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2023

2023 Academic Annual Report

Highlights   Our students   Student experience   Student outcomes   Our faculty   Our leadership   Alumni   Community engagement  Business alliances

Our mission

The mission of University of Phoenix is to provide access to higher education opportunities that enable students to develop the knowledge and skills necessary to achieve their professional goals, improve the performance of their organizations and provide leadersh­­ip and service to their communities.

Our vision

The vision of University of Phoenix is to be recognized as the most trusted provider of career-relevant higher education for working adults. The University will earn that trust through our:

Deep understanding of students’ needs

Deep understanding of employers’ needs

World-class assessment, analytics and innovation

Operational excellence

Our guiding principles

We believe that our students: 

  • Deserve quality academic programs that are career-relevant and are offered by an accredited institution. 
  • Should be supported by qualified staff and faculty, as well as by University efforts to help aid them on the path to graduation.
  • Should be the singular reason we continue to advance the quality, career-relevance and convenience of our academic programs.
  • Are entitled to transparency so they can make informed choices about their educational and financial future.
  • Should have the freedom and ability to choose the educational institution that best meets their needs. 

We believe that as an institution, we should: 

  • Ensure we are valuing students’ time and money.
  • Market responsibly and demonstrate integrity in all of our materials, exposures and engagements. 
  • Collaborate with employers, public or government officials and regulators, researchers and peer institutions to enhance the experiences and outcomes for our students.
  • Be accountable to our students, our regulators and the general public for delivering skills, knowledge and opportunities through our educational programs.
  • Maintain financial stability as a measure of accountability to students, a means to provide for the long-term viability of our programs, and an indicator of our ability to invest in the student experience.
Open and play video message from University of Phoenix Provost John Woods in new tab

Message from University of Phoenix Provost & Chief Academic Officer John Woods for 2023 digital Academic Annual Report


Section 1

Highlights

Excellence for a new era

From our earliest beginnings as the University that changed higher education, University of Phoenix has embraced excellence and innovation. Academic year 2023 was no different.

Like our students, we’re always pressing, never resting. Read on to discover how this came to life in 2023.

University timeline 2023

Section 2

Our students

Trailblazers and dream chasers

In Greek mythology, the Phoenix is an immortal bird that rises to new life. Our students can relate. Many of our students went to the school of life before taking their first class.

Almost 8 in 10 work, and most are raising kids. Six in 10 are the first in their family to pursue a college degree.

Somewhere in these overlapping circles of statistics, our students can be found head down, grinding through deadlines and doubts — until, in true Phoenix form, they rise.

Who they are

Phoenixes are as diverse as they are determined. Here’s who they are statistically.

80,000

total degreed enrollment

60.4%

are first-generation students

38

is the average age of new students

78.1%

are employed while in school

63.5%

have dependents

How our students performed

University Learning Goals (ULGs) are a set of five overarching competencies that employers identify as top affective, or “soft” skills, and that University of Phoenix incorporates into its academic programs.

The percentage of student work, aligned to University Learning Goals, that scored 70% or higher by faculty in FY23[1] was:

90.6%

Cultural competence and ethics

90.9%

Critical thinking and problem-solving

96.9%

Communication

91%

Digital fluency

92.7%

Collaboration

[1] Source: University of Phoenix, 2023, Learning Management System

PDF
See all student assessment outcomes

High student satisfaction

From September 2022 through August 2023, students who took our end-of-course surveys reported high satisfaction in these areas:

Likely to recommend instructors to other students

9/10

9 out of 10 students were likely to recommend instructors to other students

Likely to recommend the University to colleague, friend or family

9.2/10

9.2 out of 10 students were likely to recommend the University to colleague, friend or family
Section 3

Student experience

University of Phoenix founder Dr. John Sperling knew what it meant to beat the odds. He grew up poor, he battled a learning disability, and he worked his way through school to earn a PhD.

The challenges he faced inspired him to create a better path for students like him. He saw adult learners struggling with rigid class schedules, often taking six to 10 years to earn a degree. And it gave him a revolutionary idea: What if he created a university for working adults?

His experiment didn’t make earning a degree easier — only more practical, with schedules that made sense for working adults and coursework that translated immediately to the real world.

Diverse colleges

100+

programs aligned with 300+ careers, 90% of which are in growing fields

Connecting curriculum to careers

In today’s competitive job market, skills can matter as much as a degree. Our career-focused associate, bachelor’s and master’s programs open for new enrollment align to skills important in today’s workplaces.

Gain skills

Our bachelor’s and master’s degree program courses include career-relevant skills that meet our long-standing academic standards.

Gain skills

Track progress

Students can track progress and display their University achievements on a personalized skills profile.

Track progress

Build resumé

Students can build their resumé one course at a time, showcasing digital badges as proof of learning.

