Feds audit University of Phoenix

The U.S. Department of Education started a review of the University of Phoenix on Monday.  While the exact nature of the review is unclear, we do know the Department of Education will focus on the university’s administration of federal student financial aid.[i]

This is not the first time business practices at the University of Phoenix have come under scrutiny.  Here at For-Profit U, we’ve compiled a “rap sheet” detailing the ways the university and its parent corporation, the Apollo Group, have prioritized profits over delivering quality education.  For example, from each student, the University of Phoenix collects over $12,000 in tuition annually, but just $1,600 of that amount goes towards instruction.[ii] One in every four students defaults on his or her loans within three years of entering repayment.[iii]  In 2009, the Apollo Group settled a case for more than $78 million to resolve whistle-blower claims that Apollo knowingly defrauded the federal government of higher education funds.[iv]

And this is just the tip of the iceberg.  To learn more about the University of Phoenix’s long history of lawsuits and investigations, and to get campaign updates and join the movement to hold for-profit colleges accountable, click here.