Want To Finish Degree Quickly - Template & Addendum Complete

[FastEddie88]

Hi all, I'm new here and have been scouring the forums for a couple of days. Thank you to everybody who's contributed to the wealth of knowledge on this site. I could use some advice and have filled out the template & addendum to hopefully make it easier. I've been kind of focused in on Excelsior, but have not seen them talked about as much on here so I'm open to all options. My main goal is to finish this degree quickly, but not so fast that I lose my sanity. I work in new business development and account management and have been doing so for the last 10 years.

Thank you in advance! 

Your Location: Ohio, United States
Your Age: 35
What kind of degree do you want?: Bachelor’s Degree. Not picky about major although most of my credits will apply to business. I have experience in account management, business development and recruiting/staffing. Have been an individual contributor as well as manager to a team of 4. My goals are to move out of the IC role and into director and VP roles.

Current Regional Accredited Credits:

University of Cincinnati:Total Semester Credits: 76
UC switched from quarters to semesters right before I left. The first number below will be the quarter credit and the 2nd will be the semester credit.
15ENGL 101 ENGLISH COMP I,      3, 2     C
15MS 111 BASIC RAPPELLING,      1,.67    A 
42INTR 101 SUCCESS SEMINAR,     3, 2     B- 
15COM M 171 EFF PUB SPEAKING,   3, 2     B+
15MS 112 MARKSMNSHP/LDRSHP,     2, 1.33  A
15PSYC 103 INTRO TO PSYCH,      3, 2     C
15MS 113 MIL FIELD CRAFTS,      2, 1.33  A 
15PHYS 120 ASTRON SOLAR SYST,   3, 2     C+ 
32ENGL 102 ENGLISH COMP II,     3, 2     C
42MATH 101 ELEM ALG III,        4, 2.67  C 
15ECON 101 INTRO TO ECONOMICS,  3, 2     B
15PHYS 121 ASTRON STARS GALAX,  3, 2     B 
22BA 151 MANAGEMENT SKILL PR,   2, 1.33  C
23ARTH 111 HISTORY OF ART I,    3, 2     D
15ECON 102 INTRO TO ECONOMICS,  3, 2     B
15HIST 114 EUROP CIV1500-1800,  3, 2     C
15COM M 201 PROFESSIONAL SPKG,  3, 2     B
15HIST 115 EUROP CIV1800-PRE,   3, 2     C
15GRM N 101 BASIC GERMAN I,     5, 3.33  B
15MATH 173 COLLEGE ALG I,       3, 2     D+
15PHYS 123 ASTRON EARTH & MOON, 3, 2     A 
20IT 141 BUSINESS COMP APPL,    3, 2     A
15GRM N 102 BASIC GERMAN II,    5, 3.33  B
16FAM 260 MUSIC IN FILM,        3, 2     A 
22IS 280 COMP PROB SOLV-BUS,    5, 3.33  A
22MKTG 280 MARKETING MGMT,      5, 3.33  B+ 
22ACCT 281 INTRO TO FIN ACCT,   5, 3.33  C+
15ENGL 289 INTERMEDIATE COMP,   3, 2     B
22ACCT 282 INTRO MANAGER ACCT,  5, 3.33  B- 
22BLAW 280 LEGAL ENV OF BUS,    4, 2.67  A
15ENGL 491 WRIT FOR BUSINESS,   3, 2     B+ 

UC CHANGED TO SEMESTERS

MKTG 3080 MARKETING RESEARCH,   3, D-
KTG 4023 SPORTS MKTG MGMT,      3, C

Current ACE, CLEP, or NCCRS Credits: None
Any certifications or military experience? Yes, I was in the Army as an Infantryman. No specific certifications obtained.

Budget: Budget is not much of a concern as I will be using the GI Bill which will cover 60% of my tuition as well as provide a $600/month stipend paid directly to me. That being said, I am still probably looking for a cheap(ish option)
Commitments: I work full time, am married and have 2 young children. They go to bed around 7:30 and I’ll have ample time for school work after that. 
Dedicated time to study: I have time after children go to bed. Probably 1.5-2 hours per night. Have plenty of time on the weekends. My wife is very supportive and will help make sure I have time. We have lots of family close by too who are willing to help as needed. 
Timeline: I want to finish as fast as possible. My GI bill benefits expire in April 2025 so I have roughly 17 months. 
Tuition assistance/reimbursement: the GI Bill which will cover 60% of my tuition.

[bjcheung77]

@FastEddie88, Welcome to the board... You're 11 years younger than I, you've got plenty of information on the addendum and template, exactly what we need to have an overview of your situation. You've got many options to select from, it really depends on your study habits and time management at the moment. I'm leaning towards Excelsior/TESU to max transfer your credits, or UMPI/WGU for a competency based degree... Your homework for today, is to review some threads or posts to determine which degree and institutions you want to attend. Select your desired method of study and credit transfer... Lastly, update us with your choices.

