I have no idea what I'm doing with all of these credits but no four year degree.

[NAP]

My experience with my Excelsior College advisor was fantastic. All of my hypothetical questions were answered thoroughly. Since you are already enrolled, use that to your advantage. (Your enrollment lasts one year.) Ask every question that you can possibly think of about your situation and goals and the best way to get there.

Also, check out what works at COSC and TESC.

Of course, do a lot of reading and posting here, too. I'm glad you found this forum. Knowing more about your options will help make sure you are making the right decisions for you.

Edit to add: Here is the refund policy, if needed: http://www.excelsior.edu/fee-refunds

[cookderosa]

All opinions are generally bias, even the ones posted on this very forum.

Which is the reason to educate and advocate for yourself. Geesh.

[Leebo]

The advantage of an advisor, if you are already enrolled, is that they can give definitive advice about which credits you already have will be applied to which degrees at their school. Obviously, they can be wrong, but they've got a better shot of getting that right than someone here.

[sanantone]

That might be the case at Excelsior or COSC, but not at TESC. Although, I have heard some complaints about Excelsior's advisors. You can get accurate advice if you send an email or make an advising appointment at TESC. When you call the advising hotline, those people don't have a clue of what they're talking about.

[Exfactor]

That might be the case at Excelsior or COSC, but not at TESC. Although, I have heard some complaints about Excelsior's advisors. You can get accurate advice if you send an email or make an advising appointment at TESC. When you call the advising hotline, those people don't have a clue of what they're talking about.

Once enrolled Excelsior students are assigned an advisor based in the school they are enrolled in (nursing, liberal arts, technology ect), these advisors are the individuals who are the ones that evaluate your credits and transcribed them ect, they are also knowledgable of what credits you need as they are the ones who grant you credit, and what exams you could take to fulfill the requirements of your degree. I don't know about TESC; however, at EC everything pretty much goes through your advisor (one-stop shop). Sometime some students may have issues with the advisors they are assigned, but for the most part EC advisors are generally knowledgable of the schools policies.

[cookderosa]

I don't mean to beat a dead horse, but there have been HUNDREDS of situations here over the years where people got either bad, wrong, or confusing advice from an employee of their college. That kind of thing is caught here inside 24 hours. People here are on top of things, so even if you have an advising apt, you can still get pointed in the right direction here.

Colleges don't make up policy on the fly, everything is written down, thus there is really no reason to call an advisor for every little thing. Look up the answers. They will be in one of the many publication from the college. Also, unless someone's situation is incredibly unique, advising is pretty straight-forward, which is why you can get help here....it's not rocket science. Specific to the OP in this thread, anyone not understanding where to start, should wait until they do, because education errors cost time AND money.

For what it's worth, I'll also add that an advisor TELLING you something means nothing binding, this forum is full of instances of being told something by someone only to find out later that it was completely wrong. The solution is simple, if you want to be on top of your own degree plan, you should be your own advocate. Knowing the road you're traveling, how you're going to do it, the pros and cons of various options, the costs of those options, a realistic timeline, etc. At that point, if you want to confirm that you're on the right track, by all means call your advisor. When you call your advisor, get information on WHERE TO FIND THE WRITTEN information- is it on the web site, college catalog, advising guide, etc.? And if you still can't find it, ask them to link you to it or tell you the specific page number. If they tell you something that sounds fishy, ask for clarity. (and you have to know what fishy is....if you're unaware of what should be going on, you'll have no idea if you're being given good advice or not!)

It floors me that I'm defending my advice to the OP to educate himself on his own educational journey, so he can be more informed and efficient, but that's exactly what I'm doing. I hadn't really considered that a person would NOT take that position. The OP has said he has 180 credits, and he has no idea what he's doing. He's had advisors for 100% of that experience, and that hasn't resulted in a degree. So, new plan. Plan B, figure out what the heck is going on before doing anything else. This guy's driving without his GPS.

P.S. or her/she...I have no idea.

[Exfactor]

I don't mean to beat a dead horse, but there have been HUNDREDS of situations here over the years where people got either bad, wrong, or confusing advice from an employee of their college. That kind of thing is caught here inside 24 hours. People here are on top of things, so even if you have an advising apt, you can still get pointed in the right direction here.

Colleges don't make up policy on the fly, everything is written down, thus there is really no reason to call an advisor for every little thing. Look up the answers. They will be in one of the many publication from the college. Also, unless someone's situation is incredibly unique, advising is pretty straight-forward, which is why you can get help here....it's not rocket science. Specific to the OP in this thread, anyone not understanding where to start, should wait until they do, because education errors cost time AND money.

For what it's worth, I'll also add that an advisor TELLING you something means nothing binding, this forum is full of instances of being told something by someone only to find out later that it was completely wrong. The solution is simple, if you want to be on top of your own degree plan, you should be your own advocate. Knowing the road you're traveling, how you're going to do it, the pros and cons of various options, the costs of those options, a realistic timeline, etc. At that point, if you want to confirm that you're on the right track, by all means call your advisor. When you call your advisor, get information on WHERE TO FIND THE WRITTEN information- is it on the web site, college catalog, advising guide, etc.? And if you still can't find it, ask them to link you to it or tell you the specific page number. If they tell you something that sounds fishy, ask for clarity. (and you have to know what fishy is....if you're unaware of what should be going on, you'll have no idea if you're being given good advice or not!)

It floors me that I'm defending my advice to the OP to educate himself on his own educational journey, so he can be more informed and efficient, but that's exactly what I'm doing. I hadn't really considered that a person would NOT take that position. The OP has said he has 180 credits, and he has no idea what he's doing. He's had advisors for 100% of that experience, and that hasn't resulted in a degree. So, new plan. Plan B, figure out what the heck is going on before doing anything else. This guy's driving without his GPS.

P.S. or her/she...I have no idea.

Exploring all your options is apart of the process of speaking with your advisor, and not specifically becoming a mouth piece of the university you attended (are you being paid?). This individual could be enrolled under a specific enrollment plan, and you are telling them to withdrawal without speaking to their advisor, where such a plan could accumulate fees. Which is why I stated speaking with your advisor first should be the first step, then if you feel that EC cannot offer you what you want, you should then explore your options at other institutions of higher learning. Nevertheless, I wouldn't be surprise if some of you were not on the payroll of selected colleges of the "Big 3."

[NAP]

Wait a second Exfactor - I don't believe that for a second! I've always thought Jennifer would be an excellent advisor, based on all of the great advice she has shared with us for years. All of us want the best for all of the students here, no matter what path they choose.

I agree that the OP shouldn't spend any more time or money on earning credits until he has a much better understanding about where he stands. I also think the advisor should be able to help him with several basic and important questions.

P.S. Over the years, there have been shifts in the balance of the number and active participation of students from the schools that make up the Big 3. It is just something that changes as students make progress with their degrees or policies change.

[KayV]

OP, which credits do you actually have? If we could see a copy of your EC evaluation, we might be able to help you better. Be sure to delete your name/ personal info before you attach the document.

[NAP]

Jennifer, I'm not aware of anything at EC that clearly states which CLEP/DSST/SL/other transfer credits can be used for specific/major requirements. There isn't a cool feature that shows how current credits fit in other degree plans. These are the kind of things that EC students need to ask an advisor.