Looking for some input/advice

[kyledudedog]

*Sorry for the novel that follows, just trying to be thorough*

Your Location: New Jersey
Your Age: 34
What kind of degree do you want?: Definitely BA or BS torn between Business or IT, I think business would have a more immediate impact on my career, but long term I know I should be working in the tech space.
Timeframe: Speed and cost are key for me, already working on some general Sophia credits. I would like to be finished with everything by the end of the year, but sooner is better.
Budget: As cheap as possible
Commitments: Work and family, have a 4 month old, but the wife is on board to allow me to fully commit. 
Preferences: 
-I learn well on my own through videos, reading
- Non-proctored would probably be preferred, but proctored is fine as well. I would just need to set up a space in my house to do so.
-I prefer a "learn at your own pace" and the ability to take as many credits as I can complete in a term, model for a college. 
Current Regional Accredited Credits: I think I have about 6 credits from a brief stint in a local CC when I was 18. Those would be free electives if anything.
Current ACE, CLEP, or NCCRS Credits: None
Any certifications? AZ-900
Google Sheet for tracking credits: I have looked over some degree plans here (UMPI BABA and a few others) and put together a quick spreadsheet for my own visualization purposes of the potential track for WGU BSIT degree. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1...ue&sd=true

Some extra info about me:
I graduated second in my class from HS in 2008 and was entered into a really amazing scholarship program in NJ, NJStars. Basically would have provided me with an associates for free minus costs of books and any extras, but tuition was all covered. I was young, stupid and not disciplined enough for college at 18 years old and completed only a single semester before dropping out to continue to work full time. Not sure it's even worth it to submit my transcript for CC to wherever I apply because of how undoubtedly abysmal my GPA is for that single semester. The idea of "Degree Hacking" is a concept I learned about within the last week and it has definitely consumed me for since. I feel like I finally have a fighting chance to be able to change life for my family.

I have self studied for several certifications in recent years, but due to financial restrictions I wasn't able to afford the certification exams. I have 6+ years as a project manager for small to midsized construction firms. While I do enjoy the tasks of being a project manager, I am not in love with working in the construction sector. I have a wife and 4 month old daughter and I want to provide a better life for them and allow my wife the freedom to be a SAHM. I feel that achieving a BA/BS would afford me the opportunity to give her that. She is on board with helping me and committing to "covering" for me while I take this journey and obtain my degree. I don't have much of a social life anymore, I suppose as is expected of a new parent. The majority of my free time is spent tinkering with my home lab and taking Udemy courses. I can comfortably commit to roughly 4-5 hours a day of studying M-F and 6-10 hours on weekends. 

I have looked into UMPI as it seems to be regarded as the quickest path to a Bachelors, but I have also heard they have been a little overwhelmed with an influx of students in the past year or so. WGU seems great, potentially a slightly higher cost upfront for a degree, but more time to complete courses. Plus the option to get extra certifications on top of the degree is very intriguing. Now obviously as a NJ resident TESU would be cheaper, but I have not looked into them as much as I have the other two. Primarily because UMPI and WGU are very Sophia friendly and that is how I plan to get the bulk of my transfer credits. I am not opposed to completing an UMPI BABA and then in the next year or 2 completing BSIT at WGU.



Additional Questions:
Regarding a BS vs a BA, does either of these degrees hold more weight than the other?
Does WGU have any flexibility in their courses? (For example I have a Microsoft AZ-900 cert, but the course in BSIT is for AWS. Is it possible to sub that course for the Azure track so that my cert would provide credits?)



Thank for coming to my TED talk haha.

But in all seriousness thank you for your time and any input that is given will be appreciated beyond words.

[davewill]

Unfortunately, not submitting a transcript from your CC is not an option. Even if you manage to enroll without sending it, the new school will insist on receiving it before you graduate. You may ask, "How do they know?", and the answer is the National Student Clearinghouse. Your CC will have sent them information about when you attended there, and the new school will see that. So, it's best to just send it in right from the start.

They do this partly to enforce their own rules about not duplicating degrees or courses, and partly so that if you owe money to a previous school, you're forced to settle the debt in order to send them a transcript.

Most of the schools we talk about here don't have competitve enrollment, so your old GPA won't affect your ability to get your degree.

Don't worry about the difference between BA and BS. Each school has different requirements and a BA from one school may well be almost identical to a BS at another. Even when a single school offers both, the difference is generally only in the GenEds, with the BS requiring more science or math, and the BA needing more humanities, not in the area of study.

[bjcheung77]

Exactly as mentioned, I wouldn't skip sending transcripts from anywhere, apply and send everything you have.  Some such as UMPI and the ones we recommend will require transcripts from ALL institutions before you're admitted.  You may want to review this thread post: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...#pid410314

In addition to that, I've been recommending the following, you may want to work on the balanced mix/match trifecta of certs, degree, experience.  Cheapies/Freebies related to Business & IT from Coursera/TEEX/Sophia.org, Pierpont BOG AAS with an emphasis of Business or Info Systems, ladder that to the UMPI BAS with a minor such as MIS, PM or both, plus 3-4 classes that go towards the MAOL.

