Outlier : Associate (GGU) or Credit Course (Uni Pittsburgh)

[tuckerarabi786]

Some Nice Advises.
I am noting all down..
As my plan is to start whatever route i decide by Jan'23..

I like this route also GGU Associate --> TESU... But instead of TESU.. Can you suggest any other university probably in Top 100, that may accept GGU Associate?

What kind of bachelor's major are you looking for? 

And what will you be prioritizing: speed, price, flexibility, etc? Does is have to be online?

One option would be ASU which, US News is ranked #121 nationally, #56 for public, #33 for undergrad engineering. Their online offerings are pretty good and you can earn your way in to admittance through the ASU ULC courses which are now actually cheaper the Outlier/GGU/Degree+.

I am planning to do Bachelors in Computer Science or Information Technology (Cloud or Networking)

Speed + Flexibility is my priority.... Price i can afford, depending on University...   Online is better - yes.. 
I was thinking to do Associate from any reputed University, and during that phase, I may decide with the University to continue On-Campus or Online BSc.
As i have Wife + Kids, so i need to plan my cash-flow etc, to Immigrate... IF i get an employment opportunity. But right now i feel 2023 is a time where many Job Lay-Offs might occur....

ASU no doubt is a good university, I was thinking to continue there for BSc.

Now the option you have shared, another option similar to this is also University of Pittsburg, little better ranking than ASU.

But someone above mentioned, its better to do Associates (if with GGU - as it will have a value being a student of GGU) - than rather just doing credit courses.

[MNomadic]

Some Nice Advises.
I am noting all down..
As my plan is to start whatever route i decide by Jan'23..

I like this route also GGU Associate --> TESU... But instead of TESU.. Can you suggest any other university probably in Top 100, that may accept GGU Associate?

What kind of bachelor's major are you looking for? 

And what will you be prioritizing: speed, price, flexibility, etc? Does is have to be online?

One option would be ASU which, US News is ranked #121 nationally, #56 for public, #33 for undergrad engineering. Their online offerings are pretty good and you can earn your way in to admittance through the ASU ULC courses which are now actually cheaper the Outlier/GGU/Degree+.

I am planning to do Bachelors in Computer Science or Information Technology (Cloud or Networking)

Speed + Flexibility is my priority.... Price i can afford, depending on University...   Online is better - yes.. 
I was thinking to do Associate from any reputed University, and during that phase, I may decide with the University to continue On-Campus or Online BSc.
As i have Wife + Kids, so i need to plan my cash-flow etc, to Immigrate... IF i get an employment opportunity. But right now i feel 2023 is a time where many Job Lay-Offs might occur....

ASU no doubt is a good university, I was thinking to continue there for BSc.

Now the option you have shared, another option similar to this is also University of Pittsburg, little better ranking than ASU.

But someone above mentioned, its better to do Associates (if with GGU - as it will have a value being a student of GGU) - than rather just doing credit courses.

I think you definitely need to figure out what your end goal is and work backwards from there because there can be some pretty big differences between CS and IT degrees, particularly at "well ranked schools." For example, at ASU, the BSCS is treated like a full engineering degree with a lot of higher level math, but they also have a lot of other IT/applied computing degrees with less math/theory/rigor, but they're also not from the well ranked engineering college at ASU.

[tuckerarabi786]

Some Nice Advises.
I am noting all down..
As my plan is to start whatever route i decide by Jan'23..

I like this route also GGU Associate --> TESU... But instead of TESU.. Can you suggest any other university probably in Top 100, that may accept GGU Associate?

What kind of bachelor's major are you looking for? 

And what will you be prioritizing: speed, price, flexibility, etc? Does is have to be online?

One option would be ASU which, US News is ranked #121 nationally, #56 for public, #33 for undergrad engineering. Their online offerings are pretty good and you can earn your way in to admittance through the ASU ULC courses which are now actually cheaper the Outlier/GGU/Degree+.

I am planning to do Bachelors in Computer Science or Information Technology (Cloud or Networking)

Speed + Flexibility is my priority.... Price i can afford, depending on University...   Online is better - yes.. 
I was thinking to do Associate from any reputed University, and during that phase, I may decide with the University to continue On-Campus or Online BSc.
As i have Wife + Kids, so i need to plan my cash-flow etc, to Immigrate... IF i get an employment opportunity. But right now i feel 2023 is a time where many Job Lay-Offs might occur....

ASU no doubt is a good university, I was thinking to continue there for BSc.

Now the option you have shared, another option similar to this is also University of Pittsburg, little better ranking than ASU.

But someone above mentioned, its better to do Associates (if with GGU - as it will have a value being a student of GGU) - than rather just doing credit courses.

I think you definitely need to figure out what your end goal is and work backwards from there because there can be some pretty big differences between CS and IT degrees, particularly at "well ranked schools." For example, at ASU, the BSCS is treated like a full engineering degree with a lot of higher level math, but they also have a lot of other IT/applied computing degrees with less math/theory/rigor, but they're also not from the well ranked engineering college at ASU.

