No degree to MBA-HR in 20 months - Nodaclu's Progress Thread

[Nodaclu]

I put together a BSBA degree plan this morning, and...it has me wondering if WGU is a better option for me if I go that route.

With the TESU/Study.com changes, these classes no longer have a Study.com equivalent:

• FIN-301 - Principles of Finance
  
• MAN-301 - Principles of Management
  
• MAR-301 - Introduction to Marketing
  
• MAN-373 - Managerial Communications
  
• MAN-331 - Human Resources Management
  
• MAN-311 - Organizational Behavior
  
• PSY-360 - Organizational Theory
  

Which means I'll have to take them elsewhere, and likely at a higher rate than $75 per class.

Combine that with the fact that, while I can complete the BALS by 6/30/18 for the Residency Waiver discount, I can't complete the BSBA by then, so I have to factor in $300-$500 more for that.

When I add everything up, my estimated degree cost for the BALS is about $3,990, while the BSBA is $6,500, or within 5% of the cost of one year at WGU toward a BS-HRM.

But I know very little about WGU - how they transfer credits, the pace at which a person can complete the competency-based work, etc.

Getting a little discouraged...

[quigongene]

MAN-301 - Principles of Management
MAR-301 - Introduction to Marketing

Modernstates CLEP (cheaper than $75 ;-) ).

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FIN-301 - Principles of Finance
MAN-331 - Human Resources Management
MAN-311 - Organizational Behavior
PSY-361 Organizational Behavior
have DSST exams (not much more than $75)

[bjcheung77]

The Study.com courses will still work for them, they'll just come in as LL vs UL, which shouldn't matter for the BSBA
You must make sure you have 3 of the 4 areas covered: Accounting, Finance, Marketing Management if you're going for the GM

FIN-301 - Principles of Finance - Study.com Finance 104 >> Transfer as FIN 200
MAN-301 - Principles of Management - Study.com Business 101 >> Transfer as MAN 210
MAR-301 - Introduction to Marketing - Study.com Business 102 >> Transfer as MAR 201
MAN-373 - Managerial Communications ** Saylor Corporate Communications
MAN-331 - Human Resources Management - Study.com Business 306 >> Transfer as HRM 362
MAN-311 - Organizational Behavior - Study.com Business 307 >> Transfer as MAN 312

PSY-360 - Organizational Theory - Why are you taking a Psyc course?
I recommend taking a Marketing course - Study.com Business 309 Digital Marketing >> Transfer as MAR 441

Human Resources/Organizational Management - $544
18 credits required, minimum of 12 upper-level credits.

CSU Global - Organizational Development UL - $250
Study.com Human Resource Management LL - $70
StraighterLine Organizational Behavior UL - $59
Study.com Project Management UL - $70
Study.com Strategic Human Resource Management UL - $70
*Saylor Business Statistics or MIS/SIT (UL, get TESU verification) - $25
*If TESU denies, you can use Saylor Corporate Communications - $25
*If you prefer Study.com, you can use Study.com Labor Relations - $70

[Nodaclu]

Thanks quigongene and bjcheung77!!

I'm going to continue thinking about this. I know I really need that business degree.

I have to admit, trying to keep track of all of this is not a strength of mine. If time and cost are close to equal, I might be better off at a school where I can complete things in a more straightforward, linear fashion - where I can do everything in one place.

I've taken a brief look at WGU. Next on the list to explore is NAU. That's a B&M campus I've actually visited in the past, and their format (at least in the example they give on their website) appeals to me, as it feels similar to Study.com, with some ALEKS mixed in (both of which are formats that suit my style of learning very well).

They have a new degree in Management, with an emphasis in HR. Perfect for my goals.

In addition, and this is a small thing I realize, but I don't plan to leave the Western US, and NAU is a western, B&M school that's recognized as such in my area/region, and it's also a place where I could realistically get to, and walk for graduation.

After 30 years of trying to do this, that walk matters to me, and with only one family member left alive from my childhood (my mom) it would be great if she could be there to see me graduate as well. (She won't fly, but Flagstaff is within driving distance.)

There isn't much info on NAU on the board, but I'm reading what's here, going through their website, and I've requested more info. Since it seems that, no matter where I go, I'm looking about being about 50% of the way to a business degree, TESU, WGU, and NAU all appear to be viable options, with similar costs and time frames.

[Ideas]

Is WGU within traveling distance for her?

[Nodaclu]

Is WGU within traveling distance for her?

Yep, both WGU and NAU are close to the same distance away for her.

[Nodaclu]

And a big '+' in WGU's favor now:

By completing their HR program, I also earn my PHR certification - something I need and was planning on doing separately, at an additional cost of $600-$1,000 (depending on the study method used - the test itself is $500).

That's no small thing. In the HR world, the PHR and the Bachelor's Degree are just about on equal footing in importance. It also brings the "time to finish both" back into a closer alignment with my original BALS + PHR idea.

