European seeking advice for a tech degree to study a master's in Europe

[unfinesredondo]

Your Location: Finland
Your Age: 20
What kind of degree do you want?: I believe a Bachelor of Science in IT would be the best choice having the end goal in mind. I've tried to take up programming multiple times, but I was never inspired to pursue it in my free time. A degree in Computer Science would most likely be too theoretical and steer me too heavily towards Software Engineering. I'm interested in business studies, but I wouldn't go for a pure business degree. I want the flexibility for a remote job and varied job prospects to not feel stuck later on. More technical degrees should be challenging and play more to my strengths. I've been eyeing Computer Information Systems and degrees similar to it, Management Information Systems, IT Management, etc. As these degrees are about bridging the gap between technology and business, they should combine the best of both worlds for me. The reason why I'm still leaning towards IT is that it should be a more versatile degree and give me better options when/if applying for a master's, be it CS, Information Systems, or something else. I want to keep the doors open as I feel like you'll only know what you want to specialize in after starting your studies. Also with the addition of a concentration and a minor within the actual degree, I could design it to best suit my needs.

WGU is not an option for me, unfortunately, as I come outside of the States. UMPI would be a solid option but doesn't it doesn't offer any degrees I'd want. I was considering the TESU BA CS and BSBA CIS double degree plan but looking at the anabin database I noticed that TESU hasn't yet been evaluated/recognized in Germany with an "H+/H-" rating. I would most likely do my master's in Germany or elsewhere in Europe so the recognition of the university would be important to me. Annoyingly, it is the most difficult point to evaluate whether the degree would be accepted in Europe. I don't see too many Europeans telling their experiences on choosing this more unconventional path but I would be eager to hear if anyone has had success in Europe after getting their degree. 

I've been considering SNHU even though it's on the pricier side and they don't have the quickest degree to attain. SNHU for its size and history seems to already have made a name for itself, and as it's not purely an online institution, it could be seen as more reputable. Of course, it's all just speculation but I just imagine them not being as open to the idea of an online university here in Europe. Alternatively, I would simply start working after getting my degree, but it's too early to say. I still want to have the option for further higher education here after getting a bachelor's. 

The path I'm thinking of pursuing is a Bachelor of Science in Information Technologies at SNHU. To make myself more marketable, I would like to do a concentration in Business Management or Data Analytics and some minor in Management making use of the free elective space. This BA IT degree plan should help me get started with designing my own. SNHU seems to have a quite transparent transfer policy and I could still make use of my Coursera subscription. I could start with the Google IT Support Professional Certificate that would replace 3 specific IT courses. The remaining transferable credits would be a mix of Sophia and Study.com courses. I don't know much about StraighterLine, and CLEP exams are out of the picture. Some degree plans did use Metropolia and XAMK courses which could be convenient for me since the universities are from Finland. 

I would want to hear any suggestions/thoughts on my plan and if it is the most suitable in my case. For example, is it just unnecessary work trying to do a more thorough IT degree with a concentration and a minor or would a more general Bachelor of Arts in IT be enough? I'm also not yet sure if I could find all the specific courses to fill up the 90 credits for a more specific degree plan. A degree making use of competency-based education would be faster but I'm fine with the 8-10 month time I would need to complete the last 30 credits at SNHU as I know I'm making tangible progress. Any experience and perspective from internationals outside of the US would be greatly appreciated. 


Budget: I have enough money saved but 15k is where I draw the line. SNHU would cost around 10k if optimizing everything by transferring the max 90 credits.

Commitments and Dedicated time to study: In January I'm attending an intensive coding bootcamp so I won't have time. I've applied for jobs abroad in Spring/Summer but all the free time would be dedicated to studying. I'm planning on applying for bachelor's degrees which will start in Fall, but it's still too early to say more about that and it doesn't affect my current plans.

Timeline: Now I have more time to dedicate to studying so I would like to be able to knock out most of the transferable credits during Spring 2024. I would like to finish within 1-1.5 years (12-18 months) to be able to apply straight for master's degrees starting in Fall 2025 or to land a solid job at a young age.

Tuition assistance/reimbursement: Finland does provide aid if I'll be studying in Germany for example but in this case, I doubt I'll be getting any meaningful help for my online studies. 

Current Regional Accredited Credits: None
Current ACE, CLEP, or NCCRS Credits: None

Any certifications or military experience?
Google Data Analytics Certificate that was completed on Coursera on February 2023
I spent a year in military service in Finland and completed the NCO (Non-Commissioned Officer) Course 
Finnish Matriculation Examination (I see some Universities accepting A-levels but it is most likely a stretch managing to transfer anything)
TOEFL iBT Score, December 2023: 109/120 (should be enough to apply for any university from what I've seen) 

[Jonathan Whatley]

UMPI would be a solid option but doesn't it doesn't offer any degrees I'd want.

Not even the Project Management & Information Systems concentration in the BA in Business Administration?