[Hotdogman1]

As a New Jersey resident, it may be cheaper to go to TESU due to the Garden State Guarantee scholarship as you might qualify for free tuition. Study.com + Davar Academy + Coursera + several TESU courses would potentially cost less than a semester at UMPI or WGU if you qualify for the scholarship. Might be worth looking into. https://www.tesu.edu/tuition/gsg

I have also heard that schools will check with the National Student Clearinghouse, but I did not transfer all my transcripts and I graduated without an issue. I submitted only 5 transcripts out of the 8 different universities/CCs I went to because I was paying over $80 in transcript and application fees per school and didn’t want to pay an additional $30 for credits that would at best transfer as electives (30 credits in Aviation, 12 in Culinary, 6 in Horticulture). I was probably an outlier since I was already transferring in 184 credits including my certs and ace credits so I would also recommend you transfer the old CC credits if possible. If you got less than a C, the class will probably not transfer anyways.

Since you prefer the CBE model and want to graduate by the end of the year, you should decide which exam format you prefer. UMPI is not proctored with essays/projects with 7 1/2 weeks per semester at your own pace. WGU is proctored with timed exams and is 6 months per semester at your own pace.

I always had issues writing anything longer than a standard SAT essay, but I decided to go to UMPI because I despise online proctoring and I needed a bachelor’s for a promotion. I was able to graduate in 1 semester with a 3.94 gpa, but I regret graduating so quickly because I don’t feel like I learned anything. I was so focused on rushing and completing each course that I was using mostly previously gained professional knowledge and didn’t spend much time on the course content. While I did snag that promotion, I am now pursuing a master’s to satisfy that regret…

[kyledudedog]

Exactly as mentioned, I wouldn't skip sending transcripts from anywhere, apply and send everything you have.  Some such as UMPI and the ones we recommend will require transcripts from ALL institutions before you're admitted.  You may want to review this thread post: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...#pid410314

In addition to that, I've been recommending the following, you may want to work on the balanced mix/match trifecta of certs, degree, experience.  Cheapies/Freebies related to Business & IT from Coursera/TEEX/Sophia.org, Pierpont BOG AAS with an emphasis of Business or Info Systems, ladder that to the UMPI BAS with a minor such as MIS, PM or both, plus 3-4 classes that go towards the MAOL.

Wow thank you to both of you, I never would have known that I need to send a transcript from my failed CC years. Would I need to submit my HS transcript and SAT scores as well? I haven't looked into Pierpont, as I only just saw a post about it here briefly yesterday. I will conduct some research.

---

As a New Jersey resident, it may be cheaper to go to TESU due to the Garden State Guarantee scholarship as you might qualify for free tuition. Study.com + Davar Academy + Coursera + several TESU courses would potentially cost less than a semester at UMPI or WGU if you qualify for the scholarship. Might be worth looking into. https://www.tesu.edu/tuition/gsg

I have also heard that schools will check with the National Student Clearinghouse, but I did not transfer all my transcripts and I graduated without an issue. I submitted only 5 transcripts out of the 8 different universities/CCs I went to because I was paying over $80 in transcript and application fees per school and didn’t want to pay an additional $30 for credits that would at best transfer as electives (30 credits in Aviation, 12 in Culinary, 6 in Horticulture). I was probably an outlier since I was already transferring in 184 credits including my certs and ace credits so I would also recommend you transfer the old CC credits if possible. If you got less than a C, the class will probably not transfer anyways.

Since you prefer the CBE model and want to graduate by the end of the year, you should decide which exam format you prefer. UMPI is not proctored with essays/projects with 7 1/2 weeks per semester at your own pace. WGU is proctored with timed exams and is 6 months per semester at your own pace.

I always had issues writing anything longer than a standard SAT essay, but I decided to go to UMPI because I despise online proctoring and I needed a bachelor’s for a promotion. I was able to graduate in 1 semester with a 3.94 gpa, but I regret graduating so quickly because I don’t feel like I learned anything. I was so focused on rushing and completing each course that I was using mostly previously gained professional knowledge and didn’t spend much time on the course content. While I did snag that promotion, I am now pursuing a master’s to satisfy that regret…

I was unaware of that program, but I think that I made too much last year unfortunately. I will have to check on that though! My CC sent me a copy of my transcript for free so hopefully they'll just send it over to UMPI for the same. I definitely think I'm going to go the UMPI route because of the PM specialization. Having been a PM it probably just makes sense. Unless of course, TESU could be cheaper as that would be optimal.

[Hotdogman1]

The degree is from Pierpont Community and Technical College. The Board of Governors Applied Associate's of Science degree is basically a placeholder associate’s degree for people that has 60 undergrad credits but doesn’t have a college degree and needs to apply for a job.

You need 1 RA credit, 59 alternative credits, and $130 fee to graduate. The alternative credits can be satisfied with just Sophia courses or you can do Sophia with several specific Coursera courses. You can add an emphasis if you have 15 credits in a specific field. There is a Pierpont to UMPI degree plan on the Wiki since they both accept Sophia courses.

https://www.pierpont.edu/academics/assoc...governors/
https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Pierpont_C%26TC
https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Pi...egree_Plan