Seeking guidance to best map 140 RA semester credits and finish!

[ss20ts]

PUG ExcelTrack's are a RIDICULOUS amount of writing. I don't know about the regular programs but holy moly the ExcelTrack's are a crazy amount of work. My husband gets so annoyed when I have 1 paper to write at UMPI and he has 5+ papers per class to write. He's in his capstone now and can't wait to be done.

Thank you for spreading the word! You've saved me, and presumably many others, from going down this path.

The ExcelTrack classes are broken down into 1 credit courses. Most classes are 5 or 6 credits so they end up being 5 or 6 classes. Each 1 credit has at least 1 paper. Some have multiple papers. And there are projects. Like programming projects. My husband is in the Analytics ExcelTrack and it's good he's already bald because he would be pulling his hair out over the work. He's also had a lot of problems getting many of the course provided downloads to work. They seem to be using outdated software that is no longer maintained or designed to run on Windows 10. That's been a big struggle. Some professors have had to create work arounds because the students can't get the files to work. I wonder how old the material is! I know it's from Kaplan, but doesn't anyone update anything?

[bjcheung77]

The objective to post #4 was to get the OP past the Bachelors level, so they focus on their Masters journey... With that many RA credits, you can finish at the Big 3 or UMPI/WGU options if you can transfer in the bulk into the program, such as 75% or up to 90+ credits... The goal is not to "reuse" or to "max" the transfer for their certification credits, but to "finish" the degree and progress further instead of dwelling on trying to save the credits for use towards a degree. OP has the certs, experience, just missing that degree to go forward...

[origamishuttle]

The objective to post #4 was to get the OP past the Bachelors level, so they focus on their Masters journey...  With that many RA credits, you can finish at the Big 3 or UMPI/WGU options if you can transfer in the bulk into the program, such as 75% or up to 90+ credits...  The goal is not to "reuse" or to "max" the transfer for their certification credits, but to "finish" the degree and progress further instead of dwelling on trying to save the credits for use towards a degree.  OP has the certs, experience, just missing that degree to go forward...

While I greatly respect your perspective and knowledge, I'm confused by this post. Nobody has suggested that the certifications will transfer for any credit anywhere. However, the vast majority of the listed RA credits are very old IT-related courses, so the question is whether or not they will be accepted for transfer, and by which school(s).

What I inferred from post #4 and post #7 is that all, or the majority, of the RA credits will be accepted for transfer, at least by UMPI. Did I understand that correctly?

In post #8 I suggested applying to the schools in question to find out which credits will actually transfer. Would you agree that this is the next step to take?

[bjcheung77]

For most schools, if it's in the AOS, there is a limit on age for the courses to transfer for "current, relevant material" purposes, it ranges from 5 to 7 and in some cases, 10 years (at TESU for specific AOS credits). The Computer/IT courses OP has can be used for general education/electives, at a quick glance, they should hit close to the 90 credit mark for those added (as long as it hits those areas).

They need to decide on the degree and school of choice, even if those courses don't transfer as intended, with alternative credit options now, it'll be easier to finish... Yes, I do suggest applying to the ones that are free (Excelsior, UMPI, WGU) and also COSC/TESU to get an academic evaluation to "know" where they stand. I am curious if those courses at the University, those 3XX/4XX are upper level or a not.

[origamishuttle]

For most schools, if it's in the AOS, there is a limit on age for the courses to transfer for "current, relevant material" purposes, it ranges from 5 to 7 and in some cases, 10 years (at TESU for specific AOS credits).  The Computer/IT courses OP has can be used for general education/electives, at a quick glance, they should hit close to the 90 credit mark for those added (as long as it hits those areas).  

They need to decide on the degree and school of choice, even if those courses don't transfer as intended, with alternative credit options now, it'll be easier to finish... Yes, I do suggest applying to the ones that are free (Excelsior, UMPI, WGU) and also COSC/TESU to get an academic evaluation to "know" where they stand.  I am curious if those courses at the University, those 3XX/4XX are upper level or a not.

This is great information - thank you for clarifying! If the RA credits will count as electives, then OP is closer than I thought for most schools, but further for WGU, as they have no electives. I'm curious to see where the transfer evaluations land.

[Timberline]

I'm no expert, so I hope someone can correct me; I would expect that none of the certifications, and most/all of the technical courses will not be accepted at most schools. Since you have an AA, that may transfer as block credit, possibly at WGU, for example, otherwise you may need to take many more courses to complete a degree. I hope I'm wrong! Just to warn you against high expectations...

---

That being said, I would encourage you to apply to WGU for BSBAITM (the easiest degree listed) and get a transfer evaluation. If you get credit for your AA, and complete some extra courses to transfer, maybe at Sophia or Study.com, then it should be easy enough to complete that degree in one term.

Thanks for the reply, origamishuttle. I will take a closer look at the BSBAITM.

Here are the ones that I think are most likely to transfer to most schools….

