Hawaii Pacific University

Current student in a graduate program at HPU.
*Very expensive.
*Quite hit or miss on professors, some real good, others will have you figuring out how much you’re spending/​wasting for their class.
*Terrible Financial aid office. I was told they had graduate scholarships «for nearly everyone» and then they did away with them without telling anyone. Also they couldn’t process my loans without my intervention with the federal student loan people. Unbelievably incompetent.
Hawaii is beautiful but unless this is the only school that’s accepted you, or you simply have to be on island, go somewhere else. You’ll save yourself a lot of headaches and a ton of money.

I applied to HPU in May, I had a small meeting with two women prior and honestly I do not know what their positions there are but it was a small meeting with myself and 3 other people and we watched power-​points. The meeting was very impersonal and unfortunately none of my questions were answered and I was told I needed to speak to different people BUT they could not meet or speak with me until I applied… so I did. I was told school started on August so when mid-​August came and I did not hear back, I started calling. After contacting the school multiple times, I finally got a call a week before classes started and was informed I was accepted. From then on, I thought I would have been taken cared of and a meeting with financial aid and admissions would be scheduled (as I was used too with my previous college) But no. Unfortunately no one contacted me, I constantly contacted different people at the school regarding admissions, financial aid, books, orientation — I knew nothing! I have a family and a full time job, as I’m sure many students do so I needed answers, I needed to know when class hours were, where they were held, etc. I started the contact with one of the women at the power-​point meeting and she always told me to contact someone else, I never received an email or direct contact, I typically received a link. Some examples go as followed… asking about admissions, given a link to a page full of admission officers, I found two who fell in to my major and emailed them both. One responded asking my major and after telling her, she gave me a link to a change form saying I had to fill out the form to change my major (why?!) and I never heard back regarding any of that. I emailed this woman again and CC’d the man who called me to tell me I was accepted and they told me to call admissions… so I did and being now less than a week away from the start of school they did not answer (ever) I never got through — this problem continues to go on in this manner with links and calls to admissions. Now… Orientation, I was not informed of orientation until the day prior and was never told I needed to register (in addition, my HPU account was inaccessible, I was given a link to contact the IT department to fix this… it took about a week for me to get in) So I show up at orientation, confused, and register at a tent with others who failed to register online. I was a part of a group let by a Student. This was the ONLY fun experience at HPU, the man (Alec) was very personable and fun, I told him the problems I was having at HPU and he gave me his cell #, told me to text him and he’d try to help and even offered to show me around the school if I needed it (since the actual school never gave me a tour) I texted Alec and unfortunately he never responded or helped. As a student I don’t blame him, I’m sure he’s very busy with classes and this offer of help should have been coming from the school anyway. I was also told different information every time. Initially I was told my $ 200 seat cost could be covered by financial aid, then I was told it couldn’t. I was told it could be postponed and paid later, then I was told it couldn’t. I was told I could have it waived!,…received a link to the form and nothing happened. I was later told that this charge has to come out of pocket. I tried using an employment award to cover it and was told that was not allowed. Basically you HAD to pay it yourself. After being accepted in August, every time I asked a question about admissions, financial aid, books, classes, hours, location — ANYTHING — I was given a link or told to contact another department and whomever I spoke too had no clue what I was asking, commonly directed me BACK to the department I was just sent from or would take my name and number and never call me back. I felt like I was the only one working to get me in to school, I was receiving ZERO help/​direction from HPU. Eventually I got fed up with the maze of navigating HPU and I stopped contacting them and applied elsewhere… HPU never contacted me or followed up with me, proving, that I was the only one doing anything about my admission to HPU. At my new school, I contacted them and in the same day I had a meeting scheduled to come in later that week, I met with admissions, I was asked about my concerns and restrictions that would hinder my education or class time, I met with financial aid, was given a tour, was told what they needed and when they needed it and I ended up having settled everything in a week. The admissions at my new school even went as far as watching over my Son as I took the entrance tests. The experience was very personal and I knew exactly what was needed and when it was needed by and exactly who I could to speak to for certain things (no links! I got names, numbers, their work hours and a card!) this is how college should be, I should know what is expected of me and what I can expect from you, especially at the rate I’m paying for school!

