Quick (Prefer before August 2025) Bachelors

[jimmydfi]

I know this has been asked 78,000 times on here but I am getting dizzy with all options and what transfers where and for what. I am looking to get a Bachelors Degree preferably in Elementary Education. I am only wanting this degree to become head coach of a high school baseball team that will be starting in August. I can get by with just 60 credits as an assistant coach but we need a head coach that nobody is willing to do. I will also donate my time as a substitute at the school, hence the reason for Elementary Education. I will not accept any money for coaching or substituting, so cost is a slight factor. I have knocked out some very easy courses at Sophia in 3 weeks, I find that platform extremely easy to use as well as cheap. I have looked at UMPI and WGU to complete this degree, so those are preferred. 

Things to consider:
I am not the greatest at complex math
I will not be getting paid for this degree (I have a very good paying job anyways)
I can spend between 3-5 hours a day on study/exams but I can turn up the pace if needed
I prefer non proctored simply because I am not familiar, I am willing to try it though
I really like the Sophia platform

Credits I currently have since starting Sophia 3 weeks ago

Health Fitness and Wellness HLTH1011
Criminology SOSC1050
Anatomy and Physiology 1 SCIE1050
Financial Accounting BUSI1010
Intro to IT CS1001
Human Biology HumBio 1001
Into to Nutrition HLTH1010

I truly appreciate all the time you all are dedicating to helping others achieve their life goals!!!

[Stonybeach]

Getting a bachelor's by August 2025 does not sound possible. Earning 60 credits is possible, but remember, credits are valid if posted on an official transcript at a college or university. 60 "Sophia credits" does not equal 60 college credits unless you have them put on an accredited college transcript!

Thomas Edison State University (TESU) offers an Individual Learning account that allows you to document college learning: https://www.tesu.edu/about/leadership-de...ccount.php
Sophia courses appear to be ACE reviewed but check with TESU if they accept them. https://tesu.sophia.org/

TESU also awards credits for professional certification, training and licenses like pilot licenses, military, EMT, police academy, etc.: https://www.tesu.edu/about/leadership-de...eviews.php

[Hotdogman1]

The earliest you could graduate from UMPI is August 29, 2025, which is the Summer 2 session. UMPI needs to receive the Credly transcript by June 17 and you would have to complete everything within one UMPI session (the norm is 2-3 sessions but one is possible). So 69 more alternative credits by next month + 30 UMPI credits in one 8 week session. The closest/quickest degree to an Elementary Education major is the Bachelor of Liberal Studies Educational Studies Minor. https://www.umpi.edu/yourpace/academic_p...education/
UMPI general education requirement: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/UM...ts_Roadmap
UMPI BLS Educational Studies: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/UM...egree_Plan

[Vle045]

As a former Athletics Administrative Assistant… where do they make a head coach have a degree in education? That is definitely not a requirement here in Ohio. For us, you just need a Pupil Activity Permit which basically means you’ve passed some background checks and have some certifications. You have to take some courses like Fundamentals of Coaching, Concussion in Sports, First Aid, Health & Safety, CPR & AED, Protecting Students from Abuse, and Sudden Cardiac Arrest. There may be some others I can’t recall, or it may vary in other states. Most can be found here: https://nfhslearn.com/courses

Part of my job was tracking coach credentials. Having a degree was never part of any requirement. It would be interesting to know where that might be required.

[jimmydfi]

As a former Athletics Administrative Assistant… where do they make a head coach have a degree in education?  That is definitely not a requirement here in Ohio.  For us, you just need a Pupil Activity Permit which basically means you’ve passed some background checks and have some certifications.  You have to take some courses like Fundamentals of Coaching, Concussion in Sports, First Aid, Health & Safety, CPR & AED, Protecting Students from Abuse, and Sudden Cardiac Arrest.  There may be some others I can’t recall, or it may vary in other states.  Most can be found here:  https://nfhslearn.com/courses

Part of my job was tracking coach credentials.  Having a degree was never part of any requirement.  It would be interesting to know where that might be required.

