2020 Academic Annual Report
Our mission
Our vision
Our guiding principles
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.
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:
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Deep understanding of students’ needs
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Deep understanding of employers’ needs
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World-class assessment, analytics and innovation
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Operational excellence
We believe that our students:
Deserve quality academic programs that are career-relevant and are offered by an accredited institution.
01/10
Should be supported by qualified staff and faculty, as well as by University efforts to help aid them on the path to graduation.
02/10
Should be the singular reason we continue to advance the quality, career-relevance and convenience of our academic programs.
03/10
Are entitled to transparency so they can make informed choices about their educational and financial future.
04/10
Should have the freedom and ability to choose the educational institution that best meets their needs.
05/10
We believe that as an institution, we should:
Ensure we are valuing students’ time and money.
06/10
Market responsibly and demonstrate integrity in all of our materials, exposures and engagements.
07/10
Collaborate with employers, public or government officials and regulators, researchers and peer institutions to enhance the experiences and outcomes for our students.
08/10
Be accountable to our students, our regulators and the general public for delivering skills, knowledge and opportunities through our educational programs.
09/10
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.
10/10
Innovative approaches
Defining the curve
From our earliest beginnings as the University that changed higher education, University of Phoenix has embraced innovation. Even with challenges posed by a pandemic, 2020 was no different.
In fact, while many institutions spent last year pivoting, we spent it innovating. Whether we’re linking curriculum to careers or offering pre-enrollment assessments to help prospective students fine-tune their goals, we’re not just ahead of the curve. We’re defining the curve.
Our students and graduates get one-on-one career coaching, resumé building and interview prep for life. While outside career advising can cost over $200 an hour, at University of Phoenix it’s built into your degree at no added cost.
With competency-based programs, students can leverage their experience to earn a quality degree. Our competency-based programs can be completed in under a year for less than $11,000.
We have begun an initiative that links programs to the types of skills employers seek. By embedding sought-after skills into curriculum outcomes, we help our students develop career-ready skills while advancing their educational goals.
This option allows students to complete 87 credits at their community college and complete their remaining 33 credits at University of Phoenix to earn a BSM, BSIT, BSHM, or RN to BSN degree at a special rate.
Participants who take our new short courses, which are skills-focused, self-paced and 100% online, can stay competitive and learn about key skills employers want.
Students have online access to helpful tools like Phoebe, our 24/7 chat assistant; MyPhoenix, our always-on student portal; and interactive online courses.
University highlights 2020
January
January
Responding to veterans' needs
The Arizona Department of Veterans’ Services certifies the Phoenix Campus as a Veteran Supportive Campus.
February
February
MBA in less than a year
The College of Business and IT launches a competency-based Master of Business Administration, allowing students to earn their MBA faster and for less.
March
March
Pandemic propels online innovation
As COVID-19 hits, we transition 6,000 campus-based students to online classes. Attendance and retention rates improve during this time.
April
April
Webinars offer help and hope
We introduce a free webinar series to help educators, parents and others persevere during the pandemic and adapt to the challenges of virtual learning.
April
Free courses for teachers
From April through June, more than 3,400 educators sign up for our technology-focused Continuing Education courses for help transitioning classrooms to a virtual setting.
April
Career readiness goes next level
The College of Business and IT pilots the University’s skills-mapping model in the MBA program, which aligns and maps select program outcomes to top-growing occupations and in-demand job skills.
May
May
Virtual commencement
To honor graduates safely, we hold the University’s first-ever virtual commencement. Followed by virtual ceremonies in September and December, the combined viewership is more than 90,000.
May
MHA earns CAHME accreditation
After a multiyear effort, the Master of Health Administration receives Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education (CAHME) accreditation.*
*The Master of Health Administration (MHA) program is programmatically accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education (CAHME), PO Box 911, Spring House, PA 19477.
June
June
Virtual Teaching Academy
A series of free, online, interactive events in association with Blackboard™ is offered to help nearly 6,000 teachers and administrators adapt to the virtual learning landscape.
October
October
4-day diversity webinar
To address systemic issues, we partner with the National Diversity Council to bring together law enforcement, healthcare and University leaders for "Essential Conversations in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion."
October
Phoenix Scholar tackles inequity
The Phoenix Scholar, a quarterly research publication of the College of Doctoral Studies, publishes a special edition with articles relating to systemic inequity and social justice reform.
October
3 more competency-based degrees launch
Competency-based MIS, MHA, and RN to BSN programs launch, allowing students with professional experience to complete an advanced degree faster.
December
December
Career Services for Life® commitment
To help students and alumni navigate their careers, we build career coaching, resumé reviews and more into every degree — accessible for life.
Our students
Our students are working moms and dads who study during lunch breaks and sports practices, who dream of better lives for their families.
They’re adult learners, late bloomers, dream-chasers and trailblazers. We understand the key to serving our students well is knowing who they are.
Who they are
Our students are remarkable anecdotally. Here’s who they are statistically.
