WGU - Western Governors University (wgu.edu) has a 3.5 out of 5 rating on OK.one, based on 64 user reviews collected here. It is listed under Education & Training and its reputation is mixed. Opinions are polarized: 63% rate it 4 stars or higher while 33% give 1 star; The business has replied to 87% of negative reviews; 63 of them were added in the last 12 months. Last updated 2026-08-10.
WGU's Master of Science in Information Technology Management program was rigorous, challenging, and incredibly rewarding. It was well worth the investment, and I highly recommend WGU to anyone seeking a flexible, high-quality education while balancing career and family responsibilities.
Overall, WGU focuses on how each of us can succeed. They are easy to work with and have learned a lot with a very intentional approach to learning.
I love the non-traditional route with WGU.
I enjoyed everything about graduation except when we left the climate arena, we were directed directly out of the arena. I wish that had been communicated more, but overall amazing.
The moment we were most excited for was to step up on the stage and our name would be announced and than we would walk up to handshake, wave to family and friends, this did not happened, Ames were announced while still behind the curtains, the experience was cut very short and rushed and not a great feeling and experience for us graduates and family in the stadium that we’re waiting for us to walk.
Rose, it is regrettable to hear that Commencement was not up to your expectations. Given student volume, there is a process to be adhered to to ensure we have time for each student. We do aim to celebrate each student as best as we can, and we truly do want to support you and celebrate with you. We definitely understand the desire to have your special day go as you were hoping it would. We really appreciate the feedback, and please be assured this is being routed to the proper department for feedback and improvement. We do offer our congratulations to you and wish you all the best with what is next, and we are grateful you were able to participate.
I have received 2 degrees from WGU and neither experience disappointed. My mentors were great, my professors were great as well. My academic education is complete and I am prepared thanks to WGU
We are so glad to hear this, Katielaine! We love seeing students return to continue to learn and grow! Here’s a link to our Refer-a-Friend program if you’d like to invite your friends and family to learn more. If they do, you’ll get some WGU swag to enjoy too! Congrats on your new degree! Best to you with what is next! https://www.wgu.edu/lp/programs/owls-nest.html
Such a great school if you're able to do the whole online thing! The staff are amazing and the classwork cuts out a lot of the BS of other colleges. I recently attended one of their commencements and it was amazing. Highly recommend!
We are so glad to hear this, Jason! We love when students find ease of learning and feel celebrated! Here’s a link to our Refer-a-Friend program if you’d like to invite your friends and family to learn more. If they do, you’ll get some WGU swag to enjoy too! Congrats on your new degree and best wishes to you! https://www.wgu.edu/lp/programs/owls-nest.html
I was able to complete everything on my own time. I got the help I needed from mentors and from professors when I needed it. Application was super easy. 10/10 recommend.
We are so glad to hear you had such amazing support, Dana! We love being their for our students and supporting them during every stage of life! Here’s a link to our Refer-a-Friend program if you’d like to invite your friends and family to learn more. If they do, you’ll get some WGU swag to enjoy too! Congrats on your new degree! All the best! https://www.wgu.edu/lp/programs/owls-nest.html
Hands down, one of the greatest educational experiences i've had. I completed both my Bachelor's degree and Master's degree at WGU. I will say that the mentorship program in the beginning made me nervous. Having to meet with someone every week seem daunting. However, both my mentors, for my bachelor's program and my master's program, were amazing. I looked forward to my weekly check ins, and I never felt discouraged when I had a rough week and wasn't able to complete my goals. They were always there to encourage me and give me advice. When it came to the instructors of the classes I found them to be supportive and knowledgeable. I never hesitated to reach out when I was stuck. They were amazing in guiding you to find the information you were needing or breaking down something that was confusing. I would highly recommend WGU to anyone who is looking to expand their education!
We are so glad to hear both of your degree experiences were great here, Chrystal. It is such an honor to have students return here. We really do what to make an environment where, like you said, the learning environment becomes less daunting. We love to see students succeed! Here’s a link to our Refer-a-Friend program if you’d like to invite your friends and family to learn more. If they do, you’ll get some WGU swag to enjoy too! Congrats on your new degree! All the best to you! https://www.wgu.edu/lp/programs/owls-nest.html
GRADUATION This was amazing, so organized, not chaotic at all and was very motivational, they made it feel like a big deal and really celebrated us. Thank you WGU!
