Founded in 1914, Johnson & Wales University is a private, nonprofit, accredited institution with approximately 16,000 graduate, undergraduate and online students at its campuses in Providence, Rhode Island, and Charlotte, North Carolina.

An innovative educational leader, the university offers degree programs in arts and sciences, business, culinary arts, education, health sciences, nutrition, hospitality, and technology. Its unique model integrates arts and sciences and industry-focused education with work experience and leadership opportunities, inspiring students to achieve professional success and lifelong personal growth.

The university’s impact is global, with over 90,000 alumni from 119 countries pursuing careers worldwide.

Online courses run on a semester model with each semester broken into two sessions. Most courses are 8-weeks-long and are offered during sessions I or II each semester. However, some 16-week courses are still offered and run the length of the entire semester. Sessions start in August, October, January, March, May, and July.

Yes. JWU offers “prior learning assessment credit,” allowing you to earn credits for the knowledge or skills you’ve mastered. Credit can be earned through portfolio development or with departmental challenge examinations (credit by examination). JWU also accepts College-Level Examination Program (CLEP) examination credit. To learn more about taking these assessments, visit the Testing for Credit section of our Registration and Graduation Information site.

No. The FAFSA is free to apply. If you need help, your designated JWU financial planner is available by phone and email.

When leaving a message, please include your student ID number, mention that you are an online student, and be as detailed as possible. During peak times, please allow 48-72 business hours for a response.

Office Hours:
Mon – Fri: 8:30am-4:30pm EST
Offices close at 1pm on Friday during the summer months

Upon completion of your degree, you must complete an Exit Interview to ensure you are aware of your rights and responsibilities as a Federal Student Loan borrower.

You will then have a six-month grace period before you have to begin payments.

Step 1: Submit an application for readmission. Once your application has been received and reviewed, an admissions officer will call you to discuss next steps for your enrollment.

Step 2: Submit a company reimbursement form (if applicable).

Step 3: Complete a FAFSA to apply for financial aid (be sure to include JWU’s school code on your application: 003404).

If you have questions about JWU online programs or the readmission process, please feel free to contact our admissions department.

We work with the following federal education benefit programs for veterans and active-duty personnel:

• GI Bill®
• Yellow Ribbon Program
• Post-9/11 GI Bill®

Our VA certifying official can help you through the process of applying and utilizing these funds.

We also work with veterans on vocational rehab. Learn more about military benefits at JWU.

If you plan to utilize veterans benefits, contact JWU’s VA certifying official at least 30 days prior to your first term:

Jaime Wager
401-598-1483

In online courses at Johnson & Wales University, the instructor and students are connected through ulearn, JWU’s online learning course platform (Blackboard).

Through ulearn, you receive instruction; review course content; submit assignments; ask questions of the instructor and other students; discuss issues; and actively participate in the class from your home, office, or wherever a computer and Internet connection is available.

Although you can participate in the course on your own time, you must stick to a course schedule and complete activities, assignments, exams and participation requirements according to their deadlines. Online courses are equivalent in content and rigor to JWU’s traditional face-to-face courses.

In order to fully participate in online courses, each student is expected to have access to a computer that meets minimum requirements. In an effort to maximize the functionality of the online learning platform, changes are occasionally made to the platform that lead to changes in the minimum requirements.

As of December 2017, the minimum requirements are as follows. 

Operating System    
PC: Windows 7 or higher
Mac: Mac OS 10.8+
RAM: 512 MB minimum; 1 GB recommended     

Free Disk Space    
4 GB or higher    

CPU    
PC: 1.7 GHz or higher
Mac: PowerMac or higher

Browser (one or more of the following):    
Internet Explorer 9.0+ (Windows only)
Mozilla Firefox 31+
Google Chrome 36+
Safari 6+ (MacOS only)

*International students should consider using Firefox or Safari for best performance    

Browser Settings    
JavaScript enabled, popup blockers disabled and cookies enabled    

Plug-ins    
Adobe Acrobat Reader 8 or higher    
Macromedia Flash Player 9.0 or higher    
Java Standard Edition 7 or higher    

Supplementary Software    
Ability to save documents in a format that can be opened by Microsoft Office    
Ability to view documents created in Microsoft Office    
Anti-virus software    

Internet Connection    
Broadband connection (DSL, cable, ISDN, etc.) with consistent high-speed connectivity    

Other Hardware    
Soundcard
Speakers or a headset
Microphone
Webcam

Each course has a syllabus that outlines expectations and requirements for the course. Each online course has activities, assignments and assessments required throughout the course according to a schedule.

Participation requirements may include posting a certain number of original messages, responding to a certain number of other posts, or logging in and contributing a certain number of times each week.

It is important that you stick to the schedule for the course. The schedule exists to make sure you and your classmates are engaged in the same content and online discussions as the same time, which leads to a quality online learning experience.

Online courses are graded in much the same way as our face-to-face courses.

Assignments are turned in online and graded by faculty. Tests are created and delivered online. Fixed answer questions (true/false, multiple choice-style questions) are graded automatically, and open-ended questions (essay, long answer) are graded by the instructor.

Some faculty grade participation in discussion forums, blogs and journals. Collaborative work on group projects may also be graded.

In the course syllabus, each instructor outlines how she or he should be contacted and his/her expected response time. Many instructors check in to courses daily during the week to respond to emails, review discussions and assignments, and provide course input. Many instructors offer virtual office hours via phone during office hours.

Each course includes several required activities with deadlines for completion. The activities may include completion of assignments, taking exams, participating in discussions, etc.

The instructor is able to track whether or not each student has completed the activities through ulearn.

The university does not mail term grade reports. Although grades for online courses are available in ulearn, all official grades are available online via jwuLink, where you may access your grades securely and print them at your discretion.

You will receive a notification in your JWU email each term when the grades are available in jwuLink.

Textbooks for online learning courses are available from the JWU Bookstore.

When ordering, select “Books,” then choose “Downcity and Online Campus." Follow the prompts.

Textbooks for online sections may be different from on-campus classes – always double-check your course section code before placing your order.