Free Bachelors Degrees for Union Member

[wow]

Just wanted to add information for anyone else looking into this path.  The Union Plus program/scholarship only covers Business, Criminal Justice, and Social Science degrees/courses.  They do allow individual courses to be taken, but there is a waiver process for non-degree seeking students.  Hope that's helpful info for anyone wondering about this possibility.

I'm not sure that's accurate. The small print said but additional degrees at the non Central State schools could be pursued, which would include a Health and Wellness BA. And doesn't Central State offer a BA in Early childhood education and a bachelor's in Independent Studies-Humanities as part of this program?

[bjcheung77]

I see Franklin is a partner, I think they're very good, as they have offices in several states and seems popular in some areas of study. Has anyone tried them or contacted them in regards to this? I believe they're going to be an awesome option for those who have "union" status...

[k-k-k-katy]

I see Franklin is a partner, I think they're very good, as they have offices in several states and seems popular in some areas of study.  Has anyone tried them or contacted them in regards to this?  I believe they're going to be an awesome option for those who have "union" status...

I spoke with several people from Franklin University yesterday.  They sounded knowledgeable about how the union program worked and the information I shared here yesterday is what they specifically told me, but I actually do hope it is more open than I have been led to believe, or what I understood them to say .  I was told that my particular courses would not be covered by the program and even if I decided to transfer in to get my degree through them, it would not be covered.  It was reiterated that the courses that qualified had to fall under the specific categories (business, etc.).  If anyone can access or "mine" more information, I would be eager to hear about any loopholes or more accessibility to a larger array of courses.  I might have missed asking the right questions.  In the meantime I think the program as it stands sounds really great (free degree!) and I hope it helps a lot of people.  Also, was told that although Paul Quinn College is technically on the list, they are not quite ready to offer this program yet.  Franklin University takes up to 75% transfer credits and advertise being generous in taking ACE.  Their courses are not 100% self-paced, they call it "teacher led."  And while they are a 3 semester school, they do offer some shorter (6 week, 8 week) courses.

[wow]

I see Franklin is a partner, I think they're very good, as they have offices in several states and seems popular in some areas of study.  Has anyone tried them or contacted them in regards to this?  I believe they're going to be an awesome option for those who have "union" status...

I spoke with several people from Franklin University yesterday.  They sounded knowledgeable about how the union program worked and the information I shared here yesterday is what they specifically told me, but I actually do hope it is more open than I have been led to believe, or what I understood them to say .  I was told that my particular courses would not be covered by the program and even if I decided to transfer in to get my degree through them, it would not be covered.  It was reiterated that the courses that qualified had to fall under the specific categories (business, etc.).  If anyone can access or "mine" more information, I would be eager to hear about any loopholes or more accessibility to a larger array of courses.  I might have missed asking the right questions.  In the meantime I think the program as it stands sounds really great (free degree!) and I hope it helps a lot of people.  Also, was told that although Paul Quinn College is technically on the list, they are not quite ready to offer this program yet.  Franklin University takes up to 75% transfer credits and advertise being generous in taking ACE.  Their courses are not 100% self-paced, they call it "teacher led."  And while they are a 3 semester school, they do offer some shorter (6 week, 8 week) courses.

Interesting! I think each college has different majors that they are offering in this program. All of them are offering business majors, but other majors might differ. And I don't think any of them are offering all of their majors as part of the Union program. I assume it has to do with which majors have classes that are all available online and can be offered to larger numbers of students.
Paul Quinn is the one with the health and wellness major. It looks like that major will not be offered until summer, though.
Also, anyone who is hoping to get a second bachelor's degree, please note that Quinn and Franklin are not offering second bachelor's degrees is part of this program. The site does not state that Central University is offering second bachelor's degrees, but it doesn't say that it isn't, either.

[ECH90]

I see Franklin is a partner, I think they're very good, as they have offices in several states and seems popular in some areas of study.  Has anyone tried them or contacted them in regards to this?  I believe they're going to be an awesome option for those who have "union" status...

I spoke with several people from Franklin University yesterday.  They sounded knowledgeable about how the union program worked and the information I shared here yesterday is what they specifically told me, but I actually do hope it is more open than I have been led to believe, or what I understood them to say .  I was told that my particular courses would not be covered by the program and even if I decided to transfer in to get my degree through them, it would not be covered.  It was reiterated that the courses that qualified had to fall under the specific categories (business, etc.).  If anyone can access or "mine" more information, I would be eager to hear about any loopholes or more accessibility to a larger array of courses.  I might have missed asking the right questions.  In the meantime I think the program as it stands sounds really great (free degree!) and I hope it helps a lot of people.  Also, was told that although Paul Quinn College is technically on the list, they are not quite ready to offer this program yet.  Franklin University takes up to 75% transfer credits and advertise being generous in taking ACE.  Their courses are not 100% self-paced, they call it "teacher led."  And while they are a 3 semester school, they do offer some shorter (6 week, 8 week) courses.

Did you ever get more information on Franklin? I am a union member, I’m wondering if this would work our well for me…

[NoStudentNoCry]

I think forum member TinaSam is currently taking classes at Franklin.

