UMass Global Reviews

"At first I was nervous about attending Brandman University because I had never heard of it until I moved to California. I already had a BS from another school and wanted to begin a Master's Program but was unsure what I wanted to do so I just applied for the BBA. After talking with my advisor, she showed me how I could apply for the Master's Program and complete it within a year instead of doing two years to complete another Bachelor's Degree. Sometimes it is hard to get a response back from email, but if I call or go into the office I've always been helped. I had an issue with billing but that was all straightened up by the OneStop. All my Professors have been great so far and have been very knowledgeable in the subjects they were teaching. I have no complaints with Brandman University and would recommend this school to everyone!"

"I attended a junior college and received an AS in math and science. I transferred to Cal State San Bernardino which was a nightmare. Constant holds for reasons they could not figure out. Registration was a mess. I never got the classes I needed. I got tired and transferred to Brandman. The classes are smaller and professors are much better. Other institutions have professors with very little to no real world experience. The majority of my professors at Brandman had decades of experience. When I graduated I got a job within the first week making more money than I ever had. I am hoping to go back to Brandman for a MBA in the near future."

"Actually, I will be graduating in May of this year 2015! I've absolutely loved my experience here at Brandman University so far. The professors are well educated, informative, and love teaching. The quality In material I've attained is always applicable professionally and personally and I love that! Definitely a rising school."

"Please use caution when dealing with Brandman University. The teaching instruction is wonderful, unfortunately the administration is less than desirable. I was informed of a financial aid issue and was under the belief it was corrected after I submitted a copy of my tax filing to my financial advisor. Sadly he did not complete the process thus leaving me with a financial aid rejection. This is where the nightmare begins. A new academic advisor built a projected academic program and learned I was unable to attend due to an administrative hold because of the last financial aid advisor. Now the school is charging me for the classes I DID NOT ATTEND due to the administrative hold. This is completely unethical of Brandman ! How do you charge a student that tries to attend classes yet is denied by Brandman? Furthermore, not only are they charging me for the classes they would not allow me to attend but they are adding interest plus penalty. BEWARE !!! When Chapman's distant learning turned into Brandman the quality, proficiency, and professionalism has fallen to less than desirable."

"I absolutely loved Brandman University! As a veteran, full time student, and mother, this was the perfect school for me. I took blended and on-line courses. Most of my professors were extremely helpful. I never had any problems with my teachers, scheduling, or finance. If you are proactive and stay on top of your course work/finances, then you really shouldn't have a problem here. I have recommended several of my military buddies to this school. Very military friendly!"

"I didn't realize how valuable the Brandman curriculum focus on Common Core was until I started my teaching position. I am now seen as the leader for Common Core staff/professional development at my school site and I am the newest teacher here. Thank you Brandman!"

"While I am still enrolled, what I have learned in this program has changed both my personal and professional life. I received a promotion and also have better communication with my family. Was hoping for the former, but the latter was a welcomed suprise. Thank you Brandman faculty and leadership!"

"I chose Brandman University for my Bachelor program because, formerly named Chapman University College, Brandman (Chapman) University is a diverse, prestigious, private, non-profit, regionally accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) institution, within the Chapman University System, that provides exceptional educational opportunities for working adults, military personnel, their spouses, and veterans. I chose Brandman University because it has some of top online bachelor's programs per U.S. News & World Report and it is a top designated Military Friendly School. Brandman University has developed partnerships with a great deal of community colleges and other college institutions in several states including California, Texas, and Washington to make course credits more easily transferable - no restrictions. Brandman University offers online students the flexibility of taking both online and on-campus options without requiring a petition process or extensive paperwork - you can earn your entire degree online. Brandman University has a pretty cool LinkedIn group for students and alumni."

