Your Location:  California, but I'm not a California resident for tuition purposes until the spring 2026 semester
Your Age:  60
What kind of degree do you want?  BS in computer science with an emphasis in software engineering
Current Regional Accredited Credits:  24 semester units
Current ACE, CLEP, or NCCRS Credits:  3 CLEP units, 5 database administrator courses at Oracle University, and 2 computer programming courses at New Horizons.
Any certifications or military experience?  USMC veteran with a JST listing 132 ACE-recommended units, including CLEP units 
Budget:  ~$1,200 for this school year, then later ~$1,200 each year for the next 2 school years
Commitments:  Work part-time; weekly medical appointments
Dedicated time to study:  about 40 hrs/week
Timeline:  next 3 years
Tuition assistance/reimbursement:  California's "Over 60 Program" available at a few California State University campuses will waive tuition for fall and spring semesters, waive the $70 application fee, and reduce other student registration fees.  (See https://www.csuci.edu/sbs/tuition-and-pa...rogram.htm)  The program doesn't pay for books, parking fees, lab fees, etc.

The bottom line is that I have nearly 2 decades of experience, skills, and education in software engineering, relational databases, and system administration, but I don't have the credentials to back it up when HR/ATS is checking my resume for job opportunities.  I'd like to fix that with a BS in computer science.

I'm currently planning to transfer to California State University, Channel Islands, (CSUCI) as an upper-division transfer student.  I've already signed up for ModernStates.org to help me study for CLEP exams.  My plan is to take at least one CLEP exam this fall and then attend a California community college in the spring and summer of 2026, when I become a California resident for tuition purposes again, then transfer to California State University, Channel Islands, in the fall of 2026 to complete my BS degree in computer science by the spring of 2028.

I'll need at least 60 units to transfer as an upper-division student, but I'll only have 56 units.  I'd like to take the German Language CLEP test for 6 more units, because I took 2 years of German in high school.  However, that was decades ago, so it may take me a while to review it.  In case I don't have time to pass this test before my scheduled transfer, I plan to take the TEEX Cyber 201 - Cybersecurity for IT Professionals courses for 4 elective units over the next few weeks and, after I pass the courses, use Credly.com to send a free transcript of my TEEX credits to CSUCI next year.

Does anyone see any flaws or pitfalls in my plan that I should be aware of?  I've looked at the degree plans for several online BS/BA CS degrees generously provided in this forum, and while it looks like I'd complete my degree much faster than 3 years (which would be better for me), the fact is that I don't have the money.  It will take much more than 3 years to save up enough money to pay for those courses, while California's "Over 60 Program" provides free tuition at the state university.  I really, really don't want to take out student loans to finance my education, but the high cost of living limits the amount I can save each year.

Ultimately, I'd also like to get an MS degree in computer science, too, so that I can teach computer science at the community college level to both give back to the community and to supplement my income as I find it harder and harder to find steady, full-time employment.

If anyone has any other advice that would benefit me, I'd like to hear it.  Perhaps an approach where I take just enough courses at the community college to be eligible to transfer to CSUCI, then take enough nearly free courses at CSUCI to then transfer to an online university where I only need 1 semester in residence that I can quickly (and VERY CHEAPLY!) finish my BS degree in computer science.

Thank you for your time and your good advice.

Below is a list of my current and expected credits before transfer to CSUCI:

24 RA Credits:
-----------------

3 California community college credits:

English Composition, 3, A

21 Chapman University credits:

(Lower division)
Computer Architecture I, 3, A
Computer Systems/Assembly Lang Programming, 3, A-

(Upper division)
Operating Systems, 3, C
Data Comm/Computer Networks, 3, B+
Computer Graphics, 3, A
Database Mgmt, 3, A
Human Computer Interaction, 3, A

11 Other credits:
--------------------

USMC Boot Camp, 3 GE units + 5 Elective units
CLEP Humanities, 3 (CSUCI only accepts 3 units, not the ACE-recommended 6 units)


My planned credits before transfer to CSUCI:
------------------------------------------------------

CLEP Calculus I, 4 (using ModernStates.org)

17 California community college credits @ $782 tuition + books & fees:

Calculus with Analytic Geometry II, 5
Introduction to Symbolic Logic, 3
Public Speaking, 3
American Gov't & Politics, 3
Intro to Ethnic Studies, 3

-------------------------------------
21 units Chapman University
20 units community colleges
8 units boot camp
7 units CLEP
-------------------------------------
Total:  56 units 


Proposed units:

TEEX Cyber 201 - Cybersecurity for IT Professionals, 4 elective units
   OR ...
CLEP German, 4 GE units + 2 (or 5, if my score is high enough) elective units

Hi,

One of the courses on my list for my Mgmt minor is BUS 321 Human Resources Mgmt. Is there a different course I could take instead? I just want to make sure I know what all my options are. For completeness, I'm taking or haven taken these as well for the minor:

Bus 141 Intro to Project Management - taken
Bus 260 Leadership - almost done with it
Bus 321 Human Resource Management
Bus 415 Operations Management
PCJ 215 Business Communications - taken
Bus 350 Business Law I - taken

Thx!

starting here 

https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/De..._of_Topics

clicked on "Example TESU Degree Plans"

which took me to 

https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/TESU_Degree_Plans

out of all the degree plans on that page the only two links that actually work are 

• JSD's BA in Psychology (after July 1st, 2015)
  
• JSD's BA in Sociology (after July 1st, 2015)
  

For some reason English 2 course is showing as inactive? Any ideas?

