APU Articles
Graduate School: Why a Master's Degree is Worth the Investment
December 17, 2022
Pursuing a master’s degree is a significant investment of time, energy, and money. However, the return can far exceed the investment, especially when you add in the perks that often come with jobs further up the career ladder. Here’s how.
Maximizing the Student Experience: On-Campus Employment
December 16, 2022
Azusa Pacific University provides students with the opportunity to learn academic skills in the classroom while gaining knowledge in work contexts. On-campus employment employment offers an encouraging, supportive environment for students to learn how to manage priorities, advocate for themselves, and expand their skill sets.
Learning from LEGO®: LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® North American Community Meeting
December 15, 2022
This November, LEGO® Serious Play® facilitators gathered from all over the world at Azusa Pacific University for the annual LEGO® Serious Play® North American Community Meeting. The meeting was led by Wendi Dykes McGehee, PhD, CF-LSP, chair of the Department of Leadership and Organizational Psychology, and Jillian Gilbert, DSL, CF-LSP, associate professor in the School of Business Management, as the participants learned from each other about how to better steward LEGO®.
Luke Irving: Skilled Photographer and Communicator
December 13, 2022
When you scroll through Luke Irving’s ’17 Instagram page (Luke_Over_Here), you will be astonished by sweeping landscapes, cozy cabins, and stunning images of flora and fauna in the greater Seattle area. As you immerse yourself in seeing the world through Irving’s eyes, you may wonder how this photographer became so skilled in capturing the natural world. After graduating from Azusa Pacific University as a Communication Studies major in 2017, Irving dove into the creative world of photography.
Flexible Learning Solutions for Graduate and Older Students
December 07, 2022
If you’re a graduate or older student returning to school, you probably need more flexible learning options. After all, you may be juggling a day job, family responsibilities, and dozens of other obligations along with your academic course load.
Bailey Wilson '18: If the Lord Leaves a Door Open, Run Through It
December 06, 2022
When Bailey Wilson ’18 opened her food truck, Bondi Bowls, she had no idea that it would become so popular and grow so rapidly. The idea for the business had come from her mother after noticing how bored Wilson was laying around her house in Oklahoma in the early days of the COVID pandemic. “She said, ‘Bailey, you need to get out of the house. You’ve been making these delicious acai bowls for Dad. He loves them. Your friends love them. You should share them with the community.’” Wilson found a used food truck on Facebook Marketplace, fixed it up and repainted it with her father, and launched Bondi Bowls on June 1, 2020. “I didn’t think many people would show up,” Wilson said. “But when my sister and I opened the window, there was a line of people so long it went through the entire parking lot. We literally hit the ground running.”
APU Libraries Display Special Collection Exhibit: Advent Voices
December 05, 2022
Azusa Pacific University’s Libraries will display a special collections exhibit entitled Advent Voices: Waiting Between Time for the Star of the East from Dec. 1-16, 2022 in the Darling Library Rotunda. Curated by librarian Luba V. Zakharov, MA, MTS, MLS, MFA, this exhibit includes a variety of illuminated manuscripts, books, leaves, and images dated from as far back as 1380 A.D.
9 Tools for Your Financial Aid Toolkit: A Guide for Parents
December 01, 2022
You’re about to enter a whole new world with your high school student looking at colleges, and most likely, that will mean securing financial aid. Rest assured, the process isn’t as complicated as it seems, but your child will need your assistance.
Why You Should Transfer to a Private University
November 29, 2022
5 Scholarships for College That Can Cut Your Education Expenses
November 21, 2022
When you’re evaluating how much your college education will cost, you’re probably looking at the sticker price. But that number can be misleading—at Azusa Pacific University, most students pay less than that amount. In fact, 100 percent of APU students receive some form of financial aid.
Paying for College: Deciphering Your Bill
November 18, 2022
Paying for college doesn’t need to be cumbersome. In some ways, your college bill is like any other bill: It states the amount you owe, how it’s totaled, the due date, and information about where and how to pay.
Student Spotlight: Zuleika Franco Learns to Know God Better through Biology
November 17, 2022
Azusa Pacific University senior biology major Zuleika Franco ’23 dreams of becoming a physician one day. She took a big step toward achieving this goal last summer when she interned at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, the top hospital in California and second ranked hospital in the nation. More than 600 students from across the country applied to the summer program and Franco was 1 of just 20 selected to participate. “It was pretty intense. I honestly didn’t expect to get it, but I’m so grateful that I did,” she said. “It was an amazing opportunity to learn from renowned physicians and other healthcare professionals.”
Karen Hall: Reimagining Classical Music Through Clowning
November 14, 2022
The lights dim, and the stage is empty, except for a woman wearing a long, black evening gown. The oddity of the scene is instead of holding a cello as the audience anticipated, she is holding a sandwich. She slowly devours her meal and then demonstrates her cello mastery by playing “Suite Number One in G Major” by Johann Sebastian Bach. Her demeanor is conversational, and her striking but relational presence carries through the performance. She shares deeply personal anecdotes from her past that instantly connect her to the audience. Through her honest, emotional exploration of failure and play, Karen Hall ’09 combines two unlikely disciplines– classical music and clowning.
Prospective Students Find Belonging at APU
November 09, 2022
On a rainy Saturday in October, more than 180 students from Kern High School District (KHSD) filed onto six school buses and headed down the I-5. After a two-hour journey, they arrived on Azusa Pacific University’s campus and were welcomed into the Upper Turner Campus Center (UTCC) by a team of students, faculty, and staff. Led by Bryan Bowens, EdD ’14, the students made the trip as part of Project BEST (Black Excellence in Scholarship and Teaching). “I am a product of Project BEST and the Black Student Union from KHSD,” Bowens said. “I wanted these students to experience APU in the same way I experienced APU, to consider it as a viable option for college because it could change their lives in the same way it changed mine.”
Eileen O’Neall: Restoring Hope Overseas Through the Arts
November 02, 2022
One trip changed the trajectory of Eilen O’Neall’s (’12) life. During her junior year at Azusa Pacific University, O’Neall went on a Center for Student Action (CSA) trip to the Himalayas. O’Neall, who majored in music education and performance, was on the way to teach music classes at a Mother Theresa home in Kolkata when she saw a blind boy begging for change. “He was singing and he had such a beautiful voice,” O’Neall recalled. “That was my first time seeing the effects of human trafficking. It was an eye-opening experience.”
