Looking for relatively inexpensive AA/AS degree options.

[RJ77]

Hello all. As the title suggests, I'm looking to finish off an AA or AS degree at a fairly low cost, and hopefully a short time. I'm not too particular about major or concentration, though something that could transfer to a BA/BS would be nice. I started taking online courses through TESU, TESC at the time, back in 2004, and have accumulated a total of 52 credits entirely through them, between 2004 and 2017. My initial plan when starting was to get a BA in psychology, and then eventually move on to a MA to be a counselor. But I nixed that idea after a while, and then dilly-dallied for a long time, then dialed back my plans to an Associate's for now.

In the meantime, TESU has changed course catalogs several times and some other things since I started. So out of the 52 credits that I've earned, the most I could fit into a TESU Associate's degree would be in the AA in General Studies. 39 of my credits could be applied to that degree, with 22 remaining that I would need to take. Unfortunately, TESU's tuition fees have increased greatly since I started, and those 22 credits would end up costing me around $10k if I finished the degree there. Are there any good alternatives where I could finish off the Associate's for cheaper? I'm listing all of the TESU courses I completed below. Thanks in advance.

• 2004 PSY-101-OL013 Introduction to Psych - 3 SH
  
• 2004 GEO-151-EP001 Physical Geology - 3 SH
  
• 2004 PSY-300-OL010 Thanatology - 3 SH
  
• 2005 PSY-379-OL010 Social Psychology - 6 SH
  
• 2005 ART-100-OL010 A World of Art - 3 SH
  
• 2005 PSY-331-EP001 Introduction to Counseling - 3 SH
  
• 2006 LIT-111-OL010 American Literature I - 3 SH
  
• 2007 PSY-352-OL009 Psychology of Personality - 3 SH
  
• 2008 PSY-350-EP001 Abnormal Psychology - 3 SH
  
• 2010 REL-407-OL009 Western Religion - 3 SH
  
• 2010 ENS-314-OL010 Global Environmental Change - 6 SH
  
• 2011 SOS-110-OL013 Living in the Information Age - 3 SH
  
• 2012 SOS-150-OL011 Self-Assmnt & Career Exp - 3 SH
  
• 2017 TES-100-SD100 Cornerstone: Lifelong Learning - 1 SH
  
• 2017 COS-101-GS006 Introduction to Computers - 3 SH
  
• 2017 CMP-202-OL009 Foundation of Info. Tech - 3 SH
  

[rachel83az]

Assuming you're in the US, you can get a FREE Associate from Pierpont. https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Pierpont_C%26TC The minimum requirements are 60 credits total and the specific credits needed are 3 credits in communications, 6 credits in math/science, 3 credits in social sciences, and 3 credits in computer literacy; everything else is electives.

I think LIT-111 should count for the communications. Otherwise, Sophia's Visual Communications will work here.
You have geology, so just take whatever math/science is easiest for you at Sophia.
Social Sciences, you have several of those. Minimum requirements met.
Computer literacy, you have that met.

Then take another easy class of your choice to bring your credit total to 61. I would suggest taking Visual Communications, just to be sure that you have met the degree's requirements.

Because you have 18 credits in Psychology, you should be able to get an Area of Emphasis in Psychology. If you would rather have an Area of Emphasis in Information Systems or Business, that's also possible. But would take more credits.

[allvia]

You have finally arrived at the right place to get your degree(s) complete. You've already reached the TESU residency requirement, so you're much closer to a bachelor that you realize (at a much lower cost that $10k - the only required at TESU course you have left is the Capstone).  I suspect most will advise you not to worry about the associate degree, but you might be interested in the Pierpont BOG AAS (practically free, anything you're missing Sophia has) - primary wiki link for it - https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Pierpont_C%26TC. I can't help you plan out what you need to complete the 'BA in Psychology' or maybe quicker/cheaper for a  'BALS - Psychology', but there are many here who can (psychology is very popular here).

[rachel83az]

You have finally arrived at the right place to get your degree(s) complete. You've already reached the TESU residency requirement, so you're much closer to a bachelor that you realize (at a much lower cost that $10k - the only required at TESU course you have left is the Capstone). 

Good point, yes. A Bachelor's degree at TESU can be finished for the cost of a few months of Sophia, Study.com, and the Capstone. Maybe a couple Coopersmith courses? I'd need to see a current evaluation for the desired degree, but total cost is probably under $2k at this point. Could also pick up an Associate or two "for free" while getting the Bachelor's, only need to pay the cost of any extra classes that are required.

[RJ77]

You have finally arrived at the right place to get your degree(s) complete. You've already reached the TESU residency requirement, so you're much closer to a bachelor that you realize (at a much lower cost that $10k - the only required at TESU course you have left is the Capstone). 

Good point, yes. A Bachelor's degree at TESU can be finished for the cost of a few months of Sophia, Study.com, and the Capstone. Maybe a couple Coopersmith courses? I'd need to see a current evaluation for the desired degree, but total cost is probably under $2k at this point. Could also pick up an Associate or two "for free" while getting the Bachelor's, only need to pay the cost of any extra classes that are required.

Thank you both very much for the information. If a Bachelor's can be obtained for that low of a cost, it sounds like it would be the better option. I attached a screenshot of a program evaluation for a BA in English. If you could provide any general information on which credit sources would be good for me to research, I would greatly appreciate it.

