WGU - Western Governors University Reviews 

Going back to school was easy. This school offered Competency-Based learning, which means you study the material, take the test, pass, and off to the next class. This style has regained my overall confidence in earning a degree again. This helped me reduced my testing anxiety, and made going back to school so much easier. And the ease-of-access to accessing the course material is incredible for when I have to study on my phone.

The school assigns a program mentor, and she's been great to me. It's easy to add or remove classes to a degree plan. She checks in and makes sure I'm taken care of and ready to take the next class, which adds to the lackluster of online university.

Accelerating is another HUGE aspect of this online university. I don't have to wait to move on, I can keep moving forward. Making it easier and quicker to earn my degree. I wish I discovered this school sooner!

Western Governors University promotes a competency-based education model grounded in objective, rubric-driven assessment. My experience as a student did not align with that representation.

In a recent performance assessment, I submitted all required components as outlined in the task instructions and rubric, including screenshots and documentation demonstrating compliance with the stated criteria. The evaluation feedback asserted that specific required elements were missing, despite those elements being clearly present in the submitted materials.

This discrepancy raised reasonable concerns about whether the submission was reviewed in full or whether evaluation standards beyond the published rubric were applied. When I sought clarification and asked questions to better understand the evaluation, I was not provided substantive answers addressing the discrepancy itself.

Instead, the response emphasized procedural boundaries and referenced the Student Code of Conduct in a manner that discouraged further inquiry. While institutions have the right to enforce conduct standards, referencing disciplinary policy in response to good-faith academic questions had a chilling effect on my ability to seek clarification or advocate for a fair review.

The result was an unnecessary resubmission cycle that consumed additional time and delayed academic progress. In a self-paced, tuition-based model, such delays have tangible consequences for students.

This review does not allege misconduct or improper intent. However, it does raise concerns about transparency, consistency, and the balance between academic inquiry and institutional process control. A competency-based program depends on clearly defined criteria, thorough review, and open clarification when discrepancies arise. When those elements are constrained, the model does not function as advertised.

Prospective students are encouraged to document submissions carefully and to be aware that raising legitimate questions about evaluations may not always result in substantive clarification.

A terrible experience already.
Financial aid constantly giving misinformation.
It’s so common that there are several Reddit threads referring to financial aid not having accurate information. Unfortunately, I finally see it myself.

Veterans, remember how DoD civilians treated you while you were in, curt, dismissive, and made you wait as long as possible just cause they can? You can continue that treatment post service with the veteran support department at WGU!

They answer emails if you send a form but that’s about it. If you have a question you have to weed through the call operators to find someone who is actually familiar with the different VA education programs (still looking).

My favorite is when you don’t get a response on the email, so you call, and they tell you to try emailing again because they don’t know. Full circle! :)

At the very end of your semester you enroll in next semesters classes. From there you have to submit a form to the WGU veteran support department (be careful, WGU doesn’t tell you this until you ask) where they generate a simple form stating full-time or part-time status to turn into to the VA to get your BAH / stipend / VA entitlement.

States they can take ‘up to’ 30 days (they always take the max) to give you this simple form. Then the VA takes a month to process, so the good news is you’ll always get paid starting two months after the semester begins.

They’ve structured the department so you can be guaranteed to get your benefits late!

This was the ideal way for me to get my MBA. So flexible. I rarely had anything scheduled that I had to be online at a certain time, which would have been really difficult. I work full time and have a family, so the flexibility was the only way I was able to get it done!

Every once in a while, I did miss the classroom interaction. That would have been helpful sometimes, but I didn't really have time for that, so it was worth the trade-off.

The classes were terrible, several grammar errors, to if you passed their class and exceed expectations it still says fails and they will not correct.

The mentors and instructors do not help.

I advised I will not attend the upcoming semester and they booted me immediately an caused issues with my VA funding as a disabled veteran and I had to pay the VA.

After disputing with the college they said they said when I leave due to activity on their portal and then try to charge me for tuition the VA took back due to them booting me.

Worst college ever, it’s a scam!

Great program. Highly recommend. They know what they are doing. Only recommendation is that some of the classes need to be updated/reevaluated.

I love the open format. If I were familiar with the material, I could essentially test out of the course and continue with my degree. In brick-and-mortar schools, I felt stagnant. I'd finish the weekly work and wait until the professor opened the next assignment. That wasn't a problem at WGU. My mentor was a great person who helped me throughout my journey. When I had questions, she found the answers. My professors were very responsive. The financial and student records offices were just an email away. I'm glad there was a class that forced me to write a resume. That did wonders for my professional confidence; however, I would've been happier if that class also focused on writing a CV, narrowing down graduate schools, and graduate school application essays and interviews.

