OVERVIEW

Columbia Southern University is a private for-profit higher education institution in the United States. It is one of the first universities which only offer online learning programs in the States, and has an enrollment of about 28,360 students now.

Columbia Southern University was founded in 1993, and developed its first degree programs, Environmental Engineering and Occupational Safety and Health in 1994. It is also one of the six Academic Partners of Delta Air Lines, and one of the 140 schools offering up-front tuition assistance via the US Army’s centralized tuition assistance portal. As an online university, all its courses are given on the internet, with its headquarter in Orange Beach, Alabama.

The university offers associate, bachelor, graduate and postgraduate programs in various academic fields, such as criminal justice, information technology, human resource management, and occupational safety and health.

The mission of Columbia Southern University is:

The mission of Columbia Southern University is to change lives through education by offering affordable, flexible, quality academic opportunities and extraordinary service, enabling adults to maximize their professional and personal potential, and serve the communities in which they live and work.

ACCREDITATION

The university has been receiving accreditation from Distance Education and Training Council (DETC) since 2001, and the Accrediting Commission of DETC is a recognized member of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA).

ACADEMICS

The Columbia Southern University comprises of 10 departments:

1. Business Administration
2. Psychology
3. Fire Science
4. Criminal Justice Administration
5. Information Technology
6. Environmental Management
7. Occupational Safety & Health
8. Organizational Leadership
9. Health Care Administration
10. Human Resource Management

The most popular majors and course of study for students are as follows:

1. General Education
2. Psychology
3. Business
4. Human Resource Management
5. Psychology

The university also has agreements with other higher education institutions such as University of North Alabama, University of West Florida, Waldorf College, etc., to offer creative online degree programs with the cooperation with these traditional universities.

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS

There is no entrance examination and no application fee required. Applicants are required to provide their high school diploma or GED prior to enrolling in an undergraduate program.

COSTS AND FINANCIAL AID

The tuition and fees for undergraduate students is USD 200 per credit hour, USD 265 for graduate students and USD 300 for doctorate programs.

Financial aids are available at Columbia Southern University, and they are given in forms of scholarships, federal grants and loans, or military aid programs.