WGU, Straighterline or CLEP for credits?

[MNomadic]

I thought that once you enrolled at WGU, you could no longer transfer in credits from SL, SDC, etc?

Correct. Once you start classes, you can't transfer anything else in but I think OP is planning to complete a bunch of the requirements before starting at WGU.

[dfrecore]

No one can tell you the best way for you to learn - I think the best way to do that is to try some different options.

I will say that you can probably get ALL 90cr from Study.com, but it's probably best (and cheapest) to do a variety of methods. Since they don't take Free Electives, you are MUCH better off getting a good plan in place ahead of time - anything you take that you can't use is just wasted time and money.

I would do English Comp I BEFORE starting at WGU Academy, if you wanted to go there, because they probably have the option that everyone seems to hate (it's actually a Straighterline course). It looks like they make you take English Comp as one of your first courses if you don't already have it. But it's definitely a good option instead of Straighterline for the courses they offer.

[akr680]

I was thinking to take Eng1 from WGU academy. Based on the accelerators group, WGU has only 4 papers.

If it is SL Eng 1 then I will choose SDC.

Thanks for letting us know.

Sent from my SM-G965U1 using Tapatalk

[dfrecore]

I was thinking to take Eng1 from WGU academy. Based on the accelerators group, WGU has only 4 papers.

If it is SL Eng 1 then I will choose SDC.

Thanks for letting us know.

Sent from my SM-G965U1 using Tapatalk

I think WGU Academy is all SL courses.

[studyandpass5]

Hey guys I'd like to knock out a bachelors in business at WGU as quickly as possible. I'd like to know what my best bet is as far as speed and acceptance go. Should I focus on SL? Ive heard some say it takes a month just to complete one class. Also ive read the quality isnt THAT great in comparison to just taking the class through WGU. Or should I focus on CLEP? Study.com? I just want to knock this degree out as quickly as I can, I'm willing and disciplined enough to put in the time/work!

One other question, are there any guides for WGU on this site or others for testing out before enrolling? I did print off the course transfer guide as a reference

I personally prefer a more guided study such as SL or Study.com, but that's my preference. I found CLEP to be a bit daunting in that you only had a vague idea of what was going to be on the test (not to mention the countless study resources that could be used). With SL, there's one book, and everything on the test is from the book. And, a lot of the courses are open book. 
You can try a few CLEPs and try a few SL courses and see which ones you prefer. I know CLEP is free with Modern States, but you have to do what works for you, even if means paying for a monthly subscription, like I've had to do.

[Jwheels27]

Thank you all for the good advice!

---

I went for a different degree, but you can find a spreadsheet for WGU in post #105 of my journey thread (linked below).  I used a combination of CLEP, DSST and SDC.  As NMomadic said, ultimately it depends on you.  Take the first step though and do SOMETHING.  I didn't know where I was going to end up ultimately, but I noticed a common thread for degrees was Eng. Comp. 1 & 2, public speaking, science, social science and college algebra/statistics, so I started there.

Hey Gene, I have a couple of side questions. I have an interest in working in tech/IT, but more on the business/sales/managerial side of things. What would be the best degree path to get there?(Merlin might be another great person to ask) The other is, how many credits do the certs cover in the WGU IT degrees?

By the way, thank you for the advice..do SOMETHING. Think I needed to hear that.

[quigongene]

Hey Gene, I have a couple of side questions. I have an interest in working in tech/IT, but more on the business/sales/managerial side of things. What would be the best degree path to get there?(Merlin might be another great person to ask) The other is, how many credits do the certs cover in the WGU IT degrees?

By the way, thank you for the advice..do SOMETHING. Think I needed to hear that.

I would think TESU's BSBA CIS or WGU's BSITM degrees would get you into that track, but maybe Merlin does have some better insight on that. From my experience, each cert exam at WGU covers 4 CUs. For example, the CompTia A+ is 2 exams currently and covers 8 CUs. The Net+ and Sec+ are single tests that are 4CUs each.

I'm glad the "something" comment helped....it took me until my mid 40s for it to click for me.

[Merlin]

Hey Gene, I have a couple of side questions. I have an interest in working in tech/IT, but more on the business/sales/managerial side of things. What would be the best degree path to get there?(Merlin might be another great person to ask) The other is, how many credits do the certs cover in the WGU IT degrees?

By the way, thank you for the advice..do SOMETHING. Think I needed to hear that.

I would think TESU's BSBA CIS or WGU's BSITM degrees would get you into that track, but maybe Merlin does have some better insight on that.  From my experience, each cert exam at WGU covers 4 CUs.  For example, the CompTia A+ is 2 exams currently and covers 8 CUs.  The Net+ and Sec+ are single tests that are 4CUs each.

I'm glad the "something" comment helped....it took me until my mid 40s for it to click for me.

As it applies to working in IT, my opinion is pretty simple. The degree only matters if it helps to open a door for you somewhere.

Most of the time what it says on your degree (or if you have a degree at all) isn't really as important as what you have done and what you can do for a potential employer.

