Help Please! TESC AA Degree & Tuition Planning

[ISKBizz15]

I've been silently lurking through this site, researching about how to test out of a degree & I'm so inspired by the many that have done it in such a short period of time. I've already researched & gotten in contact with Charter Oak State, Excelsior, & Thomas Edison State & I've decided that I want to get my degree from TESC. I've spoken to several different people in admissions at TESC and they've all given me different info on how to proceed with testing out.

Two people in admissions told me to choose the degree program that I want from off the site and match the courses with the exams that I would need to take, then apply & transfer those credits once they're completed.

Then, three other people told me to apply first, then create my degree plan with the help of an academic advisor, but I've heard from many people on this site that you can only get help with an advisor if you enroll first, I've also read that even if you went through that process they wouldn't be of much help when it comes to advising.

What would be the best option to getting started, creating my own degree plan without applying first or apply first & get an advisors help?

I want to do this in the most inexpensive way that I possibly can, within 3-4 months (I want to go for at least 2 exams a week, if possible) because I need at least 60 college credits completed to apply & get into a teaching program in Asia before the next TESC graduation period in September. I've already earned 3 credits for ENG 101 from a Community College, so I'll be starting almost completely from scratch. I've already checked out the different degree plans on Degree Forum Wikia but I wanted try making one for myself & I don't know how often those plans are updated.

Here's my attempt at creating a degree plan for an Associates of Arts degree using CLEP & DSST exams:



A. Intellectual and Practical Skills

English Composition I (ENC-101)
Already completed from Community College (3 credits)

English Composition II (ENC-102)
CLEP = College Composition (6 credits) (only 3 cred. needed)

College-Level Math Course
CLEP = College Mathematics (6 credits) (only 3 cred. needed)

B. Electives in Intellectual and Practical Skills

DSST = Technical Writing (3 credits)
DSST = Introduction to Computing (3 credits)

C. Human Cultures and the Physical and Natural World

Humanities
CLEP = Humanities (6 credits) (only 3 credits needed)

Social Sciences
CLEP = Introduction to Sociology (3 credits)

Natural Sciences
CLEP = Natural Sciences (6 credits) (only 3 credits needed)

D. Humanities, Social Sciences, Natural Sciences or Interdisciplinary Electives

CLEP = Natural Sciences (3 credits) (overage from section C)
CLEP = Humanities (3 credits) (overage from section C)
CLEP = Introduction to Educational Psychology (3 credits)

E. Personal and Social Responsibility

Diversity/Global Literacy
DSST = Introduction to World Religions (3 credits)

Responsible Ethical Leadership
DSST = Ethics in America (3 credits)

Ethics or Diversity Elective
DSST = Human/Cultural Geography (3 credits)

F. General Education Electives

DSST = Organizational Behavior (3 credits)
CLEP = Human Growth and Development (3 credits)
DSST = Art of the Western World (3 credits)
DSST = Introduction to the Modern Middle East (3 credits)
CLEP = Information Systems and Computer Applications (3 credits)
DSST = Business Ethics and Society (3 credits)

-------------------
Total: 60 credits

Now onto the case of enrolling into the college without having to pay the annual enrollment fee in order to graduate. I've heard that I can enroll by testing out of some of the TECEP exams for the Per-Credit tuition plan, is that true? (I have no problem swapping out some of the Electives for a few TECEP exams) Can someone clarify that for me?

Your feedback would be greatly appreciated.

[Prloko]

Doing this degree plan will be more expensive when you pay the enrollment fee. If you do the PPC plan and take 4 TECEP exams, it will reduce your cost significantly.

[ISKBizz15]

Thanks! I'll definitely be adding TECEP exams to my plan. I also have a couple of concerns when it comes to when I should apply & enroll to TESC. Would it make more sense to apply now and take those 4 TECEP exams first before jumping into my other exams (CLEP/DSST)? Or would it be better if I waited until I have all of my credits completed then take those last 4 exams to cover enrollment?

Sorry about all the questions, I'm a complete Newbie when it comes to all of this.

[Prloko]

The general consensus and strategy involved studying for and taking related courses together since you can benefit from the overlap of material.

[studymom]

I think it's best to use the Pay Per Credit plan. You would need 4 TECEPS. It's up to you when you enroll, but the benefit of enrolling now is locking in this catalog. A new catalog this summer could mean changes to requirements. You pay the $75 to apply & signing up for a course or a TECEP changes your status to enrolled on the 10th day of the term you signed up for. The deadline to sign up for the May term is April 18. Here is the academic calendar:

Thomas Edison State College: Undergraduate Academic Calendar

To maintain your tuition plan, you need to take one course or TECEP during a 12 month period. So, as long as you take one TECEP every year after enrolling, you are locked in. For that reason, I wouldn't do all of the TECEPs at once in the beginning. I'd do them as needed to maintain the tuition plan while you finished up all of the other requirements.