I am writing this review based on my experience as a Master of Education student in the School of Education (SOE) at HPU. What a wasteful and frustrating experience. There is so much dysfunction within the department, including a profound disparity between various faculty members in terms of professional conduct. I will say that almost every single negative experience I had in the SOE can be traced back to «Doctor» (don’t you dare call her Mrs.!) Linda Andrade Wheeler. She is such an insensitive, unprofessional, two-​faced practitioner who seems completely detached from the welfare of any keiki who are not blood-​related to her. I got my 4.0 and I got out. I currently regret giving this incompetent body of «educators» so much of my money, and I now understand why Hawaiian public schools are consistently considered marginal institutions compared to the rest of the nation’s schools. Two words for the SOE: IGNORANT and OUTDATED.

I flew to Oahu earlier this year to check out some grad programs and tried to set up a meeting with HPU’s admissions department. I was in town for 6 days, but I never got a call or e-​mail back after I was asked to confirm an appointment.
A few months later, I received an acceptance letter into a different grad program than the one I was interested in. Pretty amazing since I never filled out an application. I never even got to visit the campus since their admissions department never got back to me.
Today, I received an e-​mail about an HPU graduate admission chat session… an hour before the chat was supposed to start. There was no advance notice in the past that there would be this chat. It would probably help prospective students if you gave them more advance notice than an hour.
I was skeptical of the reviews I’ve read online about HPU (specifically their administration), but I got to experience it first-​hand without even having to step foot on their campus. I actually wanted to go to HPU, but I can see what everyone is complaining about.
If you can’t get simple things right with a prospective student, why should I trust you with my education?

Too many international students. Parking sucked specially in town. Also got charged for parking passing a or by the day at the Hawaii loa campus and have the shuttle to take you to town if you had classes in town. HPU town classes is not a real campus since it’s in downtown and classes were scattered throughout the buildings and other buildings. Over priced education which was pretty easy but definitely not worth it. Only good thing about this is the foods that were around the bussiness that’s it. You meet an array of diverse and I’ll admit there were some good looking guys lmao!!!

Their secretaries in the academic advising don’t know how to do their jobs. Either they’re not properly trained or they’re just plain lazy. I made a phone conversation appointment 3 weeks in advance and it was mixed up. I had to call to correct it but no answer. Leave a message, no call back. So I call on my actual appointment time (phone appointment) only for them to tell me I have to make another appointment because I was scheduled 2 weeks earlier for an in person appointment! This is ridiculous. A private institution should be more organized and hire more competent people to do important jobs like this. I don’t know about anyone else, but I don’t have time to wait around all day for a phonecall that wasn’t even scheduled on the counselor a side. I do expect to be called back if I leave a message (or what are answering machines for?). Bottom line– HPU, you need to train your staff better or find employees with a little competence.

Students at HPU are the rudest, concided, self-​centered people I’ve ever met. I’ve seen them picking fights, swearing @ people (even grandmas), fighting with people. The nursing students are the worst. When they going to the community, they talk back to the medical professionals that man the 1^st aid stations, don’t follow directions, nasty people.

