The $6K Bachelors article...by request

[rebel100]

This is an article I wrote at WNMU detailing how cost effective a Bachelors can be. At the time I wrote this Florida Gateway was a SL partner...they aren't anymore. I would substitute New Mexico Junior College and CLEP or I might just go straight to the Big 3 passing the Associates level all together today.

It's a long read...power to ya if you get all the way through!


The $6000 BS, how to save a fortune while earning your college degree

Student loan debt can be a crippling financial blow. In September of 2011 the US Department of Education released a report indicating that student loan default rates are continuing to rise Default Rates Rise for Federal Student Loans | U.S. Department of Education. The report sites economic hard times as the reason for more than 300,000 student loan defaults for the period of October 2008 to September 2009. This is a particularly dire situation when you consider that many of these borrowers are young people who are just starting out their lives, or older students who have returned to school seeking to improve their training and education to better provide for themselves and their families. The article makes no mention of how many students might be current, yet struggling, with severe debt burdens. The number of student borrowers who are in financial trouble is really unknown. The purpose of this story is not to debate public policy, nor place blame, but to demonstrate an efficient alternative to taking on mountains of debt in the pursuit of a college degree. It is possible in many cases to reduce your overall undergraduate educational costs through standardized testing and alternative means of acquiring college credit.
The College Board is perhaps best known as the governing body of the SAT and AP exams, but they do a lot more than that. One example is the College Level Examination Program commonly called CLEP. These exams are designed to allow a student to take a single assessment test to demonstrate proficiency in a subject. Passing a CLEP typically means that a college will award 3 semester hours of credit in that topic. College Board has offered this program for more than 40 years and the program has seen the award of many thousands of hours of college credit.
“CLEP exams test mastery of college-level material acquired in a variety of ways, through general academic instructions, significant independent study or extracurricular work. CLEP exam-takers include adults just entering or returning to school, military service members and traditional college students”….College Board, CLEP - College Level Examination Program (CLEP) -Save Time. Save Money. Take CLEP | College Board CLEP Site
CLEP exams cost $77.00 plus any exam fee charged by the administering institution. The exams are of a general nature, around 100 questions, and typically have a time limit of 90 minutes. The exams are typically given at one of over 1700 colleges or universities around the world who act as designated testing centers. More than 2900 colleges participate in the program, though it is always up to the school exactly what they will award credit for and how many hours of credit will be awarded. My own daughter utilized the program to help her graduate with an Associate’s degree from the local Community College while she was a high school senior.
Starting in her junior year of high school she would schedule a CLEP exam that corresponded to whatever she was studying. In this manner she took the CLEP exams for American Government (3 credits), Analyzing and Interpreting literature (6 credits), Psychology (3 credits), and Sociology (3 credits). At this point she had amassed 15 college credits. Upon hearing that the Principles of Management and Principles of Marketing CLEP exams where relatively easy she studied for each for a few weeks then passed them both for an additional 6 credits bringing her total to 21 credits by the summer before her senior year of high school. In her senior year she took and passed College Math (6 credits), American Literature (6 credits), and Biology (6 credits). These 39 credits, combined with dual enrollment classes, mean that she will finish the first two years of a four year degree for around $1500. This is significantly less than it might cost for just a couple of courses at the University level and it was done without a single penny of debt. Here is the main page of the College Board CLEP program for students: CLEP - College Level Examination Program (CLEP) -Save Time. Save Money. Take CLEP | College Board CLEP Site. With 33 standardized general education topics there is a great deal of credit available.

[rebel100]