Thanks for your reply. I am in Missouri and go by MSHSAA requirements. NFHS testing is something I will be doing as well. Here you can be a head coach if you have a Bachelors degree OR 2 years as an approved assistant coach. To be an approved assistant coach you have to have at least 60 college credit hours OR be a provisional assistant for 3 years. To be a provisional assistant you have to just do the NFHS courses.

(3.1.5 Coaching Levels and Minimum Requirements) Page 55-56
https://www.mshsaa.org/resources/pdf/Off...ndbook.pdf 

In order to be head coach without the degree it will take a total of 5 years. (3 provisional and 2 assistant)

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Getting a bachelor's by August 2025 does not sound possible. Earning 60 credits is possible, but remember, credits are valid if posted on an official transcript at a college or university. 60 "Sophia credits" does not equal 60 college credits unless you have them put on an accredited college transcript!

Thomas Edison State University (TESU) offers an Individual Learning account that allows you to document college learning: https://www.tesu.edu/about/leadership-de...ccount.php
Sophia courses appear to be ACE reviewed but check with TESU if they accept them. https://tesu.sophia.org/

TESU also awards credits for professional certification, training and licenses like pilot licenses, military, EMT, police academy, etc.: https://www.tesu.edu/about/leadership-de...eviews.php

Thank you for this information. I was not aware that Sophia credits were not considered official until they were on a college transcript. My understanding was that I complete the course and link my account with my Credly account. On my Credly account I can send the transcript to whomever I wish. I have sent it to myself to see what it looked like. It has "official transcript" on the header, with a list of courses and credit hours for each course.

I looked over the TESU page you sent. That was very appreciated. So, I will keep pushing on with Sophia to see how far I can get before the season starts. I will then submit my ACE credits to the college I choose in order to get a transcript to present to the board showing I have 60+ credits with the intentions of going for a Bachelors. This will at least get me in as assistant coach until I can complete the degree. Please correct me if I misunderstood you.

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The earliest you could graduate from UMPI is August 29, 2025, which is the Summer 2 session. UMPI needs to receive the Credly transcript by June 17 and you would have to complete everything within one UMPI session (the norm is 2-3 sessions but one is possible). So 69 more alternative credits by next month + 30 UMPI credits in one 8 week session. The closest/quickest degree to an Elementary Education major is the Bachelor of Liberal Studies Educational Studies Minor. https://www.umpi.edu/yourpace/academic_p...education/
UMPI general education requirement: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/UM...ts_Roadmap
UMPI BLS Educational Studies: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/UM...egree_Plan

Thanks!! It seems this is the route I am going to need to go. Since I will not be able to complete the degree before August, my next best option would be to complete the degree before the 2026 Spring season which will start March 2026. This would also give me a couple of extra months to get the degree done in case of a hiccup. I will just miss out on the Fall 2025 season. Thanks for the links, they are very helpful.

[Stonybeach]

TESU states, "Complete the Nondegree Services Application. The fee for this service is $419." If UMPI posts the credits on the transcript for free, that would be even better, but I know nothing about UMPI! I mentioned TESU because they also award credit for other licenses just look at the list.

[origamishuttle]

WGU is technically possible within your time limit, but it's very improbable unless you have specific knowledge suited to one of their degrees. Even then, you would need to be laser-focused for the next three months - the first with Sophia/Study.com courses, the second to pre-game your WGU courses, and the third to complete the WGU courses, which would start on July 1. Given the severe time limitation, any slip-up could potentially push you past the deadline. So while it's possible, it's not recommended.

[Stonybeach]

I was not aware that Sophia credits were not considered official until they were on a college transcript. My understanding was that I complete the course and link my account with my Credly account. On my Credly account I can send the transcript to whomever I wish. I have sent it to myself to see what it looked like. It has "official transcript" on the header, with a list of courses and credit hours for each course.

