| American Military University (AMU) | |
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| Motto: | "The Ultimate Advantage is an Educated Mind" |
| Established | 1991 |
| Type: | Private, For-profit |
| President: | Wallace E. Boston, Jr. |
| Students: | 20,000+ |
| Location | Charles Town, West Virginia, USA |
| Website: | www.amu.apus.edu |
American Military University (AMU) is a private, for profit online university and a member institution of the American Public University System. AMU is one of the nation’s largest providers of higher education to the U.S. Armed Forces and offers a comprehensive military studies and national security curriculum outside the Department of Defense. The University also serves a variety of students seeking liberal arts and professional studies degrees. The University is both regionally and nationally accredited by federally recognized accrediting agencies. AMU's corporate office is located in Charles Town, West Virginia, with administrative support offices located in Manassas, Virginia.
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Student Profile
- Enrollment: 25,000+
- Undergraduate: 71%
- Graduate: 29%
- Most are working adults in the military, public safety and national security sectors
- Average age of students: 32
- 69% are active duty, from all branches of service; 31% are civilian or other military
- Geographic: As an online university, students are studying from all 50 states and 130 countries.
History
AMU's origins reach back to Jim Etter, a Marine Corps officer who taught at Marine Corps Base Quantico. The University was incorporated in the Commonwealth of Virginia on June 11, 1991. At its launch, AMU enrolled 18 students in 22 courses and offered only graduate degrees. Over time, AMU expanded program offerings in response to demand by military students for post-military career preparation. With these new programs, AMU extended outreach to the greater public service community, primarily police, fire, emergency management personnel and national security professionals. As a result, American Public University (APU) was created and in 2002, the operations of American Military University and American Public University were reorganized into the current university system and began operating through two brands, AMU and APU.
Academic programs
American Military University offers more than 100 Associate's, Bachelor's, Master's and Certificate programs. The most popular programs are the Associate Degree in General Studies, Criminal Justice, Information Technology Management, Strategic Intelligence, Management , Homeland Security, Intelligence Studies, Business Administration, Sports and Health Management and Psychology.
Faculty
Fifty full-time faculty and more than 275 adjunct faculty deliver a student to faculty class ratio of 7:1. Faculty members combine relevant theory with real-world experience. Their academic credentials include such institutions as the University of Chicago, University of Southern California, University of Notre Dame, Stanford University, Cambridge University, and Harvard University. Many have served extensively in the armed forces or are executives in government, business and non-profit organizations, including the United Nations, the State Department, the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security, the Central Intelligence Agency, the National Security Agency, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Accreditation
American Military University — and later American Public University System — has been nationally accredited since 1995 by the Accrediting Commission of the Distance Education and Training Council. In May 2006, American Public University System earned regional accreditation through the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA).