"This is the worst college I have ever attended. They are the most disorganized organization I have seen that is supposed to provide people with an education. My first quarter was a joke. My first class was just 3 students and we spent the whole time watching movies, listening to the professor play music, or creating games. Throughout the whole program we never used our books to supplement information we were supposed to be learning in class, and we could actually go the whole quarter without needing them except for busy work assigned using them, i.e. writing down what we think are important sentences in a chapter. Nearly all of the classes were watching movies, playing games, listening to music, or people chit chatting about non-related topics; a huge waste of time. Anytime students tried to ask questions pertaining to course material they were told to read the book, look it up, or given a round about answer that did not answer the question. The professors were unwilling to perform their jobs and actually teach the students the material, let alone make sure they understood everything. When the director of the program was made aware of the issues she ignored it. Changes in program requirements were made on a regular basis and students were not updated. Regularly students would do something and be told that things had changed and/or there was a new form. Again. The director did not insure students were kept well informed and did nothing when complained to. Students are allowed to fall through the cracks at this university if they do not keep track of everything they need to do in order to complete their degree. They need to seriously interact with their advisor and the director on a daily basis to make sure all paperwork gets done and done correctly, that they used the current form, and there are no new policies, forms, laws, etc pertaining to them otherwise they will not find out until too much time has passed and nothing can be done. When students start giving up from frustration with the whole school, the school washes their hands of them and does not try to correct the situation and is more than willing to let them go with their degree unfinished, mostly because they've already gotten their money. They are supposed to be a non-profit university but that is a big lie based off of how much they're willing to take every penny, but not give what they say they will in return. You ask the professors, advisors, and director the same questions and get different answers. No one seems to be on the same page, nor know how things are supposed to be done. They also state they are geared towards working adults, but I had a professor tell me to quit my job because the school is more important. Again the director did nothing about that comment. The quality of their education is poor. I repeatedly told the professors I did not understand something and they reassured me I knew more than I thought as evidence by my near perfect grades. After advancement tests they came back to me and said they guess I was right. Well yes, I got good grades because I know how to find information in a book and repeat it, does not mean I understand it as I told them. This is a constant theme of the school. They messed up on paperwork giving me military pricing and I needed to call various people to get it resolved after they placed a hold on my account. Their final exam was also flawed in that people who answered a question the same way got different scores, one failed, one passed. They also stated one person did not attempt one field when they did. These are all reasons I'm choosing to have Chapman on my diploma versus Brandman, since I enrolled in a catalog year that gives me that choice."

"I first started attending when Brandman University was still satellite campuses of Chapman University. I did a combination credential Masters program. I got my credential and finished all my masters class with a 4.0 GPA. I still needed to complete my action research project. I went to work at a prison were it was nearly impossible to run the action research project and they would not work with me to accommodate my situation or work with me on it. Still when it was Chapman it was way better than Brandman. Then when the economy tanked I got laid off and then got a major life threatening illness. Once I got better and went back to work, I went back to Chapman, now Brandman, to try and finish my degree. They made me reapply although they obviously already had all my transcripts due to the fact that I had already went there before. Then they told me all the class I had already taken were not good any more although they are the exact same class listed for the same degree in the program catalog. They want me to take these classes over. Next to get any answer from my admissions person, a Mr. Brooks at the Visalia campus is impossible. When I email or call him he never responds until I keep emailing or calling him over and over again. It seems to me that this place has turned to a straight for profit school not caring about its students just wanting to make another buck. What a shame, at least when it was Chapman there help there students more. Forget this place and its high tuition and go to a state college"

"An absolutely horrible college experience. This is the community college of graduate school. Teachers are past retirement age and show very little interest in actually educating students."

"I have completed my first year of the BSN-DNP program. I am very happy with this school. I have found most everyone to very helpful and committed to my success. As a general rule, the instruction quality is excellent. I have had one instructor who was difficult to reach, but she has since left. Most of my instructors respond to emails within a few minutes to a few hours and are very invested in your success. I love the 8 week class duration format. The immersion sessions on campus are fun and educational. OneStop services have been wonderful for me. They are quick to get back with you and are so helpful and kind. Here is the bottom line about questions of quality of instruction and or administrative services. Nothing will be spoon fed to you here. It is up to you to stay on top of your academic progress, financial aid, student accounts, etc. There are people here to kindly and efficiently assist you to make the best of your experience, but you must be in control of your education. The same is true with your learning experiences and the effective management of your time. Your instructors are responsible for helping you navigate learning experiences. Many of these experiences are reading textbooks and articles, watching or reading web resources, writing papers, creating and delivering presentations, attending online meetings and things of this nature. You will be expected to complete all assigned work on time and produce quality work. You are encouraged to seek out additional learning opportunities and share them with your peers. You are expected to have basic, maybe even some intermediate computer skills. So, in a nutshell, if you are willing to take charge and be vigorous in your pursuit of education, this is the school for you. If you do better sitting in class everyday listening to someone give you their perspective on what you should know, then this is not your school."