We are so glad to hear you enjoyed Commencement so much, Brittany! We love to celebrate our students and their accomplishments. Here’s a link to our Refer-a-Friend program if you’d like to invite your friends and family to learn more. If they do, you’ll get some WGU swag to enjoy too! Congrats on your new degree! Good luck on what's next. https://www.wgu.edu/lp/programs/owls-nest.html
I attempted to return to WGU using Leidos tuition reimbursement. Leidos requires advance approval for no more than four courses and official documentation showing each course and its allocated cost. WGU’s provisional first-term plan listed five courses totaling 14 CUs. I asked whether I could take four required courses totaling at least 12 CUs, but WGU would not alter the prescribed course order. During a phone call, I was told the five-course arrangement was required by Department of Education law. I requested the specific statute or regulation, but none was provided. After I filed a formal complaint, WGU confirmed in writing that this was not a federal-law requirement. Instead, WGU said its internal “standard path” policy required the courses to be taken in a prescribed order. Because the first four courses totaled only 11 CUs, WGU said it would not enroll me unless I accepted all five courses. WGU’s complaint officer described the situation as a “catch-22” and acknowledged that my employer’s four-course limitation was a “deal-killer.” The only option offered was to enroll in five courses, have Leidos cover four, and personally pay the allocated cost of the fifth. My employer was prepared to fund my degree, potentially providing WGU with approximately $16,800 over four terms. Instead, I had to take my education elsewhere because WGU would not make a minor exception to an internal policy. As a veteran and former WGU student, I found the lack of flexibility disappointing. My concern is not WGU’s flat-rate tuition model. It is that employer-funded students may be unable to use their tuition benefits because WGU will not provide a workable course plan before enrollment and financial responsibility. Anyone using employer tuition assistance should verify course-count and documentation requirements before beginning the admissions process.
It is regrettable to hear of the concerns you ran into with this process, Ethan. And we are sorry to hear that you had so many issues while enrolled in your program. If there is anything that we can do to help you with in the future, please don't hesitate to reach out! We appreciate the feedback, and are always looking to improve.
Current student in WGU's Master of Arts in Special Education program, currently approaching graduation. Overall, I found the coursework to be average. One of WGU's biggest strengths is its competency-based model. The flexibility to work at my own pace made it possible to balance school with work and other responsibilities, and the overall cost of the program was excellent compared to many other master's programs. The competency-based structure was a great fit for my learning style and made earning a graduate degree much more accessible. My mentor during my first term was outstanding—proactive, responsive, and genuinely supportive. Unfortunately, after that first semester, the level of communication and support declined noticeably. While I was still able to make progress, I no longer felt the same level of guidance that helped make my first term successful. My biggest concern has been the clinical experience process. The clinical requirements are spread across numerous catalogs, documents, and resources, making them difficult to navigate and interpret. Rather than having one clear, centralized checklist, I often found myself searching through multiple sources or trying to determine which requirements applied to my specific situation. The support surrounding the clinical process was equally frustrating, as I frequently struggled to get clear, direct answers. The lack of clarity and consistent guidance resulted in significant delays. My clinical placement was pushed back by nearly a full term, creating unnecessary stress and extending my time in the program. I also spent approximately $250 on a background check that ultimately was not required based on my placement requirements. Better communication and a more organized clinical process could have prevented both the delay and the unnecessary expense. Despite these frustrations, I do believe WGU has many strengths. The affordability, flexibility, and competency-based format make it an attractive option for working adults and self-motivated learners. The academic system itself generally worked well for me, and I appreciated being able to progress based on competency rather than a traditional semester schedule. I wanted to leave this review because I believe prospective students deserve an honest picture of both the strengths and weaknesses of the program. WGU has the foundation of a very good program, but the clinical experience process needs substantial improvement. A centralized checklist of requirements, clearer communication, and more proactive, consistent support would make a significant difference for future students. My hope is that WGU addresses these issues so future students can enjoy the flexibility and affordability of the program without experiencing the same unnecessary confusion, delays, and expenses that I encountered.
We truly appreciate you taking the time for your review, James. It is regrettable to hear of the pitfalls and delays in what should be a smooth process. Please be assured your feedback is being routed to the proper department, as we are always looking to improve. We understand where you are coming from, and we are glad you were able to share your concerns and be candid about your experience.
I went through the VRE program and had some issues with it. It took several months to get going and when it finally went through, I had to withdraw because of loss of access. I never attended any class. The VRE was refunded and i now have to somehow pay over 1k for... what? nothing.. and they will not help.
We appreciate you providing this feedback, Don. We are sorry to hear the experience was not up to par with what it should be. Please be assured this will be passed along to the proper department for review.