[FastEddie88]

@FastEddie88, Welcome to the board... You're 11 years younger than I, you've got plenty of information on the addendum and template, exactly what we need to have an overview of your situation.  You've got many options to select from, it really depends on your study habits and time management at the moment.  I'm leaning towards Excelsior/TESU to max transfer your credits, or UMPI/WGU for a competency based degree...  Your homework for today, is to review some threads or posts to determine which degree and institutions you want to attend.  Select your desired method of study and credit transfer... Lastly, update us with your choices.

Thanks for the quick reply BJ, I was hoping I'd hear something from you considering how active you are here. I may have been a bit overzealous, but yesterday I applied as a transfer student to both EU and WGU. I am thinking it would make sense to apply to TESU and UMPI as well just to see how my transfer credits match up. I have concerns about UMPI because I've read that they are experiencing delays due to a surge in applications, and I have concerns with EU because I read here that they may lack some transparency when it comes to degree planning. With the way my brain works, I feel like I'll be most comfortable making a decision when I know exactly which classes I need to take and how long it could potentially take me to put the bow on this degree.

I applied specifically for the BSLA program at EU as they do not have a timeline on how old credits can be, and I was thinking I'd go for an MBA at WGU after that to give my resume some more teeth in regards to my business career.  I spoke with an advisor at EU who told me that I would have significantly more credits transfer than if I chose their business program. With my work experience, I am not overly concerned that the degree would not be related to "business". Either way, they are going to evaluate my credits for both.

Could you please help me understand what you mean by select my desired method of study and credit transfer?

[dfrecore]

I think UMPI is a much better option than WGU if you want a CBE, and TESU is way better than EU if you want a non-CBE. I would do a BABA/BSBA since I think that's a much better degee than a Liberal Arts degree, and you have a lot of credits towards that anyway.

For UMPI's BABA (Marketing is your best bet for a concentration I think), I think you need the following:

Sophia
Critical Thinking
Art History I or II
College Algebra or Stats
Human Bio + Lab
Sociology
Ethics
US Govt
Intro to Business
Business Comm

I think that leaves 12 courses, all in the major/minor.

For TESU's BSBA/Marketing, you need the following:

Sophia
Sociology
Ethics
US Govt
Prin of Management (UL)
Stats
Prin of Finance
Business Comm
The Essentials of Managing Conflict (1cr)

Davar/SDC/Coopersmith
International Business
Marketing Research
4 Marketing courses (3 UL)
1 add'l business course, not exactly sure which type (this has to do with quarter-credits used in core)

CSM Learn
The CSM Course

[bjcheung77]

@FastEddie88, what I meant by that is, if you want to take ACE credits for max transfer or would rather take classes at the institution.  My recommendation is similar as well, either TESU or UMPI if you want to transfer the max credits and only do the residency requirements through them.  TESU only requires 6 credits but you need to pay a residency waiver fee, otherwise you can complete 15 credits through them with a flat rate.  UMPI requires 30 credits for residency, you can complete that in 2-3 sessions.  You may want to review a reply post from yesterday to another member, in similar shoes as you, it's going to show various options for associates, bachelors, up to the masters.  Link: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...#pid405133

[FastEddie88]

Hi everyone, it's been a minute but thought I'd come back with an update. I will begin my journey to complete my degree at UMPI in the upcoming January session. I submitted my transcripts about 4 weeks ago and have not heard from anyone. I've logged into the student portal and it says I have no advisor assigned. Does anyone know who I should be reaching out to? I cannot find contact names anywhere on their website.

[bjcheung77]

You're early, which is exactly how I would recommend it, the application deadline is 12/12/2023 and start is 1/16/2024. It's best to make sure your evaluation is complete and enrollment has been confirmed, basically, that's all you need. Here's a contact you may want to try: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...#pid408089

[nyjosh]

Hi everyone, it's been a minute but thought I'd come back with an update. I will begin my journey to complete my degree at UMPI in the upcoming January session. I submitted my transcripts about 4 weeks ago and have not heard from anyone. I've logged into the student portal and it says I have no advisor assigned. Does anyone know who I should be reaching out to? I cannot find contact names anywhere on their website.

Email Jessica Winslow. She may need a couple days to reply but she'll be able to confirm you're in the queue and where you should be. You are quite early and ahead of the game, so I wouldn't be worried about getting processed in time.

[bjcheung77]

Here's the contact info for Jessica Winslow if you wanted to check in with her: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...#pid380153

[FastEddie88]

Would anyone here be able to help me do some degree planning if I share my transfer credit evaluation from UMPI? I am still undecided if I want to pursue a liberal studies major with a mgmt minor or if I should just go the business administration route with a minor in management. The evaluation is somewhat confusing to me and I am not really sure which classes I would need to take either way.