The military was an early adopter of credit by examination and today anyone, even civilians, can benefit from their testing program. Originally known as DANTES which stands for “defense activity for nontraditional education support”, today’s DSST is a valuable tool for any non-traditional student. Similar to College Boards CLEP, DSST exams are administered through Prometric Corporation. Typically free to members of the armed forces, Prometric makes the exams available to the public for a small fee, currently $80.00 plus any fee charged by the host school or testing center. DSST’s are available in 38 specific disciplines including traditional general education categories and select lower and upper level disciplines. Available exams include Math and English topics as well as subjects like Criminal Justice, Substance Abuse, and Money & Banking. After applying for graduation at Charter Oak State College I was informed that I was short on upper level graduation credit. Due to a lifelong interest in history I was able to take and pass the DSST exam on the Civil War and graduate on time. I found a local college, Belhaven University that waives any institutional fee so the exam only cost $80.00. I stayed on time and under budget while completing my degree. DSST sums up their program in this way.
“While the exams are funded for active-duty military and their spouses, DSST tests are not just for those in the military. Adult learners, homeschooled students, and military veterans are also eligible to earn college credits through DSST.” DSST | Get College Credit
DSST exams are reviewed by the American Council on Education or ACE. ACE provides institutions with a scoring rubric and many institutions will actually give students a letter grade for the exams which is a little different from the CLEP policy which is typically just pass or fail.
The American Council on Education was formed in 1918 and its membership hails from many community colleges and higher educational institutions from throughout the country. In addition to their role as an advocate for education interests ACE also continues a program to assess various business and industry educational programs to authorize the granting of institutional credit for those courses.
“For decades, colleges and universities have trusted ACE to provide reliable course equivalency information to facilitate credit award decisions. Participating organizations include corporations, professional and volunteer associations, schools, training suppliers, labor unions and government agencies, with courses from Arabic to Waste Management.” College Credit Recommendation Service (CREDIT)
Corporations such as Delta Airlines and Microsoft have had their courses reviewed and approved for college credit. The Federal Government and the US Military have also gained approval for students in various disciplines to gain credit. ACE maintains “The National Guide to College Credit for Workplace Training” to allow students to search for courses. ACE CREDIT | The National Guide to College Credit for Workforce Training Virtually any company can pay a fee and the ACE team, made up of professors and instructors from institutions of higher education will evaluate the coursework to measure it for applicable college credit. Textbook publisher McGraw Hill vie their online math tool ALEKS and a Corporation calling itself Straighterline have been assessed and passed the ACE review and now offer some very interesting alternative education courses.
The ALEKS tool is perhaps the most promising and innovative tool for math education since the personal calculator. The technology stems from research at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the same school that nursed the birth of the Mosaic web browser often cited as popularizing the internet. In addition to being a valuable assessment and teaching tool ACE has recommended several ALEKS courses for college credit. ACE CREDIT | The National Guide to College Credit for Workforce Training The interesting thing about ALEKS is how the system works. The student logs on and takes a 90 minute student assessment. ALEKS then determines the students strengths and weakness. It then develops a plan to teach the student what they need to know. The student selects an area to work on and the system teaches the student through an intuitive approach that emphasizes practice. The student continues selecting and mastering topics and the system continually recalculates the student’s progress. Students move at their own pace with constant feedback from the ALEKS software. Once the student reaches a “mastery” of 70% they can request that the credit be added by ALEKS to their ACE transcript. Here is the truly amazing part; the cost is only $20.00 per month. Some students can take and pass multiple classes in a single month from beginning algebra through pre-calculus, trigonometry, and statistics. Less mathematically inclined students can work on a single subject until they master it at their own pace. Many colleges and schools also utilize ALEKS as an additional learning method to more traditional studies. The program works! And the cost benefit is simply overwhelming. ALEKS is truly tomorrow’s technology applied to today, and by using it some students can attain success they never thought would apply to them. Find ALEKS courses for higher education here, ALEKS Course Products look for the courses that are approved by ACE.
Straighterline Corporation is a relatively new player in the higher education market. They are not a school, but rather a company designed to economically provide college equivalent coursework at a bargain price. It is capitalism applied to the education market. While they continually roll out new courses there is an emphasis on general education classes. Straighterline offers English Composition 1 and 2, math courses, business courses, and a surprising array of general science courses that you complete at home with a lab kit. The educational recommendation comes from ACE, or the credits can be applied directly to a “partner school” of which there are more than two dozen. Straighterline has several features that are unique. For one, you can work through most of the courses at your own pace. They promote stories of customers completing entire 3 semester hour courses in just a couple of weeks. I completed College Algebra at Straighterline in 28 days; I earned a B for my efforts. Another stimulating feature of the program is innovative pricing strategies. Straighterline touts a series of 10 classes as the “freshman year for $999” Freshman Year College - 1 year college courses - StraighterLine . Under the program up to 34 credits could be earned for about $1000. This is a huge savings in my region as the local community college currently charges around $100 per credit. A savings of $2400.00 is hard to ignore. In my case the single course I took was also at a bargain price. For $99 a month plus $39 per course you can take as many courses as you want. I applied myself and finished quickly to cancel the $99 before my next cycle. I only paid $138.00 plus the cost of a used textbook which I purchased on Amazon for about $10.00. If you go to a school that accepts Straighterline you should consider them as a money saving option. If your school doesn’t accept them perhaps you should look for an alternative school.
Regional Accreditation from one of the six regional accreditors is considered the academic “gold standard”. Having this accreditation means the school in question meets rigorous academic and institutional standards. State colleges and universities are usually regionally accredited as are Harvard, Yale, and Princeton. There are three regionally accredited schools that specialize in non-traditional education and make the best use of the alternative techniques to earn credit as discussed in this article. These colleges

