Tired of being bad at math and looking to enroll in online math classes for credit

[xor]

Location: United States
Age: 30s
What kind of degree do you want?: Certificate or simply taking the classes for credit so I have a transcript I can use to apply elsewhere to fulfill the prerequisites for entry to another master's program
Current degrees: Bachelor of Science in Biology / Psychology, Master of Science in Computer Science (in progress)
Budget: Ideally <= $850 a class

To be honest, I'm just tired of being bad at math. The highest level of math I've taken is Calculus 1 back in college, but I received a D. Since no more math classes were needed for my degree, I've managed to avoid math until now.

I've identified the following math classes as the ones I want to take based on what others who have a computer science background have taken and what is expected:

• Calculus 1
  
• Calculus 2
  
• Calculus 3
  
• Probability & statistics
  
• Linear algebra
  
• Discrete math
  

I've found ModernStates / CLEP for College Mathematics, College Algebra, and Calculus. My current plan is to do CLEP for those 3 subjects first so I have a foundation to pursue higher studies, but I'm looking for relatively cheap options for the other classes. I've looked at local community colleges and Luna Community College, but they don't seem to go beyond calculus 1.

The current options I've found (using linear algebra as an example) are:

• UC San Diego Extended Studies ($835)
  
• Wescott Courses / UMass Global ($569)
  
• University of Illinois NetMath ($1248)
  
• Coastline College
  
• UMass Amherst ($1800)
  

Right now I'm leaning towards UC San Diego or Wescott Courses, but I'm reading some reviews which report the quality of the courses are pretty bad at those two. Is there a better/cheaper alternative? I'm primarily looking to learn the material and to be able to prove that I've learned the material.

[jg_nuy]

Dine College has a whole host of college math courses and they charge $55/credit - you can check whether they are available online:
MTH 100 Intermediate Algebra
MTH 110 College Algebra Prerequisite: Placement test or instructor’s permission
MTH 190 Pre-Calculus Prerequisite: Minimum of grade of ‘C’ in MTH 110 or instructor’s permission
MTH 191 Calculus I Prerequisite: Minimum grade of ‘C’ in MTH 190 or instructor’s permission
MTH 192 Calculus II Prerequisite: Minimum grade of ‘C’ in MTH 191 or instructor’s permission
MTH 210 Discrete Mathematics Prerequisite: Minimum grade of ‘C’ in MTH 110 or 114 or instructor’s permission
MTH/PSY 213 Statistics Minimum grade of ‘C’ in MTH 110 or 114 or instructor’s permission. Cross listed with PSY 213.
MTH 220 Calculus III Prerequisite: Minimum grade of ‘C’ in MTH 192 or instructor’s permission

Course Catalog and Schedule links available below:
https://www.dinecollege.edu/academics/academics/

[ss20ts]

What college are you attending?

[xor]

What college are you attending?

Georgia Institute of Technology - OMSCS, but there aren't any math classes available for me to take online

[bjcheung77]

Depending on the energy, time, you have to put into the classes, you may want to 'brush' up using exactly what you mentioned, use CLEP/MS and if you want, Sophia.org in place of those. Another option is to take StraighterLine for a more 'closer to a real' college experience, with Calculus I and II. Then take further math options from the list here: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Sa...egree_Plan

[jsd]

You're already accepted into the OMSCS program and working through it? So you don't actually need to "prove" to admissions that you know this, correct? This is purely a self-fulfillment goal? You don't need college credit or portfolio examples or proof of experience -- you just want to learn what you think you should know, right?

If I am understanding this correctly, then really your best bet that will save you a ton of time and money is to just commit to learning, find a free youtube/mooc/OpenStax source that speaks to your learning style, and earnestly work your way through it without deceiving yourself.

There's so many free, straightforward ways to learn ANYTHING online in 2024. If you just want to actually LEARN, all it takes is self-discipline.

If I have misunderstood and you're looking for a path that earns college credit or specific credentialing, than apologies and ignore me.

[xor]

This is purely a self-fulfillment goal?

Mostly yes, but I am considering UT Austin's new MSAI program (https://cdso.utexas.edu/msai) afterwards, so taking college math classes which provide a transcript would let me pursue that option if I decide on that. Or maybe I'll pursue WGU's MSCIA, MSITM, or some other online graduate program afterwards.

Long story short, I was stuck at a job after college and felt I wasn't qualified for other jobs given my lack of in-demand skills. I don't want to ever experience that again, so my current plan is to engage in constant self-improvement and learning. It also helps me not feel stagnant and just wasting my life away I guess?

Math has always been my greatest weakness, so I figure I'll spend a year or so between finishing up OMSCS and starting something new to get my math up to the level I want it to be. I've been using YouTube and other resources to learn linear algebra, but sometimes it's difficult to find the discipline and motivation necessary when things get difficult. A paid college course would be a way to force myself to take it seriously while also providing the transcript necessary if I do pursue MSAI later.

Right now it seems Oakton College is the best option given they offer the classes I want at an affordable price, but I'll continue looking and hold off until I'm more certain in what path to follow.

[Vle045]

This is purely a self-fulfillment goal?

Mostly yes, but I am considering UT Austin's new MSAI program (https://cdso.utexas.edu/msai) afterwards, so taking college math classes which provide a transcript would let me pursue that option if I decide on that. Or maybe I'll pursue WGU's MSCIA, MSITM, or some other online graduate program afterwards.

Long story short, I was stuck at a job after college and felt I wasn't qualified for other jobs given my lack of in-demand skills. I don't want to ever experience that again, so my current plan is to engage in constant self-improvement and learning. It also helps me not feel stagnant and just wasting my life away I guess?

Math has always been my greatest weakness, so I figure I'll spend a year or so between finishing up OMSCS and starting something new to get my math up to the level I want it to be. I've been using YouTube and other resources to learn linear algebra, but sometimes it's difficult to find the discipline and motivation necessary when things get difficult. A paid college course would be a way to force myself to take it seriously while also providing the transcript necessary if I do pursue MSAI later.

Right now it seems Oakton College is the best option given they offer the classes I want at an affordable price, but I'll continue looking and hold off until I'm more certain in what path to follow.

I can appreciate wanting to improve your math skills.  I have felt the same way.  Does the program require certain undergrad math classes?

If you haven't already done so, my suggestion is ensuring you understand the material before looking for credit-bearing courses.  I say this as someone who made the mistake of taking a "business math" class to improve my math skills.  I didn't know it involved calculus which I never learned.  It ended up pulling my overall GPA down!  I regretted taking that class because I didn't even need it.  I already had my undergrad degree.  I was going back for a paralegal certificate.

Hopefully, your approach and outcome will be different than mine.  These days I use Excel sheets to do math for me.  

[bluebooger]

https://mml-book.github.io/

https://mml-book.github.io/book/mml-book.pdf

non credit
https://www.deeplearning.ai/courses/math...alization/

you take the courses here
https://www.coursera.org/specializations...ce#courses

[davewill]

You might want to consider hiring a tutor, whatever courses you decide to pursue. Studying math on your own is no easy thing, and sometimes having a real person look at your work and help you over the rough spots can be worth its weight in gold.

I'm also a big fan of buying the solutions manual for whatever textbook you're using. It will have the worked out solutions for the problems the regular text has just has the answers for. When you don't understand how to do an assigned "odd" problem, being able to find a similar "even" problem and seeing the method is a big help.

Particularly with Discrete Math with all those proofs, I sometimes just needed a hint on what direction to take.