If you're thinking about going to college here DON'T like literally just don't, go anywhere else, you'll have a better time at a community college. I am an Alumni and graduated in 2024. It looked cheap and was super easy to get into but guess what... it's not cheap they hit you with so many hidden fees every year it literally evens out to be as expensive as bigger schools like Oregon State or UO but that's not it.... There is NOTHING TO DO in Monmouth or the Salem area in general. You're surrounded by farm land and literal fields of dirt. Not to mention the manure farm that you have to drive past to get into the town... a literal POOP FARM is what greets you to Western Oregon University, I'm not kidding the entire town smells like feces you kinda block it out eventually but if you think about it... it's there... always there. On top of the town being a boring rural, white trash, methane air filled hellscape. WOU has horrible academics and sports. Out of the many many classes I took there I genuinely learned nothing from 98% of them. The teachers are underpaid and the schools finances are so bad, programs get shut down and striped back every year. The sports teams are horrendous and many of the players think they're hot sh*t, they all have that D2 ego where they claim they're gonna transfer up but instead fail all their classes and spend 7-8 years going into debt to play for a mid ass sports team. Because of these horrible circumstances and WOU letting literally anyone into their school, the football team has literal criminals on it. I have wittinesses on 5 different occasions 15-25 football players mug someone. This always happened at party's where somebody would piss off one of the football players so 15+ of them would gang up on 1 single guy and beat the life out of him. Not all of the players are like this but I know many of them are. 0 stars, Save yourself, don't go here, it's such an awful school and in such an awful place. This review hardly scratches the surface of how God awful this place is. The people who like it are lying to themselves or don't know what a real college has to offer. read more

If I could go back in time and pick a different school, I would without hesitation. Western Oregon University is wildly overpriced for what you actually get, and that becomes obvious fast. Let's start with the cost. You pay a lot, but very little of it feels justified. The food situation alone is enough to make you question where your money is going. The dining hall is, bluntly, terrible. On top of that, if you live in the dorms, you are required to have a meal plan, which is expensive and not worth it. They have also restructured dining in a way that seems to benefit athletes more than the general student population, which is confusing considering this is not even a major athletics-focused school. Dorm life is also rough. When I lived there, basic things like heating did not work properly. Maintenance requests would be submitted and then nothing. No fixes, no follow-up, just cold rooms and frustration. Which is horrible because it'd be freezing in the winter and hot in the summer. For the price you are paying, that is unacceptable. The student worker experience does not help either. While I understand student employees are not fully to blame, some interactions were honestly ridiculous. I had an incident in Todd Hall where I was confronted for being in a "cozy room" that is presented like a shared space. If it is actually restricted, then label it clearly instead of letting students walk into awkward confrontations. Hearing staff talk badly about others in public spaces did not improve the atmosphere either. And beyond all that, it is just boring. There is not much energy, not much going on, and it is hard to feel like you are getting a real college experience here. To be fair, not everything is bad. Some professors and student tutors are genuinely kind and helpful. They are easily the best part of the school. But they are not enough to make up for the cost, other faculty/workers, the housing issues, the food, and the overall experience. Bottom line: Save your money and go somewhere else. read more

Awful college. My last semester was mainly self taught. I had a "teacher " share nothing but youtube videos for assignments. Joke! Dont waste your money. read more

My alma matter. This was a great university. Throughout my time at WOU I had phenomenal professors that were mentors & helped me with the path to completing my Bachelor's degree. I took a variety of Communication, Psychology, & English classes during my time there. It is a small quaint campus/ small town-feel with knowledgeable professors in their field of study. Most of the students at this university were kind and so helpful to one another. Invest your time and finances at this university because it is worth the college experience. read more

discriminated they don't think it's important to present and recognize my son skipped over him at the graduation. Everybody else's name got recognized.... after paying so much money for this stupid ass school I'm very upset no need to apologize. There's no excuse a bunch of haters, my other sons will never go to school shameful. Just goes to prove the point that this university is nothing but below standards no problem sell my son and myself and education there.... when it's time to recognize my son on the stage and put his name on the screen just bypass it like he doesn't matter all the hard work he put in , a total disappointment. There's no excuse there's no rhyme and reason for this. This isn't the first ceremony at this college I don't want sorry or excuse anything worth doing is worth doing right? the first time .... Specially, since he's the first of his family to graduate from a university, all the hard-working dedication and the sacrifice we had to make for him to go to school and pay for this tuition. What a shame read more