"The pros are: quality instructors and the cons are follow up on students academic learning."

"The program is good because you are in classes for only 8 weeks. I am annoyed that I have to spend time checking in with an phone advisor when I could be doing other things"

"The small class size enhances the educational experience. Professors provide instruction that is informative and well structured. It helps that night classes are provided for my program."

"Like many others I wanted to continue my education at a school that catered to my lifestyle as an employed mother. I found Brandman to be a perfect set up for me and my family. My degree program will be complete this summer 2014 and I couldn't be happier with the support I have received from this school. The OneStop administrations are great and do their very best to help students have a positive experience at Brandman. There's no "perfect" system no matter where one attends school. That's why, just like at work or in personal life, one needs to be proactive in their own affairs to prevent fewer mistakes. I will be continuing into the MBA for Accounting program shortly after graduating."

"Brandman University is simply the best. The professors are top notch. I have experience with both the Folsom and Roseville Campus as well as online. The blended style of learning is really useful and easy to keep up with. The professors treat you like an adult and expect you to know how to use computers and be up to date with simple applications like PowerPoint and excel. If you are looking to be walked through every assignment and concept discussed throughout the courses this is not the right school for you. Professors expect you to start at week one with momentum and cary it through week 8. With these shorter courses there is no time to fall behind or slack off. The administration staff and educational counselors have been extremely successful with helping me make a plan for both my Bachelors and now my Masters I have attended and passed over 30 courses at Brandman all with the grades I earned and expected. Be prepared to spend hours doing independent research and either in person or online discussion for each course you take."

"Brandman University recently began an Educational Doctorate program in 2012,which sounds impressive at first glance. I was excited to enroll in this program at first. When I started the program, I realized that the classes consist of busy work, writing journals, writing notes, conducting virtual meetings, creating surveys and then writing a paper at the end of each class about what you have learned. The tuition is now $875.00 per unit, which is not cheap. I did not really learn very much from the program and I cringed when I wound up paying $4,375.00 in tuition costs for information that I could have obtained for free or already knew from my rigorous Master's program. The professors did not give me much feedback nor tell me how I could improve my writing. My Master's program I attended was wonderful and my papers were scrutinized in order to ensure that I was performing graduate level work, none of these academic activities occurred at Brandman University. I asked several of my former professors at my previous school to review my course material at Brandman University and they believed that the assignments were geared for lower division undergraduates and did not come close to graduate level work. One of the statistics books that were assigned was written years ago by a Master's student at Cal State Los Angeles. The statistics book is geared for Freshman level students who need to prepare for taking an undergraduate statistics course. After reading this Freshman level book which was assigned for a Doctoral level program, I made the decision to withdraw from Brandman University. I have been provisionally accepted into a PhD track graduate program at a public research university. I do not believe that Brandman University's Educational Doctorate program will be taken seriously by employers or scholars, there are no comprehensive exams, normally there are four in a doctorate program and the books are geared for undergraduate level classes."

"Registration for classes is a nightmare! Fininacial aide is a nightmare. No credit cards! Navigation through website is ridiculous. Have to log in many many times. Library is a joke"

"Allow me to begin by saying, how wonderful this small campus, on Fisherman's Wharf., in the City of Monterey. The students have an opportunity to interact with all academic personnel due to its size. Brandman University is the only academic institution in Monterey County that offers a graduate program in Psychology with two emphasis; Marriage and Family Therapist and Clinical Counseling. This is so beneficial careerwise since, it facilitates the pursuit of two different venues that are in demand based on Labor Market Research. Two of the cons are untimely financial aid disbursements and inferior network access to BalckBoard."