learn nothing. If all you want is a degree, I guess this will work for you. I am going to drop out, take the GMAT, and get into a real MBA where I can actually learn something.

Anonymous (In Progress) on August 29, 2011 (email verified)

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Tough but well worth it! Please take any of the negative reviews of WGU with a grain of salt. I can honestly say that WGU is a great value, yet a tough program. Granted it's certainly not for everyone: you must be disciplined and willing to put in the time on some hard work, as well as be able to handle large academic writing assignments. The few negatives on here I would attribute to those that thought this was an easy out, and a simple online way to get a degree without hard work... this is certainly not the case with WGU. The work is self paced, and the cost is much less than a traditional school. The advantage of being able to work ahead or take finals at any time provided you know the material is another distinct advantage that can allow you to finish your degree sooner. The course mentors, and academic mentors are always there to help and support, as well as the rest of the student community. My only complaint might be the "absentee" feeling you get at times from professors in the course materials... most lectures are simply recorded, and that may be off putting for some. Just like anything else, you get out of it what you put into it.

Anonymous (In Progress) on July 20, 2011

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WGU mentors and Support system I have to post this comment because I have been an online student for 1 year now with WGU and the support you get from your mentors and teachers is troubling it takes days for them to respond to your questions and emails. I really do not understand why this is but it's going on. I am not the only one either, I have seen questions by students posted on forums go days without being answered or not answered at all. I had to file a complaint against my mentor just to get him to respond. If you have extensive knowledge of the program you are planning to enter and you think you can pass these huge writing assignment courses no tests on your own with very little help then WGU is for you. I will also comment on their teachers! They do nothing. They post one recorded session for each class, they do no grading, they wont review your work to see if your on the right track before you submit your work to a third party for grading (that takes up to 2 weeks for you to get back) They say they are not allowed. its a joke! This is the truth from a real student who has spent a lot of money trying to get a masters and who cares less what you think. Now I understand why WGU only has a 20% grad rate. I will be transferring to another college next semester I am sorry I ever enrolled at WGU, their courses are very good but their support system is very bad. Look elsewhere.

Lmbdees (Graduate) on June 30, 2011 (email verified)

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RN to BSN I attended WGU after receiving my first Bachelors degree from Florida State University. I'll have to say it was a lot harder than I expected, but I learned a lot. The knowledge I gained plus the skills I developed in researching information have been invaluable at work. I was able to take much of what I learned and immediately apply it to activities in my career. It is not for someone who needs information spoon fed to them. You must be willing to go get it. My mentor was invaluable during this process. If you have a busy life but also have to drive to finish your education, WGU is a great choice.

Cjessop (In Progress) on March 17, 2011 (email verified)

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Current MBA Student I have been in the WGU MBA program for a couple months now. I spent my undergrad at Indiana University so I have a good comparison to a major brick and mortar school. Each has their strengths and weaknesses. I have been very impressed with WGU's mentor system, since I was originally worried about not having a formal professor. It is set up so that you have an overall mentor (acts as advisor) and then each course has its own mentor (similar to professor). While you DO have to teach yourself, the mentors have been great about being there to answer any questions you may have, and are very willing to help. I will admit I was a bit apprehensive about going to an online university at first, but WGU gives you so much for your money. All your books are provided in e-book and the cost is only $45 a semester (i spent 500-600 at IU), and you have access to literally thousands of texts in WGU's online library. Unlike most universities they do not charge you for every little area they can, I remember seeing about 600-800 in random fees every semester when I went to IU. The overall value in relation to the tuition is outstanding. As far as the education, it is very challenging and I definitely have had to step my game up from undergrad. It is up to you how fast you get through the material, so if you are working you can fit it in your schedule, or if you are going full time like me you can fly through it. Although the MBA is not AACSB certified (top business accreditation), it IS regionally accredited, and WGU is non profit, so its not even close to being in the same category of schools like Phoenix or DeVry. I live in Indianapolis, and WGU Indiana is now a state school, so it gets positive recognition rather than being seen as a worthless degree. Living in the MidWest with 4-5 months of the year having snow and ice, it has been nice not having to take the time to drive to class in harsh conditions. I can wake up, make some coffee, log in my laptop, and get to work. Overall, I have really enjoyed my experience so far at WGU and I recommend it to anyone who thinks they are a dedicated student and/or needs flexible hours. I especially recommended this program if you tend to skip/miss class. I was always a good student at IU but i would miss some classes and make up for it with self study, so this program was a perfect fit for me. You really cant beat the price in comparison to other school's MBA programs, just look up their price specs.

Anonymous (In Progress) on November 28, 2010 (email verified)

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Online versus Brick and Mortar I was hesitant to do an online degreee program given the stigma and reputation from the early online programs. However, as I thought about it more and more, I realized that in the real world when your boss tells you to research something, you're entirely on your own to seek out the information. Furthermore, when comes to 'learning' something, its all up to you to begin with. I am a self-taught in VB, ASP.NET and SQL Server. The information was not just handed to me, I had to seek it out and LEARN. Fortunately, with the WGU degree programs its actually much easier thanks to learning resources being provided to you. You don't have to dig and dig to get an answer to something that seems obvious. Its all right there in front of you. The move to online education is a result of the vast about of information available to a person. Prior to the Internet Age, it was up to a student to sit at the feet of a teacher and to learn from him or her. The information had to be shared person to person because there was knowledge transfer couldn't occur any other way.