Stay away at all costs. This school is utter garbage and do not let the other reviews fool you. If you don't have enough money to pay for one of their better dorms, you get shunted into essentially a prison. A tiny room shared with another person. The public shower was fine until people started ripping down the shower curtains. Cleaning staff would barge in on you while you were showering. Half the toilets never worked. The RA's in the dorms blast loud music all night and reporting them resulted in nothing. Did not get a single wink of sleep the entire time. SHARED MAIL BOXES WITH TOTAL STRANGERS (No your dorm-mate). I had several letters and packages stolen by whoever shared my mailbox with me, and there was no safeguard to prevent this. Disgusting staff who would rather laugh at their students who ask for help instead of giving aid. Totally worthless advisory committee ran by people who are totally out of touch for the needs of the students. Professors would often not even show up to class without warning, leaving us all confused. Angry emails from professors personally attacking us when we didn't do well in their classes. Lying about access to facilities and care. Not having resources for all students who are forced to live in the dorms. Only catering to those who pay for the more expensive rooms. Laundry facilities were always breaking down or over crowded. Undertrained student staff who were quick to be defensive when anything about the school was put into question. This place is terrible. Not worth the time or money. I would even go as far to say that it is a scam. I did not learn a single thing at this school worthwhile. Transferred to OSU And never looked back. read more

Absolutely garbage institution. Was harassed for suffering from a mental illness by administrators who enjoyed causing drama for young people. No adults in the room, all petty middle school-type individuals. Academics were terrible, professors never returned emails, and overall I felt like I academically regressed while attending. Avoid this school like the plague it is. Go to Eastern or Southern Oregon instead. You will thank me later. read more

WOU is a great university that really cares about their students. They have a lot of different programs undergraduate and graduate programs, read more

We had a volleyball tournament here and I hope we don't have to go back. No outside food or drink of any kind- fine I can handle that because they have a snack bar. Unfortunately, the snack bar was ridiculous. They ran out of just about everything by noon (partly because they started with almost nothing). Hosting an all day (12 hours) tournament in April (think rain/cold), and not letting the girls eat anything inside the building except your sub bar snack shack food is asinine. I asked if they had anything with Protein (besides the peanut M&M's) and they shrugged and said "no, not really". Later in the evening they brought in some Little Caesars cheese pizzas that they decided to sell for $16 a each. They are $5 at the store! $5...10 I get... you gotta make some money, but $16 for a crappy cheese pizza??? They ran out of most of their soda, all their water. Even when they ran out of food, they wouldn't let us bring in a cup of coffee. No food/drink in the gym, I totally get that- but no food in the entire place when your trying to keep an athlete heathy and functioning for 12 hours is counter intrusive. Someone needs to revaluate their policies. read more

The institution is basically a dumpster fire at this time. Lack of leadership has resulted in a mass exodus of great people leaving the institution. The current interim president sends rambling messages to the campus community about all of the "great work" everyone is doing to right the ship. He has hung his hat on bringing men's soccer to campus and terminating long time employees who actually cared the institution. The Vice President for Student Affairs was recently non-renewed regarding his contract, which is actually a positive move. The Student Affairs Division is a mess and the VP simply did not provide the leadership that is needed at this time. Hopefully a new/outside perspective will lead to much needed changes and an infusion of energy for the division. Even though the campus is small, departments do not communicate with each other and students are often caught in the middle. It is fairly common for a student to be bounced to several departments before getting an answer or the support they need. Students of color have made very public statements about not feeling supported or safe (campus/Monmouth). The location for WOU is a challenge regarding new student recruitment and the retention of students as well as faculty/staff. Monmouth is a pleasant community, but students often suffer from a lack of available things to do outside of campus. Campus is dead on the weekends and events hosted on campus are poorly attended, including athletics. Students who assist with recruitment activities often find themselves talking about how close Monmouth is to the coast, Salem, Portland, etc. rather than opportunities available on campus. read more