You are correct.

The reason i thought to this Applied Computing from GGU, as it also has good maths coverage, So it might help ?
And the other reason was GGU, is surrounded by many IT companies, and just some few KMs away we have Silicon Valley.. 
Well again, there are other good Universities too also, no doubt.. 
I was just looking for a solution to at-least start from somewhere...

I am planning to email around TOP 300 or TOP 500 universities this weekend probably...

But currently i have this in my mind

Do Associate Applied Computing from GGU  and than transfer to GGU itself on campus  OR transfer to any other university and continue the BSc journey with any TOP 300 university...

OR Enroll to any BSc program from beginning itself.. and my plan is only to select TOP 300 university only.. better preference is TOP 100....
As many Countries are also welcoming students that have studied with TOP 30 ranked uni for example...  it's costly yes... but one can have a better profile...

I am still exploring options... cause whatever the case.. the plan is to start studying from Jan'23 onwards...

Please do always share other options .... so i do not miss any golden option better than GGU ....

---

Adding to my previous reply

Has anyone enrolled or is planning to do so.
Please share your research, what made you enrol to this GGU Associate degree provided by Outlier ?

[bjcheung77]

@tuckerarabi786, What's your budget again for undergrad and another budget for grad school? You might want to see which options suit you more for immigration purposes and may check the box for you. I would recommend a mix and match of affordable, ease, speed to finish with flexibility to match your scenario/situation in life. You also want a backup option just in case "life happens" and the original plan doesn't play out as you wanted.

[MNomadic]

Some Nice Advises.
I am noting all down..
As my plan is to start whatever route i decide by Jan'23..

I like this route also GGU Associate --> TESU... But instead of TESU.. Can you suggest any other university probably in Top 100, that may accept GGU Associate?

What kind of bachelor's major are you looking for? 

And what will you be prioritizing: speed, price, flexibility, etc? Does is have to be online?

One option would be ASU which, US News is ranked #121 nationally, #56 for public, #33 for undergrad engineering. Their online offerings are pretty good and you can earn your way in to admittance through the ASU ULC courses which are now actually cheaper the Outlier/GGU/Degree+.

I am planning to do Bachelors in Computer Science or Information Technology (Cloud or Networking)

Speed + Flexibility is my priority.... Price i can afford, depending on University...   Online is better - yes.. 
I was thinking to do Associate from any reputed University, and during that phase, I may decide with the University to continue On-Campus or Online BSc.
As i have Wife + Kids, so i need to plan my cash-flow etc, to Immigrate... IF i get an employment opportunity. But right now i feel 2023 is a time where many Job Lay-Offs might occur....

ASU no doubt is a good university, I was thinking to continue there for BSc.

Now the option you have shared, another option similar to this is also University of Pittsburg, little better ranking than ASU.

But someone above mentioned, its better to do Associates (if with GGU - as it will have a value being a student of GGU) - than rather just doing credit courses.

I think you definitely need to figure out what your end goal is and work backwards from there because there can be some pretty big differences between CS and IT degrees, particularly at "well ranked schools." For example, at ASU, the BSCS is treated like a full engineering degree with a lot of higher level math, but they also have a lot of other IT/applied computing degrees with less math/theory/rigor, but they're also not from the well ranked engineering college at ASU.

You are correct.

The reason i thought to this Applied Computing from GGU, as it also has good maths coverage, So it might help ?
And the other reason was GGU, is surrounded by many IT companies, and just some few KMs away we have Silicon Valley.. 
Well again, there are other good Universities too also, no doubt.. 
I was just looking for a solution to at-least start from somewhere...

I am planning to email around TOP 300 or TOP 500 universities this weekend probably...

But currently i have this in my mind

Do Associate Applied Computing from GGU  and than transfer to GGU itself on campus  OR transfer to any other university and continue the BSc journey with any TOP 300 university...

OR Enroll to any BSc program from beginning itself.. and my plan is only to select TOP 300 university only.. better preference is TOP 100....
As many Countries are also welcoming students that have studied with TOP 30 ranked uni for example...  it's costly yes... but one can have a better profile...

I am still exploring options... cause whatever the case.. the plan is to start studying from Jan'23 onwards...

Please do always share other options .... so i do not miss any golden option better than GGU ....

---

Adding to my previous reply

Has anyone enrolled or is planning to do so.
Please share your research, what made you enrol to this GGU Associate degree provided by Outlier ?

Just throwing this out there, but GGU doesn't currently have a BS In CS or IT that I could find. They're not known to be a tech school so I don't think geographic proximity to tech companies will matter at all for doing a remote degree. Also, I think was pointed out, but I wouldn't worry about rankings/reputation of your associates degree because by the time you get a BS, no one will care about your AS. 

As far as doing the AS at GGU, it's a fine choice if you like the price, curriculum, model, etc. if you just want to get started. 