Build resumé

Accreditation

Learn more about our accreditations

45 plus years

continuously accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (hlcommission.org)

Section 4

Student outcomes

From academic counseling and tools that help students manage their finances to our Career Services for Life® commitment, here are some of the ways we help and support our students as they move toward their academic and career goals.

Saving students time and money

In FY23, University of Phoenix students saved over $100 million in tuition between discounts, scholarships and other savings. Here are some highlights:

$16.2M

approximate tuition saved through our Prior Learning Assessment

800,000

approximate number of transfer credits applied in FY23

2,900

organizations whose employees were eligible for education benefits

Up to $2,880

in potential alumni savings for a bachelor’s degree (up to $2,200 on a master’s)

Responsible and appropriate borrowing

University representatives assist students (and prospective students) with tuition financing questions prior to and during students’ programs. And our Repayment Management team assists with understanding federal loan repayment options.

Last year, average student debt levels dropped for all certificate and degree levels at University of Phoenix. Bachelor’s and graduate degree students’ average debt levels are shown here.

University bachelor’s and graduate debt levels

Comparison bar chart of the University Bachelor’s and Graduate Debt Levels from 2021-2023
PDF
See the full report for detailed borrowing information

University retention and graduation rates

Data drives our efforts to support student success and improves our understanding of how to help students through the obstacles they face on the way to their degrees.

Since 2017, when the University’s leadership expanded tools to track retention and evolved its focus on retention outcomes, retention rates have experienced an overall positive trend.

University of Phoenix institutional retention rates

Line graph showing retention rates by degree type from 2017 to 2023
Section 5

Our faculty

We believe students should be taught by accomplished professionals. Our seasoned professionals bring the classroom to life, combining their hands-on work experience with their passion for teaching.

When students rated how likely they would be to recommend their instructor to other students (0 to 10 scale, 10 = extremely likely), our faculty received 9/10.[2]

[2] Survey data is based on 144,080 student responses to our end-of-course survey. All responses were collected between 9/1/22 and 8/31/23.

28.8
years

Average professional experience

15.3
years

Average UOPX teaching experience

Faculty scholarship

Recognizing the role and value that practitioner–scholars bring to the classroom, we encourage a culture of research, scholarship and professional currency among our faculty.

Here is a visual summary from our seven colleges of the breadth of faculty scholarship activities over the year.

FY23 scholarly activities by college 1,240 total. See seven college activity percentages below.

College of Doctoral Studies – 23%

College of Business and Information Technology – 22%

College of Nursing – 14%

College of Education – 12%

College of Health Professions – 10%

College of Social and Behavioral Sciences – 10%

College of General Studies – 9%

Section 6

Our leadership

Our leadership team is deeply committed to helping adult learners reach their education and career goals through continuous innovation that evolves with advances in education, technology and the workplace.

Section 7

Alumni

We recognize the tremendous achievement of earning a college degree. Most of our students have worked years to reach this goal. In  FY23, 93% of our graduates were older than 23, and many are first-generation college students.

We have 50 alumni chapters, which welcomed 2,010 new members in FY23 and pushed our chapter membership to over 26,269.

FEATURED ALUMNI

Several of our alumni share what becoming a college graduate — and a Phoenix — has meant to them. 

Section 8

Community engagement

At University of Phoenix, we understand that community support and higher education go hand in hand. When we roll up our sleeves to help, we strengthen the communities we serve.

In 2023, the University:

  • Sponsored Arizona Forward to promote cooperative efforts to improve the  economic vitality in the region 
  • Collaborated with Arizona Educational Foundation in their mission to promote educational excellence through programs for teachers, administrators, and students 
  • Continued our long-standing alliance with Valley of the Sun United Way to create a stronger community through workforce development initiatives 
  • Supported Valley of the Sun YMCA in its mission to help youth and families develop healthy minds, bodies, and spirits 
  • Supported Future for KIDS, a nonprofit providing programs and camps for youths facing adversity
Section 9

Business alliances

Our University of Phoenix Workforce Solutions team works with employers to create a range of tailored solutions that attracts new talent, upskills and reskills existing talent, and retains high-performing talent. Depending on employer needs, options can range from full degree programs, competency-based education, six-to-eight-month role-aligned certificates, individual courses, apprenticeship pathways and skill-building workshops.

In 2023 the number of students enrolled at University of Phoenix who were able to continue their education at reduced or no cost based on the University’s relationship with their employer increased by 48.9% over 2022.

We currently offer upskilling education to more than 2,900  organizations ranging from healthcare to telecommunications through employer or benefits provider alliances. 

Discover more about how University of Phoenix supports the needs of organizations’ workforces.

Happy grad surrounded by loved ones

Thank you

This is just a snapshot of the work we did in 2023.