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So Im back here thinking about pursuing my degree again. Its been awhile, things seem to have changed a bit. Most people on here are working adults with a stable career. I'm a working adult(late twenties) with a job, that pays "okay." I need a change/career. That being said, I know some here are going to advise going back to a traditional brick and mortar school, Im not sure I have the time or the money for that.
Just looking for an update on which of the Big Three/WGU are worth pursuing a cheap degree through. Ive read TESU has made it more difficult with their cornerstone requirements, going into affect July 1st(but looks like they're already enforcing it).
So at this point, if starting at zero credits, would it be better to go with WGU? Charter Oak? Excelsior? TESU? One of those cheap online community colleges? I have no clue where to start.
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I didn’t have a clue where to start either. I was about to enroll at my local community college and then I found this forum. I started with the alternative credit method and started with the free credits that you can get from TEEX, the institutes, and Sophia. That gave me 10 credits to start with. I think if you’re busy and don’t want to spend 4 years pursuing a degree, filling your general education requirements online is a great way to get started.
Then you can start with whichever one of the big theee you end up wanting to go with.
TESU - BS in Homeland Security & Emergency Management (BS.HSEM) (In Progress)
Started from scratch - 01/2019 - Completion - ??
Credits: 69/120
SDC: ENG-104, HIS-108, COM-102, COM-120, POLS-101, POLS-102, POLS-103, SOC-101, PSY-101, PSY-104, COMP-102, BUS-107, BUS-109 - 39cr
Sophia: Managing Conflict, Effective Teams, Student Success - 3cr
TEEX: Cyber 101, Cyber 201, Cyber 301, Basic Property Technician, Foundations of Fingerprint Comparison, Death Investigation - 19cr
Institutes: Ethics - 2cr
CSMLearn: The CSM Course - 3cr
ALEKS: College Algebra - 3cr
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What do you want to do? What do you do now? Does your employer offer any tuition reimbursement? What degree do you think would interest you? Things do change with the way/costs of the Big3 and now WGU work over time, but honestly there are more options now there there ever has been.
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I think right now WGU is the best option, then COSC then TESU then Excelsior for someone starting from scratch.
TESU with the cornerstone, capstone, graduation fee and residency waiver you're looking at around 5k just for TESU alone with Study.com discount. Then when you factor in the cost of study.com, straghterline etc plus procotoring you're looking at 6-7k minimum. Plus some degrees have no test out option so if you need to do one or two courses with them the price can become real high real fast.
WGU is the best choice right now.
GRADUATE
Master of Business Administration, Robert Cavelier University (2024-2025)
MS Information and Communication Technology (UK IET Accredited) (On Hold)
Master of Theological Studies, Nations University (6 cr)
UNDERGRAD : 184 Credits
BA Computer Science, TESU '19
BA Liberal Studies, TESU '19
AS Natural Science and Mathematics, TESU '19
StraighterLine (27 Cr) Shmoop (18 Cr) Sophia (11 Cr)
TEEX (5 Cr) Aleks (9 Cr) ED4Credit (3 Cr) CPCU (2 Cr) Study.com (39 Cr)
TESU (4 cr)
TT B&M (46 Cr) Nations University (9 cr) UoPeople: (3 cr) Penn Foster: (8 cr)
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Yes it really depends what you want to do for a career.
WGU BSIT Complete January 2022
(77CU transferred in)(44/44CU )
RA(non WGU)(57cr)
JST/TESU Eval of NAVY Training(85/99cr)
The Institutes, TEEX, NFA(9cr): Ethics, Cyber 101/201/301, Safety
Sophia(60cr): 23 classes
Study.com(31cr): Eng105, Fin102, His108, LibSci101, Math104, Stat101, CS107, CS303, BUS107
CLEP(9cr): Intro Sociology 63 Intro Psych 61 US GOV 71
OD(12cr): Robotics, Cyber, Programming, Microecon
CSM(3cr)
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(02-10-2019, 10:32 AM)Mil0 Wrote: free credits that you can get from TEEX, the institutes, and Sophia. That gave me 10 credits to start with.
