Is University of Phoenix a Good School?

So I’m at a bit of a crossroads right now and I wanted to get some opinions from you guys.

I’m not sure where to start. I started my academic career in 2006, when after highschool I went to a community college to get my associates degree. This wasn’t really a “plan” at the time, more or less something to buy me more time because I hadn’t really picked a major (or a university that struck my fancy) … Needless to say I goofed off, got some D’s but ended up graduating with an associates degree.

So at the direction of my parents, I transferred to a state cool, where between working 30-35 hours and trying to get my degree… I quickly realized that I was going nowhere. I’ve been in school for almost 3 years now, and I don’t feel like I’m making significant progress on my academic goals. I feel like I’m treading water.

It was about this time that I actually moved out of state, and I had one of those “defining moments” I guess you could say. I realized that no matter where I go to school, the degree itself isn’t really going to matter. No one is going to look at my state school degree and hire me outright. I kinda realized that this doctorine that my parents had been preaching to be all these years was kind of a sham. I appreciate the value of the degree. I appreciate the difference between an educated person and a clearly un-educated person. I know that even if I hadn’t had all this parental pressure I would still be in some kind of school program simply due to the fact that I don’t want to live life an ignorant boob. (No offense to ignorant boobs).

Anyway, thanks for bearing with me… here’s where I need advice: I am looking at finishing my degree at the university of phoenix, in either one of their online programs or the campus which is 5 minutes away.

I didn’t really know much about the school, or the program… or any of that. I had heard that it was accredited and heard that their online tools were top notch. Reading things about the school online is just disheartening. It’s just pages and pages of pissed off people. Wading through all the overwhelmingly negative ccomments is just really hard. I don’t know what to believe, or what to take away from this.

People are saying that University of Phoenix graduates don’t get jobs, that the hiring folks just toss their resumes in the trash out of principle. Some people say it’s too easy, some people say it’s over priced, some people say it’s a government loan scam and a “degree mill” and this and that and this… It’s just overwhelming.

I guess I don’t understand how the University of Phoenix can have all these campuses and all these students if it’s all these things. The way some people describe it, you’d think satan himself created this school. I don’t understand… are these people just drop-outs? are they just disgruntled? or is there some truth to all this negativity? Obviously it’s got me worried. I know my degree isn’t a guarantee of anything… that I will have to get a job on my own merits and I will probably need to start at the bottom and work my way up… but if getting a University of Phoenix degree is going to convey to employers that I’m some demon worshipping government loan scam artist then I’m not sure I want that drama in my life.

What do companies think? Just about everyone says that people with these degrees don’t get jobs…. yet at two jobs I’ve worked at, they offered to reimburse and even pay my tuition to take classes at University of Phoenix. I just don’t understand, and I’m ranting now…so I’m gonna cut this short.

Can someone give it to me straight here?

What’s the deal with University of Phoenix?

Am I making a huge mistake, or are there just a [b]lot[/b] of haters out there?