I have questions about TESC & Political Science Degree. Could someone please help me?

[ironheadjack]

FWIW, if you initial interest was political science I would go with a BA in Social Science. It sounds much more focused then Liberal Studies.

[soliloquy]

I'm still going to check with the university system. I applied to a few colleges here and there is a matriculation agreement between the community college and university system here. I just want to explore all my options. I don't see that it's going to be much cheaper to go this route....and I'm not that crazy about a degree in liberal studies. I was really excited about the political science but that doesn't seem to be feasible. it may be faster for me to go through tesc but I'm not sure that it's worth compromising the type of degree I want.

[KayV]

A BA in Social Science would not be much harder to complete than a BA in Liberal Studies. You would need 8 exams, but only 11 FEMAs. I agree that it sounds more focused than a BA in Liberal Studies. Here's a possible plan for you. Bascially, your Humanities classes from Liberal Studies become general ed and free electives.

TESC Bachelor of Arts in Social Science
I. General Education Requirements (60)
ENG-111 Expository Writing 3
ENG-114 82 Prof Research & Reporting 3
MAT-161 College Algebra 3
COM-231 80 Public Speaking 3
CIS-110 88 Introduction to Computers 3
HIS-112 80 World Civilizations II 3
GEL-120 Physical Geology 4
ART-111 93 Art Appreciation 3
Elem Persian-Farsi I 5
Elem Persian-Farsi II 3+2GE
SOC-210 Introduction to Sociology 3
*NEED DSST Ethics in America (PHI 287) 3
SOC-225 Social Diversity 3
ENG-231 American Literature I 3
ENG-232 American Literature II 3
Interm Persian-Farsi I 4
Interm Persian-Farsi II 4
BIO-110 Principles of Biology 4

II. Area of Study: Social Science (33)(18 UL)
A. Psychology (15)
PSY-150 80 General Psychology 3
PSY-241 Developmental Psych 3
NEED CLEP Intro to Educational Psychology PSY-230 3
NEED DSST Organizational Behavior PSY-361 3UL*
NEED DSST Fundamentals of Counseling PSY-331 3UL*
B. History (9)
NEED DSST Western Europe since 1945 HIS-222 3
NEED DSST Intro to the Modern Middle East HIS-309 3UL*
NEED DSST History of the Vietnam War HIS-351 3UL*
C. Political Science (3)
POL-120 American Government 3
D. Social Science (3)
NEED DSST Substance Abuse SOS-305 3UL*
E. Need Capstone LIB-495 (3UL)

III. Free Electives (16 completed, need 11 FEMA)
ACA-120 Career Assessment 1
BUS-137 Principles of Management 3
PED-110 Fit and Well for Life 2
PED-111 Physical Fitness I 1
PED-112 Physical Fitness II 1
BUS-115 Business Law I 3
Elem Persian-Farsi II 2
REL-211 80 Intro to Old Testament 3


Happy Thanksgiving!

[corpsole2]

You could do a B.A. in History just like me. And from what I've heard from some attorney friends, a history degree is respected in the legal community, and it is one of the top three degrees to get into law school.

I did all but two of my courses via Straighterline, CLEP, DSST, ALEKS, and FEMA. The two I took/am taking through TESC are entirely online.

Bear in mind that TESC now requires all liberal arts majors to enroll and take the capstone course, which will culminate in a "baby thesis" or some sort of creative project. I am towards the end of this course, and while it is challenging at a whole new level, it is not the bear it looks like at first glance. Besides, a scholarly work like a thesis can't hurt if you are competing for jobs. :-)

[soliloquy]

Can someone explain to me how the way you earn credits through TESC might affect your chances of going to a graduate school? I understand that several people here have been accepted to graduate schools after TESC but can this still be done if your transcript has FEMA credits and a lot of other non-traditional credits CLEP and DSST.

I'm really considering this social sciences degree.

[corpsole2]

Can someone explain to me how the way you earn credits through TESC might affect your chances of going to a graduate school? I understand that several people here have been accepted to graduate schools after TESC but can this still be done if your transcript has FEMA credits and a lot of other non-traditional credits CLEP and DSST.

I am wondering that myself. I am looking at business school or law school in the next few years, and am uncertain if only having two graded courses on my transcript would be a setback.

[sanantone]

Are you a paralegal? Are you looking to continue a career as a paralegal, legal secretary, or legal consultant? Are you looking to get into law school? I have never heard of the legal industry caring about degree majors except for certain specialties that require very specific knowledge such as legal nurse consulting and intellectual property law. What's usually important is some kind of structured training in paralegal studies.

[soliloquy]

Also, can someone tell me if these expenses are barred from being covered by financial aid. I know FA doesn't pay for CLEP, DSST, etc. itself but does it pay for what TESC would cost you to transfer the credit into their college. TESC apparently charge $36.00 for every test that transfers in. Also, does that mean I have to pay this amount just to have my evaluation done? Or, does that mean if I actually enroll after applying then I'd have to pay for this? I'm still trying to figure out how all this works...

ETA: I just realized if I plan on testing out of almost all of these classes, there's no financial aid to be allocated to me and I'd be paying that amount out of pocket. hmmmm

[corpsole2]

Also, can someone tell me if these expenses are barred from being covered by financial aid. I know FA doesn't pay for CLEP, DSST, etc. itself but does it pay for what TESC would cost you to transfer the credit into their college. TESC apparently charge $36.00 for every test that transfers in. Also, does that mean I have to pay this amount just to have my evaluation done? Or, does that mean if I actually enroll after applying then I'd have to pay for this? I'm still trying to figure out how all this works...

ETA: I just realized if I plan on testing out of almost all of these classes, there's no financial aid to be allocated to me and I'd be paying that amount out of pocket. hmmmm

Those tests I think are in-house. They never charged me for the test scores I transferred in to them. Then again, things have changed the last few months since I've had to transfer in credits.

[soliloquy]

Are you a paralegal? Are you looking to continue a career as a paralegal, legal secretary, or legal consultant? Are you looking to get into law school? I have never heard of the legal industry caring about degree majors except for certain specialties that require very specific knowledge such as legal nurse consulting and intellectual property law. What's usually important is some kind of structured training in paralegal studies.

The legal industry is quite large as I'm sure you can imagine and encompasses careers at law firms, corporations, non-profit organizations, political offices, etc. The legal industry has different needs and expectations depending upon the area, the field of law, etc. I have plenty of experience regarding what employers are looking for and I have two professional certifications for my field as well as being certificated by a traditional B&M university. I am currently employed and earn a sufficient salary so I'm not concerned about immediate employment but I want to make sure I make the right decisions for my future. In my area, I have done a lot of networking as I also belong to several associations in my field and am on the Board in one association. Where I live consists of a network of good old boys and a dash of old fashioned snobbery. They do care and at least as far as civil litigation is concerned, those attorneys (firms) do not look highly on criminal justice degrees compared to other degree offerings. Most online degrees in my area through the university system are generalized degrees like liberal arts, etc or for more specialized fields like health. I have done about as much as is helpful (at this time) with professional certifications and certificates. Now, I need to strategically plan what my next step is as far as a degree. In a perfect world, I would obtain a degree from one of the more well known schools in my area which also have well-known law schools but I am not willing to take on the debt required to facilitate that.

Thanks!