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First US degree, need help. - PrinceCharlesLevin - 04-27-2026
Nic : P. C. Levin
Your Location: New Jersey
Your Age: 24
What kind of degree do you want?: Psychology, and/or Computer Science
Current Regional Accredited Credits: None. Got a BA in English and some other courses from Information Managament Systems.. however from a foreign university.
Current ACE, CLEP, or NCCRS Credits: None.
Any certifications or military experience?: Got some coursera courses, willing to start with Sophia Study and Straighterline etc. Also registered as Pharm Tech.
Budget: Pretty tight, max 8.000. I am not sure if its possible with this budget. Yet I would love to spend as less as i can. I may finance or that type of loan scheme as a last resort but dunno. Heard there are almost free options. ( I didnt include sophia and study memberships on this budget, if any needed. Guess they can cost somewhere between 500 to 1k)
Dedicated time to study: working 30 - 40 hours a week, yet i can spend my most time with studies.
Timeline: 2 years max yet willing to complete as fast as any human can. Heard there are some can do in 6 months or a year.
Other Notes: I have lawful Permanent Resident Permit (aka Green Card). I mention this because I know there are additional state and federal scholarships available for first-generation students. I live with my family, including my 16-year-old brother who is in high school. Do you have any educational suggestions for him? I would really like to help him get ahead, too. My parents aren't working much right now, so my budget is incredibly tight since I am paying for most of the household expenses. (My employer doesn't offer any tuition reimbursement other than 15 RA credits via their LMS. I can take that route if needed, but it would be a last resort.)
I am very eager to improve myself, and if I could, I would pursue both of these degrees at the same time. However, money is a huge problem right now—especially in times like these—as it is for everyone. I honestly feel a bit lost navigating all these options.
P.S. I am aware of the state benefits associated with TESU, but I am not entirely informed about them. Even though I have been reading posts on DegreeForum and its sister boards for a year, please explain them to me again from scratch.
Maybe After or maybe i should do now, (lol cant decide as well) I am even considering MA in English.
RE: First US degree, need help. - freeloader - 04-27-2026
Assuming your bachelor’s degree is from a legitimate, properly accredited university in its country, you should start by having your degree evaluated by a NACES-accredited evaluator—WES, SpanTran, ECE, IEE, etc. Again, assuming your bachelor’s degree is properly accredited, there is a good chance your bachelor’s degree would be considered the equivalent of ~90 to ~120 credits. Beyond giving you many credits to potentially transfer to an American bachelor’s degree, having a properly-accredited foreign bachelor’s degree could also waive the general education requirements at many universities. Obviously, all of this could save you considerable time, energy, and money toward the 2nd bachelor’s degree you are wanting to earn.
RE: First US degree, need help. - SteveFoerster - 04-28-2026
(04-27-2026, 08:17 PM)freeloader Wrote: Assuming your bachelor’s degree is from a legitimate, properly accredited university in its country, you should start by having your degree evaluated by a NACES-accredited evaluator—WES, SpanTran, ECE, IEE, etc. Again, assuming your bachelor’s degree is properly accredited, there is a good chance your bachelor’s degree would be considered the equivalent of ~90 to ~120 credits. Beyond giving you many credits to potentially transfer to an American bachelor’s degree, having a properly-accredited foreign bachelor’s degree could also waive the general education requirements at many universities. Obviously, all of this could save you considerable time, energy, and money toward the 2nd bachelor’s degree you are wanting to earn.
It may also mean that you could just enter a Master's degree program instead of revisiting a first degree, even though your BA is in English and you want to move towards psychology or computer science.
That said, these two disciplines are so different from each other that in my opinion the very first thing you should do is take a step back and decide what you actually want to do professionally, then choose a program that helps you reach that goal.
RE: First US degree, need help. - Avidreader - 04-28-2026
If the foreign degree is from an RA equivalent university, chances are you can get a Computer Science or IT related job without getting a second bachelors degree. The costs of translating and getting a NACES evaluation will be less than 500 USD and will only take a few days. In that case, you might better spend the money in an affordable online masters like the Georgia Tech degree that is pretty popular on the forum.
If being a licensed Psychology therapist is your goal, it might be trickier because you need a masters degree in the field to treat patients. Without an evaluation of the original degree, we don't know if you have the requirements for a specific college offering a clinical masters program. They might expect you to have a US bachelors in Psychology or another health adjacent field. You could get that Pharm certification evaluated along the way, ask the requirements at specific colleges and whether you fulfill them with your current degrees. If they forcibly require a US adjacent degree, you might look into UMPI's Psychology degree. Getting the foreign degrees evaluated will cut down on the number of credits for a degree.
RE: First US degree, need help. - Phyexial - 04-29-2026
(04-28-2026, 01:30 PM)Avidreader Wrote: If the foreign degree is from an RA equivalent university, chances are you can get a Computer Science or IT related job without getting a second bachelors degree. The costs of translating and getting a NACES evaluation will be less than 500 USD and will only take a few days. In that case, you might better spend the money in an affordable online masters like the Georgia Tech degree that is pretty popular on the forum.
I work in IT in the US; In 2026, the job market is *extremely* competitive for entry level IT and Software Dev jobs (with every indication it will stay so for at least several years), and unless OP already has several years of experience, there are almost no companies that will hire you right now for IT roles with no experience and an irrelevant English degree.