I think the people who go here that think they’re receiving a quality education either
A. Don’t know any better
B. Don’t care and want an easy ride
C. are in complete denial about how much this school sucks.
It may fit for some, like working adults, and people who live and work downtown and the people who just want a piece of paper when they graduate. But I want to warn hopeful college students from Hawai’i, the mainland and from abroad that this school is a huge waste of time and money and the education you receive really is subpar to what people at the big mainland schools get. (I never went to UH so I’m not comparing those schools at this time) I recently transferred to a big university on the mainland after going to HPU for a year. My new school is not only safer, bigger, and prettier, but I have so many more resources available to me.
ANYONE with money can get into this school. You will notice when you start taking classes with people and are in group projects with lazy idiots with an 8^th grade level education. I am NOT KIDDING. This actually affects your education and grades because in almost every single class you’re forced to work in groups and do a big group project. Also, one ½ of the international students do not even read or write English. They are just there for a semester or two for a fun time in Hawaii, while you’re stuck with them for a group project and they can’t even write up their part or perform their verbal presentation. This too affects your grades my friends.
Please if you’re reading this and considering HPU, please know that the mentally ill, drug addicted, homeless population hang out on the campus all day, every day. I am not even exaggerating. I didn’t think they would be a big deal at first, but after time, their ubiquitous presence really got on my nerves. They would threaten me if I didn’t give them money, they would stand in the middle of the walkway and yell at students, they would sit down at our lunch tables reeking of pee and BO and light up cigarettes 3 ft away from where we were eating. They would crowd around the bike locks, no doubt looking for easy theft targets. Not only that but the «security guards» care more about students sitting on a wall, than the bums harassing students. There is nothing you can do about the bums, they are part of HPU. You either love em or hate them.
HPU always felt like it was pretending to be a real school. Yeah yeah they like to push the «small class sizes» all the time. Community colleges have small class sizes too, it doesn’t make them superior. I’m giving HPU two stars because there were a few professors that were helpful and smart and taught me a few things.
Oh yeah! They say they are «MIlitary Friendly», but they only want the money! They completely forgot about the veterans on Veterans Day. When I asked them why they didn’t do anything special to recognize those students, they said they were too busy. The very next week they had banners and a party for «commuter students» I guess they weren’t too busy for those students. Anyways, the big schools on the mainland have tons of programs and activities for vets they actually walk the walk when they say they’re «MIlitary/​Veteran Friendly»

The only reason I came to this school is because it is military friendly. By that, I mean if you are in the military, you can pretty much expect acceptance as soon as you fill out your documents and not have to wait for someone to evaluate your application package against others. HPU is a huge convenience to military members because you can take their classes on base with their 5 to 10 week courses and the professors are very understanding when it comes to missing classes or turning in assignments late due to military duties.
Even though I had all my tuition paid for by military benefits, I still think it is ridiculous how fast tuition rates go up with no improvement in quality of life for students. They also came out with this new policy that states something about paying full time tuition even if you take less than the full time hours. This school gives you every impression that it exists just to make money. There are many international students that do not have a strong grasp of the English language that are accepted and pass classes. I feel that this lowers the value of my degree.
If I were to do it all over again, I would have started at a community college here and transferred to UH. Tuition is a lot cheaper and you get the college vibe because you’ll be on a campus with nice facilities. The downtown HPU campus isn’t very nice at all because it is downtown and you encounter lots of homeless people and it just doesn’t have the college vibe. Take a stroll on Dole St or University Ave and you’ll see how much better it is.
HPU works well for some people. Mostly those who are in town a lot or for military members or aspiring nurses. The night classes are great for working professionals. There are intelligent professors that are helpful. Schools in the UH system will have every good thing that HPU has, plus more.

Great experience, glad I chose HPU. Crazy international student body can and will broaden the educational experience beyond mere academics.
Speaking of academics, it is what you make of it at HPU. The staff, instructors, etc. are usually great and will go as deep as you are interested and capable. But they are also, for the most part, tolerant of the slackers who can squeeze by many classes. It can be frustrating to see idiots pass a course you may have put a lot of effort into. For me this was easily offset by the smaller class sizes (at least for CS students) and very accessible instructors.
I look back fondly of my time at HPU and count many class mates as good friends today, the world over.

if you are looking for a university to attend, I would highly recommend HPU. The teachers are all super cool, real smart, and the location is just unbelievable. I know that the tuition price is a bit expensive but the experience and knowledge you gain is worth every penny.
The University is Regionally accredited so you don’t really have to worry about your credit transfer because pretty much any other University will accept the classes.
I enjoy that some of their classes are short and at different locations. I have never had any issues what so ever and I am a proud HPU student!