"Because Sophia does not offer degree programs, we are not accredited. Instead, our focus is on offering convenient, affordable, online courses that accredited colleges and universities may accept as transfer credits to help you earn your degree."
https://www.sophia.org/blog/higher-educa...editation/

These type of courses are American Council on Education (“ACE”) reviewed which provide recommendations to colleges for credit. ACE also provides college credit recommendations for corporate training, military transcripts, etc. A college awarded credit on my transcript for ACE recommendations for my scuba certification, military schools, EMT, etc.

I preferred the old ACE transcript but ACE now uses Credly by Pearson so people can immediately show their "digital badges" and accomplishments in addition to sending Credly transcripts to colleges for possible credit acceptance. Although digital Badges may have been earned by college coursework or other pathways (Micro credentials, ACE evaluated courses, certifications, corporate training, etc.), they are not by itself considered "college" credit! Public School Districts may have their own policy on what is accepted as college coursework as well!

ACE National Guide: https://www.acenet.edu/National-Guide/Pa...redit.aspx

[jimmydfi]

I was not aware that Sophia credits were not considered official until they were on a college transcript. My understanding was that I complete the course and link my account with my Credly account. On my Credly account I can send the transcript to whomever I wish. I have sent it to myself to see what it looked like. It has "official transcript" on the header, with a list of courses and credit hours for each course.

"Because Sophia does not offer degree programs, we are not accredited. Instead, our focus is on offering convenient, affordable, online courses that accredited colleges and universities may accept as transfer credits to help you earn your degree."
https://www.sophia.org/blog/higher-educa...editation/

These type of courses are  American Council on Education (“ACE”) reviewed which provide recommendations to colleges for credit. ACE also provides college credit recommendations for corporate training, military transcripts, etc. A college awarded credit on my transcript for ACE recommendations for my scuba certification, military schools, EMT, etc.

I preferred the old ACE transcript but ACE now uses Credly by Pearson so people can immediately show their "digital badges" and accomplishments in addition to sending Credly transcripts to colleges for possible credit acceptance. Although digital Badges may have been earned by college coursework or other pathways (Micro credentials, ACE evaluated courses, certifications, corporate training, etc.), they are not by itself considered "college" credit! Public School Districts may have their own policy on what is accepted as college coursework as well!

ACE National Guide: https://www.acenet.edu/National-Guide/Pa...redit.aspx

Makes sense, thanks for the information.

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WGU is technically possible within your time limit, but it's very improbable unless you have specific knowledge suited to one of their degrees. Even then, you would need to be laser-focused for the next three months - the first with Sophia/Study.com courses, the second to pre-game your WGU courses, and the third to complete the WGU courses, which would start on July 1. Given the severe time limitation, any slip-up could potentially push you past the deadline. So while it's possible, it's not recommended.

Thanks. I think I am going to see how far I can get before July 1. I will likely just shoot for getting the entire thing done before the 2026 Spring baseball season, which will start March 2026. That should be a much more realistic goal.

[bjcheung77]

Welcome to the board, great intro post with some follow up, but it's missing the most important info on the addendum and template. I would usually get you to fill in the details to provide a bigger overall picture of your scenario. Having said that, with the info and recommendations above... +1, I agree with the UMPI BLS with a minor in Educational Studies (if you want another minor, you can add that too).

You can also add the AALS as a second program and forgetting it, as all the BLS requirements you complete, will finish that degree already! Last but not least, it's also an option for you to ladder up to the MAOL if you ever wanted to, if you take the 3-4 classes that can go towards the MAOL during undergrad studies. And you can do that when you get tuition assistance or reimbursement from work!

And if that's not all you want, if you ever needed another Masters, you can ladder your BLS to the Walden MS Educational Studies degree by continuing to use your tuition assistance or reimbursement. Sometimes, the employer will have up to $5K/year for this, the Walden MS is roughly $6K... review the WIKI links provided by members...