If you want a job on the business side of IT, you need to show a combination of technical and business capabilities on your resume. So, if you have a lot of technical experience but little business experience, then getting a business degree will probably be helpful. Alternatively, if you have more business experience but lack IT experience, then getting certifications or an IT professional degree like a BSIT may be helpful. That depends more on the hiring manager's expectations than anything.

A lot of people who work in front-line IT jobs don't even have degrees, or if they do they are often irrelevant to the job. However, in my experience people hired into management roles tend to have college degrees that are at least somewhat management-related. That said, in my industry most managers are people who worked their ways up the ranks from hands-on roles into team leads and then into supervisory and eventually management roles.

Of course, this all breaks down at the upper-management level. At that point, degrees are generally required to demonstrate to the board or C-level management that a particular hire is a good risk. So senior management will often be expected to hold postgraduate degrees of some kind, as well as have significant experience working in the field. Getting an interview will usually have little to do with academic credentials though (unless you come from a really well known/respected college) and have more to do with prior experience and connections.

That is my perspective anyway.

If you're just looking for good business-related IT degrees, I found the TESU BSBA-CIS was a pretty good choice for my personal needs. WGU offers a B.S. in IT Management that might be a better choice for someone interested specifically in IT management.

[Jwheels27]

Hey Gene, I have a couple of side questions. I have an interest in working in tech/IT, but more on the business/sales/managerial side of things. What would be the best degree path to get there?(Merlin might be another great person to ask) The other is, how many credits do the certs cover in the WGU IT degrees?

By the way, thank you for the advice..do SOMETHING. Think I needed to hear that.

I would think TESU's BSBA CIS or WGU's BSITM degrees would get you into that track, but maybe Merlin does have some better insight on that.  From my experience, each cert exam at WGU covers 4 CUs.  For example, the CompTia A+ is 2 exams currently and covers 8 CUs.  The Net+ and Sec+ are single tests that are 4CUs each.

I'm glad the "something" comment helped....it took me until my mid 40s for it to click for me.

As it applies to working in IT, my opinion is pretty simple. The degree only matters if it helps to open a door for you somewhere.

Most of the time what it says on your degree (or if you have a degree at all) isn't really as important as what you have done and what you can do for a potential employer.

If you want a job on the business side of IT, you need to show a combination of technical and business capabilities on your resume. So, if you have a lot of technical experience but little business experience, then getting a business degree will probably be helpful. Alternatively, if you have more business experience but lack IT experience, then getting certifications or an IT professional degree like a BSIT may be helpful. That depends more on the hiring manager's expectations than anything.

A lot of people who work in front-line IT jobs don't even have degrees, or if they do they are often irrelevant to the job. However, in my experience people hired into management roles tend to have college degrees that are at least somewhat management-related. That said, in my industry most managers are people who worked their ways up the ranks from hands-on roles into team leads and then into supervisory and eventually management roles.

Of course, this all breaks down at the upper-management level. At that point, degrees are generally required to demonstrate to the board or C-level management that a particular hire is a good risk. So senior management will often be expected to hold postgraduate degrees of some kind, as well as have significant experience working in the field. Getting an interview will usually have little to do with academic credentials though (unless you come from a really well known/respected college) and have more to do with prior experience and connections.

That is my perspective anyway.

If you're just looking for good business-related IT degrees, I found the TESU BSBA-CIS was a pretty good choice for my personal needs. WGU offers a B.S. in IT Management that might be a better choice for someone interested specifically in IT management.

Sorry I didn’t elaborate Merlin, I guess I didn’t mean tech support/system administration type roles. I mean the business side(possibly sales) of any type of tech company, development included. I’m sure it all still applies, just wondering what you though? Considering you work in software. Thank you for the detailed answer!

[Merlin]

Sorry I didn’t elaborate Merlin, I guess I didn’t mean tech support/system administration type roles. I mean the business side(possibly sales) of any type of tech company, development included. I’m sure it all still applies, just wondering what you though? Considering you work in software. Thank you for the detailed answer!

I got what you meant, but the business side of IT is vast. I tried to word my reply so it wasn't specific to any particular aspect of IT since it is so wide, though my assumption is that you'd be looking to work for a company that was developing technology since that is what most tech companies do. You wouldn't likely be looking at a management role in tech support, system administration, or software development unless you had a significant background in those areas anyway.

That said, even in a sales role (or perhaps especially in a sales role––unless the company has dedicated technical sales consultants), anyone working for a company like that will be expected to have a fair grasp of technology as well as business. At any serious tech company, with few exceptions, even the senior management is expected to have major chops in both technology and business. Folks working in accounting and such may be excluded, but even the CFO will be expected to have technical experience as well as business.

My personal journey is all over the place. I got my start in software development, but my background is fairly diverse since I've been part of a lot of different tech companies, and even run my own. I've had to wear a lot of hats over the years. These days I'm solidly on the business side as a C-level executive, but that also means overseeing technical people so I still remain close to that side too. I try to walk the path between technology and business.