Degree plan help for COSC Public Safety Admin.

[rebel100]

My transcripts simply reflect the award of a Bachelor of Science in Liberal Studies....one would have to look at the coursework to decipher the plan.

I sent you a copy of my CPS (JW...sent you a copy too)...I will help in any way I can.

If your paying out of pocket I would really recommend ammending the plan to a concentration(s) that don't rely on taking so many courses from COSC....it's just too expensive.

[DrJohn]

Hmmm, I really wish COSC would list the concentration on the transcripts, without it, it makes it hard to put on a resume B.S. - Public Safety Adminstration. It almost feels like one would have to list it as B.S. - Liberal Arts - Concentration study in Public Safety Administration. or just list it as a Bachelor of Science in Liberal Arts. Anyone looking at the transcript might feel like you are lying if they do not know how to read a college transcript.

Are my concerns off base? I may need to change my degree plan up some, but it seems that Charter Oak Concentrations require you to take classes thru Charter Oak. My plan states that I have to earn a minimum of 27 credits in my concentration thru Charter Oak courses. Is there a different way to work this that would allow the same outcome, but allow me the freedom to take less classes and more exams?

[rebel100]

Hmmm, I really wish COSC would list the concentration on the transcripts, without it, it makes it hard to put on a resume B.S. - Public Safety Adminstration. It almost feels like one would have to list it as B.S. - Liberal Arts - Concentration study in Public Safety Administration. or just list it as a Bachelor of Science in Liberal Arts. Anyone looking at the transcript might feel like you are lying if they do not know how to read a college transcript.

Are my concerns off base? I may need to change my degree plan up some, but it seems that Charter Oak Concentrations require you to take classes thru Charter Oak. My plan states that I have to earn a minimum of 27 credits in my concentration thru Charter Oak courses. Is there a different way to work this that would allow the same outcome, but allow me the freedom to take less classes and more exams?

I think your placing a lot of emphases on somethng that isn't all that big of a deal. I know some folks get really wrapped up in specifics, but there are only a few instances that I know of that really matter. Wanna be an engineer? Your pretty much gonna need an engineering bachelors. Wanna attend and aacsb MBA program.....your gonna need particular courses. There are other great examples, but to me they all came in secondary to my need to check the box. You seem to have plenty of real life work experience and the degree is secondary. I wouldn't get to worked up over this.

My resume reads "Bachelor of Science, Charter Oak State College, concentrations in Organizational Leadership and Health Care" No misrepresentation here...it's what I studied.

My transcripts reflect "Bachelor of Science, degree complete" then there is a mile long list of all my credits. No other specific references I can recall.

What you are really doing is not really liberal studies, but rather individualized studies. Charter Oak State College - Individualized Studies With all the credit you have it just makes the most sense.

Your concentration can....CAN......be completed entirely with COSC. They are pointing out that they offer all the courses to complete the degree. As opposed to "can be completed with COSC and other credit" This points out that they offer to let you study in areas that they don't offer enough courses to complete a degree in house....not that they will only let you study in house. The only courses you have to take at COSC are the cornerstone and capstone. Charter Oak State College - Concentrations (Majors) and Fields of Study Everything else can be brought in.

This might be easier if you can post a list of the credits you have...as opposed to what you think you need. We can then help you firm up the plan.

Did you receive my e-mail?

[rebel100]

BTW, I keep coming back to Organizational Leadership as that can include so many business topics that can be fulfilled with tests or readily available courses at other schools.

Here are some ideas on filling out the dual degree:

Organizational Leadership, 18 credits UL....5 courses plus the three credit capstone

TECEP EXAM $99 each and worth 3 UL credits
Operations Management (OPM-301-TE)
Business in Society (BUS-311-TE)
Strategic Management (BUS-421-TE)

Excelsior Exam $95 each and worth 3 UL credits
Organizational Behavior (315)
Human Resource Management (410)


Now add 9 UL credits in Public Administration such as the following (pick 3):

Labor Relations (360) Excelsior Exam $99

University of Idaho Independent Study, roughly $300 per course and worth 3 credits:
PolS 451: Public Administration (3 Credits, U-Idaho)

Colorado State University Pueblo Independent Study, roughly $500 per course and each worth 3 credits:
SOC 355: Political Sociology
MGMT 485: Management Strategy and Policy



Plus any three UL exams via DSST/TECEP/Excelsior Exam

You may need a few lower level business courses like Intro to Management and Intro to Marketing...but those are readily available via CLEP and considered pretty easy.

