Why "Of the People"?

[Ares]

As for Israel:

I don't think the point is about being anti-Israeli (for example, I'm not). The troubling aspect is the fact that they hide their actual Israeli headquarters, claiming instead that it's in "California". What remains to be understood is the exact reason why the University of the People uses this deceptive tactic.

PS: on second thought, one possible reason could be that if they said they were based in Israel, they would lose all their Arab customers.

Completely agreed. I wanted to make it clear this is not an American based school started by an American born business man as they try to play it off as. I also wanted to draw the connection to the communist villages in Israel. I have a good Israeli friend born in Haifa who told me the reason he knows communism does not work is he lived in a Kibbutz, some people would do all the work while others did nothing because there was no incentive for them to work.

University of the People's name immediately draws everyone to ask if it is real and likely will indefinitely. This is the same problem with University of Phoenix now too but for different reasons. I had an older guy without asking tell me the school is legitimate, I said I know but you see the problem? Why put yourself through that? I am a hiring manager and read resumes as a part of my job, schools like Ashworth College are never questioned but I've had other managers question if Excelsior and Western Governors University are real. Purdue University Global and Thomas Edison State University fly through with no questions asked, everyone thinks PUG is Purdue University, every time. UMPI would fly through with no problems either. School naming matters.

Based on reading extensive testimonials there is no way I believe UoPeople should hold RA accreditation either.

[infradata.it@gmail.com]

I'm just going to say it, without reading thread "smells communist" 
/
and then taking about 5sec I see Ares typed "communism" ... 

[Tomas]

There is no connection to communism. The fact that that they have kibbutzes in Israel and Amish communities in US doesn't make the rest of the people in those countries communist or Amish.
Students from Arab countries are as capable of doing some basic research before enrolling as people on Degreeforum.
Founder is not hiding anywhere, it is well known he is from Israel, university has offices in Pasadena, New York, Tel Aviv (Israel), Ramallah (Palestine), Sofia (Bulgaria) and Mysore (India).

It is a university accredited by WASC, all that matters.

I have read couple of student dicussions about the name over last maybe 2 years and don't remember any significant negative story from real life, either no one cared or it became a topic of discussion and can be easily explained, some interviewers were even quite positive about the low price aspect).

Sure, name is one of the deciding factors, that is legitimate, the question is the weight assigned to such factor, which is highly individual.
For one example, if I was a US resident 18 years old without any experience in the field, I would likely go elsewhere (not just name though). For people in all kinds of different situations, weight of name factor might be negligible.

[durain]

There is no connection to communism. The fact that that they have kibbutzes in Israel and Amish communities in US doesn't make the rest of the people in those countries communist or Amish.
Students from Arab countries are as capable of doing some basic research before enrolling as people on Degreeforum.
Founder is not hiding anywhere, it is well known he is from Israel, university has offices in Pasadena, New York, Tel Aviv (Israel), Ramallah (Palestine), Sofia (Bulgaria) and Mysore (India).

It is a university accredited by WASC, all that matters.

I have read couple of student dicussions about the name over last maybe 2 years and don't remember any significant negative story from real life, either no one cared or it became a topic of discussion and can be easily explained, some interviewers were even quite positive about the low price aspect).

Sure, name is one of the deciding factors, that is legitimate, the question is the weight assigned to such factor, which is highly individual.
For one example, if I was a US resident 18 years old without any experience in the field, I would likely go elsewhere (not just name though). For people in all kinds of different situations, weight of name factor might be negligible.

Just to add, University of the People is currently the most affordable way to earn a regionally accredited degree. For anyone on a tight budget who needs that accreditation, it’s a genuinely strong option.

Think of it like choosing between a luxury sedan and a dependable compact car. The luxury model comes with all the bells and whistles, but if your budget only covers the basic version, you still get reliable transport that does exactly what you need. In the same way, UoPeople may not carry the prestige of a top-tier university, but it delivers a fully accredited degree at a fraction of the cost so you can graduate without stretching your finances.

[question]

Students from Arab countries are as capable of doing some basic research before enrolling as people on Degreeforum.

