APU: A Journey to Disgrace

Please take a moment to read. This is by no means an exaggeration when I say that APU can feel like a death sentence for some. In the situation I find myself in today, I have lost all hope in this institution. No names will be mentioned for privacy reasons. But first, let’s look at the hypothesis: “APU, supported by a trust and with beneficiaries to satisfy, has used diversity and inclusion as a sham—leading to student marginalization.” To test this, I had to reflect on isolated incidents and realize: they are not isolated. They are representative of a painful pattern.

1. Disciplinary Actions Disciplinary actions at APU, when carried out for legitimate reasons, are fair in principle. They protect students from legal consequences and protect the university from reputational damage. However, the process is far from a two-way conversation—it’s more of a forced confession. To give you some context:Last semester, I was disciplined—for legitimate reasons—and lost my scholarship for one semester. Reasonable enough. What followed was alarming.For the Spring Semester 2025 (this semester), APU issued a faulty fee voucher that included the scholarship, which I paid in good faith. Then, on June 23rd, I received an email from the university demanding I pay the remainder by June 30th, or face expulsion. I immediately followed up, asking if the remaining balance could be carried forward to the Fall semester. My appeal fell on deaf ears. I was told I had until July 30th to pay—or I would be expelled. Since then, I have sent email after email—to the office and APU executives—pleading for nothing but a conversation. And silence. Just days ago, I saw a Facebook post where someone described how they were summoned for questioning and treated in an incredibly demeaning way—even though their side of the story was never heard. So ask yourself:

• Does racism play a role in how rules are enforced?
• Are rules applied equally to all students?
• Does treatment vary based on where you're from or what name you carry? When I was at fault, the office relentlessly emailed me—bordering on harassment. But now that an administrative errorhas occurred on their side, my voice goes unheard. Coming from a developing country and having a Muslim name—frequently flagged on international watch lists—it takes months to receive money from my family. That’s beyond my control. Yet here I am, days away from expulsion over an administrative error—all because someone made a mistake and now wants to sweep it under the rug before APU closes its quarterly books. Time and again, I’ve seen friends leave APU, battle mental health issues, and even pass away, feeling entirely isolated. So again, ask yourself:
• What purpose do these so-called “consultations” serve?
• What diversity are we celebrating when biased treatment runs rampant?
• Are cultural weeks the only reflection of inclusion APU is willing to show?

2. Unfair Grading & Undermined Efforts To anyone who has endured a certain finance professor’s (let’s call him Prof. SY) class—my condolences. I was one of those students. That class was less about finance and more about promoting his book sales. I failed his class—despite full attendance and submission of all assignments. Now here’s the irony:The very next semester, I took another finance course with Prof. KS, a class that was intellectually rigorous and demanding—and I earned an A*. I am a finance major, and this disparity speaks volumes. APU used to offer hierarchical course registration, but now we’re stuck with a Russian roulette system. As someone whose GPA was consistently above 3.0—except during two semesters (0.9 and 2.8, followed by a recovery)—I’ve had to endure academically irrelevant courses in lower tiers. All my hard work, wasted at the hands of an unjust system.

3. Favoritism in Opportunities Internships. Competitions. Extracurriculars. These should be open doors for all—but they’re not. Selection is often restricted to favored students or those within a professor’s “inner circle.” Recently, I came across a case competition and sent it to a professor in hopes of being considered. The result? Every selected student had taken his course. I went out of my way, reached out—and received nothing. Not even a reply. How do we call this fair? APU presents itself as a global and inclusive community, but behind the scenes, it feels more like a morally corrupt circus—a tightrope act where only a few are allowed to stand tall. Diversity, here, has been flipped on its head.

4. Long-Term Consequences As mentioned earlier, disciplinary actions are sometimes justified. But what follows is not. Those same students are barred from scholarships, opportunities, and even extracurriculars. I recently came across a scholarship opportunity that I was excited about—only to learn I had been barred from applying because of a past disciplinary action. I’ve seen students fall into depression over this type of rejection. Meanwhile, APU floods the campus terminal with mental health reminders and “inclusion” messages. A sham. A loud, bright, glossy sham.

There are so many more stories—anecdotes I could include—but I will spare you the length. If you're reading this, perhaps you're wondering: "But how does this affect me?" I once thought the same—until I found myself at this crossroads. Let me be clear:APU is not a bad university. In fact, it has limitless potential in every segment. It has produced exceptional graduates—many of whom refuse to associate with APU after leaving. Why? Because what obligation does one have to an institution that refused to protect them? As I write this, I know this may amount to nothing. But it also might not.There may be professors here who can bring change.There may be students who resonate with this. To those reading:Use your voice. Share this message. Post a story. Speak up.You are the only ones who can stand for yourselves—and for each other. I will post this in all three APU Facebook groups, on Reddit, and on Quora.I will keep my identity hidden—for now—to protect myself from administrative retaliation. But if push comes to shove,I stand alone—and I stand firm.