University of Phoenix Releases Annual Academic Report

The University of Phoenix on Thursday released its fourth annual academic scorecard, a self-assessment that has drawn both praise for being a rare voluntary disclosure about academic performance in the for-profit industry and criticism for painting a somewhat overly flattering picture. The fourth installment showed largely minor changes. Graduation rates for associate and graduate degree programs were up slightly, while those for bachelor's were down -- a change Phoenix officials attributed to an increase in transfer students arriving with zero credits. Senior students at Phoenix slightly underperformed academically compared with seniors at other institutions. But the university found high levels of student satisfaction, and an increase in first-course completion rates for students who went through the university's orientation, a free, three-week program.