From reading here, some good options (based on what you still need) would be English Comp 2 (ENC-102), Technical Writing (ENG-201), Computer Concepts & Applications (CIS-107), Psychology of Women (PSY-270) or Marriage & Family (SOC-210).

HTH!

Edited to add: Also, if you are going for speed, you may want to look into using Straighterline as well. If you put in the time, you can knock out several courses quickly. If you do several in one month, it can even make it cheaper per credit than testing.

Good luck!

[ISKBizz15]

I think it's best to use the Pay Per Credit plan. You would need 4 TECEPS. It's up to you when you enroll, but the benefit of enrolling now is locking in this catalog. A new catalog this summer could mean changes to requirements. You pay the $75 to apply & signing up for a course or a TECEP changes your status to enrolled on the 10th day of the term you signed up for. The deadline to sign up for the May term is April 18. Here is the academic calendar:

Thomas Edison State College: Undergraduate Academic Calendar

To maintain your tuition plan, you need to take one course or TECEP during a 12 month period. So, as long as you take one TECEP every year after enrolling, you are locked in. For that reason, I wouldn't do all of the TECEPs at once in the beginning. I'd do them as needed to maintain the tuition plan while you finished up all of the other requirements.

From reading here, some good options (based on what you still need) would be English Comp 2 (ENC-102), Technical Writing (ENG-201), Computer Concepts & Applications (CIS-107), Psychology of Women (PSY-270) or Marriage & Family (SOC-210).

HTH!

Edited to add: Also, if you are going for speed, you may want to look into using Straighterline as well. If you put in the time, you can knock out several courses quickly. If you do several in one month, it can even make it cheaper per credit than testing.

Good luck!

Thanks for all of this! Now I feel more confident about how to proceed. I'm getting ready to take you & Prloko's advise & apply today & enroll as soon as possible to knock out these credits, but I'm a bit confused on how it would be cheaper to take some Straighterline courses. I spoke to an advisor at Straighterline, and based on what they told me about the total cost of all of the fees (membership, textbooks, course fees, etc.), even for just one month seems to be a bit more costly compared to just testing out w/CLEP or DSST & using sites like Instantcert or Saylor for study materials.

Can you clarify some of this for me? Because I know advisors at colleges & programs like Straighterline barely give you much information unless you specifically ask about something, and even then they're still very limited about the information they give out.

Thanks for the support!

[cookderosa]

Thanks for all of this! Now I feel more confident about how to proceed. I'm getting ready to take you & Prloko's advise & apply today & enroll as soon as possible to knock out these credits, but I'm a bit confused on how it would be cheaper to take some Straighterline courses. I spoke to an advisor at Straighterline, and based on what they told me about the total cost of all of the fees (membership, textbooks, course fees, etc.), even for just one month seems to be a bit more costly compared to just testing out w/CLEP or DSST & using sites like Instantcert or Saylor for study materials.

Can you clarify some of this for me? Because I know advisors at colleges & programs like Straighterline barely give you much information unless you specifically ask about something, and even then they're still very limited about the information they give out.

Thanks for the support!

With SL, you can sometimes find a code for 2 for 1 or BOGO but the trick to making SL cheap is to work FAST. Stretching classes out to a month or longer adds $$$$$.

[studymom]

As cookderosa said, the key is to work quickly. I would decide which courses you wanted to try to take and gather the textbooks. You can see what the required textbooks are in the syllabus for each class. You can find used, older editions very cheap. I've had good luck on Amazon. A lot of people also like using e-books and utilizing the search feature.

Here is a page of current coupon codes:

StraighterLine coupons, discounts and promotion codes | StraighterLine

If you pay the $99 and BOGO, you are paying $148 for two classes. That's $74 per course. If you find inexpensive textbooks, then that's cheaper than CLEP. If you complete even more classes in that month, you are stretching your $99 even more and making the per credit price even lower.

I think Straight-line is a great addition to CLEP and DSST. I like testing as well, but sometimes it can be cheaper and easier to work your way quickly through a course like SL.

Definitely check the current exam requirements to make sure the course you are using is open-book (unless you're ok with it not being open-book). That can be found here:

Online Exam Proctoring Details by Course | StraighterLine

Search the forums as well, there has been a lot of feedback posted on SL courses.

Also, don't forget to sign up for your TECEP to lock in your enrollment

I can't wait to read your "I'm done" post!

[studymom]

I just thought of one more thing. If you are planning on using the Per Credit tuition plan, I would start by deciding which four TECEPs you wanted to use for your residency. After deciding those, then I would fill in the rest with CLEP, DSST, SL or ALEKS. (or any other option you choose) . That way you don't fill a slot with one of the other options, when it would have been a relatively "easy" TECEP. Search the board for what others have said to help you decide which ones you would like to take.

HTH!