Total degreed enrollment
0
2/3 of our students are women
37is the average student age
0
report as ethnic minorities
0
are first-generation college students
0
are employed while in school
0
have dependents
How they performed
University Learning Goals (ULGs) are a set of five overarching competencies that employers identify as top soft skills and that University of Phoenix incorporates into its academic programs. Students met or exceeded expectations for each of the following ULGs.
0
Professional Competence and Values
0
Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving
0
Communication
0
Information Utilization
0
Collaboration
How they rated us
We value what our students say. One way we listen to them is through surveys.
Likely to recommend instructors to other students
8.7/10 
Likely to recommend the University to colleague, friend or family.
8.9/10 
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+ occupations, 80% of which are in high-growth fields
College of Business and Information Technology
Credentials awarded in 2020: 15,353
Providing innovative, industry-relevant and accessible education to solve tomorrow’s business and IT challenges.
College of Social and Behavioral Sciences
Credentials awarded in 2020: 3,961
Preparing future social science professionals to positively impact their organizations and communities.
College of Health Professions
Credentials awarded in 2020: 3,169
Equipping students with the leading-edge training needed to succeed in today’s dynamic healthcare environment.
College of Nursing
Credentials awarded in 2020: 1,626
Embodying the value of caring, excellence in practice, and leadership in the nursing profession.
College of Education
Credentials awarded in 2020: 1,190
Improving the lives of our students, their families and their communities one educator and leader at a time.
College of Doctoral Studies
Credentials awarded in 2020: 388
Developing scholar-practitioner leaders with a focus on influencing policy and guiding diverse organizations through effective decision-making.
College of General Studies
Credentials awarded in 2020: 356
Providing the foundational knowledge and skills for tomorrow’s critical thinkers and communicators.
Connecting curriculum to careers
In today’s competitive job market, skills can matter as much as a degree. Our career-focused education maps select programs to career-relevant skills important in today’s workplaces.
Gain skills 
Our courses include career-relevant skills sought after by employers.
Back
Track progress
Students can track progress and display their achievements on a personalized skills dashboard.*
Back
Build resumé
Students can build their resumé one course at a time with career-relevant skills.
Back
*Available in select courses and in the process of being rolled out more broadly.
Accreditation that matters
Years
continuously accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (hlcommission.org) and its predecessor
Programs
carry programmatic accreditation, an additional level of evaluation and quality assurance
Improving 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
University of Phoenix is committed to saving our students time and money. In fact, in FY20, University of Phoenix students saved over $51.6 million in tuition between discounts, scholarships and other savings. Here are some highlights:
0
Mapproximate tuition saved through our Prior Learning Assessment
0
Min monthly scholarship opportunities available to students
0
organizations whose employees were eligible for education benefits
0
Kcompetency-based degrees available for less than $11,000
0
in potential alumni savings for a bachelor’s degree ($2,200 on a master’s)
Responsible and appropriate borrowing
We offer extensive tools and resources before and after enrollment to help our students understand the different types of student loans and loan amounts that might be right for them.
For example, we offer memberships at no additional cost to the iGrad online money-management tool, which students can use to learn how to budget, save, minimize borrowing and understand future student loan payments.
Average for proprietary schools
University of Phoenix
National average for all institutions
University retention and graduation rates
Data helps us improve our understanding of how to support our students through the obstacles they face on the way to their degrees. It also reinforces what’s working.
For example, in 2020, most University retention rates improved even though some of the students in this measurement began their programs or were progressing through the early part of their programs during the pandemic.
Institutional – Master’s
Institutional – Bachelor’s
Institutional – Associate
IPEDS – Bachelor’s (FTFT)
Our faculty
We believe students should be taught by accomplished professionals. Our faculty members average 26 years of career experience, and over 85% of our surveyed students would recommend their instructors to others.
0
YEARSprofessional experience in FY20 (on average)
0
YEARSUniversity of Phoenix teaching experience in FY20 (on average)
Christopher Wilson
Beverly Jensen
Sharon Golett
Peter Cohen
President
John Woods
Chief Academic Officer and Provost
Steve Gross
Chief Marketing Officer
Raghu Krishnaiah
Chief Operating Officer
Chris Lynne
Chief Financial Officer
Srini Medi
Senior Vice President and General Counsel
Cheryl Naumann
Chief Human Resources Officer
Eric Rizzo
Senior Vice President of Government Affairs
Jamie Smith
Chief Information Officer
Ruth Veloria
Chief Strategy and Customer Officer
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.
Alumni
We recognize the tremendous achievement of earning a college degree. Most of our students have worked years to reach this goal, and many are first-generation college students.
Featured alum
Read about Kassandra Spann (MBA, 2020), who illustrated the power of grit on the road to earning two degrees while living with spina bifida and cerebral palsy.
Kassandra SpannMBA, 2020
Community service
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 2020, the University gave:
Our commitment to diversity
At University of Phoenix, we’ve long been focused on creating a diverse, equitable, inclusive and belonging (DEIB) environment.
To continue fostering DEIB initiatives, we:
- Established The Inclusive Café, a virtual meeting place to tackle tough conversations
- Produced a special edition of the Phoenix Scholar journal, with articles on systemic inequity and social justice reforms
- Created the Cultural Competence Task Force to serve students of all backgrounds
