First Post - TESC Academic Evaluation Questions

[npk32]

Hey everyone, this is my first post but I’ve been visiting the boards for quite a while now. I've been impressed with the willingness of this community to help newcomers so I figured I would post some beginner’s questions.

I recently decided to complete my BA in History through TESC. I received my academic evaluation about a week ago but I could use some help. I have 58 credits from a four year institution and it looks like TESC will allow 55 of them to be applied towards my degree. The only class they rejected was HIS-101 because I received a grade of D and they only “accept courses with a grade of C or better into the major area of all degrees.”

Basically I’m looking for the most cost effective way to go about completing the remaining 65 credits, preferably through testing. According to my academic evaluation I need the following:

Responsible Ethical Leadership – 3 credits
General Education Electives – 9 credits
HIS-101 – 3 credits
HIS-113/114 – 6 credits
Non-Western/Non-US History – 3 credits
History Electives – 15 credits
Liberal Arts Capstone – 3 credits
Free Electives – 24 credits

What are my options for fulfilling the Responsible Ethical Leadership requirement? I've seen some posters have satisfied this requirement with DSST Ethics in America but are there any other tests that work for this requirement?

In regard to the electives, what is the difference between General Education Electives and Free Electives and what is the quickest, easiest and least expensive way to blow through all of these?

My last question is regarding the History Electives. Is there any way to fulfill the 15 credit requirement through testing? All of the plans I've seen have one online course mixed in there so I’m assuming it’s necessary to take at least one course.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts!

[KayV]

You could use the TECEP in Environmental Ethics and six other TECEPs plus the Capstone to be the most cost effective. Also, credits from NFA (3), TEEX (6), Kaplan (3), are still free, and ALEKS is another low-cost way to get 12 credits (Int Alg, College Alg, Trig or PreCal, and Stats). Good luck!

[npk32]

You could use the TECEP in Environmental Ethics and six other TECEPs plus the Capstone to be the most cost effective. Also, credits from NFA (3), TEEX (6), Kaplan (3), are still free, and ALEKS is another low-cost way to get 12 credits (Int Alg, College Alg, Trig or PreCal, and Stats). Good luck!

Thanks so much for replying. So TECEPs are less expensive than DSST or CLEP? I read that it was $80 for DSST and CLEP exams and $35 per credit ($105 per exam) for TECEP. Just for clarification I'm not enrolled at TESC and I would like to hold off on paying the tuition until I've completed as many credits as possible through testing.

Can you elaborate on those other credits you mentioned (NFA, TEEX, Kaplan)?

As far as ALEKS goes, I am horrible at math so I would like to avoid those if at all possible. Thanks again!

[ejcompere]

I filled mine with the Business Ethics DSST. It seemed it would be easier than the Ethics in America

[ejcompere]

As far as ALEKS goes, I am horrible at math so I would like to avoid those if at all possible. Thanks again!

Lol... I love math... but my sister didn't so I understand. She was able to take and pass the CLEP College Math exam. It gives 6 credits. Maybe you could?

[npk32]

Lol... I love math... but my sister didn't so I understand. She was able to take and pass the CLEP College Math exam. It gives 6 credits. Maybe you could?

Haha I've actually taken care of all my required math courses so I'm planning on avoiding any voluntary math in the future. That's part of the reason why I chose the BA in History. Thanks for the info about the Business Ethics DSST though, I will look into that.

[sanantone]

Thanks so much for replying. So TECEPs are less expensive than DSST or CLEP? I read that it was $80 for DSST and CLEP exams and $35 per credit ($105 per exam) for TECEP. Just for clarification I'm not enrolled at TESC and I would like to hold off on paying the tuition until I've completed as many credits as possible through testing.

Can you elaborate on those other credits you mentioned (NFA, TEEX, Kaplan)?

As far as ALEKS goes, I am horrible at math so I would like to avoid those if at all possible. Thanks again!