I wouldn't take it for granted that everyone is able to thoroughly research before enrolling. We're talking about people living in very poor areas or in war-torn contexts: as I previously mentioned, it's not even guaranteed that these individuals have access to a computer or an internet connection. And in fact, if the real intention were to help these people, it would make much more sense to first give them a good computer with internet access, rather than sell them an online course… to someone who doesn't have internet — or, if they do, it's a very unstable and technically limited connection.

To all this, one must add that in large parts of Africa, illiteracy is still widespread, or in any case, the general level of education is very low. Many young people are therefore not able to conduct research and make evaluations with the same critical thinking skills as educated individuals.

Founder is not hiding anywhere, it is well known he is from Israel, university has offices in Pasadena, New York, Tel Aviv (Israel), Ramallah (Palestine), Sofia (Bulgaria) and Mysore (India).

It's very hard to consider the ones in Pasadena and NYC as real "offices". The truth is there's nothing there (or in the rest of the US) and the names of these cities are used as a lure to create the illusion that the school is "American".

On the other hand, I completely agree about the other locations. In fact, I would add another one: Nigeria. Many students have pointed out that part of the staff is Nigerian (and another significant portion is Indian). Is a university that outsources most of its (limited) operations to India and Nigeria really American? Actually, the whole setup seems like a way to exploit underpaid labor.

It is a university accredited by WASC, all that matters.

Technically it might be "all that matters", but this is perhaps the most questionable case of accreditation ever granted by WASC: in this specific case, WASC accreditation doesn't even seem to guarantee the traditional credit recognition usually afforded to regionally accredited schools. Take the example of Germany, which — uniquely for a regionally accredited American institution — still refuses to recognize degrees from the University of the People.

Besides, the claims made by some "UoPeople ambassadors" are laughable: for example, statements like "We are now like Stanford". University of the People is the exact opposite of Stanford, which makes the WASC accreditation seem rather absurd in this case.

Sure, name is one of the deciding factors, that is legitimate, the question is the weight assigned to such factor, which is highly individual.

Yes, but it remains unclear why such a name was chosen: it's objectively very unprofessional and certainly doesn't help when it comes to job hunting. Just think of a recruiter, or even an average person, who has never heard of this online school. They see someone's résumé claiming to have an "MBA from the University of the People in Pasadena": most likely, they would think it's a joke.

A user above mentioned that the founder is a communist. That may not be the case, but then why choose a name that so strongly resembles the People's Republic of China or the Democratic People's Republic of Korea? Go figure.

[durain]

It looks like I have to figure out why PeopleSoft Inc chose a name that so closely resembles the “People’s Republic of China” or the “Democratic People’s Republic of Korea?

[Jonathan Whatley]

Or the radical anti-capitalist journal People Magazine.

[tdat314]

As for Israel:

I don't think the point is about being anti-Israeli (for example, I'm not). The troubling aspect is the fact that they hide their actual Israeli headquarters, claiming instead that it's in "California". What remains to be understood is the exact reason why the University of the People uses this deceptive tactic.

PS: on second thought, one possible reason could be that if they said they were based in Israel, they would lose all their Arab customers.

Completely agreed. I wanted to make it clear this is not an American based school started by an American born business man as they try to play it off as. I also wanted to draw the connection to the communist villages in Israel. I have a good Israeli friend born in Haifa who told me the reason he knows communism does not work is he lived in a Kibbutz, some people would do all the work while others did nothing because there was no incentive for them to work.

University of the People's name immediately draws everyone to ask if it is real and likely will indefinitely. This is the same problem with University of Phoenix now too but for different reasons. I had an older guy without asking tell me the school is legitimate, I said I know but you see the problem? Why put yourself through that? I am a hiring manager and read resumes as a part of my job, schools like Ashworth College are never questioned but I've had other managers question if Excelsior and Western Governors University are real. Purdue University Global and Thomas Edison State University fly through with no questions asked, everyone thinks PUG is Purdue University, every time. UMPI would fly through with no problems either. School naming matters.

Based on reading extensive testimonials there is no way I believe UoPeople should hold RA accreditation either.