[rachel83az]

Part A:

• English Comp I - Sophia or TECEP
  
• English Comp II - TECEP or DSST or take English Comp CLEP w/ essay for both I & II (CLEPs are free through ModernStates)
  
• Oral Communication - Presentation Skills in the Workplace @ Study.com
  
• Quantitative Literacy - Introduction to College Mathematics OR College Algebra from Sophia.org
  

Part B:

• Diversity & Intercultural Literacy - Intro to Sociology @ Sophia.org OR HS103 History-Turning Points in Modern History 15th Century to Present @ OnlineDegree.com
  
• Ethical Leadership - Intro to Ethics @ Sophia.org
  
• Civic Engagement & Awareness - American Government CLEP, Political Science 103: Comparative Politics @ Study.com, OR POLSC221: Introduction to Comparative Politics @ Saylor.
  

Part C:

• History - US History I or US History II @ Sophia
  
• Humanities - Ancient Greek Philosophers @ Sophia (helps to take this before Intro to Ethics) OR any Art History OR Visual Communication
  

For the AOS requirements, see: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Sa...egree_Plan 

AOS Electives: There are 9 UL credits English available from alt sources: English 301: Non-Western Literature and English 305: Advanced Technical Writing @ Study.com + LIT-401: Medieval Hispano-Jewish Poetry from Coopersmith. With REL-407, you would have 12 out of 15 UL credits needed. Take an UL history from Study.com or an UL English class from BYU, as listed on the wiki page, to complete your UL requirements.

When complete, your AOS Electives should be:

• English 305 @ Study.com
  
• LIT-401 from Coopersmith
  
• English 310: Short Stories @ Study.com
  
• English 101: English Literature
  
• ENG-211: Constructing and Writing Logical Arguments @ Coopersmith
  
• BYU course or either The Works of Arthur Miller or The Works of Herman Wouk @ Coopersmith.
  

Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like you're very close to any of the "free" Associate degrees: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Sa...gree_Plans But, you could take a few extra courses from Sophia or Study.com if you really wanted/needed to. Same with the certificates: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Sa...cate_Plans

[allvia]

What does it look like if you stick with Psychology? You have all those Psychology (UL) courses already. Also, if the goal is just a bachelor then maybe the BALS (possible Psychology concentration) that would make use of the ULs you already have. For the BALS you could probably get the credits (LL) your missing through Sophia cheap and quick, since you'd already have enough UL for the standard TESU BALS.

[dfrecore]

With 7 UL courses already complete, I would suggest a BALS instead - getting a bunch of UL English courses would take a lot more time/money than you need to spend. Go grab a BALS from TESU for cheap ($1600 for the capstone plus $298 for the graduation audit), and move on.

If you MUST get a BA in English, I'd probably get a master's somewhere instead, depending on what your professional plans are.

[RJ77]

Part A:

• English Comp I - Sophia or TECEP
  
• English Comp II - TECEP or DSST or take English Comp CLEP w/ essay for both I & II (CLEPs are free through ModernStates)
  
• Oral Communication - Presentation Skills in the Workplace @ Study.com
  
• Quantitative Literacy - Introduction to College Mathematics OR College Algebra from Sophia.org
  

Part B:

• Diversity & Intercultural Literacy - Intro to Sociology @ Sophia.org OR HS103 History-Turning Points in Modern History 15th Century to Present @ OnlineDegree.com
  
• Ethical Leadership - Intro to Ethics @ Sophia.org
  
• Civic Engagement & Awareness - American Government CLEP, Political Science 103: Comparative Politics @ Study.com, OR POLSC221: Introduction to Comparative Politics @ Saylor.
  

Part C:

• History - US History I or US History II @ Sophia
  
• Humanities - Ancient Greek Philosophers @ Sophia (helps to take this before Intro to Ethics) OR any Art History OR Visual Communication
  

For the AOS requirements, see: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Sa...egree_Plan 

AOS Electives: There are 9 UL credits English available from alt sources: English 301: Non-Western Literature and English 305: Advanced Technical Writing @ Study.com + LIT-401: Medieval Hispano-Jewish Poetry from Coopersmith. With REL-407, you would have 12 out of 15 UL credits needed. Take an UL history from Study.com or an UL English class from BYU, as listed on the wiki page, to complete your UL requirements.

When complete, your AOS Electives should be:

• English 305 @ Study.com
  
• LIT-401 from Coopersmith
  
• English 310: Short Stories @ Study.com
  
• English 101: English Literature
  
• ENG-211: Constructing and Writing Logical Arguments @ Coopersmith
  
• BYU course or either The Works of Arthur Miller or The Works of Herman Wouk @ Coopersmith.
  

Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like you're very close to any of the "free" Associate degrees: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Sa...gree_Plans But, you could take a few extra courses from Sophia or Study.com if you really wanted/needed to. Same with the certificates: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Sa...cate_Plans

Wow, thanks so much for the detailed breakdown of everything, I really appreciate it! I'm going to start looking into those credit sources and those particular courses now.

---

With 7 UL courses already complete, I would suggest a BALS instead - getting a bunch of UL English courses would take a lot more time/money than you need to spend.  Go grab a BALS from TESU for cheap ($1600 for the capstone plus $298 for the graduation audit), and move on.

If you MUST get a BA in English, I'd probably get a master's somewhere instead, depending on what your professional plans are.

Thank you for your reply, and thanks to allvia as well. I will do a program evaluation for the BALS on the TESU student services site and see what it looks like.

[P226mem]

another vote to consider looking at BALS (and I wouldn't worry on psych concentration). you have a lot of UL courses for that. and then use the Gen Ed breakdown as a guide for those lower level courses. If the tool is still around on your student access at TESU, look at the "what if" situation for the BALS and see how that program evaluation could look with "no concentration".