The Per Credit Tuition Plan lets you avoid the high enrollment fee under the Enrolled Options Plan. The caveat is that it has a 24-credit residency requirement for bachelors degrees. However, portfolio assessments and TECEPs are cheap ways of fulfilling the residency requirement. 24 credits from TECEPs will cost $888, and you get the bonus of filling in areas for which you would have used CLEP, DSST, or something else. The enrollment fee is $3,154 under the Enrolled Options Plan, and that doesn't cover any credits.

As of now, there aren't enough tests to complete the history area of study. So, yes, you do have to take at least one course or submit a portfolio assessment. I recommend completing one of Saylor's free courses and using it to develop a portfolio. It's a lot cheaper than taking an UL course just about anywhere.
History « Saylor Academy

Test out plans.
Sanantone's BA in History - Degree Forum Wiki
Sanantone's General Education Options - Degree Forum Wiki

[npk32]

The Per Credit Tuition Plan lets you avoid the high enrollment fee under the Enrolled Options Plan. The caveat is that it has a 24-credit residency requirement for bachelors degrees. However, portfolio assessments and TECEPs are cheap ways of fulfilling the residency requirement. 24 credits from TECEPs will cost $888, and you get the bonus of filling in areas for which you would have used CLEP, DSST, or something else. The enrollment fee is $3,154 under the Enrolled Options Plan, and that doesn't cover any credits.

As of now, there aren't enough tests to complete the history area of study. So, yes, you do have to take at least one course or submit a portfolio assessment. I recommend completing one of Saylor's free courses and using it to develop a portfolio. It's a lot cheaper than taking an UL course just about anywhere.
History « Saylor Academy

Test out plans.
Sanantone's BA in History - Degree Forum Wiki
Sanantone's General Education Options - Degree Forum Wiki

Ok that helps me out a lot! I put together a degree plan that includes 24 TECEP credits based on that information. Does this look like it would work? I can't tell which courses/tests would be redundant.

1 course (3 credits) - Responsible Ethical Leadership
TECEP Environmental Ethics

3 courses (9 credits) - General Education Electives
TECEP Introduction to News Reporting
TECEP Technical Writing
TECEP Introduction to Political Science

1 course - HIS-101 (3 credits) - Western or World Civ
CLEP Western Civi. I

2 courses - HIS-113/114 (6 credits) - American History
CLEP American History I
CLEP American History II

1 course (3 credits) - Non-Western/Non-US History
DSST Introduction to the ME (UL)

5 courses (15 credits) - History Electives
DSST Civil War & Reconstruction
DSST Rise & Fall of the Soviet Union (UL)
DSST History of the Vietnam War (UL)
ECE World Conflicts Since 1900 (UL)
Saylor Greece, the Roman Republic, and the Roman Empire (UL)

1 course - LIB-495 (3 credits) - Liberal Arts Capstone (UL)

8 courses (24 credits) - Free Electives
TECEP World History from 1600 to Present
TECEP Public Relations Thought & Practice
TECEP Introduction to Comparative Politics
TECEP Computer Concepts and Applications
DSST Introduction to World Religions
DSST Human/Cultural Geography
DSST Western Europe Since 1945
CLEP American Government

[KayV]

Looks great! That will work. If cost or time is a concern, you could replace those last four DSST/CLEP in free electives with two 6-hour CLEPs, Analyzing and Interpreting Literature and Social Science and History. Also, since the Capstone counts as 3 of the 24 hours you need, you could replace one of the TECEPs with a CLEP or DSST if you'd like. All this to say that what you have will work just fine.

[npk32]

Looks great! That will work. If cost or time is a concern, you could replace those last four DSST/CLEP in free electives with two 6-hour CLEPs, Analyzing and Interpreting Literature and Social Science and History. Also, since the Capstone counts as 3 of the 24 hours you need, you could replace one of the TECEPs with a CLEP or DSST if you'd like. All this to say that what you have will work just fine.

How do the 6 hour CLEPS compare to the 3 hour tests? Are they much more difficult? I like the idea of saving time and money.