American Military University
American Public University System

Distance Learning Programs

Charles Town, West Virginia

DISTANCE LEARNING PROGRAM

AMU is exclusively a distance learning institution. All courses are Web based and accessible around the clock through the Electronic Campus from wherever students have Internet access. Students are led through the eight-week or fifteen-week courses with a Student Course Guide that lists weekly study requirements and assignments.

DELIVERY MEDIA

AMU delivers and supports its courses through its Electronic Campus, with classrooms served by Educator® courseware by Ucompass. Through these electronic classrooms, students communicate with professors and each other using LISTSERV, discussion groups, bulletin boards, chat rooms, and e-mail and submit assignments, receive feedback, and take examinations. Electronic communications are supplemented by phone consultations during professors' office hours, with classes restricted to 25 students to ensure adequate student-professor interaction.

PROGRAMS OF STUDY

AMU offers more than fifty graduate and undergraduate degree programs and certificate programs.

Graduate nonthesis programs, consisting of 36 semester hours/twelve courses and a comprehensive final examination, are offered in criminal justice, homeland security, intelligence, management (including public, logistics, and crisis), military studies (including air warfare and special operations), national security studies, political science, public administration, space studies, and transportation management. There are cooperative graduate degree programs in transportation management and marine engineering with the Global Maritime and Transportation School of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and in peacekeeping operations with the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR).

Certificate programs, consisting of 15 semester hours/five courses, are offered in more than thirty-five special-ties within the curriculum and in area studies, period studies, and both historical and contemporary study areas. Undergraduate programs include the Associate of Arts in general studies, a 63-semester-hour program with 30 semester hours of specified general education courses and electives, and the Bachelor of Arts, a 120-semester-hour program that mirrors the associate degree's lower-division requirements and includes upper-division major requirements of 39 semester hours, with 18 hours of electives. The bachelor's degree is offered in American studies, child development, criminal justice (with an internship for law enforcement professionals), English, family development, history, intelligence studies, interdisciplinary studies, management (with a concentration for military career counselors), marketing (with an internship for military recruiters), military history (with American and world concentrations), military management, philosophy, political science, psychology, religious studies, sociology, and women's studies. Certificate programs are offered in five specialties.

American Military University (AMU) is part of the American Public University System, and is a private institution of higher learning licensed by the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission. AMU is accredited by the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC) and is a member of the Servicemembers Opportunity Colleges (SOC). The University focuses on the educational needs of the military community, including spouses, and has developed a flexible distance learning model uniquely suited to the military student's lifestyle. Founded in 1993, the University System serves more than 11,000 students studying in 108 countries around the world. The University has continuously broadened its curricula, expanding to include management, business administration, national security, criminal justice, psychology, and space studies in addition to its core military studies and history programs. The University's administrative offices are located in Charles Town, West Virginia.

SPECIAL PROGRAMS

AMU offers several unique academic "internship" programs, which consist of a series of courses in a particular degree path that have been modified, allowing students to earn credit for on-the-job learning. These programs are available to students who are working as military recruiters (marketing), to students who are practicing law enforcement professionals (criminal justice), to students working in the security management field, and to any students interested in civic responsibility. Directed reading courses using texts from the military services' recommended reading lists may be taken to satisfy general education requirements or requirements for special military undergraduate certificates. AMU offers military commands the opportunity to set up a Unit Learning Program, a customized curriculum based on a unit's mission or other needs, so students may study together and enhance the unit's performance while the individual progresses along his or her chosen degree path. Other special programs include graduate challenge exams for certain military professional schools, graduate credit programs for certain military schools, and an academic internship program in Special Operations/Low Intensity Conflict.

STUDENT SERVICES

The Student Services department is staffed with counselors available to assist students as needed. These counselors are available by e-mail, phone, and even via online chatrooms. All students experience AMU's online orientation program that prepares them for distance learning, including navigating the electronic campus, using the classroom functions, and understanding student rights and responsibilities, transfer credit, and tuition and financial aid options. Many Student Services' functions are available online and it is easy for students to submit changes and check their status.

CREDIT OPTIONS

Credits may be earned through AMU by traditional courses, challenge examinations, internships, and independent study. Courses may be audited without credit. AMU accepts transfer credit from accredited institutions, training and experience credit recommended by the American Council on Education, and credit by examinations (CLEP, DANTES, etc.).

Credit acceptance by programs is associate degree, up to 45 semester hours; bachelor's degree, up to 90 semester hours; and graduate degree, up to 15 semester hours.

FACULTY

AMU's faculty brings real-world experience and world-class credentials to the online learning experience. More than 300 adjunct faculty members, along with 50 full-time faculty members, work together to ensure AMU students achieve appropriate learning outcomes. All faculty members meet traditional accreditation standards with regard to degrees and professional preparedness.

ADMISSION

Graduate students must possess an accredited baccalaureate degree and a minimum 2.7 GPA in their final 60 undergraduate semester hours. Undergraduate students must have a high school diploma or GED certificate. No examinations are required for admission.

TUITION AND FEES

Tuition is $250 per semester hour for both graduate and undergraduate programs. There is no admission fee. All undergraduate students receive AMU's book grant, covering 100 percent of the costs of all textbooks. Transfer credit evaluations are subject to a one-time fee of $75, and all students who have attended other institutions of higher learning are required to submit a transfer evaluation by the end of their first semester at AMU. A graduation fee of $100 is assessed, which includes a framed and matted degree.

FINANCIAL AID

AMU accepts military tuition assistance, GI Bill and VA educational benefits, and corporate tuition assistance. Undergraduate students may be eligible for the needs-based University Scholarship, which covers up to 25 percent of tuition for students who have no other source of financial aid available. All students are eligible for Sallie Mae education loans, and AMU has an installment payment plan as well. AMU is committed to providing the military community with a quality, low-cost education, and assists military spouses in achieving their educational goals as well, offering a special scholarship program for undergraduate students who are spouses of military personnel.

CONTACT

Admissions
American Military University
American Public University System
111 West Congress Street
Charles Town, West Virginia 25414
Telephone: 877-468-6268, menu option 2 (toll-free)
E-mail: [email protected]
Web site: http://www.apus.edu/amu

APPLYING

The application process is easy and is completed online. There is no cost to apply for admission and applicants are conditionally admitted upon submission of the online application form. A Student ID is issued and applicants receive a password via e-mail, allowing them to log in to the electronic campus, complete their online orientation, and register for courses.