Nature of Operations and Significant Accounting Policies (Details) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Aug. 31, 2014	Aug. 31, 2013	Aug. 31, 2012	Aug. 31, 2011
Significant Accounting Policies [Line Items]
Long-lived asset impairments		$ 20,400,000
Employee tuition benefits	32,300,000	53,400,000	71,100,000
Finite-lived intangibles weighted-average useful life	5 years 9 months 18 days
Weighted average fair value	$ 10.24	$ 5.84	$ 14.10
Expected volatility	44.30%	44.40%	46.60%
Expected term	4 years 5 months 24 days	3 years 4 months 24 days	4 years 3 months 18 days
Risk-free interest rate	1.40%	0.70%	0.60%
Dividend yield	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%
Unrecognized tax benefits	18,398,000	44,057,000	32,207,000	25,811,000
Foreign currency (loss) gain, net	(957,000)	(220,000)	497,000
Restructuring Charges [Member]
Significant Accounting Policies [Line Items]
Long-lived asset impairments		$ 12,200,000
Minimum [Member]
Significant Accounting Policies [Line Items]
Property and equipment useful life	3 years
Maximum [Member]
Significant Accounting Policies [Line Items]
Percentage completion of course with refund eligibility	60.00%
Property and equipment useful life	40 years
Tuition And Educational Services Revenue [Member]
Significant Accounting Policies [Line Items]
Percent of total gross consolidated revenue before discounts	92.00%
Educational Materials Revenue [Member]
Significant Accounting Policies [Line Items]
Percent of total gross consolidated revenue before discounts	7.00%
Other Revenue [Member]
Significant Accounting Policies [Line Items]
Percent of total gross consolidated revenue before discounts	1.00%