FYI, of these listed only Sophia is still available. But you can still get CLEP exams for free through ModernStates.org, and $9 courses at OnlineDegree.com, and $25 at Saylor.org/credit (or free if you can find a local proctor that won't charge you, such as a librarian).
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JD Law, 2027 (in progress, currently 2L)
Georgia Tech
MS Cybersecurity (Policy), 2021
Thomas Edison State University
BA Computer Science, 2023
BA Psychology, 2016
AS Business Administration, 2023
Certificate in Operations Management, 2023
Certificate in Computer Information Systems, 2023
Western Governors University
BS IT Security, 2018
Chaffey College
AA Sociology, 2015
Accumulated Credit: Undergrad: 258.50 | Graduate: 32
View all of my credit on my Omni Transcript!
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02-10-2019, 01:05 PM
(This post was last modified: 02-10-2019, 01:08 PM by natshar.)
(02-10-2019, 10:25 AM)Jwheels27 Wrote: So Im back here thinking about pursuing my degree again. Its been awhile, things seem to have changed a bit. Most people on here are working adults with a stable career. I'm a working adult(late twenties) with a job, that pays "okay." I need a change/career. That being said, I know some here are going to advise going back to a traditional brick and mortar school, Im not sure I have the time or the money for that.
Just looking for an update on which of the Big Three/WGU are worth pursuing a cheap degree through. Ive read TESU has made it more difficult with their cornerstone requirements, going into affect July 1st(but looks like they're already enforcing it).
So at this point, if starting at zero credits, would it be better to go with WGU? Charter Oak? Excelsior? TESU? One of those cheap online community colleges? I have no clue where to start.
Well there is no best answer. I think the first place is to figure out what major you want, or do you just want any degree to check a box. Certain majors aren't available at certain schools. Does your employer offer tuition reimbursement? Also what do you value most? saving money? quickest degree possible? prestige of school? quality of education?
Also fill out the FAFSA which may qualify you for money from the government for school if you are low income.
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02-10-2019, 02:49 PM
(This post was last modified: 02-10-2019, 03:26 PM by Jwheels27.)
(02-10-2019, 10:36 AM)allvia Wrote: What do you want to do? What do you do now? Does your employer offer any tuition reimbursement? What degree do you think would interest you? Things do change with the way/costs of the Big3 and now WGU work over time, but honestly there are more options now there there ever has been.
I'm not entirely sure exactly what I want? I work in manufacturing, the pay is okay but its getting old, I dread going to work. My employer is great, they treat their workers really well. We get tuition reimbursement if we apply for it, but they only pay out for a degree related to manufacturing such as engineering. And that's just it, at this point I loath working in manufacturing, but its one of the few decent paying industries in my area. I would like to get into something that is a night and day difference from making auto/medical parts on a factory floor. And make more money. Maybe... sales. Tech. I dont know, like I said, I'm not entirely sure. I figured if I just get a degree it would get my foot in the door.
(02-10-2019, 01:05 PM)natshar Wrote: (02-10-2019, 10:25 AM)Jwheels27 Wrote: So Im back here thinking about pursuing my degree again. Its been awhile, things seem to have changed a bit. Most people on here are working adults with a stable career. I'm a working adult(late twenties) with a job, that pays "okay." I need a change/career. That being said, I know some here are going to advise going back to a traditional brick and mortar school, Im not sure I have the time or the money for that.
Just looking for an update on which of the Big Three/WGU are worth pursuing a cheap degree through. Ive read TESU has made it more difficult with their cornerstone requirements, going into affect July 1st(but looks like they're already enforcing it).
So at this point, if starting at zero credits, would it be better to go with WGU? Charter Oak? Excelsior? TESU? One of those cheap online community colleges? I have no clue where to start.
Well there is no best answer. I think the first place is to figure out what major you want, or do you just want any degree to check a box. Certain majors aren't available at certain schools. Does your employer offer tuition reimbursement? Also what do you value most? saving money? quickest degree possible? prestige of school? quality of education?
