(06-05-2017, 03:19 PM)dfrecore Wrote: I was given a free course from them, in exchange for a review.  Just putting any bias I might have out there before I start.  I took Accounting II, but my review is more on the course provider than the actual course.

Pros

The course was remarkably similar to SL & PF.  Same eTextbook bookshelf thing.  The bonus for E4C is that they give you a PDF copy of the textbook as well, so you can look at it even if you aren't on the internet.

They do give you extras, like a PDF Powerpoint presentation (notes), and some quizzes and videos to help you study.  All of this is optional though, and I didn't use them a ton.  After the 1st chapter test, I did not feel like they helped a lot with the exam questions.

You are allowed to take the open-book, open notes exams 3x each, keeping the highest score for your grade.  And the questions are pulled from a test bank, and some of the questions you get are exactly the same as the previous ones you've gotten.  I took every exam 2x except the last module.

I do like that it's not membership-based (like SL or Study.com), and you have 4 months to take the course.  For anyone who has tuition reimbursement where the company will pay for individual courses, but not for membership fees, this is the way to go.  For anyone whose life gets in the way of things (like mine did), then having extra time to complete the course without having to pay more is great.

The final exam was a LOT easier than I expected, after the chapter tests.  I have to admit to being worried going into it, but scored an 86%.  This is what I would have expected the chapter tests to look like (a lot of vocabulary vs. really nitty gritty specific questions).

Cons

1) The setup is not as nice as SL, in that instead of it being broken up into chapters/modules you can click on, you have to scroll down to get to your chapter.  Every time.  When you're in chapter 2, it's fine.  When you're in Chapter 6, it's annoying.

2) The grading system; you need a 70% overall, and a 50% on the final to pass the course. The final is open notes, typed, handwritten, PDF, etc. Meaning I think you can have them open on your computer, but I'm not 100% certain of that. I had mine printed. If I was worried about a course (like Stats), I would certainly worry about this system. If it's a course that you think would be easy, then by all means, use them.

3) The test questions are HARD.  No memorizing the bolded words and then knocking it out of the park.  Nope.  You NEED the open book, because the questions are difficult (tricky) and the answers are even harder.  Here's an example.  The exact text out of the book, plus the question and answers.  Impossible to figure out, and this happened multiple times for every chapter.

[SUP]Actual Text (bold and outlined areas are mine, showing why I answered the questions the way I did):[/SUP]
                                                                       You will normally see budgets that are prepared for specific time intervals. These budgets may relate to a month, quarter, year, or other clearly identifiable time period. Sometimes, the budget may relate to a natural business cycle. For example, a wheat farmer’s crop does not follow a calendar year. What use could one make of a calendar year budget in this case? The budget would clearly need to relate to the time period extending from at least planting through harvest. In other business environments, a budget may be continuous in nature. Such budgets are constantly being updated to reflect the addition of future months or quarters. With the completion of one period, another period is pulled into the budget. This rolling approach allows management better insight into business adaptations that are needed for changing economic conditions.
                   
Test question (came up 2x):
Budgets are normally prepared for specific time intervals. However, budget cycles may relate to:
a. Natural business cycles, such as a season - WRONG
b. A continuous, or rolling, cycle - WRONG
c. Any clearly identifiable time period
d. A specific calendar period

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Overall, I was happy with the course, and passed easily (I did put in the work though, and read every chapter, and memorized all the bolded words). I would give them a B-, with the thinking that it's harder than SL, but not impossible.  I would also highly recommend them if you need more than a month, or a non-membership course provider for tuition reimbursement.

(06-23-2019, 10:59 PM)wvnv Wrote:

(06-05-2017, 03:19 PM)dfrecore Wrote: I was given a free course from them, in exchange for a review.  Just putting any bias I might have out there before I start.  I took Accounting II, but my review is more on the course provider than the actual course.

Pros

The course was remarkably similar to SL & PF.  Same eTextbook bookshelf thing.  The bonus for E4C is that they give you a PDF copy of the textbook as well, so you can look at it even if you aren't on the internet.

They do give you extras, like a PDF Powerpoint presentation (notes), and some quizzes and videos to help you study.  All of this is optional though, and I didn't use them a ton.  After the 1st chapter test, I did not feel like they helped a lot with the exam questions.

You are allowed to take the open-book, open notes exams 3x each, keeping the highest score for your grade.  And the questions are pulled from a test bank, and some of the questions you get are exactly the same as the previous ones you've gotten.  I took every exam 2x except the last module.

I do like that it's not membership-based (like SL or Study.com), and you have 4 months to take the course.  For anyone who has tuition reimbursement where the company will pay for individual courses, but not for membership fees, this is the way to go.  For anyone whose life gets in the way of things (like mine did), then having extra time to complete the course without having to pay more is great.

The final exam was a LOT easier than I expected, after the chapter tests.  I have to admit to being worried going into it, but scored an 86%.  This is what I would have expected the chapter tests to look like (a lot of vocabulary vs. really nitty gritty specific questions).

Cons

1) The setup is not as nice as SL, in that instead of it being broken up into chapters/modules you can click on, you have to scroll down to get to your chapter.  Every time.  When you're in chapter 2, it's fine.  When you're in Chapter 6, it's annoying.

2) The grading system; you need a 70% overall, and a 50% on the final to pass the course. The final is open notes, typed, handwritten, PDF, etc. Meaning I think you can have them open on your computer, but I'm not 100% certain of that. I had mine printed. If I was worried about a course (like Stats), I would certainly worry about this system. If it's a course that you think would be easy, then by all means, use them.

3) The test questions are HARD.  No memorizing the bolded words and then knocking it out of the park.  Nope.  You NEED the open book, because the questions are difficult (tricky) and the answers are even harder.  Here's an example.  The exact text out of the book, plus the question and answers.  Impossible to figure out, and this happened multiple times for every chapter.

[SUP]Actual Text (bold and outlined areas are mine, showing why I answered the questions the way I did):[/SUP]
                                                                       You will normally see budgets that are prepared for specific time intervals. These budgets may relate to a month, quarter, year, or other clearly identifiable time period. Sometimes, the budget may relate to a natural business cycle. For example, a wheat farmer’s crop does not follow a calendar year. What use could one make of a calendar year budget in this case? The budget would clearly need to relate to the time period extending from at least planting through harvest. In other business environments, a budget may be continuous in nature. Such budgets are constantly being updated to reflect the addition of future months or quarters. With the completion of one period, another period is pulled into the budget. This rolling approach allows management better insight into business adaptations that are needed for changing economic conditions.
                   
Test question (came up 2x):
Budgets are normally prepared for specific time intervals. However, budget cycles may relate to:
a. Natural business cycles, such as a season - WRONG
b. A continuous, or rolling, cycle - WRONG
c. Any clearly identifiable time period
d. A specific calendar period

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Overall, I was happy with the course, and passed easily (I did put in the work though, and read every chapter, and memorized all the bolded words). I would give them a B-, with the thinking that it's harder than SL, but not impossible.  I would also highly recommend them if you need more than a month, or a non-membership course provider for tuition reimbursement.