It has been an awe-inspiring experience for me through my
journey at AIU. I have always wanted to persue my degree at some point in my
life, eventhough I was doing very well in my current career. I had a lot of difficulty
in getting the time to go through a regular traditional instructor-led university
looking at my job schedule and the demands of family life. I had done some
research on the internet for distance learning universities around the world most
of what I found were charging fees beyond my financial capabilities, “I simply
couldn’t afford the fees”. I knew deep
within me that one day I would discover a university that will be within my
financial reach and also have the flexibility to combine work and studies at the
same time. In August 2016, I saw an AIU advert but didn’t pay much attention to
it until Spetember when I decided to take a closer look at what AIU had to
offer. After reading about AIU from the website, I finally decided to dig
further on the credibility and accreditaion of the school. Later that evening,
I told my wife about my discovery and my
intention to enroll in the Barchelors Information Systems program at AIU. My wive’s first reaction was a question on how
I intend to pay for a school in US dollars. I told her I didn’t know but I
believe God will make a way this time around. I was very convinced deep within
me that it was my opportunity to earn myself a long overdue university degree.
I decided to go ahead with the online application to see what will happen next
so I started the online application process and submitted my information.
I was astonished when a few days later I had a call from an
AIU advisor (Sarita Amuz) about my application and her readiness to assist me
to complete the rest of the registration process. My main challenge was how to
pay for my tuition so I was really happy when Sarita told me about the
scholarship options available at AIU. It was so comforting to know that I could
work out a flexible monthly payment plan on top of the schorlaship I recieved.
The offer was too good to be true, finally God has answered my prayer to
further my education without too much pressure on my finances and family
commitments. My advisor guided me through my application process after I had
paid my initial $100 enrollment fees. I received all the necessary documents
and also received a call from my tutor who explained the whole program and
guided me to fully onboard.
The Phase 1 (Orientation and Setup) was also very exciting. I
was amazed at the amount of information I had to provide on myself, my work and
my future outlook. Unlike most traditional universities where courses are
designed for students, AIU allowed me to design and own my curriculum.
Initially, I was confused when my tutor told me to design my own curriculum by
choosing my courses because I was used to the tradition way of education where
the programs have already been designed. Going through that assignment gave me
the responsibility to personally own my development. I was used to online courses
because of experience I had gained doing online courses at work. I was
motivated to push harder when my first assignments were graded and my scores
were excellent. I loved the “Verify assignment via Unpag” option on My Student
Section. It helped me check my assignments before submitting them for grading.
The library gave me access to very rich content to help me do my readings and complete
my assignments. I was very impressed with functionality of the Students Section
because it gave me the opportunity to track all my payments and even access the
full agreed payment plan for the full duration of my program. I could also monitor
my progess by viewing my grades and GPA.
My overall experience with AIU has been very exhilarating and
the impact on my life cannot be quantified. My tutors and advisors were very
helful, without whose stewardship I could not have chalked this success. They
were there with me every step of the way. The most exciting part of my AIU
journey was the when one of my academic tutor’s intriduced me to the
Accelerated Learning Program. I quickly accepted it and started to work towards
it with all seriousness. It is a beautiful program and I thank AIU for the
opportunity to put me on the Accelerated Learning track to gain the required
credits for my graduation. I am eternally grateful to Irina for her support and
guidance during my program. I worked hard to gain the required credits towards
my graduation and pulled together resources to pay the balance of my fees
before the deadline. Imagine my joy when I finally got a mail from my academic
tutor that I had achieved the required credits for graduation way ahead of my
initially planned graduation; “I shouted a big Praise God”. I noticed AIU
organises graduation ceremonies across the world and am eagerly waiting to be a
part of that unique grduation ceremony which is uncommon with most online
universities. Just like I was told at
the beginning of my studies by my academic advisor, there are no limits to the
possibilities available at AIU. I knew this day will eventually come but never
dreamt I will putting my AIU experiences on paper so soon. AIU helps you to design a program suitable to
accommodate both your academic and personal needs. AIU provides the flexibility
for anybody who has plans of pursuing further education to do so from the
comfort of their homes anywhere in the world, no matter how busy your work
schedule is, AIU has room for you. I have achieved what I wanted to do and am
happy. Anyone out there can also do same and I would gladly recommend AIU
anyday anywhere anytime. I so proud of AIU to extent that I have already
assisted two individuals from my country to enroll at AIU.
“Great educators have always known that learning is not something that’s
limited to the classrooms, or that should be forcibly undertaken under the
supervision of teachers” Bill Gates. The people who gave birth of the AIU idea are
great educators and I am a proud product of these great educators at AIU.
