Something weird seems to be going on in my current class.  Usually our weekly discussion question is filled with personal anecdotes or stories to connect with the weekly topic.  This week, I feel like I am reading posts generated by ChatGPT.  One student’s post was tripled and at the end of each instance was a sentence that said “Is this conversation helpful so far?”.  And the formatting seems outside of what you might see in Canvas unless it was copy/pasted elsewhere.  Then someone replied to my post.  There was no direct reference to anything I wrote and it read like a textbook.  Even the instructor seems to be “phoning it in”.  His reply to every student is exactly the same.  This is so unusual for this program.

Looking for options going forward and was requested that I start this new thread. I'm 52 with zero credits behind me and wanting to "check the box" - both for my secular work and, likely, continued online theological training in a particular seminary. They don't care what my bachelor's is in.

I'm new to this and I'm just learning my way around the terminology and basics, so please bear with me! I first discovered in browsing the forum that UMPI was recommended for someone in my position but was then told about TAMUC. If I'm understanding what I'm seeing, both look like viable options, although I am suddenly drawn to TAMUC since I learned about it. Call it a Texas pride thing. 

But what matters most right now is getting done as quickly as possible. What are some practical considerations and comparisons? It looks like Sophia is accepted at both schools? Do I just start by signing up on Sophia and start knocking out courses ASAP? 


Your Location: Texas
Your Age: 52
What kind of degree do you want?: Checking the box - probably business related
Current Regional Accredited Credits: None
Current ACE, CLEP, or NCCRS Credits: None
Any certifications or military experience? No
Budget: Not a concern, but don't want to waste money or time
Commitments: FT job with OT, family and church commitments
Dedicated time to study: I get up early - a couple of hours every morning on work days, more on days off.
Timeline: ASAP
Tuition assistance/reimbursement: No

Your Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Your Age: 29
What kind of degree do you want?: Bachelor of Arts Computer Science
Current Regional Accredited Credits:
A couple brick and mortar accredited universities in Canada. 90 something credits (9 CS credits).
University of Toronto, Western University.

Current ACE, CLEP, or NCCRS Credits:
None

Budget: $15K USD max. 

Commitments: No other commitments.
Dedicated time to study: I can study 40+ hours a week.
Timeline:  Would like to finish within 1-2 years.
Tuition assistance/reimbursement: No.

Hi everyone,

I don't have a completed undergraduate bachelors, but I have a little over 90 credits (only 9 CS credits) across a couple undergraduate brick and mortar universities in Canada.

I want to get the BA in CS at TESU, but am a little confused on how to structure the credit requirements.

1. TESU only permits 90 credits to transfer from international institutions (I assume Canada counts as such). Does that mean that (if 90 of my credits transferred) any study.com, sophia etc courses would not be accepted, or would they take the place of the 90 credits I transfer in? I wonder because maybe they aren't considered an international institution I could take more credits at study.com and sophia and transfer them in (above and beyond the 90 I already have?). I would maybe want to take some of the CS courses through study.com and not TESU.

2. I'm looking to take Calculus at Sophia, or maybe Study.com. Does Sophia Calculus still transfer to TESU?

3. Can you take courses at other institutions (universities, study.com) AFTER you've enrolled at TESU?

4. There's a 18 credit upper level requirement at TESU, and they need to be in CS. TESU doesn't have enough credits to fulfill this requirement. Do you have any recommendations on where else to take these courses?

5. Would my brick and mortar university credits count for the 30 RA credits requirement?

I was considering WGU, but they told me that because I didn't have a degree I wouldn't be able to transfer many courses in. It seems like maybe I'd get 5-7 courses at most, meaning I'd have to take about 33 to 31 courses? Whereas with TESU it would seem that I'd only maybe have to take about 14 courses (assuming I get credit for all or almost all of the non CS courses. I know there's the Capstone and the Information Literacy course that are required). Both schools are go at your own pace, correct? So if only on that basis, I should be able to finish a course about as fast at TESU as WGU right?

Thanks everyone!! 

so was looking through the wiki to make my plan over here https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/UM...quivalents

but i didn't see courses like french ( which i already speak and planning t  as GEC) and anatomy courses and many more, does it mean that only the ones mentioned on the wiki are transferable and rest is not ? or is there another way to figure which course can transfer and which can not, also on all the guides i saw people mentions needing a lab course , i am going to do the baba do i need a science lab too ?

First off, thank you for this amazing site! I've been browsing and searching topics for days now. The helpfulness I see from the members here toward one another is second to none.

Sorry, I didn't fill out the template as there's not much to say. Two different scenarios, both with zero college credits. We live in Texas.

So, as the title suggests, we are a homeschool family. Our daughter is 15 and starting her sophomore year, so I'm looking at options to get her on the right track going forward. In the process, I have discovered this whole world that began when I researched dual credit, looked into CLEP, and which finally led me to this community. I'm also looking at furthering my own education on the same, or similar, route. It would be great to take classes together but I'm also willing to lead the way. I'm hoping that it would both challenge and encourage her on her journey to see the old man doing it, too. 

Now, about the old man. I'm 52 with zero college credits behind me. I was always academically at the top of my class, but college was not in the works for me at the time for various reasons. By God's grace, I've done very well in comparison to my classmates who took the college route and, through hard work and financial prudence, was able to be debt free by the time I was 41. There have been a few jobs I have applied for, though, in which I am sure that not having a degree placed my resume in the File 13 stack. I've always wanted to pursue a degree but there was always work, family, and ministry that took priority. 