[rebel100]

specialize in accepting credit by examination, are familiar with ACE recommendations, accept ALEKS, and are all partners with Straighterline.
The first of the three is my alma-mater, Charter Oak State College. Charter Oak is part of the State University System of Connecticut. They are overseen be the Connecticut Board of Regents for Higher Education Connecticut State Colleges & Universities (ConnSCU). Charter Oak maintains very high standards requiring writing intensive Cornerstone and Capstone courses. Other than those six hours however they will accept credit from all the sources listed above and any existing regionally accredited college work completed. Charter Oak awards Associate’s and Bachelor’s degrees, the Bachelor of Science in Individualized Studies makes the most of available test out options. Charter Oak State College - Finish your Degree Online
Thomas Edison State College is located in Trenton New Jersey. Many of their degree programs do not have any residency requirement, and they have a long list of specific degree plans. Thomas Edison State College: From accounting and criminal justice to nuclear engineering technology and nursing, Thomas Edison State College offers degrees and certificates in more than 100 areas of study. Thomas Edison offers courses of study in topics such as Nuclear Science, Nursing, and Education. In addition to outside exam credit Thomas Edison also administers an in house, for credit, exam program called TECEP. These exams are available to the general public for around $100.00
Excelsior College is a regionally accredited private college in New York. In addition to liberal arts, the college offers several innovative degree programs including a unique bridge from Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) to Registered Nurse. The Bridge is exam based, not unlike a CLEP or DSST and finishes with a single long weekend for the student to complete the practical portions of their degree. Like Thomas Edison, Excelsior has their own standardized exams that are often accepted by other colleges. Error: need cookies Excelsior requires a Capstone course for most degree plans.
All three of these institutions are properly credentialed and understand the alternative credit possibilities and process. Graduates of these programs have gone on to senior positions and personal success as well as advanced education at other colleges. Thomas Edison even touts a graduate that went on to medical school. Among the alternative education crowd Charter Oak, Thomas Edison, and Excelsior are affectionately known as “The Big 3” a designation that expresses the unique nature and progressive thinking that makes them each a leader in alternative education.
A final source for credit is the federal government specifically the Federal Emergency Management Agency or, FEMA. These credits are mentioned last because they are really a niche application. Only a handful of schools other than the Big 3 accept these credits. The courses are typically worth a single credit each and cover emergency management topics. While the courses are well known to Police, Fire, and EMS, the fact that they can be used for credit, and are available to the general public is essentially unknown. Topics covered span all phases of the response to emergency process. Titles include; A Citizens Guide to Disaster Assistance, Leadership, Diversity Awareness, Exercise Design, Ethics, Safety, and around five dozen other titles. Completion of FEMA courses is self paced, straightforward, and absolutely FREE! Thomas Edison State College and Charter Oak State College will accept a transcript of your work directly from FEMA at no cost. While the courses only equate to general electives or specific professional credits the cost savings is still substantial.
FEMA is also partnered with Frederick Community College of Maryland who will accept FEMA credits for a fee of around $77.00 per credit. Once Frederick has accepted your FEMA credits they are available on a FCC transcript and might be accepted by many institutions…check with your school to see if that’s a possibility.
Clackamus College of Oregon, Guam Community College, and Red Rocks Community College all offer Associate's degrees that utilize FEMA credit. Primarily the FEMA credit will be used to fill out a major with supporting work in traditional undergraduate fields such as English and Math.