USP (United States Pharmacopeia) has a free On-Demand Certificate program in Document and Reference Standards.
It Free, 3 hours long, and self-paced. 

USP Certificate of Document and Reference Standards
The USP Certificate of Document and Reference Standards provides prospect with the knowledge of the effective use of USP standards in the Pharmaceutical industry for the development and manufacture of medicines. Prospects will understand the legality and the science behind the standards, as well as the required industry collaboration in the revision process of the USP Standards. The certificate also provides best practices for the practical application of the USP–NF, USP–NF Supplements, Pharmacopeial Forum and USP Reference Standards - highly characterized chemical specimens.
There will be a knowledge assessment at the end of each course in this certificate. You will be required to pass this knowledge assessment with a score of 80 percent to determine if your comprehension of the topics presented meets USP’s minimum requirements.
Upon completion of the USP Certificate  of Document and Reference Standards, you will be able to:
Introduction to USP-NF:

• Describe the types of USP–NF monographs
  
• Explain how the USP–NF is used to include sections, content and regulatory status, publication cycles, and official dates
  
• Describe the proper use for the Pharmacopeial Forum Notices
  
• Explain the General Chapters and their relation to monographs  
  

• Describe the importance of the Reference Standard Development Process
  
• Determine why USP RS—Regulatory Directives are used
  
• Describe the proper use of USP Reference Standards
  

Hi everyone,

I've been a long-time lurker on these forums and have spent countless hours reading the wiki and past threads. Thanks to your collective wisdom, I've put together what I believe is my final, optimized plan to complete the TESU B.S. in Aviation Flight Technology.

I would be incredibly grateful if the experts here could give this a final sanity check before I start enrolling and paying for the last few courses.

My Context:

Target Degree: TESU Bachelor of Science in Aviation Flight Technology

Primary Credential: FAA Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) License (Airplane).

Existing Credits: A large block of ACE-approved general education courses from Sophia.org.

My Complete Degree Audit & Plan:

I. Area of Study (56 Credits)
Aviation Area of Study (56 cr) - MET (via my FAA Airline Transport Pilot License)

II. Core Degree Requirements
College Algebra (3 cr) - MET (via Sophia.org: Introduction to College Mathematics)
Higher-Level Math (3 cr) - MET (via Sophia.org: Precalculus)
Statistics (3 cr) - MISSING -> Plan: Take Introduction to Statistics at Sophia.org.
Computer Concepts (3 cr) - MET (via Sophia.org: Visual Communications)
Meteorology (3 cr) - MISSING -> Plan: Take Earth Science 104 at Study.com.
Physics I w/ Lab (4 cr) - MISSING -> Plan: Take Physics 111 (Lecture) at Study.com + a 1-credit online lab (suggestions?).
Physics II w/ Lab (4 cr) - MISSING -> Plan: Take Physics 112 (Lecture) at Study.com + a 1-credit online lab (suggestions?).

III. General Education & Electives
English Composition I (3 cr) - MET (via Sophia.org: English Composition I)
English Composition II (3 cr) - IN PROGRESS (at Sophia.org: English Composition II)
Humanities Credits (~9 cr) - MET (via Sophia.org: Introduction to Ethics, U.S. History I, U.S. History II)
Social Science Credits (~9 cr) - MET (via Sophia.org: Introduction to Sociology, Macroeconomics, Microeconomics)
Natural Science Credit (3 cr) - MET (via Sophia.org: Environmental Science)
Remaining Elective Credits (~17 cr) - MET (fulfilled by any of the following completed Sophia courses: Human Biology, Conflict Resolution, Principles of Management, Project Management and I also completed TEL's American Government).


My Critical Assumptions (Please Confirm!):

No Capstone/Cornerstone: Based on the official TESU degree page for this specific program, I am operating under the assumption that there is NO capstone or cornerstone requirement. This seems to be the biggest difference between this degree and others at TESU. Is this still correct for 2025?

No Edison Accelerate Fee: Flowing from the point above, if there is no capstone/residency requirement to begin with, I assume the $3,400 Edison Accelerate Fee does not apply to this degree path. Correct?

The Plan Itself: Does this seem like the most efficient, cost-effective path? Am I missing any "gotchas"? Specifically, is the NMJC/Clovis CC route for the standalone labs still the go-to recommendation?

Thank you all for taking a moment to look this over. I truly appreciate the time and expertise shared on this forum.

Does TAMUC accept any Study.com UL courses and if so which ones? I've been reading that they only transfer UL over as LL classes. Does anyone have any first hand knowledge? Thank you

Hi Everyone,

Looking for some advice. I chose to go with PCJ 315 instead of MAT 140 and just opened it for the first time. Looks like a pain that will take forever. Maybe I'm wrong, but can anyone tell me about MAT 140 in detail? I wonder how one goes through a math class where there are no tests. I did a few math courses on Sophia and actually took the time to refresh my memory on the material, but it sucked. I hate math so that's why I went with the PCJ 315 course, but I hear MAT 140 is pretty fast to get through but just want to get some details on it. 

Thx!

Mental Health, Psychological, Spiritual First Aid – Free

Here is my thread on courses and certification on the subject of…

Mental Health First Aid
Psychological First Aid
Spiritual First Aid

.

Quirky new additions to the list of TECEP exams: In the new section "1 Credit TESU General Electives," two exams

• Introduction to Project Management (TES-1120-TE)
  
• The Science of Caffeine (TES-1150-TE)