Something like $2000-$2500 plus the cost of the capstone. Be significantly less than taking 24-27 credits via COSC courses. Heck the entire degree nailed to the wall could be less than $5K including a nice frame.

[DrJohn]

I went ahead and emailed my academic advisor to ask about the possibility of doing a dual major, Public Safety Admin & Oganizational Leadership. See what it would take. I may have to change the Public Safety Admin aspect since with that concentration COSC requires you to complete at least 27 of the 36 hrs vis COSC courses. Problem is, you really end up taking all the PSA courses because there are no acceptable exams for that credit.

I would love the idea of paying $5000 or less for my degree, right now it is looking as if I will end up paying almost $16,000 including testing fees and study material for my degree. I may need to change something up, that is a lot of money and a lot of time to earn the degree. I figure I would take take 3 classes in both the fall & spring semesters and 1 or maybe 2 classes for the summer sessions. That is still 2 yrs in the program just to take the required classes. I couldn't take any this fall semester because I lack the English GenEd requirement. I'm not sure what to do, I may need to change my degree plan up. That is a long time.

[DrJohn]

I will post my current credits on here this afternoon when I wake up, I'm on the night shift at work doing a 6p-6a shift. Hopefully by seeing the credits I've transferred into COSC, that will give some idea of what I can do for a worthwhile degree plan. I welcome all ideas.

Rebel, Thanks for the help so far. By the way, I did get your email and I responded back to you. Thanks again, that will be very helpful.

[DrJohn]

Here is a list of the credits I transferred in to COSC if this can help firm up a degree plan: (all these are listed as lower level credits)

LET106 Patrol Procedures -2
LET109 Criminal Law -2
LET110 Fundamentals of Law Enforcement -3
LET125 Legal Aspects of Law Enforcement -2
LET127 Field Problems -2
LET146 Officer Survival -1
LET158 Fundamentals of First Aid Care for Law Enforcement -2
LET202 Traffic Procedures -2
LET203 Report Writing -2
LET211 Criminalistics -2
LET223 Search and Seizure -1
LET224 Crime Scene Investigations -4
LET282 Police Roles and Responsibilities -4
LET284 Professionalism Within Policing -4
LET285BA Current Issues in Law Enforcement Technology -2
LET286 Modern Policing Strategies -4
Private Pilot - 6 (3 of these credits are listed as liberal arts)
PADI Open Water Diiver -1

Thats a total of 46 hrs, In addition I am attempting to have the following ACE military credits added to my transcript, but so far they have not appeared. I do not know what impact if any they would have on any degree plan.

Communication Skills -2
Leadership -1
Military History -2 (UL)

[rebel100]

Where's your emt/medic?

[rebel100]

No general eds done yet? I would do it like I detailed above....I might swap the idea of Public Admin for Criminal Justice, that would mean that your existing LL in CJ would fill out the 18 hours needed to make it a second concentratio. The DSST Substance abuse should count for one UL class in a Criminal Justice concentration....so just pick 2 UL CJ courses, 5 UL Organizational Leadership courses, any 3 UL exams/courses and the Capstone and your done.

I doubt CSU-Pueblo will question you on English Comp as a pre-req. They should just take your credit card and start the course. Straighterline Eng. Comp 1 and the DSST Technical writing would be painless ways to knock out the ENglish Comp requirement...or the CLEP that covers both in one exam.

[DrJohn]

Where's your emt/medic?

When I attended Austin Community College, the two year program was offered two different ways, a day program for college credit with a bunch of prereq or the evening program non-credit option. Same program, same course of study. Essentially you could do it for college credit and take it during the day along with the prereq courses or skip the prereq courses and take the program in the evening. I took it in the evening. I would have to call ACC to see if they could turn the Paramedic Courses into college credit since it is still the same course given in the credit program. Well see what they say.

I took Anatomy And Physiology with lab, but I was too busy being a young 20 something year old and was too interested in flirting with my lab partner to worry about grades. The D I made in the course does me no good now. Same thing with the Math for Health Sciences course I took. Funny how now I wish I would have studied harder and made a good passing grade.