COSC AS using FEMA for around $2000 Total

[rebel100]

Worked this up for my cousin, thought someone might find a use for it,

Charter Oak State College AS Degree (2 year pre-bachelors)

Literature and Fine Arts (a) (3cr): Analyzing and Interpreting Literature CLEP (3cr) $100

Social/Behavioral Science (b) (3cr): Criminal Justice DSST (3cr) or Psychology CLEP (3cr) $100 or Sociology CLEP (3cr)

Ethics (d) (3cr): Ethics in America DSST (3cr) DSST Business Ethics (3cr) should satisfy AND is Upper Level, Saylor BUS205 Business Ethics/law may work (3cr) $25

Information Literacy (y) (1-3cr): COSC cornerstone will satisfy

Communication (6cr and 3cr): College Composition CLEP (credit for English 1 and 2 for 6cr) and DSST Public Speaking (3 cr) note two separate tests here!...you can probably get the speech requirement waived if you can demonstrate any history of public speaking or teaching. $100-$200

US Gov (u) (3cr): US Government CLEP (3cr) $100 or either CLEP US History (1 or 2) $100

Non US History/Culture (n) (3cr):
Global Understanding (g) (3cr): DSST Human Cultural Geography (3cr) Satisfies BOTH $100 world religions DSST also $100 and also satisfies both.

Mathematics (q) (3cr): College Math Clep (6cr) or Straighterline College Algebra (3cr) or ALEKS College Algebra (3cr) if ALEKS doesn’t look like it will work just do the Straighterline option to complete this. ALEKS $60(3 months)

Natural Science (s) (7 cr): CLEP Biology or Chemistry, DSST Natural History, DSST Astronomy, CC Science with Lab, Straighterline Science with Lab, Saylor. Straighterline is an excellent choice for this requirement…likely the least painful way! Perhaps College Biology with a lab for non-majors? Local CC is a great source for this one as well. You must complete two courses in science; one of those must be a science course with a lab. Saylor.org has a couple of options that might be doable, at least they would be cheap. Complete one of the ACE approced Saylor Sciences at $25, plus any SL Science with a lab $150 TOTAL $175

Using the above you would roughly have about 31 credits via CLEP,DSST, Saylor, or Straighterline,. Another 30 or so credits would be completed via FEMA IS courses for FREE. Saylor also has several cheap courses (less than $30) that can be applied to the degree…this are preferable, perhaps, to FEMA as they offer more utility in your bachelors later on.

Cornerstone course (3cr) COSC $1200

Rough Cost:
CLEP/DSST Exams @ $100 each = $800
2 Straighterline Courses approx. $300 (if finished in 30 days, Math/Science requirements)
COSC Matriculation/Graduation Fee’s, and the cost of the Cornerstone Course (3cr) roughly $1200
TOTAL = $2180

Online College Courses For Credits Towards Your Degree | StraighterLine
Credit Aligned Courses « Saylor Academy
Free Clep Prep.com
Emergency Management Institute | Independent Study (IS) - Course List
ACE Credit Courses

With the above completed you would be halfway to a Bachelors degree. We can then re-assess where we are and where you wish to go.

[sanantone]

The cornerstone, graduation, and student services fees will cost $1,462 now. After July 1st, tuition will go up to $346 per credit hour, and the student services fee will be $245 for non-residents. That total will be $1,488. I'm not trying to be the evil TESC cheerleader. I promise. :p I'm just trying to give exact figures.

I don't understand the $300 for the two Straighterline courses completed in 30 days. Wouldn't it be $200? I think the lab kits are about $100. Is that what you're counting?

[sanantone]

I want to try to get clarification on something. It looks like Straighterline has separated all of its labs from the lecture portions of the science courses with the exception of physics, which is $69 instead of $49 anyway. Oh, and then there is the Microbiology course offered in partnership with Saylor, but that lab kit is hella expensive. To me, it looks like you have to pay $49 for the lecture portion and another $49 for the lab.
Online Science Courses for College Credit Transfer | StraighterLine

[rebel100]

Not long after I put this plan together a friend at work took me up on it. She wasn't trying to break any speed records, but slow and steady, one class at a time she persevered.

Today she got the final email assuring her that she had earned her AS degree. She is pretty happy, and already enrolled in her second upper level course for her BS.

I will try to post her trekbon her later...but wanted to say it worked! She opted to change a few things, took more courses than exams, but used a bunch of FEMA and non traditional classes to go from 0 to just over 60 of the right classes.

I'm happy to have guided her a bit on the trip!

[sanantone]

Not long after I put this plan together a friend at work took me up on it. She wasn't trying to break any speed records, but slow and steady, one class at a time she persevered.

Today she got the final email assuring her that she had earned her AS degree. She is pretty happy, and already enrolled in her second upper level course for her BS.

I will try to post her trekbon her later...but wanted to say it worked! She opted to change a few things, took more courses than exams, but used a bunch of FEMA and non traditional classes to go from 0 to just over 60 of the right classes.

I'm happy to have guided her a bit on the trip!

Almost two years later, and you never responded to my posts. hilarious My figures are out of date now. Tuition is $363 per credit hour, and the student service fee is $257 per semester, at least until June 30th.

[rebel100]

Almost two years later, and you never responded to my posts. hilarious My figures are out of date now. Tuition is $363 per credit hour, and the student service fee is $257 per semester, at least until June 30th.

Sorry, I haven't been back in here in a long time.

[cookderosa]

very glad you posted an update! Congratulations on helping your friend- you made a difference in her life!

