Addressing Concerns of Out-of-State Tuition

[dfrecore]

Here's an old spreadsheet, I think it's fairly updated, but you would want to check the ACE/NCCRS databases before taking anything, just to make sure.  This forum is helpful in getting these kinds of things, but it's also really important to do your own research.

[Merlin]

I want to get my college degree from Thomas Edison State University and finish college as quickly as possible. My mom is objecting to this decision because Thomas Edison State University is out-of-state and we don't live in New Jersey so I will have to pay out-of-state. She is wrong about this because I only will have to pay for the capstone and for the application fee, graduation fee, and the residency waiver fee. All of the rest of the money will not even have to come from the college fund and it would all go to the very cheap or in some cases free exams I will need to take. In fact, I've already taken 4 CLEP exams that will give me 18 credits for a degree at TESU. I looked at a BSBA in finance degree plan as an example and found that it would only cost a total of $7,000. That is far less money than what I would pay for at a state school in my state and is very fast! My parents saved up $15,000 dollars and these degrees are under $10,000. 

To everyone here on Degree Forum, I need your help to mathematically prove to my mom that I can get a bachelor's degree from Thomas Edison State University and that I can get it in less than 1 year and a little as just a few months! Please help me!

Alternative education is definitely cheaper and can be faster as well. Though WGU can be cheaper and just as fast in the right circumstances. You can easily show her how much you'll save per credit by looking at a state school and then comparing against any of the online course providers like Study.com & Straighterline (which is less than $33 per credit if you can manage two courses per month) or even cheaper if you go with Saylor.org (just pay $25 proctor fee per 3 credit course) or OnlineDegree.com (just pay $9 proctor fee per 3 credit course). Obviously, you can also get free exams (well, reimbursed fee) with CLEP via Modern States. On top of that you save on the cost of tuition and school fees. The only additional cost is cornerstone, capstone, books (for the TESU capstone), and graduation fees (and residency waiver given you're out of state).

I don't know how old you are, but since you mentioned living with parents, I thought I'd throw this out there just in case. Some people don't realize this, but TESU requires all new students to be at least 21 years of age (18+ for military) to be admitted to the school now. They used to allow younger students, but they started cracking down on this earlier this year. If you're 21+ or expect to be at least 2-3 months before your target graduation date, then you should be fine. If not, you may want to look at COSC or Excelsior.

[dfrecore]

 (and residency waiver given you're out of state).

Residency is not just for where you live (in-state or out-of-state), it's also for people who take less than a certain number of credits at the school (and in many cases, 30cr is the amount).

At TESU, the the residency waiver is for not taking 16cr through TESU.  In-state students who only take the capstone and cornerstone also pay the RW.  Out-of-state students who take 16cr there would not pay the RW.

[Merlin]

(and residency waiver given you're out of state).

Residency is not just for where you live (in-state or out-of-state), it's also for people who take less than a certain number of credits at the school (and in many cases, 30cr is the amount).

At TESU, the the residency waiver is for not taking 16cr through TESU.  In-state students who only take the capstone and cornerstone also pay the RW.  Out-of-state students who take 16cr there would not pay the RW.

Doh, you're right. For some reason, I was thinking that TESU waived residency fees for in-state students and required 16cr for anyone out of state. I know there is a different tuition rate for in-state vs out-of-state students, so I must have been thinking they were aligned.

[davewill]

...

Also, a little bit of advice for your educational journey. Their primary concern probably isn't the money, even though it appears that way to you. I don't know how old you are, but after reaching my 20s I quickly realized that parents just want to know you're sticking with something, anything. It helps them sleep better. Once they see you plugging away at these courses and racking up the credits, they'll feel so much more comfortable about it. This means you might have to work a little harder in the first couple of months. Every day I find something to tell my parents about the progress I made that day. "Hey mom, just sent in my persuasive essay. Now I'm reviewing the guidelines for my next paper." or "Just finished a quiz, I feel really good about it. I estimate I'll be able to take the next one by Tuesday." ANYTHING that shows them you're good at the self-paced route and not using it to lollygag around. As soon as they see you getting stagnant, they'll get concerned again. 

If you ever just need support or even an accountability partner, shoot me a message and I'll be happy to help.

This may be the best advice you'll get. Don't try too hard to convince them up front. You can earn enough money to start racking up credits without their buy in. Just start doing it, and they'll soon realize you're succeeding, and will be thrilled to help.

[cookderosa]

I want to get my college degree from Thomas Edison State University and finish college as quickly as possible. My mom is objecting to this decision because Thomas Edison State University is out-of-state and we don't live in New Jersey so I will have to pay out-of-state. She is wrong about this because I only will have to pay for the capstone and for the application fee, graduation fee, and the residency waiver fee. All of the rest of the money will not even have to come from the college fund and it would all go to the very cheap or in some cases free exams I will need to take. In fact, I've already taken 4 CLEP exams that will give me 18 credits for a degree at TESU. I looked at a BSBA in finance degree plan as an example and found that it would only cost a total of $7,000. That is far less money than what I would pay for at a state school in my state and is very fast! My parents saved up $15,000 dollars and these degrees are under $10,000. 

To everyone here on Degree Forum, I need your help to mathematically prove to my mom that I can get a bachelor's degree from Thomas Edison State University and that I can get it in less than 1 year and a little as just a few months! Please help me!

Of course, whoever pays has the power. My advice is to pay your own way, which I'm sure you can do. You can tell your mom to save your college fund for grad school - I doubt she'll have an argument with that!

[frank.f.franky]

Best advice, I can give; do the online community college first:

New Mexico State University-​Carlsbad
New Mexico Jr. College
Arizona Western College

credits are around $100 per semester hour.

Your parents will love seeing progress. Mix in as many free online credits from various sources. Should be very easy to get a Assoc in one year. It will be hard for your parents to understand ACE credits, but brick/mortar easy to explain.

[hsfamfun]

I would say that just make a plan and stick to it and your parents will come around!  My 19 year old son is going about his degree much differently than most people his age, but it is working for him and he is making progress and that is what matters.  He is currently in a 1 year nationally accredited Vocational program for Personal Fitness Training, taking a class at our local CC and doing some non traditional credits as well.  I have told many people about using non traditional credit toward a degree and most people don't want to hear about it because it isn't the road that most people take.  The most frustrating situation is my 50+ year old sister who has 105 credits from traditional universities(she changed her major at one point, so she isn't that close to a degree), but refuses to talk about finishing up at one of the big 3.  I think she would be very close to a Liberal Studies degree from TESU, but she refuses to talk about it.  You can't make people understand or embrace the process, but you can make your own plan and implement it!