Grand Canyon University

Date: Jan 21 2014
Major: Criminal (This Major's Salary over time)
This is my 2nd semester. My first semester I was forced into 2 online classes because they do not offer enough evening classes and I work during the day. I despise online classes because the truth is that they provide no real learning environment. Everything is self-taught. Think about it, why would you need to pay that much money to a university if you could just teach yourself. But I did have a very nice online English instructor that really made the effort to engage with the students and was responsive in a timely fashion. I also had a biology class and lab. Biology class was a complete waste. I gained little to no understanding of the concepts even though I passed with a B. I gained all of my knowledge in Biology lab because the instructor is very good and explaining useful information in an organized and easy to understand lecture. Right now, I have a super wonderful genetics instructor that is also very good at teaching the material. I love a lot of things about GCU but the pros outweigh the cons that is why I am giving a negative review. The cons are that no one seems to know anything about the school that they work at. For example, try asking them questions about GCU at Eastmark or about the east valley locations that have been accredited for years. When I asked about tutoring, no one thought to guide me to the Center for Learning Advancement where they had walk ins every night after 8pm. I asked everyone and I was struggling, yet all the advice that I was given was unhelpful. Either I was suggested to search the internet for resources (yeah, Biology is so simple that you can find all the information you need on the internet-given that you know what you are looking for) or I was informed of dates and times to attend tutoring when I was clearly not available. It was not until the end of the semester that information was posted that tutoring had been available for walk in all semester. I am a straight A student and have always done well in school. I graduated top 5% of my class. It is ridiculous that I am struggling. I contribute my problems to the fact that the school sets unrealistic expectations and provides little support for success. Reading 5 chapters that are 50 pages or more for each chapter is unrealistic. 5 chapters per week is just for Biology. I have other classes. Online classes are extremely time consuming with discussion boards, 5-7 page essays, assignments, and reading every single week. The ground classes are 3 times per week so take into account all the driving and of course people have to work if they want to eat, so when would a person have the time to do all this homework and studying? Information overload has never helped anyone. I read some of the other reviews and it is no surprise that their grammar and spelling is so horrible, I imagine a quality education just wasn't available.