Canadian interested in BA CS, little confused about RA and ACE providers and transfer

[ArboristFlames]

Your Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Your Age: 29
What kind of degree do you want?: Bachelor of Arts Computer Science
Current Regional Accredited Credits:
A couple brick and mortar accredited universities in Canada. 90 something credits (9 CS credits).
University of Toronto, Western University.

Current ACE, CLEP, or NCCRS Credits:
None

Budget: $15K USD max. 

Commitments: No other commitments.
Dedicated time to study: I can study 40+ hours a week.
Timeline:  Would like to finish within 1-2 years.
Tuition assistance/reimbursement: No.

Hi everyone,

I don't have a completed undergraduate bachelors, but I have a little over 90 credits (only 9 CS credits) across a couple undergraduate brick and mortar universities in Canada.

I want to get the BA in CS at TESU, but am a little confused on how to structure the credit requirements.

1. TESU only permits 90 credits to transfer from international institutions (I assume Canada counts as such). Does that mean that (if 90 of my credits transferred) any study.com, sophia etc courses would not be accepted, or would they take the place of the 90 credits I transfer in? I wonder because maybe they aren't considered an international institution I could take more credits at study.com and sophia and transfer them in (above and beyond the 90 I already have?). I would maybe want to take some of the CS courses through study.com and not TESU.

2. I'm looking to take Calculus at Sophia, or maybe Study.com. Does Sophia Calculus still transfer to TESU?

3. Can you take courses at other institutions (universities, study.com) AFTER you've enrolled at TESU?

4. There's a 18 credit upper level requirement at TESU, and they need to be in CS. TESU doesn't have enough credits to fulfill this requirement. Do you have any recommendations on where else to take these courses?

5. Would my brick and mortar university credits count for the 30 RA credits requirement?

I was considering WGU, but they told me that because I didn't have a degree I wouldn't be able to transfer many courses in. It seems like maybe I'd get 5-7 courses at most, meaning I'd have to take about 33 to 31 courses? Whereas with TESU it would seem that I'd only maybe have to take about 14 courses (assuming I get credit for all or almost all of the non CS courses. I know there's the Capstone and the Information Literacy course that are required). Both schools are go at your own pace, correct? So if only on that basis, I should be able to finish a course about as fast at TESU as WGU right?

Thanks everyone!! 

[bjcheung77]

@ArboristFlames, Welcome to the board, great intro post with the template, but you've missed the addendum which has the more important information. It's best to have a bigger overview of your scenario by providing the info asked for in the addendum. It's great you're asking questions, but you're not providing the 'full' details.

For example, Canada has several provinces and territories, where are you? If you've read a few of my posts for Canadians, I ask for the city/province, their previous institutions they've studied at, etc. We don't really need your personal details, but some extra info really helps us 'gauge' where you stand. Link: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...Area-works

BTW, to answer your questions briefly, it's all yes's from me! <Queue Simon Cowell> Hit that golden buzzer for me!

[CharisandJon]

To answer your last question, TESU is not “go at your own pace” like WGU. At WGU, you pay for a 6 month block period at a time, and you can complete as much as you can in that period at your own pace. TESU is not like that, and it is also not competency based. You either pay per credit hour or you pay a flat rate tuition if you register for 9 or more credits at a time. The cornerstone, capstone, and other ‘normal’ online/guided study courses (not TECEPs, ePacks, etc.) are 12 weeks long. They have specific start and end dates, and they have a schedule with assignment due dates throughout the 12 weeks. You can technically pay for a course extension, but it’s highly recommended to stick to the due dates. They have start dates roughly at the beginning of each month. For example, the next course dates are Aug 5th to Oct 27, then Sept 2 - Nov 24, etc.

[ArboristFlames]

@ArboristFlames, Welcome to the board, great intro post with the template, but you've missed the addendum which has the more important information.  It's best to have a bigger overview of your scenario by providing the info asked for in the addendum.  It's great you're asking questions, but you're not providing the 'full' details.  

For example, Canada has several provinces and territories, where are you?  If you've read a few of my posts for Canadians, I ask for the city/province, their previous institutions they've studied at, etc.  We don't really need your personal details, but some extra info really helps us 'gauge' where you stand.  Link: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...Area-works

BTW, to answer your questions briefly, it's all yes's from me! <Queue Simon Cowell> Hit that golden buzzer for me!

Hi BjCheung,

I just updated my original post.

Just to clarify, can I transfer in 90 credits from my brick and mortar schools (international institutions), and then additional ones from study.com for the other requirements? For over 90 credits? (Assuming that my 90 brick and mortar credits were all accepted.)

Also, is there a way to take the capstone or mandatory information literacy course from a provider like study.com?

Thank you!
Do you have recommendations on where to take the other 3000/4000 level CS courses other than at TESU?