The accessibility of the courses, as well as their design, allows for flexibility around work or other obligations and responsibilities.

Convenience, Affordability, On-Demand Instructor Access, and Course/Program Availability

Being able to make fulfill my dream of obtaining my BA is one of highlights of my adult life. WGU gave me the opportunity to do so, at my own pace and time. Their flexibility with course completion allowed me to still be a mom, and a wife.
I'm grateful for the help and assistance I received during my program.
I look forward to starting my Masters program in January to fulfill yet another goal and dream.

The program started ok. I am very independent and can complete work on my own. The school's setup is designed to save money and complete coursework efficiently. One issue with this institution is that it is very compartmentalized. There is no communication between the departments. This makes solving issues extremely difficult. As far as exams for the school, they are proctored, and you can take them at home. The proctors don't follow one standardndard. There is one proctor that I could barely pass their requirements, even when I was in an empty room. The other proctors, as long as I passed the checks, it went smoothly. When writing papers, the people checking them are not supposed to have access to your information. It is supposed to be completely non-biased. They aren't even supposed to know who wrote the papers. Yet have been flagged for not adhering to professional integrity. Why, because this paper isn't written in the same style as my last paper. I stated my concerns from the beginning that I could not take time out of work for student teaching. I was told "we will cross that bridge when we get to it", "take out a loan", and "don't worry about that right now. I kept asking, but I was already enrolled and making great progress through the classes. I have hit the clinical stage now and have been forced to change degrees. They state that there is no way to work at the school (which is very willing to work with me) while student teaching. The district actually moved me to a school and position to make sure I could work and do student teaching. Well, that is something that I cannot do with WGU. So I have changed to a non-licensure degree. This will add even more challenges for me. I can choose an alternative path to licensure; thankfully, that is an option. As long as I manage to get my Bachelor's degree. Having to change degrees, I am now required to take three additional classes. Simple classes, same content as what I have already done, with different names.

Studying online requires a substantial amount of discipline and motivation. However, the burden becomes much more manageable with the incredible support provided by the WGU team. I am incredibly grateful for the guidance and encouragement I have received from my mentor and instructor, which has been instrumental in helping me achieve my goal of completing my degree within my own schedule.

I struggled with my first mentor and felt like I was failing her every week. When I got my new mentor she helped me get to the finish line and encouraged me every step of the way. I couldn’t have done it without her.

The program fit my learning style and schedule perfectly!

The flexibility and cost is what drew me to WGU. The mentorship, competency-based credit, instructors, and student services is what sealed the deal. My experience with my mentor was phenomenal and she was definitely my rock and sounding board.

My experience with WGU’s online courses has been both flexible and empowering. The self-paced structure allowed me to balance my education with work and personal responsibilities, while still staying on track toward my goals. The course materials were clear, well-organized, and focused on real-world application, which made the learning experience practical and engaging. Support from mentors and course instructors was always available, providing guidance and encouragement throughout the journey. Overall, WGU’s online program gave me the freedom to learn on my own schedule while building strong professional and academic skills. I was promoted from Director of Housekeeping to Assistant Administrator to Director of Case Management all while doing my course.

WGU gave me the opportunity to earn the degree I started years ago in less time and without missing out on any of my kids games. When I decided I wanted to go back to college it scared me that I would have to change my schedule to fit the college schedule. WGU made it possible for me to complete my classes on my own time and schedule. All of my instructors were so great to respond when I needed help and even better at reaching out to me with helpful tips and tricks when I was stuck. I used WGU for my Bachelors and Masters degrees and both times I had wonderful mentors that helped keep me motivated and were always so helpful and encouraging. I would recommend WGU to anyone looking to go back to school.

From start to finish, my college commencement experience was nothing short of amazing. It began with the opening party, designed to bring together students who might have never crossed paths otherwise, and ended with a grand commencement that left a lasting mark on all of us. I truly felt special, seen, and celebrated.

The support offered throughout both events was unmatched. There were people everywhere ready to guide us, helping us find our way, fixing caps, gowns, and stoles, and making sure every detail was in place. Everything was seamless and intentional. The Hall of Celebration at the end was such a thoughtful touch and it wrapped up the entire experience beautifully.

I genuinely enjoyed myself at both events, and the speakers brought so much inspiration to the day. If I had to give one small note, it would be the food. It could’ve used a little more flavor. But honestly, that was such a minor detail compared to the overall experience.

The WGU graduation was executed with excellence, professionalism, and heart. It was a 10+++ in every way, and I’ll always look back on it as an unforgettable moment in my journey.

I have been taking classes at WGU and I love the convenience of being able to complete classes on my own time. Also, testing is offered all through the night. I don't have to stress over taking time from my day job to complete my college degree.