---

The Study.com courses will still work for them, they'll just come in as LL vs UL, which shouldn't matter for the BSBA
You must make sure you have 3 of the 4 areas covered: Accounting, Finance, Marketing Management if you're going for the GM

FIN-301 - Principles of Finance - Study.com Finance 104 >> Transfer as FIN 200
MAN-301 - Principles of Management - Study.com Business 101 >> Transfer as MAN 210
MAR-301 - Introduction to Marketing - Study.com Business 102 >> Transfer as MAR 201
MAN-373 - Managerial Communications  ** Saylor Corporate Communications
MAN-331 - Human Resources Management - Study.com Business 306 >> Transfer as HRM 362
MAN-311 - Organizational Behavior - Study.com Business 307 >> Transfer as MAN 312

PSY-360 - Organizational Theory - Why are you taking a Psyc course?
I recommend taking a Marketing course - Study.com Business 309 Digital Marketing >> Transfer as MAR 441

Human Resources/Organizational Management - $544
18 credits required, minimum of 12 upper-level credits.

CSU Global - Organizational Development UL - $250
Study.com Human Resource Management LL - $70
StraighterLine Organizational Behavior UL - $59
Study.com Project Management UL - $70
Study.com Strategic Human Resource Management UL - $70
*Saylor Business Statistics or MIS/SIT (UL, get TESU verification) - $25
*If TESU denies, you can use Saylor Corporate Communications - $25
*If you prefer Study.com, you can use Study.com Labor Relations - $70

Thank you for these! 

The PSY-360 is in there because it showed up as a required class in my TESU degree program outline. 

BSBA-HRM Concentration Section 3, Category C - Organizational Theory / Development

Without a direct transfer correlation/guarantee between TESU and SDC, I'm very hesitant to take any of those SDC 100-series courses now, since the course numbers no longer align with TESU's official offerings. I'm sure there are SL/CLEP/DSST  or other options for them though, so I won't let that alone affect my decision.

When my goal was just a quick BALS "checkbox" degree, TESU was perfect. But if I'm shifting to a business degree, it behooves me to re-evaluate and make sure I'm making the best choice for myself.

I'm seeing pro's and con's for all three options (TESU, WGU, NAU) - assuming each would honor all of my GE coursework.

That's the biggest question in front of me right now, I think. Some of my earliest coursework is nearing 30 years old. TESU took it all without question. WGU seems to have a reputation of being somewhat stingy in that department, and NAU is an unknown (although, NAU at least will do a preliminary eval of unofficial transcripts, so I should be able to get a pretty quick idea from them.)

I think I'll take enough steps into the NAU program to get the unofficial eval, and see how that comes out, before I go any further. For all things to remain equal, each would have to essentially transfer in all of my GE credits, which is roughly 54 units.

TESU already has. Let's see what the others do.

[dfrecore]

The good part about WGU is that you can do a bunch of courses through the course providers listed here, and then enroll and take the rest at WGU. So you could complete the degree in a single term if you were motivated.

List what you have completed, and I'll do a WGU plan for you if you want.

Also, as stated above, you don't have to have UL courses for the BSBA Core - only 4 courses that are UL for the AOS. So no worries there.

---

You must make sure you have 3 of the 4 areas covered: Accounting, Finance, Marketing Management if you're going for the GM

FIN-301 - Principles of Finance - Study.com Finance 104 >> Transfer as FIN 200
MAN-301 - Principles of Management - Study.com Business 101 >> Transfer as MAN 210
MAR-301 - Introduction to Marketing - Study.com Business 102 >> Transfer as MAR 201
MAN-373 - Managerial Communications  ** Saylor Corporate Communications
MAN-331 - Human Resources Management - Study.com Business 306 >> Transfer as HRM 362
MAN-311 - Organizational Behavior - Study.com Business 307 >> Transfer as MAN 312

PSY-360 - Organizational Theory - Why are you taking a Psyc course?
I recommend taking a Marketing course - Study.com Business 309 Digital Marketing >> Transfer as MAR 441

Human Resources/Organizational Management - $544
18 credits required, minimum of 12 upper-level credits.

CSU Global - Organizational Development UL - $250
Study.com Human Resource Management LL - $70
StraighterLine Organizational Behavior UL - $59
Study.com Project Management UL - $70
Study.com Strategic Human Resource Management UL - $70
*Saylor Business Statistics or MIS/SIT (UL, get TESU verification) - $25
*If TESU denies, you can use Saylor Corporate Communications - $25
*If you prefer Study.com, you can use Study.com Labor Relations - $70

He's going for the HR degree, not GM, and Org Theory is required (and cheaper than CSU-Global's Org Dev).

---

Also, no one has done the NAU route because there were only a couple of degrees listed. I'm not sure when they added the Management degree, but it's newer.

And, I think they're not preferred over WGU because they won't take as many transfer credits via ACE/NCCRS. WGU stands out for that reason. On NAU's website, you can't even see what they offer for classes, or get as much info as WGU offers, so there's a downside right there. But, that's not to say that they're not a good option.

