Degree so far; which exams to take?

[waterv1]

Hello! I need some advice on which exams to take. I am about to receive my A.A. in the Fall from SUNY Empire. I have all of my CCCs completed, plus a few advanced-level courses. There are two more that I got Ds in, but might be accepted at Excelsior. I don't really have any degree type in mind, I just want a Bachelor's degree as quickly and painlessly as possible.

ENGL 100: 3
BIOL 1002: 4
MATH 1040: 4
JAPN 115: 4
ART 100: 3
ARTS 099: 2
ART 120: 1
HIST 116: 3
PSY 129: 4 (D grade, not accepted in A.A.)
ARTS 240: 3
ENGL 260: 3
EDU 224: 3
HIST 3330: 4
EDST 3050: 2
EDST 3037: 2
EDST 3040: 2
INDS 3TR: 4 (D grade, not accepted in A.A.)
200 level US History Course: 3
200 level Science course: 3
Pending: two more 100 level art classes (8 credit hours), and a degree planning course (4 credit hours).

This will get me an A.A. from SUNY Empire. I have 31 transfer credits and 30 SUNY Empire credits, plus 8 more D-grade credits that weren't counted towards my A.A.

What exams should I look into to get a Bachelor's Degree from Excelsior, or an alternate path? I have a severe learning disability that makes writing very difficult for me. It's taken me 7 years to get this A.A., but I'm really good at taking tests. I'm hoping the test-out method will work for me. Thank you!

[rachel83az]

You didn't mention what degree you're hoping to get from Excelsior. I think that https://www.excelsior.edu/program/bachel...ts-degree/ would technically be the easiest degree to get? But, if you wanted a subject degree, I think that you could also get a Psych degree at TESU without writing any papers.

If you do go with the BSLA at Excelsior, you should be able to get all of your UL credits through Coopersmith, TECEPs, and/or UExcel exams. Some of the Coopersmith tests do have "short form" answer sections where you write 2-3 sentences in response. It's not a whole paper, though, and I think you'll write less in a Coopersmith exam than you wrote in your post. There aren't a lot of upper-level TECEP exams but there are a few and some of them might work for you. The UExcel exams are reportedly pretty difficult, so they probably wouldn't be the first choice for me.

[bjcheung77]

Excelsior is a great choice, you can take the bulk of your remaining lower level with Sophia.org/Onlinedegree.com and the upper level requirements with Davar, Study.com, etc. COSC would also be an option as you would just need to take 2 courses from them, a cornerstone/capstone. They do not take NCCRS any longer, so that means mainly Sophia.org for lower level and Study.com for upper level (no Coopersmith, Davar, Onlinedegree.com)

[rachel83az]

I didn't suggest COSC because of Study.com. Pretty much every UL SDC class requires at least one paper or other written assignment. If you want to avoid papers as much as possible, TESU or Excelsior would be the way to go.

[bjcheung77]

COSC doesn't mean the user has to take all Study.com, what was also recommended was TECEPS/UEXCELS and whatever else that is accepted at COSC. I think OP just need to do all Sophia.org first to get up to snuff on lower level requirements and complete as many Upper Level as possible. COSC/Excelsior College BSLA/BSLS practically has the same requirements - 30 UL in anything, 90 combined in general education/free electives. You can decide on the degree/institution you want the degree from after you've done all your Sophia.org courses.

[waterv1]

You didn't mention what degree you're hoping to get from Excelsior. I think that https://www.excelsior.edu/program/bachel...ts-degree/ would technically be the easiest degree to get? But, if you wanted a subject degree, I think that you could also get a Psych degree at TESU without writing any papers.

If you do go with the BSLA at Excelsior, you should be able to get all of your UL credits through Coopersmith, TECEPs, and/or UExcel exams. Some of the Coopersmith tests do have "short form" answer sections where you write 2-3 sentences in response. It's not a whole paper, though, and I think you'll write less in a Coopersmith exam than you wrote in your post.  There aren't a lot of upper-level TECEP exams but there are a few and some of them might work for you. The UExcel exams are reportedly pretty difficult, so they probably wouldn't be the first choice for me.

so since I have an A.A., I only need upper-level credits? I've mostly been reading about CLEP and DSST exams, but they don't seem to offer many 300 level credits.

[rachel83az]

No, you need some LL credits as well. How many LL credits you need depends on how many UL credits you need. This is different depending on whether you decide to go with Excelsior (27 UL + capstone) or TESU (12 or 15 UL + capstone).

[waterv1]

No, you need some LL credits as well. How many LL credits you need depends on how many UL credits you need. This is different depending on whether you decide to go with Excelsior (27 UL + capstone) or TESU (12 or 15 UL + capstone).

Oh, I see, thank you. I thought that ruled out Sophia.com because those are all LL credits, but it seems like the least painful option in terms of coursework. Since I'm already getting my A.A., do the UL classes I already have count or do I need to get 12-27 new ones?

[rachel83az]

No, you don't need to get new UL ones if you have them. I think your History course is UL but I'm not sure about your EDST ones.

[dfrecore]

So, I can't tell what courses you've taken based only on the course #, I need names to see what things will come in as.

TESU and COSC will bring in D grades for everything except English Comp I & II, and the major/AoS. EC will not take D's.

TESU only requires 18cr of UL, all within the AoS; COSC and EC require 30cr of UL in the major and throughout the degree.

TESU & COSC require 30cr of RA, EC doesn't require any outside of the 7cr you have to take there.

There are pros and cons to all of the schools, so mostly I think it just depends on where your courses fit.

If you add your course names, that would be helpful. As well as any credits where the grade is lower than a C (EC won't take C- grades either; TESU will take D's, COSC will take D-'s).