In practical terms, I would be looking at more of a "check the box" degree for myself. If anything, something like a business path would probably be most beneficial. I am interested in furthering my theological education but I already have an accredited mDiv program (actually, a bDiv with the option of qualifying for an mDiv) that I could go into without a Bachelor's. But I'm considering going ahead and going the traditional route by getting my bachelor's first instead for my daughter's sake. I may roll into the mDiv program at that point. I'm very goal driven and once I finally make up my mind to pursue something I generally pour myself into it relentlessly until it's complete. 

My daughter is 15 and currently showing the greatest interest in graphic design. Although, her primary goal in life is not to be a career woman but a wife and mom, we do want her to have an avenue for income by utilizing her gifts. 

Homeschool in Texas is incredibly flexible. Essentially, she is deemed a high school graduate whenever we say she is. We could graduate her and issue her a diploma today if we decided she had the foundations she needed and colleges would accept that. She would still have to meet other entrance requirements, of course.

We started talking about dual credit in local schools but that was before I found this community. She has been homeschooled her entire life and a couple of years ago we had to switch to an online format because my wife lost most of her vision, so she is already used to self study and online coursework. I think she could transition seamlessly into starting down this path. I don't want to shortcut her education but make sure she has everything she needs, but she has a solid foundation under her already.

So, here's where I really show my ignorance. Where do we start? I understand we may be on different paths, but do we both just jump in with Sophia for general education and see how that goes first? Where do Modern States, Study.com, and others fit in? All the options are pretty overwhelming for a newbie. I was first looking at something like TESU for both of us but have seen UMPI referenced as the easiest "check the box" degree for someone like me and, perhaps, SNHU for graphic design. I don't know that she needs, or even wants, a bachelor's for graphic design but, regardless, I would like to have her LL credits out of the way so that path is open to her. I think even having an AS would benefit her greatly for what she's wanting to do. Rather than working an 8-5 job, I envision her doing freelance work from home for the most part to generate some income. 

Regardless of her degree path, we still need a plan to get started with some self study classes and testing for both of us. I appreciate advice for a newbie on where to start. Thanks again for this amazing site!

Hi everyone,


I'm looking for advice on transferring courses from Sophia to UMPI. I have almost 50 Sophia courses and I'm hoping to transfer as many credits as possible.
This is my first time applying to college, so any help would be greatly appreciated. The UMPI page on the Sophia website doesn't have any information and while I've found some transfer equivalencies online and on the UMPI website, there seems to be conflicting information.

I'm confident that I have more than 90 transferable credits, but I haven't submitted anything yet.

My goal is to finish my degree in one semester. To do this, I want to transfer the most challenging courses and take the easiest ones at UMPI. I could really use some help figuring out the best combination of courses to avoid any overlap. Also, I don't want to pay Parchment for courses that are unnecessary.

Here's a list of the courses I've taken at Sophia. Thanks in advance for your help!


1. BUS 1105 Business Communications
2. Business Law
3. Financial Accounting
4. Introduction to Business
5. Macroeconomics
6. Microeconomics
7. Principles of Finance
8. Principles of Management
9. English Composition I
10. English Composition II
11. Calculus I
12. Career Readiness
13. College Readiness
14. Conflict Resolution
15. Critical Thinking
16. Developing Effective Teams
17. Foundations of Statistics
18. Human Biology Lab  +LAB
19. Introduction to Chemistry +Lab
20. Introduction to Ethics
21. Personal Finance
22. Precalculus
23. Project Management
24. The Essentials of Managing Conflict
25. Visual Communications
26. Workplace Writing II
27. Approaches to Studying Religions
28. Introduction to Information Technology
29. Introduction to Nutrition
30. Microbiology
31. Public Speaking
32. Spanish I
33. U.S. Government
34. U.S. History I
35. Workplace Communication
36. Introduction to Sociology
37. Ancient Greek Philosophers
38. Art History I
39. Art History II
40. College Algebra
41. Introduction to College Mathematics
42. Environmental Science
43. Human Biology
44. Introduction to Statistics
45. Business Ethics
46. Introduction to Networking
47. Lifespan Development
48. Managerial Accounting

I saw a Reddit post that said D492 was Data+, but I don't see it anywhere on the WGU site. I mean the actual class, not transfer credit. I am supposed to take D492 soon.

Hello,

After a lot of consideration I decided on SNHU over TESU because of the cost. A person I know online said they got 65% scholarship, which swayed me. I spoke with a sales person and they said they only offer 30%, and this has been running for 30 days. They claim it ends today, in an hour and a half from now... I feel like they are trying to pressure me into a sale. Has anyone else felt like that? Is SNHU India definitely legit? Can anyone confirm if this deal has been running for 30 days? Am I right to be cautious?

I'm looking to follow the degree plan for Data Analytics at SNHU. Can anyone share their experience studying this program? How long does it usually take to finish this program? Can you find Data Analytics jobs or intership while studying this program? 

TESU appears to have recently reworded their policies to now state they accept credit "from entities accredited by institutional accreditors recognized by the U.S. Department of Education."

"Regional accreditation" is no longer stipulated directly, nor does it appear to be implied – for example, they don't stipulate a list of institutional accreditors they accept that just happens to be the traditional list of regional accreditors – in the main body text on the undergraduate catalog page Transfer Credit, the graduate catalog page Transfer Credit, or the Transfering Credit landing page in the Admissions section of the site.

There are several places on TESU's website that specify a regional accreditation requirement specifically, but generally they seem less official and may not have been updated, including in part Academic Credit FAQs and a 2016 blog post on NA vs. RA.

For admission to TESU master's programs, "The University requirement for admission to any master’s degree program is the demonstration of the completion of a bachelor’s degree from an institution recognized under our Transfer Credit Policy."

A regionally accredited master's is still at this time a stated requirement for admission to TESU's DBA and EdD.

"Institutionally accredited" absent any indication otherwise implies a superset that includes nationally accredited (NA).

This might open up some new degree planning options.