[Nodaclu]

The good part about WGU is that you can do a bunch of courses through the course providers listed here, and then enroll and take the rest at WGU.  So you could complete the degree in a single term if you were motivated.

List what you have completed, and I'll do a WGU plan for you if you want.

Also, as stated above, you don't have to have UL courses for the BSBA Core - only 4 courses that are UL for the AOS.  So no worries there.

Thank you for the offer! I'd really appreciate it.

Here is what I have completed to this point:

4 year universities

California State University, Fresno - 15 units

• NAS 50 - Native American Studies - Grade: C - 3 units
  
• Natural Science 4 - Critical Thinking: Science Vs. Nonsense - Grade: B - 3 units
  
• Drama 62 - Introduction to Shakespeare - Grade: A - 3 units
  
• History 2 - Western Civilization II (from 1650) - Grade: B - 3 units
  
• Psych 36 - Intro to Psychophysiology - Grade: B - 3 units
  

University of Nevada, Reno - 9 units

• English 102 - Composition II - Grade: A - 3 units
  
• History 412 - Revolutionary America 1750-1865 - Grade: A- - 3 units
  
• Music 121 - Music Appreciation - Grade A - 3 units
  

Morehead State University - 9 units

• History 220 - Early American History - Grade: A - 3 units
  
• History 351 - England to 1660 - Grade: A - 3 units
  
• History 379 - History of Latin America - Grade: A - 3 units
  

Charter Oak State College - 3 units

• IDS-101 Cornerstone - 3 units
  

2 year community colleges

San Joaquin Delta College - 29 units

• Psych 21 - Childhood Development - Grade: A - 3 units
  
• History 17B - History of the US (since 1865) - Grade: A - 3 units
  
• English 1A - Written Communications I - Grade: A - 3 units
  
• Geography 1 - Physical Geography - Grade: A - 3 units
  
• Humanities 14A - Great Religions of the Eastern World - Grade: B - 3 units
  
• Political Science 1 - American Government & Institutions - Grade: A - 3 units
  
• Psych 22 - Adolescent Development - Grade: B - 3 units
  
• Political Science 10 - Introduction to Political Science - Grade: A - 3 units
  
• Psych 20 - Stress Management - Grade: B - 1 unit
  
• Computer Science 11 - Computer Science Fundamentals - Grade: B - 3 units
  

Fresno City College - 3 units

• Psych 7 - General Psychology - Grade: A - 3 units
  

Sierra College - 4 units

• Psych 30 - Human Sexuality - Grade: D - 3 units
  
• Geography 16E - Field Geography - Grade: A - 1 unit
  

ACE Credits

ALEKS

• Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences - 3 units
  

TEEX

• Cyber 101 - Cybersecurity for Everyone - 2 units
  

The Institutes

• Ethics and the CPCU Code of Professional Conduct - 2 units
  

Study.com

• History 108 - The Vietnam Way (Study.com) - 3 units
  
• Psychology 106 - Abnormal Psychology (Study.com) - 3 units
  
• Religion 101 - Intro to World Religions (Study.com) - 3 units
  

Quite a mess, but that's everything - totaling 88 semester units. 

---

I've sent my unofficial transcripts over to NAU. I'll discuss ACE when they reach out to me. If I'm switching to a Business degree, my ACE courses may be largely useless anyway, so that's something else for me to keep in mind.

I have to admit, I'm definitely intrigued by the Management-HR degree from NAU. If everything comes out roughly equal, I might be willing to be something of a guinea pig for both NAU and the Management program. We're definitely short of documentation for NAU on this board, and I'd be glad to share my process if I do ultimately go that route.

Having said that, WGU's inclusion of the PHR is huge, and I have to keep them in contention here based on that alone.

[dfrecore]

The good part about WGU is that you can do a bunch of courses through the course providers listed here, and then enroll and take the rest at WGU.  So you could complete the degree in a single term if you were motivated.

List what you have completed, and I'll do a WGU plan for you if you want.

Also, as stated above, you don't have to have UL courses for the BSBA Core - only 4 courses that are UL for the AOS.  So no worries there.

So the main issue I see for WGU is that they have a roughly 25/75 split for gen ed's/major, and you don't have enough Gen Ed's, and zero of the major courses.  So you are REALLY far away from the degree there.  It might be discouraging.

If I were you, I would take all of the courses you need for both degrees, and then make a decision at that point: You'll be really close to the TESU degree, but I calculate that it will end up costing more.  So you can choose then, whether to go for it and just finish the degree; or whether it's worth it to take some additional courses through WGU, get that PHR, pay less overall, but it will take longer.

So take Intermediate Algebra, College Algebra, Speech, Business Law, Prin of Management, Org Behavior, Financial Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Prin of Finance, Prin of Marketing, Macroecon, Microecon, International Business, and Project Management.  Then, take a breath, and look at what's left of both degrees, and the costs for everything, and re-evaluate.

Oh yeah, take 4 of the classes at SL - that will get you a discount at WGU if you opt to go there (I wouldn't recommend Econ as it's WAY too long there).  Here's a spreadsheet: