I literally just graduated from there a month ago, so I can tell you all about it. I'll start with the bad:
APU has a condensed program (31 months of actual class and rotation), which makes it a challenge. The course load is also hard.
They two 9 week half-semesters (8 week and a week of finals). Spring I is kinda easy, spring II is harder. Summer's a breeze, then you get a 2 week rotation. After that, your own personal hell begins for the next 27 weeks of class. This will be all your core clinical diagnostic and treatment classes and fine anatomy. Fall I and Fall II are 15 and 14 semester units in 9 weeks (my roommate counted around 45 exams and quizes). Fall I is hard, Fall II and Spring I are VERY hard, then it tapers off for Spring II before comprehensive exams. 8 am to 5 pm is common. 8 am to 9 pm happens, but only for 1 class, 2x per week for two terms.
A word on comps: Having spoke with students from other schools, comps at APU are harder and more in-depth than most schools (at least, all the students I talked to). The hardest I heard of was a written exam and a case study they got ahead of time and had to do a treatment on.
APU's comps are the practice board exams (you are not expected to get an actual passing score), a cardiopulmonary eval and treat, a neuro/peds eval and treat (there's only one peds case) and a ortho eval and comp. No acute eval and treat, because you just did that for finals two weeks before.
All the classes after that are easier, and it pretty much becomes a matter of not screwing up your clinical rotations.
We had 37 people in class to start, and 3 failed out. The faculty will work with you and I mean WORK for you, but you only get one second chance.
For the good:
-APU is one of the less expensive private schools, and you can get financial aid out the wazoo. (Literally, around $180,000 in student loans, but I wouldn't accept all of it).
-Hands-on cadaver dissection in a large, well lit, well ventilated, brand-spanking new anatomy lab. I was the last class that had to use the old dungeon *grumble grumble*
-Class size is capped at 40 for the program
-The faculty are awesome. Incredibly knowledgeable, highly skilled and almost all of them still practice. They are friendly and very willing to help if you're having difficulty.
-You will have a Big Brother/Sister from the year before (for advice and assistance), and a Little Brother/Sister from the year after. Think fraternity or sorority here, but with less binge drinking and hazing.
-The last and probably best reason to go: You'll get one hell of an education, and walk away extremely well-prepared. For the written comps, a passing score isn't expected, but almost 1/2 my class got one. Without having taken all the classes yet, and with just under two weeks to study.
At my last rotation, the other students thought I was bulletproof, and one of them nicknamed me "Mr. Perfect." I wasn't even close to being the best in my class. (The nickname didn't stick. Too cheesy.) Right now, I've only lightly studied for the boards, but I'm still getting passing scores on the practice exams.
