TESC BSAST Environmental Sciences - any help?

[GMT]

I'd like to move my dream into something real in 2014, and would love some help getting a plan together for the degree in my title.

I have 28 FEMA's and a couple of ALEK courses, which includes trigonometry.

Sadly I currently live in a remote part of England so CLEP/DSST is not an option; Straighterline and other purely online courses is all I've got available to me.
Enrolling onto British courses to transfer is not an option either, as the education system here is completely different, and tends generally to have a ZERO "can do" policy.

Even to have a rough idea of what classes to take would be great!

You guys are amazing, and so it seems logical to ask the best for help on this

[UptonSinclair]

If you are looking for actual college courses, I highly recommend BYU Independent. The classes come from a well known college and cost less than $200 per credit. The only issue you may run into is finding a proctor for the finals. It would be worth talking to someone at the school to find out if they are available to international students. There are also several courses available from KCTCS (learn on demand) which is a community college system in Kentucky. They have many self-paced courses that should transfer without issue. Fortunately, most of their courses do not require a proctor. Again, you would have to talk to them and find out if they accept international students. There are other options, but I can suggest these two because I have taken courses at both. KCTCS is a little more expensive than BYU, but the classes go much faster as a general rule. Also, BYU is a great source for self-paced upper level courses.

BYU Independent Study - Online Courses

Learn on Demand

[KayV]

I really have no idea about where to find BSAST electives, but here's a plan I made a while back for a BA in Liberal Studies using (almost) entirely Straighterline courses. Hope this helps as a starting point.


TESC Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies (Straighterline)
A. General Education Requirements (60)
1. SL English Composition I 3
2. SL English Composition II 3
3. ALEKS Intermediate Algebra 3
4. ALEKS College Algebra 3
5. ALEKS Trigonometry 3
6. SL Western Civilization I 3
7. SL Intro to Philosophy 3
8. SL General Physics I PHY-112 3
9. SL General Chemistry I CHE-111 3
10. SL Introductory Biology BIO-111 3
11. SL Western Civilization II 3
12. SL Intro to Sociology 3
13. SL Intro to Anthropology 3
14. SL Business Ethics 3
15. SL General Chemistry I with Lab CHE-121 4
16. SL Physics I with Lab PHY-115 4
17. SL Physics II with Lab PHY-116 4
18. SL Intro to Psychology 3
19. SL Introductory Biology with Lab BIO-113 (4)

B. Area of Study: Liberal Studies (33, 18 Upper Level)
1. SL Business Communication COM-300 3UL
2. SL Intro to World Religions REL-405 3UL
3. SL Microbiology with Lab BIO-351 4UL
4. SL Organizational Behavior as PSY-361 3UL
5. Saylor Business Communication (using ProctorU for final) as COM-373 3UL
6. SL Anatomy and Physiology I with Lab BIO-210 4
7. SL Anatomy and Physiology II with Lab BIO-213 4
8. SL Environmental Science ENS-200 3
9. SL Science of Nutrition BIO-208 3
10. TESC Liberal Arts Capstone LIB-495 3UL
C. Free Electives (27)
27 FEMA courses

[EI2HCB]

I'd like to move my dream into something real in 2014, and would love some help getting a plan together for the degree in my title.

I have 28 FEMA's and a couple of ALEK courses, which includes trigonometry.

Sadly I currently live in a remote part of England so CLEP/DSST is not an option; Straighterline and other purely online courses is all I've got available to me.
Enrolling onto British courses to transfer is not an option either, as the education system here is completely different, and tends generally to have a ZERO "can do" policy.

Even to have a rough idea of what classes to take would be great!

You guys are amazing, and so it seems logical to ask the best for help on this

GMT, I think that you'll find A levels can transfer into Excelsior and some of the other big three colleges on here, depending on your grade and the subject. You'll also find that English diploma's and certificates that are college level will transfer in really easy. (City and Guilds won't transfer in because they are vocational training ) You may also want to consider Open University as these are well respected and world renowned. I transferred in 27 credits from Ireland. TVAlba transferred in 30 as far as I remember including his A levels and Scottish education. So don't give up. See what is available free or at low cost, ie Open University and take aim and reach your goal.

[Prloko]

Why aren't you looking into the Open University? Or even better, why not get into one of the bazillion of free schools you can go to in the EU? Are you a U.S. citizen?

[sanantone]

You would have to take so many courses at another college that you might as well get an environmental science degree at that college. Many will consider accepting ACE or NCCRS evaluated courses. TECEPs and Ohio University exams should transfer like any other RA course. TECEPs can soon be taken at home using ProctorU. If you really want to mostly test out of a degree, then I recommend TESC's BA in Natural Science/Mathematics.

[GMT]

UptonSinclair - thank you! fast is what I'd like, cheap is always a huge bonus!

KayV- That's a fabulous starting point, thank you

EI2HCB - Sadly British education has changed considerably in the last 12 months or so and now it's harder than ever for a mature student to get something decent and FAST!
I did A'levels back in the 80's, and not only is my school no longer in existence, nor is my school record as I was at school "gulp" PRE-COMPUTER! :nopity:, which never used to be an issue, but now it's all about "access courses" if you haven't studied for 3 years ... and I could really get on my soap box about hiked fees and stressful exams.
No I'm an absolute lover of the American multiple choice exam and the fact that getting 100% isn't impossible ... I know I can utilise so much online stuff and if I work hard can get a Bachelors in under a year; Open University cannot offer that, or for as cheap ... also an American degree from the right place would be looked on more favourably in the UK than the Open University, even if it was "secretly" completely tested out of.