[bjcheung77]

@unfinesredondo, Welcome to the board... Great introduction post with all that detail in the addendum and template! You may want to just go for the Metropolia BSIT by doing the entire program from them, it should be very inexpensive as you're in the EU and you can ladder to a Masters right after. Review the WIKI here: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Me...d_Sciences

[Tomas]

I noticed that TESU hasn't yet been evaluated/recognized in Germany with an "H+/H-" rating. I would most likely do my master's in Germany or elsewhere in Europe so the recognition of the university would be important to me. Annoyingly, it is the most difficult point to evaluate whether the degree would be accepted in Europe.

That TESU is not in Anabin database means only one thing, probably no one with TESU degree asked for Anabin evaluation yet. There should be no problem with TESU whatsoever, it's a state/public regionally accredited university.

If you are in Finland, I'm wondering why you don't get bachelors in Finland, eg. IT degree from Metropolia sounds like an ideal match to what you are looking for to me...

[unfinesredondo]

UMPI would be a solid option but doesn't it doesn't offer any degrees I'd want.

Not even the Project Management & Information Systems concentration in the BA in Business Administration?

I had considered the specific program in question, but it is still very much a business degree. The more technological courses are not that many in the end. Although, I could consider it later on as a complementary degree if I'll get down to studying another one!

@unfinesredondo, Welcome to the board... Great introduction post with all that detail in the addendum and template!  You may want to just go for the Metropolia BSIT by doing the entire program from them, it should be very inexpensive as you're in the EU and you can ladder to a Masters right after.  Review the WIKI here: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Me...d_Sciences

Thank you for bringing this Metropolia's program to my attention! I was aware of the possibility of doing courses at an Open University but never knew the opportunity could be used so extensively. I had only considered Open Studies in the case of universities (not UAS) as one of my options was to go and study Informaatioteknologia (IT) at Aalto University. Unfortunately, there were few courses that would apply to the degree and could be completed entirely online - mostly FiTech's MOOCs. Most courses would require at least the exam to be done on campus so living/working abroad wouldn't have been an option and the pace would've most likely been slower. Of course I could try to enter a university degree program the normal way and try to go at a faster pace. Realistically I would most likely manage to do it in maybe 2,5 years instead of 3, from what I've been hearing from friends taking many courses independently. 

I had previously overlooked the possibility of attending a University of Applied Sciences (ammattikorkeakoulu/AMK) as I have the impression that they aren't nearly as respected in Finland. Although, it doesn't really matter how they're seen here as I will continue abroad either way. Here you'd have to complete additional studies to be accepted for a master's in a university with a bachelor's degree from a UAS (alempi ammattikorkeakoulututkinto). There is also the less common path of completing your master's at a UAS (ylempi ammattikorkeakoulututkinto) although you need to have 2 years of work experience. In any case, a degree from Finland should be well-respected abroad as we've managed to keep up the image of world-class education even though I doubt there's much of a difference in terms of university education. Later I became more open to the idea of attending a UAS (Fachhochschule) as I heard it is a more common and respected path in Germany. 

For all my purposes, I doubt I could find a better degree path than the one you presented. I've done more research on pathway studies similar Metropolia's NonStop path but have yet to find an option that would be as extensive as completing 3 years of a degree (180 ECTS). The pathway studies are mainly designed for people that didn't get into the degree program with their grades or want to make progress in their studies while waiting for the new application period. Metropolia does offer a similar NonStop path worth 120 ECTS to later transfer to a bachelor's in ICT but it just seems inferior in every way, but I'll ask more about it from them later. 

Not getting a GPA was discussed in another thread, but like Tomas said, in Europe, I doubt anyone will come asking for your GPA when applying of for a job. I don't really mind as long as I can still apply for master's programs even if they wouldn't be at the most prestigious institutions. I've booked a time with a school councellor at Metropolia to ask some final questions about the path. Mostly, I want to know if it makes sense to apply in the joint application in January for the normal campus study program that begins in Autumn 2024 as I want to complete everything independently/online. From what I've looked, I haven't found any deal-breakers in the program. Must admit, I'm excited for the opportunity. 

I noticed that TESU hasn't yet been evaluated/recognized in Germany with an "H+/H-" rating. I would most likely do my master's in Germany or elsewhere in Europe so the recognition of the university would be important to me. Annoyingly, it is the most difficult point to evaluate whether the degree would be accepted in Europe.

That TESU is not in Anabin database means only one thing, probably no one with TESU degree asked for Anabin evaluation yet. There should be no problem with TESU whatsoever, it's a state/public regionally accredited university.

If you are in Finland, I'm wondering why you don't get bachelors in Finland, eg. IT degree from Metropolia sounds like an ideal match to what you are looking for to me...

Makes sense that it's simply a matter of fact that no one has applied yet with a degree from TESU. Like you said it, it's still an accredited university. Also, thanks for your contributions on the other thread on Metropolia! Everything else regarding my choice I already addressed above.

[homeschoolmom1]

Not that it helps right now, but your plan is exactly what we are planning. Our son is pursuing the BACS from TESU (with or without the Data analytics degree tagged on to it, not sure yet), and then he plans to use it for Masters studies in Computer Science in Europe, most likely Germany or Austria (since he is fluent in German, but has English as a mother tongue). He is only 13 right now. The plan is for him to enroll at the age of 16 and graduate around age 18, and then have the degree evaluated by anabin. So in about 5 years or so I will have an answer for you about anabin accepting the TESU degree...