Advice on fastest BA Degree for MA in Pyschology

[cc_nyc_111]

Hi!

So happy to have found this forum after much research and still feeling overwhelmed at the best route to take. 

Live: NYC

Credits: none that I can access 

Professional Experience: 15 years as a trainer, facilitator, and equine therapist

Certifications:
 Leadership Coaching NYU
ATD Master Trainer/Facilitator
Natural Lifemanship Advanced Trauma Informed Equine Therapist 

Goal: to obtain the fastest BA available so I can move on to a MA in Transpersonal Pyschology from Sophia University https://www.sofia.edu/psychology/matp/ 

or Spiritual Pyschology MA. 

What would be the fastest way to a BA, I see a lot of threads suggesting UMPI in a matter of months, although they don't have Pyschology, not that a BA in Pysch is necessary for a MA in Pysch. 

I also would love to leverage my previous work experience however it seems that can be more daunting that taking speedy courses. 

Suggestions? Degree templates ?

Thank you SO much!

[ss20ts]

Many people complete degrees at UMPI in 6 months starting with 0 credits. It's all a matter of how much time you have to get through classes. If you can get 90 ACE credits completed in 3-4 months than you can complete your degree at UMPI in 1-2 sessions. The BLS would provide you with an opportunity to complete a minor (there are 5 options to choose from and you must choose 1) along with 60ish general elective credits. So you could take psych classes on Study or elsewhere and transfer them to UMPI and use them as general electives. You do need to complete a minimum of 24 UL credits with the majority of them completed at UMPI as part of those 60 credits.

ETA: You have a few certifications and UMPI may give you credit for them if you can get a transcript for them.

[bjcheung77]

@cc_nyc_111 - Welcome to the board!  You've provided some basic details, but the main template and addendum was missed.  If we know more on your scenario and situation, it'll be easier to recommend UMPI if you have the energy/time and no commitments and plenty of experience in some subject areas.  However, if "life happens" and you have more commitments and less time, then you can take Excelsior/TESU or another degree.  Please fill the template details mentioned here: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...Area-works

[dfrecore]

Quick note on the "Credits: none that I can access" answer. Is there a reason you can't access prior credit? If it's because they're from a foreign country, you might want to try to get them here, and they will help with your degree. If it's because you owe money to a school, so they won't give you your transcripts, you may want to work on getting that paid off - because none of the Big 3, and I'm assuming UMPI, and probably just about any other school in the US, is going to let you graduate when you owe money to another school.

[cc_nyc_111]

@cc_nyc_111 - Welcome to the board!  You've provided some basic details, but the main template and addendum was missed.  If we know more on your scenario and situation, it'll be easier to recommend UMPI if you have the energy/time and no commitments and plenty of experience in some subject areas.  However, if "life happens" and you have more commitments and less time, then you can take Excelsior/TESU or another degree.  Please fill the template details mentioned here: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...Area-works

thank you for the warm welcome!

Apologies for missing the template, here you go:


Your Location: NYC, NY
Your Age: 39
What kind of degree do you want?: Bachelors (fastest) so I can enroll in a Master in Psychology 
Current Regional Accredited Credits: 0 

*(I attended St Johns University out of HS, unfortunately my parents did not pay bill so I lost a years worth of credits, this is not in my name, I do not owe the school any money)


Current ACE, CLEP, or NCCRS Credits: none



Any certifications or military experience? Certifications: 

New York University, Advanced Diploma in Coaching
Association of Talent Development, Master Trainer/Facilitator and Coaching Certification
Natural Lifemanship Institute, Advanced Level 2 Trauma Informed Equine Therapist 
PATH International, Certified Equine Therapy Riding Instructor 
KRI, Certified Yoga and Meditation Teacher



Work Experience: I have 15 years of work experience as a Trainer, Facilitator and Coach for automotive manufacturers, as well as an Equine Therapy Coaching. I would love to parlay some of this into Prior Learning Experience, I applied to TESU, and am elidgable for financial aide, however, I felt very overwhelmed at their process for PLE and where to "start" as you have to take courses, submit a portfolio for review. Then I discovered this forum, and am now wondering if UMPI would be a better option for me...and what template to follow to knock out courses as quickly as possible. 

Goal: To obtain my Bachelors as quickly as possible so I can enroll in a Masters in Transpersonal Psychology at Sophia University  https://www.sofia.edu/psychology/matp/   or a MA in Spiritual Psychology, to support my career as an Equine Therapist. 

Time Constraints: I currently work for myself as a coach and consultant remotely, I am able to dedicate a fair ammt of time to school...however I have been out of a traditional school setting for 20 years now, and while I can breeze through psychology studies, basic courses in math and science will be more of a challenge for me. 