HPU is a rip off! The education you get is not worth much if you want to transfer to UH. They rig major classes so that two classes you need to have in order to graduate were offered at the same time during the same quarter. The downtown campus is utterly depressing and has zero feel of a college atmosphere! If you’re taking classes at night and have to catch a bus or get to your car, walking down Ft. St. Mall can be a very scary thing since downtown is full of all types of VERY weird people! Also, if you’re not a foreign student, you might as well consider yourself a second class citizen and get used to it. HPU will find all sorts of ways to rob of your money, don’t give them that opportunity and stay away!!! They are a bad investment in your future!

Loved my time spent here and truly learned the feeling of ohana. My advisor was phenomenal helping me transfer in from Michigan and I really had a lot of great assistance from HPU people while I was making the big transition and move to the island. Great instructors — shout out to Espiritu, Ozturk and Zanella — who are amazingly encouraging, demanding and results oriented! Not just your typical heady academia — these people know what they teach and push students to excel (yes even in a tropical environment)! Dr. Zanella encouraged me to study abroad and I had tremendous career opportunities as a result! For a small private university I couldn’t have asked for a better college experience!
Also one of only a few schools that offer an accelerated MBA program — invaluable!

It might seem strange that a person who is now doing her graduate-​studies at HPU directly after completing her undergraduate degree will only give the school A-​OK as a rating.
The fact is I don’t have anything against the school, but there are so many things that could be changed. lets say. in the management.
I’ve been in a dispute with the business office plenty of times, luckily the problems have always been solved but I shouldn’t have to work my own ass of to get things done. The academic advising worked for me. In fact, I didn’t use them at all. I went during my second semester as an undergraduate, asked for a degree plan, got it and then stuck with it. I didn’t do any changes to my degree plan because I know that is what screwed most people up. That they were constantly changing the degree plan.
The last time I went to academic advising was right before I was about to graduate, and I didn’t have any problems whatsoever with the advisor, she in fact proved to be very nice and helpful.
I never had a problem getting the classes I wanted, but that depends on when you can sign up and how you plan your schedule. I was smart and used my own brains to plan my four years in college and that was probably why I was able to graduate.
I think that it’s harder for me to find classes now but that is because it is a small program and only a few classes are being offered every semester.
One thing that I love about HPU are the small classes. All through my four years as an undergrad, I found that I never had more than 20 people in my classes. I love to get that connection with the professors that they know who you are, you’re not just a name on a piece of paper.
I also admire most of the professors because they teach what they are passionate about. Most of them are people that I for sure will try to stay in contact with.
This school would get five stars from me if it got it’s upper management together, hopefully with our new president, we can see some change.
(005÷365)

The best school I have ever attended! I went to school here for International Studies and the classes were well presented and even captivating.
You cannot deny that being centered in Hawaii does not make for an amazing back drop to study at, for some it could be a distraction, for others a perk. For me it was a perk, initiative to get work done to go out and enjoy all the islands had to offer.
The counselors, teachers, etc. were all fantastically knowledgeable and accommodating. Even the financial aid office, which was my arch nemesis at my previous college.
Aside from the location and staff the diversity of the school was fantastic, and the fact that the diversity was widely celebrated was phenomenal, and like nothing I had ever seen.
All around best college experience of my life!