Knowing about a subject is not the same as using what you know about a subject. To support what we have learned above I would like to share some places and techniques to actually put the alternative college credit method into practice. The first place to explore alternative credit is the website Free Clep Prep.com. This website is maintained by a former service member who stumbled upon CLEP and DSST while serving our country. Since military members can take many of the exams for free he started testing. He reports amassing college credit at a blistering pace and eventually attaining his Bachelor's degree. Free Clep Prep is his way of helping others achieve their dream of college graduation. The site is chocked full of lists on what credit is available, how hard the exams are, exam study guides, and success stories. There are also details on Straighterline, ALEKS, and FEMA. There are links to other websites and tools to make the most of your study time and to lead the reader to success. There is no cost associated with the site, it's a free labor of love from the owner. On that site is a link to perhaps the best “secret” in alternative testing available….The Instant Cert Forum.
Instant Cert is three things. First it offers inexpensive, though invaluable, study aids in the form of online flashcards. The cards cover the material found on dozens of CLEP and DSST exams. Hundreds, possibly thousands of students have used the flashcard service to study for and pass their exams. The service, which costs $20 a month for unlimited access, would be a great find on its own...but there is so much more. The second great thing about instant cert is the access t the instant cert forum. The main forum is free and open to anyone at http://www.degreeforum.net/. Some of the learners here know more about alternative learning than a college guidance counselor (often a lot more). The community is warm and welcoming and just about any question regarding the topics discussed in this article can likely be answered here. I could not have completed my own Bachelor's degree journey without the guidance and support of this online community. The third and final important part of instant cert is a special access that is only available to members paying for flashcard access. This piece is a supplement to the free forum called “specific exam feedback”. In this area are found hundreds of post's on each CLEP and DSST exam. No specific test questions or unethical behaviors are tolerated, but readers will receive an overview of the exam, and feedback from others who have actually taken each exam. Typically the posts include the score received, and the primary study aid used to achieve that score. For example by reading through the specific feedback on the American Literature CLEP my daughter learned that the best study guide was an out of print book called “The complete Idiots Guide to American Literature”. A quick visit to Amazon.com and a $15.00 purchase later she was reading a kindle copy of the book. Within a few weeks she was confident enough to sit for the exam and scored her second highest marks to date while earning six college credits for $77.00. The face of education is changing. Free clep prep and instant cert are just two examples of exam prep help. The idea of testing out of all or part of a degree is very big in some home school circles.
One home school group has taken the guess work out of preparing for exams the old fashioned way. They created lesson plans to teach the material required to pass the exams using cheap older editions of textbooks. The plans come complete with a breakdown of what to study, weekly lessons, and various tips on testing. Best of all the lesson plans are free to use, though the site owners do ask for any small donation to help keep the site free of any required cost. LESSON PLANS.
“We created the lesson plans while teaching our oldest daughter how to pass individual CLEP subject exams. The thought occurred to us that many parent-teachers could probably benefit from our efforts, so we decided to share them here.” CLEP LESSON PLANS
These lesson plans are an excellent resource. The site above is full of relevant advice on alternative education and credit by exam. This work would be incomplete without a road-map. Knowing exactly where you are going eliminates any guesswork.
The first road-map is for an Associate of Arts degree at Florida Gateway College. A small accredited school in North Central Florida. The requirements here essentially