As for BS options, another online BSCS option, though not particularly high ranked would be SNHU. If you want an IT or similar degree, your options open up quite a bit to the likes of NAU, PUG, and more. 

If you decide you want to attend in person then just apply for whatever programs interest you. There's too many options for me to make any suggestions.

[rachel83az]

Also, I think was pointed out, but I wouldn't worry about rankings/reputation of your associates degree because by the time you get a BS, no one will care about your AS. 

By extension, once you get your Master's, nobody cares that much about where you got your Bachelor's. (And you generally need a Master's for immigration purposes.) If you manage to get into, and finish, something like the Georgia Tech OMCS, it won't matter if you went to a Top 500 school or Bottom 10 school. The most advanced degree outweighs all others.

tuckerarabi786, you're wasting time on things that simply do. not. matter. to the countries you might want to immigrate to.

[dfrecore]

GGU does not have a Bachelor's in IT, never has. They are a business & law school, with a little Psych thrown in. They have an IT minor for their business degrees, but that is in no way shape or form anywhere close to an IT degree.

An AS in Applied Computing just seems like a complete waste of time for me, when almost no school will accept that degree as a block transfer - you are giving the degree more consequence than it deserves. It will cost more money then you would need to spend, only to have tons of it not be able to count towards a bachelor's degree. This degree will take 2 years to complete, and then you'll transfer somewhere, and have to spend more years (and money) on a bachelor's degree. Just go for the bachelor's instead, and skip this AS degree.

Honestly, I don't understand what you're trying to do here. It just doesn't make any sense.

[MNomadic]

Exactly, what dfrecore said. Assuming you're starting from complete scratch and want to go to a somewhat competitive IT/BS degree down the road but don't know which, you'd be better served starting out with ASU Universal Learner courses. They're transcripted exactly the same as on campus, RA courses, they're cheaper than GGU/Outlier, their program is more established, school reputation is much better in the tech space, and you have more control over your grades and finances. For example, if you're trying to maintain a high GPA to maximize your chances of getting into a competitive program, you can just choose to only transcript courses where you achieve an A, and you have up to a year to decide, in case finances are an issue. After a certain amount of completed courses(with a certain GPA) you'd be eligible for admissions to ASU in case you didn't get into another school. They have way more course options and will continue to for the foreseeable future. You can accelerate a little easier since some classes are self paced, you can sign up for as many as you want since you can always "drop" any that are too much work or too hard without any financial or GPA repurcussions.

Also, there's nothing stopping you from taking any other courses through outlier that ASU doesn't offer like calc 2 and CS 2 once they're available at outlier.

[dfrecore]

Exactly, what dfrecore said. Assuming you're starting from complete scratch and want to go to a somewhat competitive IT/BS degree down the road but don't know which, you'd be better served starting out with ASU Universal Learner courses. They're transcripted exactly the same as on campus, RA courses, they're cheaper than GGU/Outlier, their program is more established, school reputation is much better in the tech space, and you have more control over your grades and finances. For example, if you're trying to maintain a high GPA to maximize your chances of getting into a competitive program, you can just choose to only transcript courses where you achieve an A, and you have up to a year to decide, in case finances are an issue. After a certain amount of completed courses(with a certain GPA) you'd be eligible for admissions to ASU in case you didn't get into another school. They have way more course options and will continue to for the foreseeable future. You can accelerate a little easier since some classes are self paced, you can sign up for as many as you want since you can always "drop" any that are too much work or too hard without any financial or GPA repurcussions.

Also, there's nothing stopping you from taking any other courses through outlier that ASU doesn't offer like calc 2 and CS 2 once they're available at outlier.

^^^100%

An actual AA in Computer studies gets you virtually nothing.  You're much better off just taking courses that will easily transfer somewhere else, like the GE courses at ASU, for less than the Outlier courses cost.

[tuckerarabi786]

Thanks.
I respect everyone's advise..

I was thinking if this blend would be good to start

https://www.coursera.org/degrees/bachelo.../academics & i think one other is also there from LSE in EDx platform

And also doing Boulder MSc side by side... so in 2.5 years or so.. i can atleast have BSc finished.. and would be also in close stage to finish MSc Boulder too...

Actually i have noticed in my companies globally, they have preference to hire candidates who have graduated from TOP 100 and TOP 300 Uni... mostly 80% of the time... but yes SKILLS also counts...
So my plan was to save from all those head-ache,. and to pay a little extra, but get a quality degree... Hence i am still choosing different options...

The other plan someone suggested above is to take credit courses from ASU << that is also good, I will email them also. If i take ASU courses, can i than enrol to BSc IT or CS degree...

At the moment i do not have degree.. but i have excellent skills
But sad part is for immigration you need to show degree... hence i was also thinking maybe as a backup plan to quickly do maybe TESU. or SNHU.. but again it means i have to put a lot of energy in completing lots of credits at Sophia / Study...