Need Help finding cheap transferable collegecredit(Straighterline, Propero, Coursera

[UptonSinclair]

Since you mentioned Grantham, I thought I would share my experience. I took one semester of courses through Grantham while I was in the military. The credits I completed there are not worth the paper they are printed on. They were rejected by both the local community college and Excelsior. There are far better options in online education.

There are a couple of issues with the ABET senario. First, your degree at Grantham is a technology degree and not an engineering degree. There are few Masters of Engineering who accept technology degrees even if they are ABET technology degrees. Most are geared toward Engineers. Second, even if Grantham were regionally accredited it would be extremely difficult to get into a Masters of Engineering with a Bachelors that isn't ABET.

If I were you, I would cut my losses and leave Grantham today. If you are interested in an Engineering Masters, your online options are very limited - Arizona State University and University of North Dakota. The second requires campus visits in the Summer.

I am sorry to share such bad news, but education is far to expensive to sugar coat the reality.

I wanted to update my post with a link to reviews both good and bad from former Grantham students so you have more opinions than just mine. There are some professions where accreditation may not be a big deal, but in Engineering I am afraid you will face an uphill battle.

Good luck with your journey

[sanantone]

Since you mentioned Grantham, I thought I would share my experience. I took one semester of courses through Grantham while I was in the military. The credits I completed there are not worth the paper they are printed on. They were rejected by both the local community college and Excelsior. There are far better options in online education.

There are a couple of issues with the ABET senario. First, your degree at Grantham is a technology degree and not an engineering degree. There are few Masters of Engineering who accept technology degrees even if they are ABET technology degrees. Most are geared toward Engineers. Second, even if Grantham were regionally accredited it would be extremely difficult to get into a Masters of Engineering with a Bachelors that isn't ABET.

If I were you, I would cut my losses and leave Grantham today. If you are interested in an Engineering Masters, your online options are very limited - Arizona State University and University of North Dakota. The second requires campus visits in the Summer.

I am sorry to share such bad news, but education is far to expensive to sugar coat the reality.

I wanted to update my post with a link to reviews both good and bad from former Grantham students so you have more opinions than just mine. There are some professions where accreditation may not be a big deal, but in Engineering I am afraid you will face an uphill battle.

Good luck with your journey

Aren't computer engineering graduate programs also accepting of computer science, mathematics, and related degrees? That would give the OP more online options for an undergraduate degree. I don't know how common this is, but I came across a graduate computer engineering program that only required ABET accreditation for undergraduate degrees in engineering. If one's degree was in computer science, then only regional accreditation was required.
Admission Requirements: Electrical and Computer Engineering, M.S. | Electrical and Computer Engineering Department | | NYIT

Here's another one that accepts degrees in math, computer science, and physics.
Graduate Admissions | Electrical and Computer Engineering

[UptonSinclair]

You have a good point. ABET is far less important in Computer Engineering because their work involves far less public safety. There will be more flexibility with Master's in Computer Engineering than you will find in many of the other Engineering fields, but if a program requires the undergraduate in Engineering to have ABET I would assume their requirements of Math, Physics, and Computer Science will require similar rigor. A regionally accredited online Computer Science program that requires Calculus I, II, II, Discrete Math and a full year of Calculus based Physics might be the best approach for someone who wants to pursue a Master's in Computer Engineering after a Bachelor's degree online. With a good solid undergraduate, one might be able to argue their way into just about any Master's program.

As always Sanantone, you bring great insights to the discussion.

[mhenkes]

I'm sad to hear about the experiences you made with Grantham and it's obviously frustrating to me since I'm an international student and I know it's even more difficult for internationals to fin work by getting hired and sponsored H1B worker Visa.
Before I went to Grantham, I did at least half a year of of research to understand the school system in the U.S. and what would be likely to get you a job as an international from Germany.
Computer and Engineering degrees are important and fortunately I love those fields and I decided for Grantham not just bc I'm in the military and I need an online degree but also because I like the curriculum of the Computer Engineering Technology program. All other degrees I found are either completely programming (such as computer science) or electronic circuits (electronic engineering). Computer engineering is close to what I want but Computer Engineering Technology is the perfect mix of Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science.
Before I decided to enroll at Grantham, I knew the differences between ABET and DEAC and I found 100% online degrees that are ABET related to my degree (Online Programs | ABET) but I don't like the curriculum of these courses. That's why I believe the Grantham degree is the best thing I could possibly do right now (bc I'm in the military and love the program).

Is there any kind of certification or similar that I could get in order to increase my chances to get a job or replace ABET requirements to go for a masters in Computer Engineering (or related)?

If I was to transfer to a different University, do you know any programs that would be good and the same or similar to the "mix" (electrical engineering, computer engineering, computer science) that I like AND good universities that are accepted by master program universities?

Thank you for your help.