Also fill out the FAFSA which may qualify you for money from the government for school if you are low income
Ideally I would like to get it done faster and cheaper than your average state school. I don't have four years or $60,000+ to burn. Trying to avoid debt slavery. Like I told allvia, my employer offers tuition reimbursement, but its for people going for engineer degrees, im not really interested in engineering.
Thank you to everyone who responds, I appreciate all of your advice. Every bit helps
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Starting from scratch and assuming no tuition reimbursement and not sure about a field, I'd say start with your general education requirements that can apply to most all of the schools and degrees.
You could start with the free Sophia courses to build confidence and momentum and familiarize yourself with online learning without monetary commitment. Then you could start with your English composition, math(whatever level you're at), some humanities, social studies courses and a science course or 2 through CLEP or one of the online providers. If you're still unsure once you're most of the way through general education, then you could go ahead with a simple liberal studies degree through TESU or COSC, or possibly a general business degree through TESU, COSC or WGU.
WGU BSIT Complete January 2022
(77CU transferred in)(44/44CU )
RA(non WGU)(57cr)
JST/TESU Eval of NAVY Training(85/99cr)
The Institutes, TEEX, NFA(9cr): Ethics, Cyber 101/201/301, Safety
Sophia(60cr): 23 classes
Study.com(31cr): Eng105, Fin102, His108, LibSci101, Math104, Stat101, CS107, CS303, BUS107
CLEP(9cr): Intro Sociology 63 Intro Psych 61 US GOV 71
OD(12cr): Robotics, Cyber, Programming, Microecon
CSM(3cr)
Various IT/Cybersecurity Certifications from: CompTIA, Google, Microsoft, AWS, GIAC, LPI, IBM
CS Fund. MicroBachelor(3cr)
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(02-10-2019, 02:49 PM)Jwheels27 Wrote: (02-10-2019, 10:36 AM)allvia Wrote: What do you want to do? What do you do now? Does your employer offer any tuition reimbursement? What degree do you think would interest you? Things do change with the way/costs of the Big3 and now WGU work over time, but honestly there are more options now there there ever has been.
I'm not entirely sure exactly what I want? I work in manufacturing, the pay is okay but its getting old, I dread going to work. My employer is great, they treat their workers really well. We get tuition reimbursement if we apply for it, but they only pay out for a degree related to manufacturing such as engineering. And that's just it, at this point I loath working in manufacturing, but its one of the few decent paying industries in my area. I would like to get into something that is a night and day difference from making auto/medical parts on a factory floor. And make more money. Maybe... sales. Tech. I dont know, like I said, I'm not entirely sure. I figured if I just get a degree it would get my foot in the door.
(02-10-2019, 01:05 PM)natshar Wrote: (02-10-2019, 10:25 AM)Jwheels27 Wrote: So Im back here thinking about pursuing my degree again. Its been awhile, things seem to have changed a bit. Most people on here are working adults with a stable career. I'm a working adult(late twenties) with a job, that pays "okay." I need a change/career. That being said, I know some here are going to advise going back to a traditional brick and mortar school, Im not sure I have the time or the money for that.
Just looking for an update on which of the Big Three/WGU are worth pursuing a cheap degree through. Ive read TESU has made it more difficult with their cornerstone requirements, going into affect July 1st(but looks like they're already enforcing it).
So at this point, if starting at zero credits, would it be better to go with WGU? Charter Oak? Excelsior? TESU? One of those cheap online community colleges? I have no clue where to start.
Well there is no best answer. I think the first place is to figure out what major you want, or do you just want any degree to check a box. Certain majors aren't available at certain schools. Does your employer offer tuition reimbursement? Also what do you value most? saving money? quickest degree possible? prestige of school? quality of education?
Also fill out the FAFSA which may qualify you for money from the government for school if you are low income
Ideally I would like to get it done faster and cheaper than your average state school. I don't have four years or $60,000+ to burn. Trying to avoid debt slavery. Like I told allvia, my employer offers tuition reimbursement, but its for people going for engineer degrees, im not really interested in engineering.
Thank you to everyone who responds, I appreciate all of your advice. Every bit helps
Check messages I sent you a link to a cool tool that helps you mind majors and career options.
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