University of the People Reviews 

My experience at the University of the People has been overwhelmingly positive. As a working professional balancing teaching, tutoring, music instruction, and graduate studies, UoPeople gave me the flexibility to complete my Bachelor of Health Science without taking on massive student debt. The asynchronous format allowed me to study around my schedule while still maintaining academic rigor.

I especially appreciated the diversity of the student body and the opportunity to collaborate with people from around the world. The coursework challenged me to become a stronger writer, researcher, and critical thinker, and it prepared me well for graduate-level education and professional opportunities. The affordability and accessibility of the university make higher education possible for people who otherwise may never have the chance to earn a degree. UoPeople is accredited by WASC and continues to expand its recognition and partnerships globally.

Like any online university, it requires strong self-discipline and independent learning skills. Communication with advisors and administration can sometimes be slow, and I believe improving responsiveness would significantly enhance the student experience. However, overall, the value of the education compared to the cost is exceptional, and I am proud to be a graduate of UoPeople.

This University is pure filth. The advisors are absent and unhelpful when they do respond. The courses are ridden with AI slop from professors and peer reviews. Some professors are ok. But the majority are racist, ego maniacs. There is no consistency here. Some professors will give you superb grades and tout your writing skills and adherence to APA style. Others will find a reason to give you mediocre grades. Just because they can. The advisors will do nothing to help you. I finally had to drop my program due to all of the above. I can't be part of this disgraceful institution any longer. It's not worth it. I do not recommend this University to anyone. I will seek my graduate degree elsewhere.

University of the people has brought a whole new world to my hands. I will be able to get a degree that without university of the people flexibility wouldn’t be possible for me.

Only offer roselyn ai as an alternative. Not everyone has a device with the specs or stable internet to use. Also, not everyone wants to be forced to use AI. It’s often wrong and unethical.

Predatory bait and switch. Can't even login and no matter how you reply or what email you send something to (like the copy paste info email they reply with here) no one replies to you. This place is a scam. They take your payments instantly though. No ethics, no quality, and predatory application fees.

The online MBA at University of the People is far more demanding than many people assume. While it offers flexibility, it is not an easy or passive experience. Success requires consistent engagement, strong time management, and the discipline to keep up with weekly readings, discussion posts, peer responses, and written assignments. The structure pushes you to stay actively involved rather than simply absorb information.

What makes the program especially valuable is the level of interaction. Courses rely heavily on discussion-based learning, where students are expected to contribute thoughtful insights and respond meaningfully to peers. This creates an environment where learning goes beyond textbooks and becomes a shared experience. You are constantly challenged to defend your ideas, consider alternative viewpoints, and apply concepts in practical ways.

Another standout aspect is the diversity of the student body. Learners come from a wide range of cultural and economic backgrounds, which turns every discussion into a global exchange of ideas. This “melting pot” dynamic exposes you to real-world business perspectives that you would not typically encounter in a traditional classroom.

Overall, the program demands effort, but that rigor is what makes it worthwhile. It builds not only knowledge, but also adaptability and global awareness.

Juggling two jobs, kids, and a CS degree in my 40s sounded crazy, but UoPeople's flexibility is priceless! I can literally lay in bed and do my reading since all books and resources are free. It’s incredibly affordable, the scholarship process was so easy, and support is great. Highly recommend! ✨

I made a payment for a course and decided a few hours later to withdraw from the course due to poor communication. A partial refund was given and even after querying it had 0 communication to date

I did send a mail to that email and still no resolution

The concept and affordability of UoPeople is what drew me to them and on that front they have not disappointed as I was supported from day one.
There are some improvements that can be made with communication by tutors and other departments and some platform enhancements that will make it easier to navigate.

Completing both my Bachelor’s in Business Administration and MBA at the University of the People (UoPeople) has been a defining milestone in my academic and professional journey.

UoPeople provided me with accessible, flexible, and high‑quality education that allowed me to balance studies with demanding responsibilities in international field operations. The programs strengthened my leadership, supply chain, and data‑driven decision‑making skills — knowledge I apply daily in humanitarian and UN missions.

As an alumnus, I am proud to represent UoPeople’s mission of making education affordable and accessible worldwide. My journey demonstrates how determination, combined with UoPeople’s innovative model, can empower professionals to contribute meaningfully to global development.

Can not recommend. Wish they would stop sending e-mails. Wish I had not given them money. But here we are, just pick something else.

Poor quality educators.

It doesnt meet western standards of quality, if you are in the west (I mean in the broader sence, not just europe/the US) go get a degree from some other university. I totaly understand why Nigerians for example (they seem to be heavily represented) get a degree from there, and for that I respect UOP. (No dissing on Nigeria, its a matter of access in general though)

I can't in good consiousness recommend it. It is by far the least professional university (I feel its odd that they are allowed to call themselves that) that I have ever dealt with.