I’m supposed to be writing a term paper and needed whine about it to someone or something. I’ve already whined the ears off of most of my friends and family and I’m sure my neighbors have been subjected to my tourette’s-like outbursts so I thought Unilocal would be my next victim…
Why the heck must I write a freakin term paper AND take a final exam!!! This isn’t Harvard! I’m supposed to be Christmas shopping and depleting my checking account.
Ugh, when in my career will I ever have to write a ridiculously long paper with proper APA citations AND THEN, a week later, test my knowledge with a 4 hour cumulative exam!!! Tell me, HPU, when!!! Yes, I realize that I’m in the master’s program, but come on! I’ve been cooped up in my house for days sitting in front of my laptop with a mountain of journal articles!
Ok, but seriously, overall, a good skewl. I work full-​time and they offered a majority of my graduate classes online so I was able avoid night classes and weirdos at the Ft St Mall campus. Professors, for the most part, are dedicated and really work to accommodate their students. Makes it even sweeter when the company I work for is paying for my edjumacation. HPU is pretty expensive, but it is a private school in «paradise.»
Note: mainland kiddies, don’t be fooled by the lovely Hawaii Loa campus and the views of the majestic Koolau mountains. Unless you are in the marine science program, the majority of your classes will likely be held at the town location. It’s defintely an experience.
Ok, I realize that I could have added an entire page to my term paper in the time that I spend writing this review… back to the coal mines :(

I’m not sure how I didn’t come to review this location. I am currently in my fourth year at HPU. It has its ups and downs, but for the most part it’s stress. They never have the classes that I need because of the budget and faculty cuts. Good luck finding a good counselor. However, I was lucky enough to get a good one :)
The faculty is well-​knowledgeable, and the classes are interesting (if you can get them as I said before).
Parking is definitely a problem. It’s so expensive everywhere. I was lucky enough because my uncle lives in close proximity. Some of my friends, on the other hand, pay an arm and a leg for parking.

Think of HPU as a huge hippogriff and after 4 years of riding on its back (you know, it was a fun ride, made life-​long friends, yaddayaddayaaddda) it’s time to graduate.
But, then its HUGE talons claw onto you making it IMPOSSIBLE for you to ever leave HPU.
I was supposed to graduate next semester but because of the thousand level classes (we’re like master minds in JOUR 4900) and the weird general ed credits, I am graduating next year in the fall.
BOO.
Damn you HPU hippogriff.

I attended HPU to pursue my degree in Travel Industry Management. The TIM program at HPU is rather excellent. My classmates were from all over the world, from Botswana to Morocco.
Every class was unique and different. Also, the professors were very colorful and helpful. Most had backgrounds in the industry so you learn from their experience rather than just what is written on an overpriced textbook.
While the TIM program is top notch, the school as a whole has a whole lot of room for improvement. The sports program is lacking, as their most successful teams are soccer and cheer-​leading. Yes, this school greatly focuses on its cheer leading program, and it shows. HPU has been winning back-​to-​back cheer-​leading championships for millions of years.
The campuses are located on two very different environments, the windward side is huge and serene. The downtown campus is shared with the homeless people so everyday is a adventure. You just never know what’s going to happen.
To conclude, I spent 4 great years at HPU and when I decide to pursue my masters degree I would definitely consider coming back to the home of the Sea Warriors.

I transfered to Hawaii Pacific University from the University of Hawaii. First off, the major difference between the two is that you’re not constantly harassed by guys. When i was at UH i smoked about a pack of cigarettes a day and spent all my time with headphones on because it was the best way to limit contact by anyone who just wants get in your panties (dont know if that was appropriate).Anyway, at HPU people says comments as girls walk by buy it’s not an actual interaction unless the other person allows it.
The food selection at HPU is so much better than at UH. I got so tired of eating the same thing when i was there that i just drove home for lunch and risked 30 mins of driving around again to look for parking. the eateries in downtown are so good and there is such a large variety that you can’t really get sick of it.
Parking at both UH and HPU stink but i refuse to catch the bus. Especially because i have horrid experiences on them so I have hubby pick me up and drop me off.
Computer labs and study areas are all over the place whereas UH seemed to lack of it when i was there. When i’m tired of one location I pick up and skip to the next. I like this campus so much better that I actually go to school when I dont have class to study… best yet… FREE WIFI all over campus.