Our collection of real, honest student reviews of unis and courses is the largest in the UK, and help you make well-informed decisions about your future. Student reviews also form the basis of our annual Whatuni Student Choice Awards(WUSCAs), which highlight great work carried out by institutions for their students.
2023 WUSCA winners
This university is awful, and don’t listen to students needs. Most of the teachers are terrible, and give you no guidance or help during the module. Student support is no better all they do is dismiss your needs, and lack to do their job properly. Once you fall behind with the work they stop caring and push you to the side, overall had a awful experience here and encountered with some manipulative teachers who like to belittle their students within the classroom setting. AVOID AT ALL COSTS, this uni costed me my mental health.
They also stopped allowing students to join online, which I think is ridiculous as some students are unable to commute due to responsibilities. Overall they do not care for individuals needs within the uni.
As a first-year student, I do not have a lot of experience with the academic atmosphere, but after two months of study at Arden University, I can tell that I truly enjoy it. The learning materials and the lecturer's teaching manner are outstanding. I would recommend Arden to anybody seeking new challenges in their lives!
I am a blended-learning student, which allows me to both study and works efficiently. I need to attend Arden twice per week for four hours, which allows me to focus on both my personal life and education. When necessary, we have the option of contacting our lecturers via e-mail, telephone, or in person.
No problems, i get everything as a student and they have good support staff
Ok
Well, everything is ok but they should improve in their facilities, like they should need to give to all student travel semester ticket. Because they have a same fee like other private University, but other universities giving a this facility to their students, but Arden university is not. so, I hope they will give this facility to everyone in the future.
well, my course giving me alot of opportunity to make my bright future. but some tutors should improve the way of teaching also. I think students need practical more rather than theory. Thank you,
It's great that Arden offer the distance learning courses for students who also have full time jobs. The downside to this is the "student life" aspect of the university as it is more difficult to connect and communicate with fellow students, many of whom have different schedules. Motivation is also a challenge when studying virtually alone.
It's hard to rate work placements and career prospects as I am still in year 1 of the degree.
DON'T USE ARDEN I am so disappointed to see that many students have had a similar experience. Disorganised, poor teaching, lack of support, terrible communication (can't get through on phone, weeks without responses to email, very little written in clear good English...), the list could go on. For me personally- took over a month and constant emails and 3 attempts at sending the appropriate forms to get myself withdrawn; cannot seem to obtain my Pg certificate for passing 3 modules; was told I owed nearly £3000, made a payment, then am being told I'm due a refund and need to complete more forms and wait more weeks upon weeks for my money back. Appalling and so, so stressful. My experiences with brick Universities and the OU have been far superior.
Mostly N/A due to being a distance learner
I wanted to go to university at a time where COIVD was a threat globally, so instead of physically going to a university which would require distance learning at home at times anyways, i chose this a s a full time option. The fees have also been lower than standard university fees but this doesn't impact the learning in any way, for me in fact I feel as I have learnt a lot more than I would have done if I went to a standard university as distance learning constantly encourages you to find out techniques and tools online and apply them through tutorials either with the module or on YouTube. It does entail self learning however those doing a course they are passionate about will find this to be hugely encouraging and a big plus. Communicating with other students is not difficult to do as we are constantly communicating and giving feedback and often asked to be a part of group chats to discuss the course overall, however I would say for Arden to further promote collaboration with other students not just on the same module but on the course as a whole would be even more beneficial. Aside from this one recommendation Arden overall is a fantastic university to get the best degree for you and you won't have to think twice about doing a distance learning course as the support will always be there and you will learn just as much (if not more) than any other university.
The course is laid out well and organized too in a way which doesn't overwhelm the student. Lecturers are always available to message with throughout the module and will always response either the same day or the next.
Do not waste your money at Arden specially if your aim is to have a quality education. They will keep phoning you until they get the payment, once the payment is done. They will not bother about replying your emails. And dont trust them when they say you will get the refund. It's a trap!
Do not waste your money at Arden specially if your aim is to have a quality education. They will keep phoning you until they get the payment, once the payment is done. They will not bother about replying your emails. And dont trust them when they say you will get the refund. It's a trap!
Facilities, campus look and feel: We are currently studying on the second floor of Lock 14, Birmingham. Because all of the equipment is new, the new campus is supposed to be better than City Centre, though Lock 14 lacks comfort and IT support. In the chill zone and kitchen, there is almost always a bad odour; poor quality water; lifts are never working; in the classrooms, big flat screens and PCs are all new but sometimes not working properly due to some connection problem; as a result, students must go and find another classroom where we can study, causing confusion for other colleagues who arrive later and can't find the room where we take the lessons. These kinds of things, in my opinion, cannot happen in a globally recognised university. Student life and students' union: I'm not sure if we have something similar there. Student support: Since we moved to a new campus, I've noticed that Student Support sometimes responds too slowly. In fact, I sent an email 2 weeks ago requesting some information about train ticket discounts for students, but I have not received an answer so far.
In five modules, we had three very well-prepared lecturers (Modules one, two, and four) and two average-prepared lecturers (Modules three and five). In modules one, two, and four, we had very well-prepared lecturers who cared about us, sharing the knowledge in a very well-structured and interactive manner. I learned a lot of positive things that I can already apply in my workplace and in my every-day life. I also read new and interesting books. I began to grow as a person, and my overall feelings were incredible. I was proud to be a part of Arden because it was so involving, engaging, and motivating. In modules three and five, where the lecturers were average, It's just a waste of time and money with no chance of learning something new. The tutors were uninterested in us or the material we were studying. They were unconcerned about whether or not we grasped the key concepts of each lesson. It's hard to have adequate motivation to attend these kinds of lessons. I thought at the start of my course that I would enjoy sharing and receiving knowledge while learning new things here at Arden. This is why I came to study here in the first place, not to waste my time and the money provided by Student Finance England. I believe Arden can improve the way it hires associate lecturers (who enjoy teaching and care about what they teach) by conducting better and more difficult interviews, focusing more on preparation, accreditation, empathy, and previous feedback from other universities and students. As previously stated, having good lecturers and caring about resolving common issues can greatly improve the learning experience and Arden's popularity.
It saddens me the most to state that I have had the worst experience of my life with Arden. The moment I applied and got an offer letter from Arden, different people started to call me on a regular basis. Sometimes I would feel disturbed by their calls. They eventually managed to convince me to pay 1000 euros to secure the seat and I was told that I can apply for a refund just in case I changed my mind. I have got the phone call records, and emails with me as proof. A few days later, I got an offer from a US university, hence I talked to my program advisor and she instructed me to apply for a refund. I applied for the refund with a US offer letter, appointment letter, DS-160 form, and everything. It has been ages since I made the refund with a legit reason and I have not heard from anyone yet where I was told that I would get my refund within 30-40 days. I kept sending emails to my program advisor named Sameera Bhanu, she just is not bothered about my emails. I have sent tons of emails to her, the admin panel, and none of them are bothered about my issue. Once you are done with the payment, they are done with you. Keep yourself away if you encounter any Indian as your program advisor, they are more like the scammers. I am going to go for the legal action against them, just to help people not to make a bad decision like I did. The term runs for profit perfectly fits with Arden. Guys, if your aim is to get a good education, AVOID ARDEN!!
The course is somewhat good! I am more concerned with university student support. Their attitude towards students. It is awful!