[sanantone]

ABET updates its list annually. Currently, there are no ABET-accredited online degrees in computer engineering according to their list. As I said earlier, you will still be able to get into a computer engineering program with a degree in computer science and maybe mathematics or physics as long as you have the required GPA and test scores. In those cases, you won't have to worry about ABET accreditation, just regional accreditation. However, you aren't interested in those types of programs.

You'll probably be able to get a job with your Grantham degree as long as you get the desired experience and certifications, but it might not be in computer engineering. It might be in some other IT/CS-related field. I know you have your interests, but if I were you and really wanted to go to grad school, I would transfer to a computer science program at a regionally accredited school.

[mhenkes]

Ok, I see you would recommend transferring to a regional accredited (not necessarily ABET) Computer Science program.
Do I also understand correctly when you and UptonSinclair say that ABET is not really important for Computer Engineering degrees to be eligible for a masters program as long as you have regional accreditation?
In that case, I could also look into transferring to a regional accredited Computer Engineering online program, right? I like Computer engineering much more than Computer Science.

[sanantone]

Ok, I see you would recommend transferring to a regional accredited (not necessarily ABET) Computer Science program.
Do I also understand correctly when you and UptonSinclair say that ABET is not really important for Computer Engineering degrees to be eligible for a masters program as long as you have regional accreditation?
In that case, I could also look into transferring to a regional accredited Computer Engineering online program, right? I like Computer engineering much more than Computer Science.

I only looked at a few graduate programs. They wanted ABET-accredited engineering degrees. You would have to look at the admissions requirements for more.

[clep3705]

There are certain tendencies in how higher education is perceived in the United States. For-profit schools which includes Grantham, University of Phoenix, DeVry, and ITT, are generally looked down upon. For-profit schools tend to be more expensive without offering any added value for the added cost. They also tend to have weaker (i.e., national) accreditation.

Online only schools are not as favorably regarded as schools with a physical presence where students attend class in person. Here in these forums we like online education but we are biased in favor of online education.

If you want to maximize acceptance and recognition of your degree, get it from a public (not for-profit, not private) university with buildings, sports teams, and dormitories. We call those brick and mortar universities. Many brick and mortar universities offer online education

Public universities usually have two or three different tuition levels. The lowest price is called in-state tuition. It is reserved for people who have lived in the state for a period of time prior to enrollment. More expensive is out-of-state tuition for people not from the state where the university is located. The idea is that they haven't paid taxes to the state, so they have to pay more tuition. The sometimes even more expensive third tuition tier is for foreign nationals. The idea is that foreign students haven't paid any taxes in the United States at all and shouldn't get an education subsidized by U.S. taxpayers. Sometimes in the interest of diversity foreigners do not have to pay extra.

Online education from a brick and mortar public university can be quite affordable. Some schools offer in-state tuition to all students who are exclusively online. Search for schools like that. If your degree is from a school such as The University of (insert the name of any of the 50 states here) or (insert the name of any of the 50 states here) University, your degree will have widespread name recognition.

Private, non-profit schools tend to be more selective and more expensive. Name recognition for top private schools is excellent. Since you mentioned cost, this discussion was oriented to public universities.

[sanantone]

There is nothing wrong with private, not-for-profit schools. Many of the best schools in the world (and in engineering) are private schools. The Ivy League and Ivy Plus schools all have name recognition. I'm just saying this to clear up any possible confusion. There is really no reason to avoid private, non-profit schools if you can get in and if the school is within your budget. Name recognition often correlations with being a top 150 national university, which has a mix of private and public schools. That means tougher admissions requirements and more selectivity. Also, to help clear up any confusion, most of the biggest and most predatory for-profit colleges actually have regional accreditation. This is an important thing to know so that one doesn't think that regional accreditation automatically means the school is good.

[mhenkes]

I was just going to say I found two schools that would accept my credits from grantham when I transfer and that have the same degree I pursue at grantham and they have regional accreditation: Devry and Old Dominum ... Now I read that they are looked down on omg
I can't find a 100% online computer engineering degree though... Not even a nationally accredited one. So sad. I love the courses in computer engineering.
Would you say devry or old Dominum are any better than grantham since they are regionally accredited?
I would love to take online computer engineering from a "mortar brick" university but it seems like it doesn't exist.

Hmmm... I really have some thinking to do.
I'm constantly applying for jobs at employers that sponsor h1b.
In case I do not get a job offer right after the military, I'm thinking to do either a master's program after the military in the usa or an internship. (I don't think I have the money for a real on campus masters degree though) obviously, an on campus master's in CE would make it more likely for me to find a job after graduation but the problem is money and a job is not a sure thing when you are an international student (would need to do OPT and find somebody that sponsors h1b). The internship would be an alternative that doesn't cost much (or even paid), so I can gain experiences and certifications and increase my chances to get hired in the international job market.

I can't say thank you enough. All the information I get here is so good! You are really helping me through my future plans/struggles