Updated information concerning testing out

[mons]

I want to start working towards my BA degree by testing out, but from what I'm seen (and maybe I'm looking in the wrong places) the info here is from a couple years ago. Has anyone completed a psych degree (or any other) by testing out recently? Can you provide how you accomplished it, or the resources that you used? I just called Excelsior and they said that it is impossible to completely test out of a degree....
Any information is so greatly appreciated.

[sanantone]

Excelsior requires a capstone for every certificate and degree program, and you can't test out of the capstone. You can test out of everything else if there is an equivalent exam. TESU's BSBA and some of their associate's programs are the only ones left that allow for 100% testing out.

[jsd]

Has anyone completed a psych degree (or any other) by testing out recently? Can you provide how you accomplished it, or the resources that you used? .

You're not going to be able to test out 100% for a BA in Psych, but I just posted a possible TESU plan in a different thread (here) that you'd need to take only two courses in the pych field requirements (an ethics class and the capstone), the rest you could test out of. I'm not an expert though (and haven't gone through this plan at TESU), so definitely see what input some of the old pros around here provide on that plan if they reply (such as sanantone, who is always amazing).

[mons]

sanantone-
I found your outline on Wiki, which was very helpful. Thanks for posting it.
Someone recommended not to hone in on one college until posting my AA credits on the general ed forum and get feedback. From what I've read, excelsior is less expensive and it provides letter grades that provide a GPA. Obviously the article I read might've been a little biased or outdated. I see you chose TESC-why?

[sanantone]

sanantone-
I found your outline on Wiki, which was very helpful. Thanks for posting it.
Someone recommended not to hone in on one college until posting my AA credits on the general ed forum and get feedback. From what I've read, excelsior is less expensive and it provides letter grades that provide a GPA. Obviously the article I read might've been a little biased or outdated. I see you chose TESC-why?

I choose TESC way back in 2011, but many things have changed since then. With my credits (just emphasizing that it varies by person), I got a much better evaluation at TESC and COSC than at Excelsior. Excelsior wanted me to pay the enrollment fee to have some of my courses further evaluated, which I was not willing to do when I already knew where I stood at the other two. At the time, TESC gave upper level credits for community college courses, but they don't do that anymore.

A BA in Social Science will be more flexible than a BA in Psych regardless of which school you choose. Excelsior gave letter grades to DSSTs with 2-digit scores, but I believe those are all gone. They've been switched to 3-digit scores, so they are now pass/fail at Excelsior. I do not know if they give letter grades for Straighterline courses, but they definitely do not give letter grades for CLEPs. You can also earn letter grades from Uexcels. I think they count transfer courses toward your Excelsior GPA.

TESU only includes its own courses in the TESU GPA. If you're concerned about graduate school, most grad programs will calculate your GPA using transcripts from all colleges attended, so it doesn't matter what Excelsior or TESU does or does not do with them. As far as cost, if you choose TESU's Per Credit Tuition Plan and use TECEPs and/or portfolio assessments to meet the residency requirement for this plan, then it will be cheaper than Excelsior.

Under the Per Credit Tuition Plan, TESU's capstone will cost $1560 if you're not a New Jersey resident. If you add seven TECEPs, the cost will be $2337. Add the application and graduation fees, and you'll have a total of $2724. At Excelsior, the capstone will cost $1470. Under the Multi-Source Option, you'll have to pay a $1065 enrollment fee totaling $2535 with the capstone. Add the graduation and application fees, and you'll have a total of $3130. Also, keep in mind that TECEPs take the place of CLEP, DSST, etc., so the final cost difference of testing out at Excelsior vs. TESU will be even higher.

Excelsior has an Excelsior Course Option that does not require an enrollment fee, but it requires 12 credits of Excelsior courses at $490 per credit hour.

[mons]

Sanantone-
You just answered so many questions I had- thanks. Why does Excelsior have an enrollment fee and TESU does not? Also, why is a BA in social sciences more flexible then Psych? I'll take a look at your wiki outlines for each of those degrees. When you say that grad schools will pull grades from every college attended, does that mean that they will see the scores from tests such as CLEP, straighterline, Uexcels, etc (I understand that most don't provide a letter grade but I assume they provide a score...).

[mons]

You're not going to be able to test out 100% for a BA in Psych, but I just posted a possible TESU plan in a different thread (here) that you'd need to take only two courses in the pych field requirements (an ethics class and the capstone), the rest you could test out of. I'm not an expert though (and haven't gone through this plan at TESU), so definitely see what input some of the old pros around here provide on that plan if they reply (such as sanantone, who is always amazing).

Thanks I'll take a look.

[dfrecore]

Sanantone-
You just answered so many questions I had- thanks. Why does Excelsior have an enrollment fee and TESU does not? Also, why is a BA in social sciences more flexible then Psych? I'll take a look at your wiki outlines for each of those degrees. When you say that grad schools will pull grades from every college attended, does that mean that they will see the scores from tests such as CLEP, straighterline, Uexcels, etc (I understand that most don't provide a letter grade but I assume they provide a score...).

It kind of works this way: A degree in Liberal Arts is about as broad as you can get, and you need credits from each of the 3 major categories - Humanities, SocSci, NatSci/Math.

If you want a less broad degree, then you can get one in Humanities or SocSci or NatSci/Math. Those are still broad, but you're more concentrated, and less flexible as to where your credits can come from.

Then, within each of those categories is a much narrower degree path. For Humanities (which consists of Religion, Philosophy, Music, Foreign Language, English/Literature, Journalism, Art, etc.), there may be some degrees offered. A SocSci degree consists of courses in Psych, History, Sociology, Econ, PoliSci, Anthropology, etc. Again, there may be a degree for it or not. NatSci/Math has their own courses and degrees offered.

Here are the differences between SocSci and Psych from TESU (you need to look at TESU's pages rather than Sanantone's, which, while fantastic for showing you options for each requirement, doesn't show the requirements as a whole for each degree):
Thomas Edison State University: Social Sciences
Thomas Edison State University: Psychology

The BSBA works similarly. Your core courses are in a variety of subjects (management, marketing, accounting, finance, econ, law, computers, international business, etc.). And then if you choose General Management you need courses in 3 out of the 4 major areas (ACC, MAN, MAR, FIN). If you choose to narrow down your degree into one of the 4 main areas, plus some others (HR, CIS), you then have more specific requirements to the degree.

Every school is different as to what they offer, and how flexible a degree may be. I think TESU is pretty flexible in most areas, but you aren't going to be able to completely test out in most degrees, just because you will not be able to find a test for every requirement, especially as you narrow down the area of study.

As for why Excelsior (and COSC) have enrollment fees and TESU doesn't, that's fairly new - TESU used to have them. But they changed their policy, and now they don't. No idea why they chose to go in a different direction, but you will see that each of the schools changes things without a lot of explanation, and it may be good or bad for you depending on your circumstances. The good news with TESU is that they publish the new requirements each year on July 1, so if you are happy with the current catalog you are working under, you know that you need to apply and enroll before July 1 of each year.