St. Petersburg College, Total Credits: 85
Class Name, Term, Grade, Credits

...

Thank you for the reply, Vle045. I am betting on those general ED courses transferring with little issue.

In addition to answering or using the template, I usually ask the following: What was your AA in?  How busy are you, what commitments do you have? How much time do you have to spend on studying?  Do you have family/kids that you have to attend to?  Do you have a budget or tuition assistance/reimbursement? What is your end goal, what's the masters program you're interested in?

You've provided a great amount of info - My suggestion is to provide more details from above questions so we can gauge which one of the options are best for you.  It depends on the amount of energy, money, time you dedicate towards your certain educational goal.  With your experience, I am leaning on telling you to get it done with the cheapest, easiest, fastest option, COSC or UMPI, the only caveat is that they're not true IT degrees, then head over to WGU for your masters and be done with it...

Thank you for the reply, bjcheung77. I appreciate your help here! Great questions. My AA is a general AA, as it set me up to go to state college at the time to continue on with my goal of getting an IST degree. Fast forward 20 years, life is fairly busy these days, and my time to dedicate is certainly not "full time" unfortunately. Budget isn't concern (thankfully), and I realize I am very fortunate to have fallen into a career progression that was favorable without the degree. A Masters has always been a north star, but it needs to be viable from an ROI (~time and money) perspective at this point. I don't NEED it for my career, but I would like to lock it in for personal accomplishment reasons. Your points on COSC and UMPI are well taken.. I appreciate your perspective on this.

Wouldn't this presuppose that COSC and/or UMPI will transfer the very old technical courses? How likely do you think that is?

Yes and no. UMPI will put ALL of your credits on one transcript. That doesn't mean that they will apply to your degree. UMPI doesn't have an IT/CS degree so at best they would be general electives. Some of them won't be eligible to be general electives due to what they are. Speaking from experience, UMPI doesn't accept every course. Like I said they will all appear on the transcript but not apply to the degree. First thing to do is to really figure out which degree you want. That's quite the list of options.

Thanks for the reply and insights, ss20ts. Point taken regarding UMPI! 

Here's my take on the different schools:

TESU, COSC, EC - Good for transferring more or less the entire degree, which you're not likely to have, but you can always apply and see how they evaluate your transcripts.
WGU - Josh Madakor did a decent job of analyzing these: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEQbB_e8UMA
UMPI - Mostly writing, mostly not too bad
PUG - Beware: lots and lots and lots of writing!

You can definitely apply to any/all of these, which will give you more information about what you can transfer, but narrowing down your potential choices will help a lot. For example, I don't think you can apply to more than one WGU degree at a time.

Really appreciate the assessment across schools. I will also check out Josh's videos.. thanks for the tip!

Here's my take on the different schools:

TESU, COSC, EC - Good for transferring more or less the entire degree, which you're not likely to have, but you can always apply and see how they evaluate your transcripts.
WGU - Josh Madakor did a decent job of analyzing these: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEQbB_e8UMA
UMPI - Mostly writing, mostly not too bad
PUG - Beware: lots and lots and lots of writing!

You can definitely apply to any/all of these, which will give you more information about what you can transfer, but narrowing down your potential choices will help a lot. For example, I don't think you can apply to more than one WGU degree at a time.

PUG ExcelTrack's are a RIDICULOUS amount of writing. I don't know about the regular programs but holy moly the ExcelTrack's are a crazy amount of work. My husband gets so annoyed when I have 1 paper to write at UMPI and he has 5+ papers per class to write. He's in his capstone now and can't wait to be done.

This is such good info! Thank you for the heads-up. I apologize if this was already 'known' in the community, but I hadn't stumbled on it. Much appreciated ss20ts.

PUG ExcelTrack's are a RIDICULOUS amount of writing. I don't know about the regular programs but holy moly the ExcelTrack's are a crazy amount of work. My husband gets so annoyed when I have 1 paper to write at UMPI and he has 5+ papers per class to write. He's in his capstone now and can't wait to be done.

Thank you for spreading the word! You've saved me, and presumably many others, from going down this path.

The ExcelTrack classes are broken down into 1 credit courses. Most classes are 5 or 6 credits so they end up being 5 or 6 classes. Each 1 credit has at least 1 paper. Some have multiple papers. And there are projects. Like programming projects. My husband is in the Analytics ExcelTrack and it's good he's already bald because he would be pulling his hair out over the work. He's also had a lot of problems getting many of the course provided downloads to work. They seem to be using outdated software that is no longer maintained or designed to run on Windows 10. That's been a big struggle. Some professors have had to create work arounds because the students can't get the files to work. I wonder how old the material is! I know it's from Kaplan, but doesn't anyone update anything?

For most schools, if it's in the AOS, there is a limit on age for the courses to transfer for "current, relevant material" purposes, it ranges from 5 to 7 and in some cases, 10 years (at TESU for specific AOS credits).  The Computer/IT courses OP has can be used for general education/electives, at a quick glance, they should hit close to the 90 credit mark for those added (as long as it hits those areas).  