My daughter seriously considered attending this university. I couldn't understand the draw as the location is horrible, in a small town with not a lot to do and 20-25 min away from a major town. But, I played along. We started emailing to obtain info and I would often get an automatic reply back that made no sense for what I was asking - as if it was a blanket response. My daughter has visited a lot of colleges and no other college took as long to respond to questions. Sometimes, they didn't respond at all to emails. Sometimes they responded and said they would get back to us but never did. Not sure who the office manager is but things aren't running real well if you are trying to recruit students. We are truly not high maintenance, just looking for information. It just felt like the staff really didn't give a rats patootie nor did anyone seem inclined to recruit potential students. I mean, if they can't fool you before you even enroll, do they even care about any of the students, once they are enrolled? My daughter attended an ID soccer camp as she wanted to play collegiate soccer. She went to the camp (we paid a lot to attend, of course), and the coach didn't even have the courtesy to do what he said he would do at the conclusion of the camp, provide a basic evaluation. If you don't like her style of play or she wouldn't be a good fit, fine, but at least follow through with emails and do what you say you will do. Total waste of money and the drive to Oregon to attend the camp (she went on to play college soccer her freshman year at another college). When we arrived for the tour, we were met with two tour guides who were clearly not into their jobs. We got more info by walking around ourselves afterwards. It was pouring down rain and they didn't even offer umbrellas (again, most colleges have this as a courtesy). I would have brought one had I known they wouldn't have them. The cafeteria food was pretty gross and expensive. They charge by the weight and the choices were not expansive. The campus is just meh. Saw a lot of controversial and political signs on faculty doors and bulletin boards (this is a public state funded university - why is this allowed?). Lastly, and what sums it all up. We arrive for scheduled meeting with an admissions counselor. She was not able to answer basic questions. This was the last straw. I am so glad my daughter chose another college. I think your kiddo can do better too. read more

Went to school here for 2 years. Learned lots. I liked it but felt a little disconnected. The University felt more like a community college. A large part of the school commute from home. I love Monmouth though. Great small town. read more

Let me make something very clear: I did not go to Western (WOU) to become a teacher. I am not a teacher. My degree is not in elementary education. I majored in anthropology. Yes. Anthropology. Let me make something else very clear: Western is not the Mercedes-Benz of universities. I mean, c'mon...it's WOU. Their mascot is a wolf. That said, I also completely believe that in a circumstance such as this, you get what you put into it. And I have no regrets about attending Western for my undergraduate career, and I feel that I have an undergraduate education that is just as good as one from a private institution. There are several things about Western that I loved, and several that I didn't love. I'll start with some constructive criticism: - The administration when I first started boasted that they had the lowest tuition of all the Oregon unis. After that prez left, we found out that he majorly effed up, and now the tuition pricing is all weird with a 4-year tuition promise and stuff. - I am convinced that the financial office is evil. They don't give awesome packages, and they're NOT nice when you go talk to them. - The campus is in Monmouth. Did you know that the city was basically formed around the campus? And that up until a few years ago it was dry? That means NO alcohol. They still don't sell liquor there. You have to go to Independence for the hard stuff. - The holiday tree-lighting ceremony. Why does everyone love this? Awesomes: + The campus is very small, both physically and enrollment-wise. And the campus is kept up gorgeously, and is easy to navigate. Heck, all the academic buildings are on Monmouth Ave. + Because there aren't a ton+1 students, your classes are small. The largest class I ever had had 120 students in it, for an introductory course. And that was unheard of. Most of my normal classes had a max of 30 people. When I started taking Honors classes, the class shrunk to about 15, and when I got into the upper-division major classes, 15 was a high number. Nine or ten was about normal. + Because of the small classes, the profs are really, really accessible, and you often get to know them on personal levels, too. They give a lot of personal attention, and were always able to meet with me privately on short notice. And they CARE about their students. It's awesome. + Even though the FinAid department sucks, you get more opportunities for scholarships, because it's a smaller school. My sister goes to UO and didn't get ANYTHING because the school has so many people applying for them. + I had so many opportunities to get involved and gain work experience at WOU, that I feel I probably wouldn't have had at other schools. The Writing Center hired me right off the bat freshman year to tutor writing (many schools only allow seniors or MA writing students tutor!), and I was also able to get involved with the student paper (the Journal), copy editing and being EIC 2006-2007. At other schools, it's a lot harder to get into an editorial position--or even freelance--if you have no experience. + I got to go on a pilot-project field school, and there are a lot of opportunities for study abroad. + The school is far enough from home (Portland) that I could be away from my parents, but close enough to come home if I wanted to. + The condition of the dorms was primo. Like, really, really nice compared to all the other schools I toured, both private and public, especially OSU and UO. + Kevin Boss graduated from WOU last year. That is all for now. But trust me, there is probably more. read more