Veterans Beware of this school. I was treated like a number the time I attended they never submitted anything to the VA saying that I was attending. They forcefully withdrew me without any notice and now I must pay back the VA for bah payments and tuition that WGU stole from me and it also used my GI Bill benefits. I've been to a few different schools using my GI Bill and graduated from them this school is by far the worst experience ive had. Highly recommend you avoid this place. They are unprofessional and have no understanding of what it takes to get someone enrolled into their own school.
It is regrettable to hear of your experience, Zach. We are sorry to hear that you don't feel like you learned anything during your time spent inside of the program. If you would like to give us some constructive criticism on what we might be able to improve we would certainly like to hear it, as we are always trying to improve the student experience.
I was accepted to start this August. but when my advisor learned that I would be have a baby around this time, she denied me and wouldn’t let me look at classes, she just said I should wait a while and reapply.
We do apologize for this experience, and we appreciate you bringing this to our attention, Savanna. Our Enrollment team would love to hear from you directly on this so we can look into this with you and work on some potential options with you. You can reach our Enrollment Team at 1-866-225-5948 if you would like to give them a call. There will be a menu to route you to someone in your program, and they also can be reached by email at [email protected]. We look forward to hearing from you, and wish you the best with your new arrival.
First off, I love this school. Let me tell you why: You work at your own pace. Got two hours a day? Cool, sit down and study. Got an hour a day? Cool, sit down and study. It doesn't have to be overwhelming to make progress through this school. The material is super easy to access, easy to study, and they even provide non-graded pre-assessments to assess your knowledge prior to taking the main course exams. If your essay didn't pass the first time, they send it back for corrections instead of giving an F. What school does that? WGU, that's who. Now the downside is that you won't earn a standard GPA like you would at other schools because they are competency based (as in, you passed, congrats) but at the end of the day - you're still going to graduate with a degree despite the GPA missing. I think I read somewhere that their passing Competency scores is equivalent to receiving a B or 3.0. Which isn't bad. The mentors are on top of it, mine specifically calls me at least once a month or every two weeks to check in with my progress which is helpful if you have ADHD and need someone to light a fire under your rear from time to time. XD And the cost is near to none if you get FAFSA. Which you should definitely attempt to get FAFSA. Overall, I'd rate WGU 10/10 and will most likely continue forward with them for my master's degree. Great school.
Augusta, we really appreciate you for taking the time to write this stellar review and share your experiences with us! We really strive to provide a system that is a well-oiled machine and that helps pave the way for students to succeed, especially when it comes to our Competency-Based Learning model, and the flexibility that we offer. We are glad to see you were able to utilize your resources and feel supported as a student to succeed. We love to see it! Here’s a link to our Refer-a-Friend program if you’d like to invite your friends and family to learn more. If they do, you’ll get some WGU swag to enjoy too! Congrats on your new degree! All the best! https://www.wgu.edu/lp/programs/owls-nest.html
I haven't completed a course yet, but the experience has been positive! My mentor sounds enthusiastic, and im excited to see what I can do
We are so glad to hear this, Jared! We look forward to having you and wish you the best with your program! You've got this and have our support!
I am writing to express my serious concerns regarding my experience throughout my enrollment. Based on my experience, I believe I have been treated unfairly and discriminated against. Despite raising repeated concerns, I have been denied a refund, even though many of the issues I encountered were outside of my control. As a result, I feel I have been deprived of both my financial investment and the opportunity to continue my education. I am also being asked to complete a Professional Disposition before I can move forward with my education. Given the circumstances, this requirement feels coercive rather than supportive. Instead of working with me to resolve the underlying issues, I feel I am being required to accept a process that I do not believe is warranted. Throughout this experience, I have not felt that the professionalism expected of students has been consistently demonstrated by the institution. My concerns have repeatedly gone unresolved, leaving me feeling unheard and without meaningful options. I enrolled with the intention of earning my degree, not to become involved in ongoing disputes that have delayed my education. At this point, I am requesting a fair resolution, including consideration of a refund and the ability to continue my education without being required to complete a Professional Disposition that I believe has been imposed unfairly. If a satisfactory resolution cannot be reached, I will explore all available options, including seeking legal counsel and filing complaints with the appropriate agencies.
BEWARE! This might be a scam.I completed all the necessary steps to enroll and was supposed to start in May, but now it's June, and no one has contacted me. I’ve emailed student services and other departments, but I haven’t received any responses. They have my transcripts and financial aid information, but they have just disappeared like the school doesn’t exist anymore.
64 reviews matching