Anonymous (Graduate) on November 22, 2010 (email verified)

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Excellent Choice I recently completed my MBA from WGU and would highly recommend the program due to the course content, accessibility, and affordability of the program. The mentorship program at WGU provides support and guidance and is an extremely helpful part of the transition into WGU. The mentorship program provides the human touch many on-line programs lack. WGU is a great fit for people who are use to working at their own pace and meeting deadlines. The competency approach of WGU allowed me to apply the 20 plus years of business experience I had to study and complete courses at a faster rate than a traditional university. You are allowed to take as many courses in a six month period as you can complete which provides flexibility to finish your program at your own pace.

Anonymous (In Progress) on November 21, 2010 (email verified)

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Excellent MBA program; rigorous. I just completed my MBA program at WGU. I received my undergrad and grad degrees from highly respectable Northeast brick and mortar institutions. Didn't feel like spending tons of money at this stage in my life on another degree. WGU is fantastic and you can't beat the value. Just look at how they're spreading across the country with the support of our nation's governors: WGU Indiana, for example. The MBA program was rigorous. I busted my hump. No cakewalk: try passing your Advanced Business Concepts/Quantitative Analysis exam on the first try. Good luck on that. I did. But it was very difficult. WGU has a great model. It's the future of higher ed.

Kristydunn924 (Graduate) on June 1, 2010 (email verified)

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Build on your strong foundation of knowledge/exp I'm about to graduate from WGU in June 2010 with a Master of Business Administration degree in Strategic Management. My background includes several years of management experience and a brick & mortar undergraduate degree in business and social sciences. Because I brought a foundation of knowledge to the program, I was prepared to work and learn independently without seeking a classroom experience. Because I believe my academic objectives strongly match WGU's model, I am thriving as a student and quite happy overall. My only disappointment comes from the flat 3.0 GPA that everyone has due to the pass/fail grading at the B level.

Anonymous (Graduate) on April 13, 2010 (email verified)

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You'll get out of it what you put into it I found the material in the MBA program to be immediately useful in my professional life. WGU is not easy, there are many papers to write, projects to complete, reading to do, and exams to pass. If you're looking for an easy MBA this is not it. If you're looking for something that has value and relevance and are willing to work hard, WGU is something you should strongly consider.

Emaxklein (Graduate) on November 30, 2009 (email verified)

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Great for the independent learner I went to both brick-and-morter and online schools. I learned the same amount at WGU as I did when I went to Pitt. The difference is the amount of teacher interaction. I prefer being a completely independent learner seeking little input or guidance from the instructor. I prefer to be given a mission and to "find a way" to complete it successfully on your own. This describes WGU. Some people will just not be able to handle this and need frequent motivational, intructional interaction or just general hand-holding (as you may have at a brick-and-morter school). Those people will be very disapppointed. Just make sure your personality fits this school before you apply and have a bad experience. This is why the reviews are so extreme so far....it either works for you or it doesn't. It worked for me and it has helped me significantly in my job. Thanks!

Knbrazil (Graduate) on October 2, 2009 (email verified)

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Incredibly Positive Experience with WGU If you're looking for a quick, easy degree you don't have to work for, you'll be disappointed in WGU. If you're looking for a degree you work hard to earn and you can be proud of, and if you are capable of thinking and performing at a graduate level, WGU just might be the school for you. I absolutely loved it. My only regret (I did both undergrad and grad school at WGU) is that they do not offer doctoral programs. However, I certainly had no trouble getting into a doctoral program as a WGU grad.

Sal_velasco (In Progress) on May 28, 2009

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Current MBA/IT student I would select this school again. Very inexpensive and regionally accredited.

Russ_wilburn (In Progress) on December 23, 2008

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Its your approach. There seems to be a mixed review of the school itself. I truly believe that if you are not satisfied with the school before you start, then don't go. If you feel confident in your ability to maximize resources to your benefit and use the topics covered to study and learn from, then you can truly make something out of it. For all the "brick and mortar" graduates here, I would put you on the same level. I know plenty of people who attended traditional schools that don't have a clue what is going on and it is the same for online.....I have done both and from several online courses and inclass room from the University of Houston, local community colleges, and distant online only. All are the same....all have successfull people that will use their education to benefit themselves and there are also those that will complain the whole way through. From my experiences WGU is excellent.

Ejacks (In Progress) on January 7, 2008

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DO NOT attend WGU! I began WGU on August 1st. Boy was that a disappoint. From day one it has been horrific. First I had to PURCHASE an electronic "book" that was $30 some dollars. There are tons of "cases" in them. Then all of your assignments are tons of ESSAYS. First is like a 3 page essay, then a 10 page essay and it keeps going up! I did not have a teacher like I thought I would have. You teach yourself everything. What am I paying for? Someone to grade my papers. Then my whole "plan" got screwed up. I was majoring in Business, to obtain a Masters. But when I logged in one day, it had me majoring in Elementary Education and all my curriculm based that way. It took forever to get it changed. Things kept getting worse, my mentor quit, etc, so I decided to withdraw and put my money towards a local college that also offers online accreddited degrees (indiana wesleyan). I withdraw right after a month of attending. NOW They are coming after me for almost TWO THOUSAND DOLLARS! This is incredibly insane. I will not pay that. I never got the service to pay for that. It was ridiculous! I also spoke to employers and they said they do not consider that a "reputable" university. I know it might sound nice, I sure thought it did, but I certaintly changed my mind after "trying it".

Avending (In Progress) on November 23, 2007 (email verified)

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WGU is best for independent learners! I've read several reviews that speak to the lack of guidance at WGU. If you need a professor to tell you what to do, and when to do it, WGU may not be for you. If you’re an independent learner that understands the steps to competency in a subject, and can assess when you’re ready to test on a subject, then WGU is the perfect fit. WGU offers helpful mentors and a vast array of material. It is up to you to decide how much or how little you want to use.

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