I also majored in Anthropology and graduated a year after Danielle K. who reviewed WOU before me. Fortunately, she hit the major points that I totally agree with her, including everyone's weird obsession with the tree lighting ceremony. A serious negative that comes to mind is a common complaint-the advising process. This process can be precarious I am sure at any university, but here, I would advise to STAY ON TOP OF THINGS. My best friend just graduated there after he spent 6 years in college-mostly due to bad advisement problems. Just be sure that you find an advisor who knows what they're doing. Which, in the Social Science Department, isn't hard to do. The Financial Aid Office is generally clueless and not nice, though other administrative people in general are very warm and interested in you. I even worked for an entire ensemble of faculty as their grad program assistant and consider it the greatest job I've ever had. There were many opportunities for me to work on/off campus for the school, so don't pass up that chance! A drawback is that a lot of people in the highest positions (admin), are very experienced educators, but seem to have outdated ideas and are generally not with the times-the furniture and interior design in their buildings is just one testament to that. I felt that my participation in activities was wide and far-reaching, but some of those in charge of student life are predisposed to favoritism that I would classify as inappropriate even at the college level. To conclude, I feel like I got a great education at a great price but not without the requisite drawbacks. This review comes from working for the university for 5 years and receiving my Bachelors degree from there as well. read more

I did go here for a teaching degree, and expected greatness as I had heard so much about WOU's teaching program. However, what I experienced was mediocre at best. I agree with other posters about the advising staff. I spent an extra year, despite transferring in 12 credits and 2 terms of summer school, due to lots of bad advising. Here's my summary: + Dorms are nice, clean and I found the staff to be friendly and helpful + Food is edible. I was a fan of the stir fry and waffles. + Housing in the area is more affordable and better quality that what friends in larger universities were finding. I was able to live in a new house for less than my friends were paying for a 2 bedroom apt built in the '70's + Beautiful campus with lots of squirrels + Techniques of Relaxation and Dance Aerobics were amazing + Excellent dance and history departments + Huge variety of campus activities that were well organized and fun + Though not on campus I do have to mention Rice Time is wonderful - Teaching program was a joke. Many of the students going into the program left not wanting to be a teacher anymore due to the conflicting information, disorganization, poor advising, and just plain mean instructors. - You come out unprepared for the realities of teaching with only a bachelors degree. I had friends that got their masters in the same amount of time from other universities. Now I have to take classes while working to keep my job, and I get paid less. I graduated in 2007, so maybe things are different there now. There would have to be a big overhaul of the Education Department staff in order to make WOU a good teaching program again. On that note, people stop going here for teaching degrees! There aren't teaching jobs available and there is a huge backlog of teachers for the few that do become available. It is going to take years and years for there to be teaching jobs open in Oregon again. Go somewhere and get a degree that you can actually get a job with. read more

Here for a volleyball tournament today. "The gym guy" as the staff calls him, did not have enough seating area for parents to place chairs while we are here for 12 hours. When I asked about placing a blanket down to protect the floor, as this was their reasoning for no more chairs, the Gym Guy told me "Sorry man its an imperfect world." I then pointed out that their own metal chairs used at the score table were gouging into the floor as we speak since the plastic tips were missing off the legs. He told me that was fine, it's okay if they ruin their own surface. I explained this is poor customer service and does not encourage people to want to use their facility in the future. Oh well says the gym guy. 75 year old grandparents having to stand for hours on end is not okay when the solution is so simple. No wonder there are so many negative reviews here. Where is the university oversight checking The Gym Guy's common sense? read more

This review is for the grounds and campus of the school, not the academia. We visited Monmouth for the history, as my husband's family founded the Oregon Normal School in this spot back in the 1800s. The land WOU sits on is land donated by the Davidson family and their religous colleagues. They are also the reason that Monmouth was a dry town for so long. :) We loved the town and the campus. We visited on a beautiful, warm spring day, when everything was in bloom. What a lovely place. We can't speak to the academia of the school, just the overall feel. Hope to visit for a tour someday in the future. read more

I loved WOU! Graduated with an Anthro and Psych degree in '01. Great small college...with usually tremendous and attentive staff. Small class sizes. Great library. If you are choosing with going to this school and another larger Oregon university, choose WOU. It's worth it! read more

