National UniversityReviews of nu.edu

The only thing I will give this University kudos for is convenience of online programs. If I already didn’t start my masters program, I 100% would have definitely gone somewhere else, even getting the $6000 scholarship off my tuition, I’d rather spend more money at another school than to go here. Getting in contact with your advisor is almost ALWAYS a terrible experience. Financial aid is the most unorganized inconsistent thing I’ve ever dealt with in terms of a University, and they definitely do not give you proper timelines to be able to plan your life accordingly. They don’t have any set disbursement dates. They process it when they feel like it and then give you excuses about everything. Instead of actually having a financial aid office for you to be able to communicate and handle things accordingly everything has to be done through the advisor, which does not make the experience any better because half the advisors never answer the phone. Most of the professors are real chill, cool people but the experience from the University itself takes away from that.

Long delays in processing financial aid. When you call the school, they keep telling you to call back next week. What a joke!

Crystal Shapiro who helped me answered questions about the course was helpful but when it came to having no money and I needed a job to pay for it she had an attitude and hung up.

Do not go online and request any information unless you want to get harassing phone calls! I asked, via text, to stop texting and calling me. A damn computer was answering me. You can’t call there to tell them to stop either. I can’t imagine investing money into a graduate program when I can’t even teach a live person via phone!!

Buyer Beware: A Warning to Working Adults and Prospective Students I am writing this review as a cautionary warning to anyone considering enrolling in National University, particularly within their graduate programs. My experience demonstrates that this institution lacks basic administrative empathy, structural stability, and regional academic currency. 1. Extreme Lack of Empathy for Medical Emergencies After maintaining a 4.0 GPA through my first six courses in the Clinical Psychology program, I was forced to take a one-year leave of absence to battle cancer. Upon recovering and attempting to return, I expected a standard re-entry process. Instead, the university treated me as a brand-new applicant. They forced me to restart the entire admissions process from scratch, which included submitting new letters of recommendation, paying higher tuition rates, and undergoing a secondary interview with the program Dean just to reclaim my seat. 2. Severe Institutional Turnover and Bureaucracy When I tried to navigate this re-admission process, I discovered that every single staff member I had worked with just a year prior was no longer employed by the university. This massive turnover created an administrative black hole. It was nearly impossible to reach the individuals necessary to facilitate re-enrollment, and calls went unreturned. Furthermore, their IT infrastructure is entirely uncoordinated. I was locked out of my student portal, and rather than resolving the glitch, tech support forced me to create an entirely new personal email account because my original one was permanently trapped in their system under my "original" entry status. 3. Academic Currency and Transferability Issues Because of these artificial barriers and the blatant lack of support, I walked away and transferred to a highly reputable institution (Pepperdine University’s online program). Upon transferring, I received a final, costly wake-up call: Pepperdine refused to accept or transfer the graduate credits I earned at National University, citing a lack of equivalent credential standards. My hard work and tuition money spent at National University were completely wasted. Conclusion: Profits Over People National University markets heavily to working adults, but the moment life happens—even a life-threatening medical crisis—they offer zero flexibility or institutional support. They are a volume-based corporation that appears to care only about tuition revenue, not student success or retention. Do not risk your time, your money, or your education here. If you face a personal or medical emergency, they will not welcome you back; they will exploit it to charge you more. Look elsewhere for a degree that actually holds value in the academic and professional world.

During my last few months at the school, I kept reaching out to my counselors and financial aid staff to make sure everything with my FAFSA was good and that I wouldn’t run into problems later. The main issue was supposedly a missing MPN form, but on the student portal it literally showed as completed, and I have screenshots proving it. Even after checking in multiple times and trying to stay ahead of everything, my FAFSA still wasn’t processed correctly or on time. Because of that, I ended up getting sent to collections for a balance which should have NEVER happened. I appealed the decision to the "school committee" which took 2 months BTW and submitted proof of everything! From screenshots of the portal, to emails, and communication records showing I had been trying to get clarification for months. Even with all of that, the committee still denied my appeal, and the response felt really dismissive and vague, like they didn’t actually address the evidence I sent. Now I’m not allowed to continue into the Master’s program, and they’re also holding my Bachelor’s degree instead of mailing it to me. It’s beyond frustrating because I genuinely liked the school at one point and even referred multiple friends there, so it sucks feeling like I wasn’t supported or given the proper time when an issue came up that I tried hard to prevent. This whole situation has honestly caused me a lot of stress and disappointment. I worked hard throughout my program, tried to stay proactive, and did everything I could to avoid issues like this from happening. Instead of feeling supported by the school, I’ve felt ignored and blamed for something I repeatedly tried to fix before it became a bigger problem. It’s been really discouraging knowing that this situation is now affecting both my finances and my future education plans. UPDATE: I reached out to the email suggested in the comment and still haven't heard back, it's been two months now....

This is a school for responsible adults. You will find it challenging at NU if you expect your counselor to closely monitor your progress. You will have access to all the information you need about your journey, so if something seems off, you can easily identify it and reach out to a counselor for assistance. While you might occasionally have difficulty contacting your assigned counselor, you will always be redirected to another counselor. In 99% of cases, they will be able to help you with your needs. If, on the rare occasion, they can't, they will leave a note for your assigned counselor to follow up with you. I wholeheartedly recommend NU to anyone who can manage their responsibilities and does not expect others to care more about their future than they do. If that describes you, NU is an excellent fit.

I’ve been enrolled in National University since 2021. I started while I was in the military and continued my education after I got out. In August my advisor reached out and informed me that I had a few classes left, and we went ahead scheduled everything. Feb. 2026, I finished my final research class. I received an email about graduation and a congratulations for finishing my degree. March 31, I received an email from a different advisor informing me I didn’t have any active classes, and there wasn’t an LOA on file. I responded that I had finished my degree. The next day that advisor told me I was missing three classes, and asked if she could schedule them for me. I asked her to please schedule the classes, and never heard back. I emailed her a total of three times, and then called her twice. So after being told I had finished my degree by one person, I was told that I actually had three more classes to take by another person. I had been discontinued from NU because I didn’t schedule any more classes. I had to re-enroll, and schedule my last three classes after I had “finished” my degree. Throughout my time I’ve had more advisors than I could count, each of which were difficult to get ahold of. No one that I’ve talked to about this seems shocked or concerned with the fact I was told I finished my degree, and then told I didn’t, and needed to be re-enrolled. I’m appalled and angry, and genuinely confused on how this big of a mistake could be made. My re-enrollment advisor, Sarah, has been very helpful in getting me restarted. She’s been easy to contact so far.