[rebel100]

mimic the lower level education at any regionally accredited Community College in the country. Small details may vary but the essential elements will be more or less constant. I will show both the estimated in state tuition as well as the estimated alternative credit cost. There are many ways to plan the degree, this is just one example. Note that Florida Gateway will require 15 credits in residence or taken at the college either in person or online. The balance of required credit can come from several sources. The total required is 60 credits as follows:
Course at FGC/Cost/Length/Credit Alternative/Cost/Length/Credit
o English Comp 1 $300/16 weeks (3) Straighterline $138/4 weeks (3)
o English Comp 2 $300/16 weeks (3) Straighterline $138/4 weeks (3)
o Speech $300/16 weeks (3) DSST Public Speaking $100 (3)
o Biology w/lab $400/16 weeks (4) Straighterline $138/4 weeks (4)
o Chemistry w/lab $300/16 weeks (4) CLEP General Chem. $100 (6)
o A&P 1 w/lab $400/16 weeks (4)
o Math 1106, 1107 $300/16 weeks (3) CLEP College Math $100 (6)
o Soc Science 1 $300/16 weeks (3) CLEP Am. Gov $100 (3)
o Soc. Science 2 $300/16 weeks (3) CLEP Psychology $100 (3)
o Humanities 1&2 $600/16 weeks (6) CLEP Intro Hum $100 (6)
o Electives $2400 (24) 15 at FGC(residency) $1500
Choice of any 3 CLEP to achieve
8 (9) more hours of credit $300
Credit Total Florida Gateway 60 Alternative 61
Cost Total: Florida Gateway $5900.00/2 years, Alternative Method $2814.00/1 year
Despite the difference in cost the degree would read the same. Estimated time to complete the traditional degree is two years. The self paced Test out option is often completed in less than one year by a motivated student. Now take the Associate in Art’s from Florida Gateway College and transfer to Charter Oak State College for a Bachelor of Science in Liberal Studies.
She student will need roughly 60 more credits to complete a Bachelor degree. Of the 60, 36 credits will need to be in a specific discipline like business or liberal arts, and 30 will have to be at the upper level, 300 and 400 level classes. Charter Oak Requires 2 online courses; the Cornerstone and the Capstone. All general education courses are fulfilled with the transfer of the Associate’s degree. The Charter Oak courses and Exams might be as follows…
Concentration in Organizational Leadership:
o 3 lower level credits (LL) Cornerstone Seminar $900 (out of state tuition)
o 21 General Elective Credits acquired for free from FEMA $0.00
Concentration 36 hours, :
o 3 LL credits Principles of Marketing CLEP $100
o 3 LL Credits Principles of Management CLEP $100
o 3 UL Operations Management TECEP Exam $99
o 3 UL Strategic Management TECEP Exam $99
o 3 UL Marketing Communications TECEP Exam $99
o 3 UL Advertising TECEP Exam $99
o 3 UL Business Ethics in Society DSST Exam $80
o 3 UL Management Information Systems DSST $80
o 3 UL Business Law 2 DSST $80
o 3 UL Organizational Behavior Excelsior Exam $99
o 3 UL Human Resource Management Excelsior Exam $99
o 3 UL Charter Oak State College Capstone Experience $900 (out of state tuition)
Charter Oak Tuition Total $2834.00 + $1000 in fee’s over 2 semesters = $3834.00
Since the upper level courses are grouped around management and business there is a great deal of overlap in the study and preparation of each examination. Completing the above in 12 to 18 months is a manageable project for the motivated student. Total Cost is approximately $2814.00 for the Associate’s, $3834.00 to add the Bachelors, for a Total estimated cost of $6648.00 for a regionally accredited Bachelor’s degree in a business related concentration! Compare that figure to your local state college. Consider that you would mainly study at home at your own pace and not experience the costs associated with driving to school for several hours of classes per week. Realize that the opportunity cost is much lower than a traditional degree because the student would spend only two to three years completing the coursework traditionally done in four years.
There are a few things a student does not receive when completing a degree path as outlined above. There is little social interaction with professors and other students when you are preparing for credit by examination and taking independent study online courses. This issue is likely less important to an older student returning to school, but the missed networking cost should be noted. There is also an intangible relationship that develops when face to face with and instructor. When all of your interaction is via computer verbal clues and body language are lacking. Some of the best learning often takes place in a classroom when the group steps beyond the syllabus and Socratic methods take hold.
Of course a student does not have to take all of their courses online or via exam. They can pick and choose their courses. Simply eliminating 30-60 credit hours of work and attending a brick and mortar school for the balance would expedite the degree process and save thousands of dollars while providing the opportunity to be an engaged on campus student. Selecting the appropriate extracurricular activities can also minimize the loss of interaction with others.
The alternative education student can pick from a wide variety of social opportunities to replace those lost on campus. Toastmasters International has chapters that meet weekly and engage in public speaking. Rotary Club International and the American Red Cross Society are active across the country and need volunteers and citizen participation. Volunteer opportunities abound, and reward the participant with a richer and fuller life. Alternative Education requires the student to take responsibility for their education.
Remember a couple for success in alternative education. Remember that regional accreditation is the gold standard in the United States. By staying with colleges that are accredited in this way you will have an easier time transferring from institution to institution and have your work recognized by the broadest employer base possible. Always check with your degree granting institution regarding courses and exams you plan to take. Be sure they will accept credit by exam, Straighterline and FEMA before spending any time or money. Read through your college’s website or catalog and become familiar with the testing and alternative credit policies. Most schools don’t deal with nontraditional students every day, you may find yourself as the expert on their policies. Remain flexible; alternative education is about new approaches and methods.
College students today face challenges in keeping the cost of school at manageable levels. Fortunately there are many tried and true alternatives to expensive traditional classes. Education should be about what the student will learn not what you will pay, but practicality dictates that the cost is a factor. It is possible to greatly reduce the cost of a college education. Even Harvard University will accept up to 12 credits of CLEP credit in some programs. Work to your strengths, reinforce your weakness, and seize the opportunities afforded in a dynamic and vibrant learning environment.

[Publius]

Wow!! Need I say spectacular? That's awesome! Way to go... thanks for sharing!

Oh, when is the book coming out? lol, seriously, you aren't bad at writing! I enjoyed it.

[rebel100]

Wow!! Need I say spectacular? That's awesome! Way to go... thanks for sharing!

Oh, when is the book coming out? lol, seriously, you aren't bad at writing! I enjoyed it.

Ha...I don't know about all that. But thanks!

[cookderosa]

That's a winner.

[anonymouse]

Great job! That is awesome about your daughter completing her Associate's while in HS!