Prioko - Free schools? these are not very well known about in England, and lots of people would be pleased to hear about these as there's been quite a price hike here. Currently I could use online facilities from the US and a Bachelors would cost half of what a year at university would cost in England. Because of that issue alone, I know of other British people looking at the American system. I'm a dual citizen.

Sanantone - thank you, I will certainly give that course some consideration. I'm looking into the SOC agreement thing that's possible with TESC as I'm actually a US military spouse, but sadly I'm many hours from the nearest base so I'm doing everything without the help of an education center. Currently I know zilch about it, but I'm sure next week I'll know tons deployments make military spouses smart about lots of things.

[EI2HCB]

GMT, thanks for your reply. I understand about your access courses, I spent my first year in Ireland doing something similar. If your desire is to move to the States in the future then an American accredited degree would be smart. The idea of free schools is still prevalent among Americans who don't realize the indentured servitude currently the austerity regime that is fast becoming the reality of students citizens of the British Isles. One of our members here recently did 20 + CLEP tests and DSST tests on a recent visit to the U.S over a two week period. Depending on the DHS / INS policy allowing a spouse of an American entering the United States for a "vacation" this could be an option for you. In addition as a spouse of a servicemen you are entitled to access the servicepersons website which can prepare you for these tests and available to family members and servicemen for free regardless of being able to access the testing center in the U.S air force base outside London / Kent. You should ask about the access site on the Military forum on here.
As for proving your completed your O levels or A levels you will be required to submit a copy of your certificates to an evaluation agency before you will be able to enroll in an accredited U.S school. Your regional department of education may have to supply you with another copy of these before you enroll but this is something which you will most certainly need unless you intend to take a U.S high school test called a G.E.D which is much more complex than the access courses.

Oops you already said you are a dual citizen which means travelling isn't an issue. So that's an option to take particular tests in either CLEP or DSST when you get to travel stateside.:p

[GMT]

GMT, thanks for your reply. I understand about your access courses, I spent my first year in Ireland doing something similar. If your desire is to move to the States in the future then an American accredited degree would be smart. The idea of free schools is still prevalent among Americans who don't realize the indentured servitude currently the austerity regime that is fast becoming the reality of students citizens of the British Isles. One of our members here recently did 20 + CLEP tests and DSST tests on a recent visit to the U.S over a two week period. Depending on the DHS / INS policy allowing a spouse of an American entering the United States for a "vacation" this could be an option for you. In addition as a spouse of a servicemen you are entitled to access the servicepersons website which can prepare you for these tests and available to family members and servicemen for free regardless of being able to access the testing center in the U.S air force base outside London / Kent. You should ask about the access site on the Military forum on here.
As for proving your completed your O levels or A levels you will be required to submit a copy of your certificates to an evaluation agency before you will be able to enroll in an accredited U.S school. Your regional department of education may have to supply you with another copy of these before you enroll but this is something which you will most certainly need unless you intend to take a U.S high school test called a G.E.D which is much more complex than the access courses.

Oops you already said you are a dual citizen which means travelling isn't an issue. So that's an option to take particular tests in either CLEP or DSST when you get to travel stateside.:p

Yes, the English education system has always been a bit of a nightmare, but with the recent changes I understand why so many folk are looking elsewhere. American degrees, if taken at a university which has a building where "real" classes take place, and the school has a "sensible" name, the degree will generally be looked on as interesting and acceptable, especially if they assume it took you 4 years.
CLEP etc is totally unacceptable in England as there is no suffering involved, and therefore won't be deemed an appropriate marker of education. "Self flagellation" is what it's generally about here and getting 100% on an exam would mean someone will have to go and catch those "flying pigs". Even the Open University isn't as accepted as you think as it's online and a lot of people still don't feel comfortable with "such a thing". I've personally known people with Open University degrees be laughed at by prospective employers.
I didn't bother transferring any of my English education as the handful of credits I had weren't worth the hassle.
I'm sorry someone told you the GED is more complex than an English access course, I jumped on a space a couple of years back with only a couple of glances at an American History book and aced it. It was simply 2 days of various multiple choice exams with a fill in the dot answer card ... following that, I'd got the taste for American education and I decided that the days of suffering for a certificate were long gone! :patriot:
Taking CLEP etc isn't hard as all US bases do them, and as a spouse access is straight forward, but I can't find the time right now to travel to Suffolk as it's a 10 hour drive away, so Straighterline will be getting some new business. I am however rethinking the Environmental Science option for the exact reasons Sanatone pointed out.
So my goal is half of a useable American degree in a year, at least; the military is no longer a stable job and so I feel it's important to improve my earning potential as the other half of a military family. I just happen to be back in England for a few months with family.

[EI2HCB]

Thankfully I was able to transfer 27 credits in from Ireland. I also spent a year doing FETAC level 5 which was similar to redoing high school/ vocational education school which did teach me some valuable skills while boosting my self confidence, I haven't taken any of the SL courses just yet. I'm trying to CLEP out of some while going to school online at EC but the online schooling takes so much time.