Decided to Get Edumacated!

[Gumbeaux]

Hey y'all! Zack here! I am a 41 y/o here in Washington State (originally from South Louisiana)

Tried college right out of high school and that was a big flop. In high school, I simply showed up and got solid grades. College was harder, and I didn't have the work ethic I have today - so I just stopped going. However, I did well applying myself in the workforce once I realized life is what you make of it. I've gotten opportunities that many folks without college degrees would never experience - including senior management positions in the Bulk Transportation, eCommerce, and Oil & Gas industries.

I moved to WA state to start a manufacturing business with one of my best friends in 2019, only to get our teeth kicked in during COVID. We struggled through, but then I experienced a soul crushing 2 years of trying to find a job that didn't involve serving fries or operating gas pumps.

College degrees are used as a gatekeeping mechanism in the job force now, something I had never experienced previously. I was in absolute despair when another close friend of mine told me about his recent experience getting a degree through Liberty University. He shared some of the research he did here and with outside consultants that helped him make it a reality. It gave me hope that I wouldn't have to spend 4-5 years going back to school to find work.

So, in mid-September I started taking Sophia classes. The pacing was good, and I found strangely enough that my varied life experiences & accumulated knowledge were helpful. As fate would have it, about 2 weeks later, I found a job as a Marketing Director for a restaurant group locally. However, since I had already started this journey - I'm damned if I am going to just stop. 

I am currently working on wrapping up an AAS through Pierpont so that I can at least lock in a degree for the work I have done so far (never a bad thing to hedge bets I figure!), with an eye towards pursuing a Bachelors through either UMPI or Liberty. If I can tackle the bachelors without going nuts - I am thinking of keeping the throttle pinned and going for a Masters (either UMPI's Masters of Organizational Leadership) or an MBA from an RA school.

I don't want to end up going through the hell of 2 years of job searching ever again, and I am almost certain that coupled with my work experience, a degree would help me level up considerably in today's workforce. (At least I hope!)

I look forward to learning what I can from you all!

Thanks!

Your Location: WA State
Your Age: 41.
What kind of degree do you want?: I am looking at a number of options, I am thinking Business or Interdisciplinary Studies with a focus on business or marketing

Current Regional Accredited Credits: 

University of Louisiana-Lafayette (2001-2002)  Total: 10 Credits
AP Placement ENG 101 - 3 
CMCN 110 - Media & Society - 3 
HIST 221 - US History I - 3
HUMN 101 - Explorations in Liberal Arts - 1

Arizona State University Universal Learners (2024) Total: 4 Credits
CIS 194 - Business Technology Fundamentals - 1
SOC 101 - Intro to Sociology - 3

Current ACE, CLEP, or NCCRS Credits: 

Sophia Credits (From September 2023 to Present): Total 87.0 

Essentials of Managing Conflict - 1 (97%)
Developing Effective Teams - 1 (96%)
College Algebra - 3 (89%)
Intro to Business - 3 (99%)
Visual Communications - 3 (95%)
Intro to IT - 3 (96%)
Project Management - 3 (93%)
Intro to Ethics - 3 (88%)
Art History I - 3 (91%)
Art History II - 3 (84%)
Environmental Science - 3 (89%)
Student Success - 1 (89%)
Macroeconomics - 3 (87%)
Intro to Web Development - 3 (88%)
IT Career Exploration - 1 (96%)
Conflict Resolution - 3 (88%)
Human Biology - 3 (87%)
College Readiness - 3 (94%)
Intro to Nutrition - 3 (88%)
Microeconomics - 3 (81%)
Intro to College Math - 3 (89%)
Career Readiness - 3 (93%)
Business Communication - 3 (95%)
Foundations of Statistics - 2 (87%)
Workplace Communication - 3 (96%)
Principles of Management - 3 (90%)
Lifespan Development - 3 (93%)
US History II - 3 (95%)
US Government - 3 (94%)
Critical Thinking - 3 (89%)
Public Speaking - 3 (91%)
Business Law - 3 (94%)

Budget: I will be paying as I go, probably can afford $1500/average a month in school costs  

Commitments: Not married. Have 2 full time jobs, still managing to tackle classwork. (I simply don't do much else other than work, school, sleep)

Dedicated time to study: Roughly 3 hours a day on weekdays, 4-5 a day on Saturdays, and 6-8 hours on Sunday.

Timeline: I want to have a bachelors in hand no later than May 2025. If I can do it faster, then sign me up.

Tuition assistance/reimbursement: Unfortunately, no.

[bjcheung77]

@Gumbeaux, Welcome to the board, that's a very good introduction post with the addendum and template. BTW, I updated your previous post in regards to the transcript to Pierpont. For now, I would just carry on and get some credits from Sophia.org as you are missing a science lab and also language class, and continue with their "IT" related classes until you start Coursera/TEEX.  

Since you've taken the graded credits at ASU and have some "technical" classes, I would continue getting a balanced mix/match trifecta of certs, degree, experience.  I suggest completing the Coursera/TEEX/Sophia.org classes that all add to your "technical credits", transfer to UMPI for a BAS not the BLS with a minor in MIS & PM, plus the 3-4 classes that go towards the MAOL later.

With the energy, money, time you currently have, you can get more than the 40+ technical credits required for the BAS (applied science) instead of going for the BLS (liberal studies) you should be able to get the BAS in a couple of sessions, then if you want, do another couple of sessions for the MAOL.  Good luck, have fun, carry on with the 'credit munching' momentum...

Here's the template, you don't have to follow it to a "T" but you should get as many Coursera/TEEX/Sophia.org that gets you all the technical credits along with the requirements for entry into the BAS.  Link: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/UM...egree_Plan | For further reading, if you wanted more details - Sticky Thread Link: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...one-it-yet

[ltw900rr]

As soon as I saw your username, I knew where you were from!! Good luck on earning your Associates and Bachelors!!

[Gumbeaux]

Thanks a bunch! I am certainly looking forward to it, as long as I can push through for a couple of years!

[LevelUP]

Thanks a bunch! I am certainly looking forward to it, as long as I can push through for a couple of years!

Couple of years? It may a couple of months before you are ready to start UMPI. You might be able to make the 07/01/24 start date for the Summer 2 term if you can get done by June. 
https://www.umpi.edu/yourpace/academic_p.../#calendar

I suggest going for the Business Admin degree with a concentration in marketing since that is your career.
https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/UM...egree_Plan

buena suerte

[bjcheung77]

That's correct, I don't think it'll take that couple of years, you can probably finish it by the end of this year... It may only take you two sessions at UMPI to get everything done, the main thing is to transfer that max of 90 credits into the degree plan and complete the remaining 30 credits from UMPI to finish the requirements.