[k-k-k-katy]

I see Franklin is a partner, I think they're very good, as they have offices in several states and seems popular in some areas of study.  Has anyone tried them or contacted them in regards to this?  I believe they're going to be an awesome option for those who have "union" status...

I spoke with several people from Franklin University yesterday.  They sounded knowledgeable about how the union program worked and the information I shared here yesterday is what they specifically told me, but I actually do hope it is more open than I have been led to believe, or what I understood them to say .  I was told that my particular courses would not be covered by the program and even if I decided to transfer in to get my degree through them, it would not be covered.  It was reiterated that the courses that qualified had to fall under the specific categories (business, etc.).  If anyone can access or "mine" more information, I would be eager to hear about any loopholes or more accessibility to a larger array of courses.  I might have missed asking the right questions.  In the meantime I think the program as it stands sounds really great (free degree!) and I hope it helps a lot of people.  Also, was told that although Paul Quinn College is technically on the list, they are not quite ready to offer this program yet.  Franklin University takes up to 75% transfer credits and advertise being generous in taking ACE.  Their courses are not 100% self-paced, they call it "teacher led."  And while they are a 3 semester school, they do offer some shorter (6 week, 8 week) courses.

Did you ever get more information on Franklin? I am a union member, I’m wondering if this would work our well for me…

They really do offer free degrees through this program, it sounds like an amazing deal!  I might have gone in this direction if I had known about it a year ago.  It would totally be worth it to speak with someone from Franklin to find out if the degree you are getting is covered, we're talking about a 100% paid for degree!  I was specifically told that the union scholarship/program only covers Business, Criminal Justice, and Social Science degrees.  However, another forum member believes that might not be correct, and they would or do offer other degrees.

[k-k-k-katy]

I see Franklin is a partner, I think they're very good, as they have offices in several states and seems popular in some areas of study.  Has anyone tried them or contacted them in regards to this?  I believe they're going to be an awesome option for those who have "union" status...

I spoke with several people from Franklin University yesterday.  They sounded knowledgeable about how the union program worked and the information I shared here yesterday is what they specifically told me, but I actually do hope it is more open than I have been led to believe, or what I understood them to say .  I was told that my particular courses would not be covered by the program and even if I decided to transfer in to get my degree through them, it would not be covered.  It was reiterated that the courses that qualified had to fall under the specific categories (business, etc.).  If anyone can access or "mine" more information, I would be eager to hear about any loopholes or more accessibility to a larger array of courses.  I might have missed asking the right questions.  In the meantime I think the program as it stands sounds really great (free degree!) and I hope it helps a lot of people.  Also, was told that although Paul Quinn College is technically on the list, they are not quite ready to offer this program yet.  Franklin University takes up to 75% transfer credits and advertise being generous in taking ACE.  Their courses are not 100% self-paced, they call it "teacher led."  And while they are a 3 semester school, they do offer some shorter (6 week, 8 week) courses.

Interesting! I think each college has different majors that they are offering in this program. All of them are offering business majors, but other majors might differ. And I don't think any of them are offering all of their majors as part of the Union program. I assume it has to do with which majors have classes that are all available online and can be offered to larger numbers of students.
Paul Quinn is the one with the health and wellness major. It looks like that major will not be offered until summer, though.
Also, anyone who is hoping to get a second bachelor's degree, please note that Quinn and Franklin are not offering second bachelor's degrees is part of this program. The site does not state that Central University is offering second bachelor's degrees, but it doesn't say that it isn't, either.

Yes, I think you are right about each college offering different majors.  And, each one has different prerequisites, too.

[Momof3Girls]

My husband is a hospital employee and his union works with Eastern Gateway and Franklin. I've talked to both and they confirmed that the only degree paths you can take are business- or healthcare-related. Also, you must be a high school grad/GED. So, no classes for my dual-enrolled high school kids

ETA: but thanks to this forum, I've got their college degrees mapped out already

[wow]

My husband is a hospital employee and his union works with Eastern Gateway and Franklin. I've talked to both and they confirmed that the only degree paths you can take are business- or healthcare-related. Also, you must be a high school grad/GED. So, no classes for my dual-enrolled high school kids

ETA: but thanks to this forum, I've got their college degrees mapped out already

Those must be the degree plans for Franklin. For EGCC, you can do any Associates Degree they have online. I'm working on an AA, which is a general transfer degree. They also have criminal justice, paralegal options, social work, and teacher education in addition to business and health (https://www.egccfreecollege.org/degree-programs/, https://freecollege.unionplus.org/degree-programs/).

At Central State, they offer

• Business Management 
  
• Teacher Education - Early Education (Pre-K – 5th Grade) and Intervention Specialist  
  
• Criminal Justice
  
• Interdisciplinary Studies - Humanities 
  

(see https://www.unionplus.org/benefits/educa...on-program)

Anyone looking into this, keep in mind that any single college you speak to through this program will not know about what's offered at the other colleges or have a comprehensive understanding of the program as a whole--even if they act like they do. Sometimes they don't even understand their own program (atleast at EGCC).