Thank you for the time in reading this and I appreciate any advice!!

[rachel83az]

PLA at TESU is usually too much of a hassle, unless you can't get credits any other way. UMPI would probably be faster, especially if you're fine with writing papers.

I'd check out these pages on the wiki: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Category:UMPI for UMPI and https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Sa...ts_Roadmap for TESU. This will give you a better idea of what each school expects and which degree is right for you.

Thankfully, for both schools, you can do most of your gen eds through Sophia. Sophia.org is fast, easy, and quick.

[bjcheung77]

@cc_nyc_111 - (I attended St Johns University out of HS, unfortunately my parents did not pay bill so I lost a years worth of credits, this is not in my name, I do not owe the school any money).  This is a concern you want to resolve, as mentioned, it will cause issues when the time for graduation comes.  The payment plans may be under your parents names but the student records are under yours...

More questions and answer time!  Budget, Tuition assistance/reimbursement?  Other commitments besides work, kids?  Dedicated time to study each day or week?  The main question really is, do you need a Spiritual or Transpersonal Psychology degree when you technically also entered Masters in Psychology?  I usually recommend 3 things, certs, degree, experience - you have two of the three already.

Depending on your answers, it really boils down to a few options.  I suggest skipping TESU and going for UMPI BABA if you want to get into the "business" side of things later OR their BLS and get 1-3 minors of your choice (including a Psychology Minor).  Then ladder up to the Walden MS Psychology.  I don't think you really need a "specialization" in Psychology for Equine Therapy.

[cc_nyc_111]

@cc_nyc_111 - (I attended St Johns University out of HS, unfortunately my parents did not pay bill so I lost a years worth of credits, this is not in my name, I do not owe the school any money).  This is a concern you want to resolve, as mentioned, it will cause issues when the time for graduation comes.  The payment plans may be under your parents names but the student records are under yours...

More questions and answer time!  Budget, Tuition assistance/reimbursement?  Other commitments besides work, kids?  Dedicated time to study each day or week?  The main question really is, do you need a Spiritual or Transpersonal Psychology degree when you technically also entered Masters in Psychology?  I usually recommend 3 things, certs, degree, experience - you have two of the three already.

Depending on your answers, it really boils down to a few options.  I suggest skipping TESU and going for UMPI BABA if you want to get into the "business" side of things later OR their BLS and get 1-3 minors of your choice (including a Psychology Minor).  Then ladder up to the Walden MS Psychology.  I don't think you really need a "specialization" in Psychology for Equine Therapy."

---

Update!

I was able to receive my transcript from St. John's University (great news!) unfortunatley only the first semester which is as follows:

Credits from St. Johns University in year 2000

BLW 1001 Fundamentals of Business Law I: 3 Credits, Grade: B+

Coll 101 The College Experience: 1 Credit,  Grade: B+

ENG 1003 Composition and Rhetoric I: 3 Credits, Grade: A 

MGT 1000 Introduction to Business: 3 Credits, Grade: C 

THE 1020 Jesus, God-Man: Gospel Portrait: 3 Credits, Grade: B 

Earned Hours: 13.00 
GPA HRS: 13.00
Qpts: 41.00
GPA: 3.15 


Budget: for BA I would like to stay under 5k if possible, I did qualify for student aid and pell grant when I applied to TSEU in January, I however felt overwhelmed with their PLE program. 



Commitment: I currently have a fairly flexible Schedule, as I work remotely, no kids. I am just finishing my level 2 Equine Psychotherapy Program so I now have time to dedicate to online learning, I'd day 20 hrs a week. 



Degree: I don't care what the BA is in, just the fastest route to getting one, as far as the Masters, no it doesn't need to be in Transpersonal or Spiritual Psychology..that is what interests me, and if I am going to be spending time on a Masters I'd like to enjoy it, however i am open to exploring different Masters in Psychology Programs ... the purpose being as a Coach it is an unregulated industry, and because I do work as a consultant for corporations...I do not want to continue to be limited as sometimes they do require advanced degree. Additionally, it could open more doors for practicing equine therapy as being a licensed therapist vs a coach that is certified in trauma informed psychotherapy. 


Based on the following, which UMPI Degree and Template would you recommend?


Thank you so much! 

[dfrecore]

A Psych degree is not usually required to get into a MA in Psych - although it certainly can't hurt to get some Psych courses in.

With what you have, I would either get a BLS or a BABA at UMPI; a BLS at EC; or a BA/BS in Psych from EC or TESU.

TESU will probably only be a great option if you do the 16cr in a single term. But we have ways for it to be doable for people.