American Public Education, Inc.

Overview

• Provides online and campus-based postsecondary education through three subsidiaries:
  • American Public University System (APUS)
  • Rasmussen University (RU)
  • Hondros College of Nursing (HCN)
• Focus areas: military and veteran education, nursing and health sciences, and career-focused programs.
• Offers a portfolio of degree, certificate, and diploma programs across multiple schools of study.

Scale and customers

• Total students (as of 2025 year-end): approximately 108,600 enrolled online and at 26 campuses across eight states.
• By institution:
  • APUS: ~88,700 students
  • Rasmussen University (RU): ~15,900 students
  • Hondros College of Nursing (HCN): ~4,000 students
• APUS serves a large military and veteran population: as of 12/31/2025, about 62% of APUS students self-reported active-duty service at initial enrollment and about 15% self-reported as veterans.

Employees

• Total employees (as of 12/31/2025): 5,841
• Breakdown by entity (approximate):
  • APUS: 2,397
  • RU: 2,720
  • HCN: 440
  • Corporate: 284
• Employee mix:
  • Full-time: 2,360
  • Part-time: 3,481

Segments and corporate structure

• Reported segments for the covered periods: APUS, RU, and HCN (with corporate and intercompany eliminations).
• Beginning in fiscal 2026, the company planned two reportable segments:
  • APU Global (formerly APUS)
  • RU Health+ (RU combined with HCN)
• Corporate action: On March 2, 2026, the legal entities that owned APUS, RU, and HCN were merged with APUS as the surviving entity; RU and HCN are now directly owned by APUS’s owner, with step-two consolidation planned for Q3 2026 (subject to approvals).

Programs and academic offerings

• Total programs: 295 (181 degree programs, 110 certificate programs, 4 diploma programs)
• By institution:
  • APUS: 133 degree programs and 98 certificates across five schools of study
  • RU: 47 degree programs
  • HCN: 1 degree program
• Nursing pathway: RU and HCN offer a ladder from PN diplomas and ADNs to BSN and graduate-level options. APUS emphasizes military-focused and service-oriented programs plus broad online offerings.

Accreditation and licensure

• APUS: Institutional accreditation by The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) with a Standard Pathway designation.
• RU: Institutional accreditation by HLC with an Open Pathway designation; post-combination status anticipated to be an accredited Change of Control.
• HCN: Institutional accreditation by ABHES (with certain programmatic accreditations such as NLN CNEA for PN). After the combination, HCN’s ABHES accreditation would no longer apply.
• Multiple programs hold programmatic accreditation relevant to their fields (for example, nursing and business).

Delivery and technology

• APUS: purpose-built student information system (PAD) and Brightspace (D2L) for LMS.
• RU: Anthology CampusNexus (SIS) and migrating additional functionality toward Salesforce; RU will migrate its LMS from Blackboard Ultra to D2L.
• HCN: legacy SIS; plans to migrate RU and HCN data/workflows into Salesforce for selected functions in 2026.
• APU Global business platform is being developed to enable scale with shared services and centralized technology governance.

Market position and strengths

• Primary market focus: active-duty military, veterans, and public service professionals.

• Strengths:

  • Affordability and emphasis on return on educational investment
  • Broad nursing footprint across RU and HCN
  • Extensive employer and corporate partnerships (APUS with 120+ employers; RU with 400+ corporate partners; joint programs with healthcare providers)

• Marketing and go-to-market:

  • Centralized, in-house marketing function within a shared services model
  • Messaging focused on military/veteran support, affordability, and value

Pricing and financial aid

• APUS tuition (documented levels): undergraduate $360 per credit hour (2026); master’s $470 per credit hour.
• RU and HCN pricing varies by program and campus and is adjusted to align with local markets.
• Financial aid mix: Title IV federal aid, DoD Tuition Assistance (TA), and VA education benefits. APUS relies heavily on TA and VA funding.
• APUS offers military-specific grants and a book-grant program; other institutions provide self-directed assessments and performance-based grants.

Regulatory context and risks

• Operations are subject to accreditation (HLC, ABHES), state authorization, Title IV participation, DoD/VA benefits rules, and nursing licensure standards.
• The planned combination and regulatory reviews (including Title IV compliance and state approvals) may affect enrollment, program approvals, and accreditation status.

Website

• Corporate site: apei.com

If you’d like, I can extract a compact table of key quantitative details (students by institution, total employees with breakdown, and program counts) or convert this into a one-page briefing.