How did you choose from the Big 3?

[Tripletmom]

I applied at TESU and waiting to hear back.  I'm wondering what led you to choose one school over the other.  They all have similar degree choices, some like TESU because the name sounds better, and TESU requires 6 fewer credits of UL.  Are there other factors that led to your decision?  Did you apply to all 3 for a credit evaluation? I'm always curious when I see someone pursuing Excelsior or COSC when TESU seems to be the norm.  Thanks so much.  Any input is appreciated. 

[Ideas]

For me, a very big factor was at the time I could do the BSBA without Capstone course. (TECEP Capstone.) That brought the cost down by $1100 and the number of months needed went down. I also enjoy business courses and have prior knowledge, so it was even faster.

Other factors were not liking Excelsior's name, and COSC's name being fine to me, but TESU's being better.

And COSC not having a lot of degree options (besides the degree being in General Studies with a concentration in something). I think that at the time, COSC only had like 4-5 degree options but now they have a more reasonable selection.

Also, I liked that at TESU I could get a good Associates degree almost for free (due to Study.com scholarship and a credit I had from long ago), an Associates that was in something I wanted and not just "General Studies" with concentration.

I think those were my main factors.

[Tripletmom]

For me, a very big factor was at the time I could do the BSBA without Capstone course. (TECEP Capstone.) That brought the cost down by $1100 and the number of months needed went down. I also enjoy business courses and have prior knowledge, so it was even faster.

Other factors were not liking Excelsior's name, and COSC's name being fine to me, but TESU's being better.

And COSC not having a lot of degree options (besides the degree being in General Studies with a concentration in something). I think that at the time, COSC only had like 4-5 degree options but now they have a more reasonable selection.

Also, I liked that at TESU I could get a good Associates degree almost for free (due to Study.com scholarship and a credit I had from long ago), an Associates that was in something I wanted and not just "General Studies" with concentration.

I think those were my main factors.

Can you explain the TECEP Capstone?  Is that a course through TESU that met the capstone requirement?  How did it reduce your cost and time?

[Ideas]

Can you explain the TECEP Capstone?  Is that a course through TESU that met the capstone requirement?  How did it reduce your cost and time?

It is no longer an option, but at the time you could take a TECEP and get credit for the Business capstone course. TECEPs are only $117 while courses are $1098. A bunch of us got in near the end before the TECEP was discontinued.

[davewill]

For me, TESU was the only one that offered a computer science degree. It is certainly a good idea to look at what your degree plan will be at more than one of the schools. The cost can vary a good bit depending on what credits you're bringing in, and what degree you want to pursue. A lot of people simply want the cheapest, quickest degree, others really want a particular degree. TESU gets the nod here most often because with the Study.com discount it's the cheapest much of the time. Also, there's simply a larger body of knowledge here for TESU. However, people have had good experiences at all three schools.

It is definitely a reasonable approach to apply to more than one or even all three if you're not sure how your transfer credits are likely to be applied.

[Ideas]

Some people avoid COSC because of the science lab, but some science labs can be done online fairly easily.

Sometimes people don't like TESU because of the advisors/others sometimes being misleading.

Some people go to COSC so they can use FEMA credits.

I was planning to go to COSC originally because they take GRE subject exams, but that won't be a factor for most people.

[mudball]

We originally choose COSC because of this:
"You are eligible to become an undergraduate student at Thomas Edison State University if you are:
An adult 21 years of age or older (unless you are participating in a special college program) and a high school graduate, or have successfully passed a General Educational Development (GED) test."

Until we found out about this:
"Individuals not meeting this criteria, but who feel they warrant special consideration for other reasons may petition the director of Admissions and Enrollment Services and present appropriate documentation to support their being accepted to the University. Students admitted through special consideration are subject to the same academic policies and requirements as those admitted unconditionally."

It took a while, but eventually, they accepted my 17yr old. He had 9 RA college credits already with 4.0 GPA and 40 or 50 some ACE credits. TESU just had so much more info available on this forum and we needed a lot of help on this path.

[dfrecore]

I chose TESU back when you could take the BSBA Capstone as a TECEP (no longer an option) or transfer it in from Penn Foster (also no longer an option). Also, TECEP's counted as residency back then (again, no longer an option except for military).

[Nixi]

TESU, because they accepted the most amount of untraditional credits and also had the most amount of degree plans here. Their name sounded better to me than the other options as well. Plus the capstone could be tested out of for cheap through Penn Foster at the time.

Edit: I just saw dfrecore mentioned the capstone point too

[GoldieLux]

I chose COSC because they had less math requirements for the info tech degree than the other two, and I didn't mind taking courses through them. When I first started, I was getting reimbursed through work, so the cost wasn't a factor. Plus, I didn't mind having to take a cornerstone and capstone course. 

TESU's program for info tech would have taken me twice as long with my existing credits. Plus, I didn't feel the individual attention was there. I'm high maintenance. LOL. COSC is very attentive because they are much smaller, and any time I speak to my advisor, I almost have to force her off of the phone. 

I didn't really consider Excelsior, but I can't remember why. Maybe it was the purple website, or the name, or some other superficial reason. Who knows.

Kel