This school should truly come with a buyer beware sticker. Yikes. I wish someone had told me to relate back to that old 'don't judge a book buy it's cover' saying when looking at this school. Truly. Don't let the cute brick buildings fool you. This is what I wish someone had told me or what I could have researched more throughly as I am doing so now as I look at prospects for my new transfer school. By 2 year attendance at WOU was likely one of the worst life decisions that I have made thus far. Seeing that some of the reviews are 5+ years old, and I have been attended currently/recently, I can say that none of these problems have been fixed. Horrible students and staff. Staff is the least bit helpful. They clearly don't care much about their students. My advisor straight up told em to drop out of the school at one point after I asked for what path to take for a undeclared major. Encouraging, right?! Same dude also did not respond to my emails for weeks. If you have any issues with housing, they also won't help you. They'll create problems that aren't even there. I know Monmouth is a small town, but please, do not create problems that are not already there WOU housing! You're not as elite as you think you are. The students are extremely exclusive, and if you come from a area of larger size you'll stick out like a sore thumb. Extremely backwards morals. Most of the kids have gone here because they are 'big fish in small ponds'. I've always got the sense that if these students could relive their high school years they would. Monmouth itself is beyond boring and quite a bit odd. Not sure why everyone seems to have a stick up their ass here... Hmm. Academics are the least bit challenging. Comparable to high school level. Not to mention their small variety of academic majors. If y read more

I would obviously not recomend this school at least not the program I attended. I was in the Graduate Rehabilitation program, and would have been working with people with disabilities. It is a small program which one might think is a good thing, however things went down hill fast... There was a student who was let go during the second semester, and then another student let go becouse of a miscarriage. The first student I would say was a legitamate case, but even that ssue was dealt with inapropriatly. Money issues were constantly brought up more so then the education. The program was supposed to be dissability friendly, but I was the third student to be let go., after a year into the program. Few students were happy, many were disapointed with the attention they were getting, the course work ect. I had some visual issues that were not addressed properly by the staff, nor by dissability services so I messed up on some editing of papers.. This was the red light that got the negative attention, or spot light on me. I was even encourged to drop out of the program to save myself money. My last semester there was a series of staff meetings, was given extra work, issues of money pertaining to the programs scholarship. A lot of false statements were made about my being in the program that basically let me know, that no matter what I would not be continuing. The last week I was congradulated on improving, but was let go via email during the break. Once that happened a former insturctor became a bill collector.. I could go on but lets just say that I would not choose this school, many other schools in Oregon, and better programs in the psychology field. read more

It's a great SMALL school. I graduated in 2010 with a degree in Business. Due to the size I often had the same professors each term. This was great because I didn't feel like I was constantly starting over. They also have an amazing preschool on campus where my son went for two years. read more

WOU is not, never will be, and does not pretend to be U of O or OSU. If you are a freshman wanting a more traditional frat/sorority, football game culture, partying on the weekends kind of experience, you will probably not be happy here. But, like everything, WOU is what you make of it. It really depends on where you are in life and what you want out of your education. If what you want is a chill, individualized atmosphere with a ton of opportunities, Western is seriously the place to be. I think for non-traditional and working students especially, who have been there, done that and don't need to be in a more traditional college town, it's pretty perfect. I totally disagree with the review that it's all white and Christian, that couldn't be further from the truth for a school in this part of Oregon! I see far more ethnicities and cultures on campus than I do in the whole city of Salem. The wellness center/gym is absolutely phenomenal, and I am kind of obsessed with it. I have not had a bad professor yet, and those in the Psychology and Gerontology departments have been particularly wonderful to learn from. Even my A&P teachers have gone out of their way beyond what I have seen at any other college to help students succeed outside of class. Additionally, I feel I've had a lot of opportunities here, such as being an undergrad T.A. and being offered a spot on a student-faculty research team, that I would never have gotten as a traditional age student at a larger school. I have had good experiences with advising, but I do know people who have had similar pitfalls to those expressed in the other reviews. Overall, if quality of education, small class sizes, and a warm atmosphere are important to you as a student, but Greek/party life is not, you will probably be happy at Western. read more

I wouldn't let my worst enemy attend this school. While they are nice to you at first and treat new students great, their care for you POST graduation is another matter. Once they have wrung money out of you the school tries to forget about you. In 2011 the school made a mistake on my graduation and prevented me from getting into graduate school. This started a chain of events that has ended with my further education and goals being permanently halted. They ruined me so badly that I went from a 3.89 honor student to nearly homeless. Their response is that they don't care what they did to me. That's it- no one wants to figure out what happened or try and resolve the problem. It's my problem now despite it not being my fault. Avoid this school at all costs. If you know someone who is managing to have a life after this it just means there was no mistakes made by the staff. Lucky Them. For more details please see- http://www.gofundme.com/2i9evw read more