[rebel100]

A couple of folks have asked via PM about her exact course of study, here is is with a rough cost breakdown:

This student really doesn't like to test out. She finds it incredibly stressful and anxiety ridden to have everything counting on one test for credit. Once I discovered this, we approached things in a different manner. She learned to handle SL courses in days, loves FEMA, LOVED Aleks. SO that is where we concentrated our efforts. With a couple of SL courses under her belt she approached CSU-Pueblo with trepidation but came away exhilarated when she earned an "A" in a genuine college class...big confidence booster for her.


Eng Comp 1&2 ... SL (6 credits) $300
Oral ... Waived (0) $0
Ethics ... SL (3) $75 (did this in one month along with religion)
Global and Non US ... SL Religion (3) $75 (did this in one month along with religion)
Lit/Fine Arts ... CLEP A&I Literature (3) $100
Math ... ALEKS (3) $40 (2 months)
Natural Science ... SL A&P 1 with Lab, A&P 2 no lab (7 credits) $500 (lab kit, took a couple of months to complete both)
Social Science ...SL Intro to Psych (3) $150
Us History/Gov. ... CLEP Us History 1 (3) $100 (first credits she earned)

COSC Cornerstone ... (3) $1200

Educational Psych ... CSU-Pueblo (3) $475
Saylor Management (3) $25 (took incredible effort to get this credit sent to COSC, almost proved not worht the cheap cost...weeks and weeks and multiple attempts...ridiculous)

FEMA ... 23 some odd credits and counting FREE

$3190 Total, 3 hours at the UL...note nearly half of that amount is cornerstone and the single class from CSU Pueblo, all of the other credit combined was only around $1515. She was able to take advantage of employer tuition reimbursement for just shy of $2000 of the total amount (they paid for COSC, CSU-P, and a few SL...somewhere along the way they elected to stop paying for SL as it isn't an actual college).

She is already enrolled and taking an UL human resources course at CSU_Pueblo towards her bachelors. We are researching the use of PF courses to complete either an Individualized studies course in Organizational Leadership/Human Resources or just going with a BSBA with concentration in HR.

[rebel100]

So my friend sent the following email to her COSC advisor regarding moving on to her BS:

I currently have 63 credits and am awaiting conferral of my AS General Studies Degree. I have worked out a cost effective plan that I believe I can complete with the use of some COSC courses and Penn foster ACE approved courses as well as a couple of courses from CSU-Pueblo.

Can you take a look at my plan and see if there are any glaring deficiencies?

Am I missing anything? (In addition to the courses below I know I need to reach 120 total credits with 30 at the upper level, I hope to utilize FEMA for a portion of these as they are free to take, credit by exam or COSC courses are other options)

How likely is the Individualized Studies Dual Concentration on Organizational Leadership and Human Resources to be approved?


Concentration Plan of Study (CPS)
Individualized Studies with Dual Concentrations in:Organizational Leadership and Human Resources.

Rationale:
I believe this dual concentration will help me to maximize my corporate value in my present role as a Human Resources Coordinator/Trainer, yet allow me enough latitude to eventually move into a significant leadership role within my existing organization.

(3 LL) BUS 208 Introduction to Management, Saylor Academy….. COMPLETE
(3 LL) BUS 350 Supervision and Leadership, Penn Foster***…..NEED

Organizational Leadership:
(3UL) BUS 340 Organizational Behavior, Penn Foster***…..NEED
(3 UL) MKT 301 Marketing, Penn Foster***…..NEED
(3 UL) BUS 425 Strategic Business Management, Penn Foster***…..NEED
(3 UL) BUS 315 Legal Environment of Business, Penn Foster***…..NEED

Human Resources:
(3 UL) MGMT 318 Human Resources Management, CSU-Pueblo…..IN PROGRESS
(3 UL) Psych 342 Educational Psychology, CSU-Pueblo….. COMPLETE
(3 UL) HRM 320 Employee Benefits, Penn Foster***…..NEED
(3 UL) HRM 355 Training Concepts, Penn foster***…..NEED
(3UL) Compensation Management, Penn Foster***…..NEED
(3 UL) Capstone, Charter Oak State College

*** Please note, Penn Foster Courses are currently ACE reviewed for Upper Level credit, can you confirm these?

Thank you so much for all of your assistance.

[rebel100]

She received the following reply from her COSC advisor:


I think the combination of HR and Organizational Leadership are good focus areas that complement each other. I believe your rationale is sound. I would pick a few courses in the HR and Org Leadership focus to incorporate into your rationale explaining how these courses will help meet your goals. This way, faculty can understand why you chose these particular courses.

The Bachelor of Science degree requires 60 total Liberal Arts credits. Currently you have earned 32 Liberal Arts credits. Organizational Behavior in the Concentration is a Liberal Arts course so the 3 credits will go towards the 60. This means that you will have to earn 25 Liberal Arts Elective credits to reach the 60 credits. FEMA courses are considered Non-Liberal Arts and so you will want to stay away from those courses. Please click onto the following link to view examples of Liberal Arts courses:

https://www.charteroak.edu/current/acade...ements.cfm

Liberal Arts Requirements | Charter Oak State College
Finish your Degree Online | Charter Oak State College
Liberal Arts Requirements. Liberal Arts credits can be completed in several disciplines including the Humanities, Social Sciences/History and ...



The Bachelor’s degree requires a minimum of 120 total credits. Currently you have earned 63 total credits. The Liberal Arts Electives will help you earn the minimum 120 total credits.

The Bachelor’s degree requires 30 Upper Level credits. Currently you have earned 3 UL credits (Educational PSY). I checked with the Registrar’s Office and MKT 301 from Penn Foster is LL. You will earn an additional 24 UL credits in the Concentration. This means that you will need to earn 3 UL Elective credits.
Please let me know if you would like to set up a phone appointment to discuss further.
.