Anecdotal evidence or using a token reference opinion of a place is never really a good stance to take. The bleeding/blending of political statements into a regular discussion is pretty bad as well. Outside of the initial anecdotal stuff, being a hiring manager doesn't just mean you have the majority opinion here.

[Ares]

Seriously considering applying, but the name is really off-putting.

"I am interested in doing a Bachelor of Health with UoPeople but the name "University of People" is so bad I honestly can't even imagine putting it on a resume. They could pick practically any name in existence and it would sound better and more legit. [...] I appreciate the mission of this university and I understand the reason behind the name, but the name does not look like it's a real university no matter the accreditation. It just doesn't."

"No one said a brand name, but a name that doesn't sound fake would be nice."

"It has came up many times with the people I know esp among recruiters. Some even saying it was not a real college. then when we said how isn't it, they said "look at the name it sounds like a scam name."

"And I have worked in software for 14 years, and have worked for many major companies and multiple faangs and have been a hiring manager or hiring lead for the last few years. and guess how many of them names I have seen taken seriously? Only Rice. Same with UoPeople. most people I deal with think its a fake school. or as bad as a bootcamp."

"Oh yeah I understand the reason for the name but that doesn't make it any less challenging when it's on a resume. You can have the same mission and a better name. Stanford university's mission is to prepare leaders but it's not called University of Leaders."

"i agree with you 100 % . the name is not professional and universities do not make missions as their name. ppl come to uopeople for affordability and in job market employers do not see the name positively . i have been laughed at because of the uni’s name in interviews . the uni should go for the same mission but a better name as you said !"

What's up with the university name?

"I keep going back and forth about whether to study here. It looks good, but I can't imagine actually writing "University of the People" on my resume and expect it to be taken seriously."

"We're all in this together, comrade."

"This post was approved by the Soviet Union"

"I think you're right that it's superficial to judge a university based on the name. But the name is so questionable that it sounds fake haha"

"I had once a interviewer laughed out after reading university of the people..."

"I appreciate you might not have personally witnessed anyone laugh at the name, but surely just from the responses in this thread you can acknowledge that the name is problematic? My issue is that it sounds fake, so I don't think following that up with "it's free and online" is necessarily the best response to ease those doubts."

"I guess people generally don't want people's first impression of their university to be that it's fake"

"I want to study at UoPeople but sincerely speaking, you should come up with a more professional name i.e. California International University, Pasadena International University, Colorado International University, etc. Let me know when you decide to use those names. I also have a couple of names that would help this University gain a new status and the respect it deserves - reach out to me so we can work out a deal. I want to join this university but when people start joking about the name, I get scared..."

"Why not just go all out and call it "Fake Degree Shop"?"

Anyone else wish that UoPeople would change its name?

"...I feel that the name, University of the People, will raise the eyebrows of some outsiders. The name makes the school seem less legitimate, and somewhat unscholarly in my opinion..."

"Same. Wish they would change it."

"Aye, comrade. Tis' a great name for a great society."

"Yes. Horrible, horrible name. Even if it matches their mission statement. Couldn’t have picked a worse name, really."

[durain]

Some Advice for Working Adults Choosing a University. I will start with this first:

1. Prioritize Accreditation
Always choose a school that holds proper accreditation. With it, your degree will be recognized by employers or other institutions, no matter how strange the name sounds — even if it’s something like an animal or a human being ,such as “University at Buffalo” or “University of the People".

---

Next:
The degree opens the door—your experience kicks it down

2. Be Realistic About the Stigma of Online Degrees

A. They Fulfill the Checkbox
- An accredited degree (even online) meets basic HR requirements, but it rarely stands out on its own

B.Employer Perception Still Exists. 
- Some hiring managers may unconsciously favor traditional degrees, especially in conservative industries (e.g., finance, law).  

C. How to Compensate

- Your work experience and achievements must be strong and relevant to override any bias.  
 
Example: A candidate with a no-name online degree but 5+ years of demonstrable success in their field will outperform someone with a prestigious degree but weak experience.  

D. When Online Degrees Shine 
- If paired with industry certifications, promotions, or a strong portfolio, the degree becomes a footnote.  
 
-Best for fields where skills > pedigree (e.g., tech, project management, healthcare).