---

To answer your last question, TESU is not “go at your own pace” like WGU. At WGU, you pay for a 6 month block period at a time, and you can complete as much as you can in that period at your own pace. TESU is not like that, and it is also not competency based. You either pay per credit hour or you pay a flat rate tuition if you register for 9 or more credits at a time. The cornerstone, capstone, and other ‘normal’ online/guided study courses (not TECEPs, ePacks, etc.) are 12 weeks long. They have specific start and end dates, and they have a schedule with assignment due dates throughout the 12 weeks. You can technically pay for a course extension, but it’s highly recommended to stick to the due dates. They have start dates roughly at the beginning of each month. For example, the next term is Aug 5th to Oct 27, then Sept 2 - Nov 24, etc.

Thanks for pointing this out to me! Hmm, so I guess then I'd really want to take more courses from non TESU programs so I could go faster. I need to find some 3000/4000 level CS courses outside of TESU. 

Do you have any recommendations for such courses?

Thank you!

[CharisandJon]

@ArboristFlames, Welcome to the board, great intro post with the template, but you've missed the addendum which has the more important information.  It's best to have a bigger overview of your scenario by providing the info asked for in the addendum.  It's great you're asking questions, but you're not providing the 'full' details.  

For example, Canada has several provinces and territories, where are you?  If you've read a few of my posts for Canadians, I ask for the city/province, their previous institutions they've studied at, etc.  We don't really need your personal details, but some extra info really helps us 'gauge' where you stand.  Link: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...Area-works

BTW, to answer your questions briefly, it's all yes's from me! <Queue Simon Cowell> Hit that golden buzzer for me!

Hi BjCheung,

I just updated my original post.

Just to clarify, can I transfer in 90 credits from my brick and mortar schools (international institutions), and then additional ones from study.com for the other requirements? For over 90 credits? (Assuming that my 90 brick and mortar credits were all accepted.)

Also, is there a way to take the capstone or mandatory information literacy course from a provider like study.com?

Thank you!
Do you have recommendations on where to take the other 3000/4000 level CS courses other than at TESU?

---

To answer your last question, TESU is not “go at your own pace” like WGU. At WGU, you pay for a 6 month block period at a time, and you can complete as much as you can in that period at your own pace. TESU is not like that, and it is also not competency based. You either pay per credit hour or you pay a flat rate tuition if you register for 9 or more credits at a time. The cornerstone, capstone, and other ‘normal’ online/guided study courses (not TECEPs, ePacks, etc.) are 12 weeks long. They have specific start and end dates, and they have a schedule with assignment due dates throughout the 12 weeks. You can technically pay for a course extension, but it’s highly recommended to stick to the due dates. They have start dates roughly at the beginning of each month. For example, the next term is Aug 5th to Oct 27, then Sept 2 - Nov 24, etc.

Thanks for pointing this out to me! Hmm, so I guess then I'd really want to take more courses from non TESU programs so I could go faster. I need to find some 3000/4000 level CS courses outside of TESU. 

Do you have any recommendations for such courses?

Thank you!

You’re welcome! The cornerstone and capstone have to be taken at TESU and cannot be transferred in. The cornerstone can be waived if you have a prior bachelor’s degree, but with that you’d still need 3 credits and the capstone at TESU (with paying the residency waiver fee). 

Here is the wiki page with all the outside course recommendations for the TESU CS degree: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Sa...ience_Plan

[ArboristFlames]

Ahh. That seems helpful. Thank you again.

Do you know if TESU accepts study.com credits even after you've enrolled with TESU and are taking courses with them? WGU for example doesn't accept transfer credits after you've started taking courses. I think Bjcheung indicated yes, but I just wanted to confirm.

[CharisandJon]

Ahh. That seems helpful. Thank you again.

Do you know if TESU accepts study.com credits even after you've enrolled with TESU and are taking courses with them? WGU for example doesn't accept transfer credits after you've started taking courses.

You’re welcome! I had these questions when I started too  

Yes they do! It’s definitely an advantage over WGU. You get 2 transcript evaluations pre-enrollment, but once you’re enrolled you get unlimited evaluations.

[bjcheung77]

@ArboristFlames, My newbie friend from TO... Actually, my recommendation is to take 15+ residency credits at TESU, transfer the rest in from the Sophia.org and Study.com combo. The majority of providers we recommend are 'self-paced', it's the final classes that are offered at TESU that aren't, you can complete the courses per guideline but sometimes life happens and the extension would work for those taking the Capstone or another class. For residency purposes, I'd do two capstones by itself, and 15 credits through a mix of classes/e-packs and the reason is, since you're paying for this degree out of pocket, might as well get two degrees for the price of one.

My recommended path, a BACS plus BS CIS (Business with ACBSP programmatic/secondary accreditation), you would only need to take classes mainly from Sophia.org and Study.com, along with the 90+ credits you transfer into the degrees. I would even add a couple of Associates freebies, it all depends on what you bring into the equation. You'll need Study.com classes for sure, you can use my code to get a discount (see my Bio/Signature for link). Here's the TESU WIKI to see what classes/e-packs are best to take for the 15 credits, https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Th...University

Here's the BACS/BSCIS plan: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Sa...egree_Plan
Courses vs Residency Waiver #1: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...ng-Courses
16 Credits vs Residency Waiver #2: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...Waiver-Fee
ACTFL/Foreign Credits: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...r-to-Big-3
Transfer Policy: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...-Explained