I enrolled on 04/02/26 and have been waiting ever since to receive login credentials to the online campus and course materials. I was informed that it takes 24-48 hours. Then later informed of technical issues as to why I have not received anything allowing me entrance. I want to know what is really going on. I signed up for the Analytics course and every time I login it says complete my application but clearly shows I’m a student. Is this to be expected? It took my advisor two days to get back to me. When am I going to start this course? This needs to be looked into.

I have been trying to get help for the past month

Every reply needs 2 to 3 business days. The replies are all copy past from a script

My reenrollment fee was processed. They gladly took the money but failed to register me for any courses or fix my account

The "Chat Now" feature is down and you can't get urgent support.

Advisors are being switched all the time because nobody wants to work here. Professors feel like AI sitting there and doing nothing.

They glitched my scholarship to raise prices on me, and try to squeeze some extra, and then refunded 0.

It's bad reputation to get a degree from here - and is bad reputation to get tortured by dealing with this low people, doing low quality work.

Run away.

Imagine this. You have completed all your MBA coursework. You are in the final capstone course, you check the graduate catalog where it is clearly delineated that a minimum passing grade is 73. You’re in your last week and your grade is 76. So you’re happy, you have basically passed, so you make the final payment of 270 USD, just to lock in your final result.
But then, suddenly, you failed.
UoPeople updated its terms again.
The passing grade is now a minimum of 80/B for the capstone. And your money? You lost it.

This happened to me today.

Before joining UoPeople, ask or check for the graduation rate/success rate.

A lot of people here are concerned about the accreditation first. And while that is helpful to know, it matters very little if you’re not going to be able to graduate or if the university will go out of their way to keep you as a paying student, even if that means giving you a failing grade.

Look, I already ran the whole race. You are not reading a review from someone who dropped out on their first term. I was at the final stage of final stages. I advocated for UoPeople all whilst being there. I recommended it time and time again to everyone I knew. But nobody tells you, nor guides you, nor reminds you of the technicalities behind their grading scale. The professors have a fiduciary duty to be reminding you, but they don’t. They leave you unto your luck. If you knew and checked it, good for you. But if you don’t, you will lose your money and nobody at the university cares.

Do not enroll in this university, unless you want to spend your hard earned money indefinitely without ever graduating.

The idea of an affordable, exam-based online college is excellent and could be very promising, especially for working adults. I came in with 3 years of prior college and over 20 years of hands-on computer experience, hoping to finish a degree efficiently.
Unfortunately, the reality fell far short:

Poor onboarding and credit transfer: No one called me after I signed up. The process was confusing, and I had trouble even finding the school in FAFSA at first. When I tried to transfer credits from my previous college, they wanted to charge ~$17 per credit — and after a full month, the credits were never transferred.
Overly rigid intro classes: The first classes (Intro to Computers and a mandatory resource class) were far too formal. They required full APA citations for simple forum posts, with assignments losing 20% or more for missing citations. It felt like academic calisthenics instead of building real foundational knowledge and connections. Intro classes should help students get comfortable with practical skills, not turn basic discussions into mini research papers.
Outdated and impractical content: The Intro to Computers textbook was from 2020 and barely covered real-world office technology, cloud computing, coding, or practical applications. There were zero labs. Many students just regurgitated textbook information or shared opinions that wouldn’t work in actual jobs.
Heavy-handed AI policy: The program only used forum-based lessons instead of formal papers. If you used AI for grammar, spelling, or cleanup (even on your own writing), you had to explicitly cite it or risk being accused of plagiarism and potential expulsion. This felt insulting and overly punitive. Grammar tools and asking for writing suggestions have been normal for years. Rather than scaring students, the school should teach responsible AI use.

Customer service responses are usually fast, but they often just explain away the issues instead of fixing them. Instructor replies could take 5 days, and basic problems (like credit transfers) lingered.
I wanted an affordable degree I could be proud of, but the combination of busywork, outdated material, poor support, and adversarial policies burned me. I’m going a different route now. This school might work for some, but if you have prior experience or expect practical, efficient learning, read the negative reviews carefully and consider your options. I won’t be returning.

The only genuine selling point is the cost.
The student support is underwhelming, the platform is neglected sometimes you can access learning materials and assignments other times not. the discussion boards have become a wasteland of AI-generated responses that no one is meaningfully engaging with. It’s hard to have a real learning community when half the posts read like they were written by a chatbot.

I came in hopeful. Tuition-free higher education is a compelling idea. But the execution left a lot to be desired, and it raises a serious question: how long can an institution maintain accreditation when it’s effectively handing out degrees to students who outsourced their coursework to ChatGPT?