They need to decide on the degree and school of choice, even if those courses don't transfer as intended, with alternative credit options now, it'll be easier to finish... Yes, I do suggest applying to the ones that are free (Excelsior, UMPI, WGU) and also COSC/TESU to get an academic evaluation to "know" where they stand.  I am curious if those courses at the University, those 3XX/4XX are upper level or a not.

This is great information.. thank you both for the discourse back and forth... really helpful to learn. This feedback on the thread has been super helpful.. I have already started to take this advice and apply across some of these schools to see what is evaluated.

For most schools, if it's in the AOS, there is a limit on age for the courses to transfer for "current, relevant material" purposes, it ranges from 5 to 7 and in some cases, 10 years (at TESU for specific AOS credits).  The Computer/IT courses OP has can be used for general education/electives, at a quick glance, they should hit close to the 90 credit mark for those added (as long as it hits those areas).  

They need to decide on the degree and school of choice, even if those courses don't transfer as intended, with alternative credit options now, it'll be easier to finish... Yes, I do suggest applying to the ones that are free (Excelsior, UMPI, WGU) and also COSC/TESU to get an academic evaluation to "know" where they stand.  I am curious if those courses at the University, those 3XX/4XX are upper level or a not.

This is great information - thank you for clarifying! If the RA credits will count as electives, then OP is closer than I thought for most schools, but further for WGU, as they have no electives. I'm curious to see where the transfer evaluations land.

Great heads-up... will update this thread as I learn more!

[dfrecore]

TESU
BA in Computer Science
BA in Liberal Studies - Computer Science
BSBA in Computer Information Systems
BS in Information Technology
BS in Data Science and Analytics
COSC
BS in General Studies/Information Systems Studies
EC
BS in Information Technology
BPS in Technology Management/Information Technology
WGU
BS in Computer Science
BS in Information Technology
BS in Data Management/Data Analytics
BSBA in IT Management
UMPI
Bachelor of Liberal Studies - Management Information Systems Minor
PUG
BS in Information Technology
BS in Information Technology - ExcelTrack

Let me break down the schools/degrees:

1) TESU is your best bet because you have almost all of the GE done except for Diversity & History, which you can easily do via Sophia or SDC or CLEP or whatever.

  a) BACS - in addition, your AoS is partially done, with no limits to how old courses can be; you have enough UL credits as well in the AoS which is not the norm here.  And all Free electives are covered.  I show that you need a total of 24cr to complete: cornerstone, capstone, diversity, history, data structures, calculus, discrete math, computer architecture.  All of the remaining AoS can be done via SDC.

  b) BALS/CS - the ease of the BACS without the math.  I think you'd have this at totally complete except for data structures & computer architecture. This will easily be your fastest degree (least amount of courses to complete).  Not sure if it's your best option, since I think a CS degree is more valuable, but it really depends on if you NEED a CS degree or if a BALS will suit your purposes.

  c) BSBA/CIS will take you a while.  Lots of core to complete.  You'll need the same GE as a BACS plus College Algebra & a SocSci (your econ course moves to the Core).  11 core courses.  Possibly AoS is complete.  Free Electives are complete.  So 15 courses (45cr) left to take.

  d) BSIT - can't complete via Alt-credit

  e) BS in DS/A - will take a couple of years to complete, minimum, more expensive as well.


2) COSC degree listed can't be done via Alt-credit

3) EC degrees listed can't be done via Alt-credit

4) WGU degrees wil take varying lengths of time to complete due to what they bring in, although your AA will meet your GE requirements for all degrees I think.  I'm guessing a BSBA will take the longest, as you have a LOT of courses to complete via alt-credit before you can start there; with all of your previous certs, I think you can get through an IT degree very quickly once you get back into the groove.  You can take a lot of the major courses elsewhere as well.

5) UMPI depends on how many courses they allow to be used for different requirements:
 - will your HUM 2270 Humanities (East-West Synthes) course meet the 5A Diverse World Views requirement, or will you have to take Sociology
- will your HUM 2211 Western Humanities I course meet the 2E Arts & LIt requirement or will you need to take A&I Lit or Art History
- will your ECO 2013 Principles of Macroeconomics meet the 2A & 2B requirement, or will you have to take Psych
- will your PHI 1631 Studies In Professional Ethics meet the Ethics requirement, or will you have to take another Ethics course
Assuming all of these work, then you still need history and Spanish.  The rest can be done at UMPI.  This would probably be a fast degree for you (not to mention cheap).

6) PUG BSIT will be very expensive; ExcelTrack will be a shit-ton of writing (way more than UMPI); you'd have to take a lot of certs to get your max credits to bring in, I think that might be a pain when you could do it more easily via WGU.

My votes are TESU BACS if you can do the math; WGU BSIT; or UMPI BLS/MIS.  I think TESU and WGU edge out UMPI if you need a technical degree, as I think those are better than a BLS in general.