Getting GT OMCS would certainly change the situation quite a bit.
RE: First US degree, need help. - LevelUP - 04-29-2026
My question before giving advice is: what is your current career, and what career do you want to pursue?
For your 16-year-old brother, my advice would be to explore broadly and take advantage of inexpensive options like dual enrollment, AP, and CLEP where appropriate, since those credits can transfer to many colleges.
You may also want to check out my guide: Choosing a College Major Using 3 Paths as a Starting Point.
https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-Choosing-a-College-Major-Using-3-Paths-as-a-Starting-Point-Guide-Podcast-Version
RE: First US degree, need help. - WDue - 04-29-2026
Adding on to what everyone here has said already, the cheapest option right now would be to get your degree evaluated. If the full degree transfers in as a bachelor's equivalent, great! You can then look into pursuing a Master's instead. If not, at least it'll highlight how many credits transferred in and what remains.
I've researched both options, TESU would be the best option if you want to do a dual AOS in Psychology and Computer Science. The next best option is a BA in Psychology/BLS with a minor in Psych. Then if you *really* want that Comp Sci degree, transfer the Psychology degree in at TESU, leaving you with only the Comp Sci AOS and capstone to complete. (It's worth noting that CS AOS can be done completely through alt-credit means, leaving you with only taking the capstone and cornerstone at TESU). This will be a more expensive option than having to do one/two semesters at UMPI. (2 semesters at UMPI = ~$4,000) but you'd only have a Psych degree.
Basically what SteveFoerster and LevelUP said, are you working in either field currently? As that can impact the amount of time it might take you. They're different fields with barely any overlap, the reason I'm doing the UMPI -> TESU path I outlined above is because I had a few psych courses that transferred in.
Lastly, something to note is that the Georgia Tech OMCS program is extremely rigorous, not just because it's a Master's program, but also because it's more intensive than most of the Competency Based programs that are offered. This isn't to dissuade you, it's just to give you an idea that it cannot be completed quickly or as easily.
RE: First US degree, need help. - PrinceCharlesLevin - 04-29-2026
(04-29-2026, 02:44 PM)LevelUP Wrote: My question before giving advice is: what is your current career, and what career do you want to pursue?
For your 16-year-old brother, my advice would be to explore broadly and take advantage of inexpensive options like dual enrollment, AP, and CLEP where appropriate, since those credits can transfer to many colleges.
You may also want to check out my guide: Choosing a College Major Using 3 Paths as a Starting Point.
https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-Choosing-a-College-Major-Using-3-Paths-as-a-Starting-Point-Guide-Podcast-Version
Thank you all so much for the detailed and insightful advice!
To answer the questions from @SteveFoerster, @LevelUP, and others regarding my career: I am currently working as a Pharm Tech and an Inventory Specialist.
To be completely honest, my desire to study Psychology and/or Computer Science is largely driven by personal interest—almost like a hobby—and a strong drive for rapid self-improvement. Securing a new career in these specific fields isn't my primary goal right now. However, as I develop my skills and knowledge, it is definitely something I am open to considering for the future!
I also wanted to add a bit more context about my learning pace and dedication. I actually completed my 4-year English BA at a physical, brick-and-mortar university in just 2 years. I managed this by heavily overloading my course schedule and utilizing some legal loopholes the institution allowed. Because I successfully pulled off that level of acceleration in a traditional, in-person setting, I am highly confident in my ability to learn new subjects quickly and handle a very heavy study load. Also I was focusing on Lingusitics, especially Cognitive Linguistics. So Thats why im interested in Psy and Human-Computer interaction as well.
I am definitely going to take your collective advice and start by getting my foreign English BA evaluated by a NACES-accredited agency. That seems like the smartest and most cost-effective first step to see exactly where I stand and how many credits I can salvage before deciding between a second bachelor's or aiming for a master's program. I want to know more about paths, and how to's. Especially AOS seem too good to be true like good at Tesu. Will it increase my cost? Is it easier than doing 2 seperate degrees? Should I go with UMPI since its easy and cheaper.
RE: First US degree, need help. - Phyexial - 04-30-2026
(04-29-2026, 05:03 PM)PrinceCharlesLevin Wrote:(04-29-2026, 02:44 PM)LevelUP Wrote: My question before giving advice is: what is your current career, and what career do you want to pursue?
For your 16-year-old brother, my advice would be to explore broadly and take advantage of inexpensive options like dual enrollment, AP, and CLEP where appropriate, since those credits can transfer to many colleges.
You may also want to check out my guide: Choosing a College Major Using 3 Paths as a Starting Point.
https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-Choosing-a-College-Major-Using-3-Paths-as-a-Starting-Point-Guide-Podcast-Version
Thank you all so much for the detailed and insightful advice!
To answer the questions from @SteveFoerster, @LevelUP, and others regarding my career: I am currently working as a Pharm Tech and an Inventory Specialist.
To be completely honest, my desire to study Psychology and/or Computer Science is largely driven by personal interest—almost like a hobby—and a strong drive for rapid self-improvement. Securing a new career in these specific fields isn't my primary goal right now. However, as I develop my skills and knowledge, it is definitely something I am open to considering for the future!
I also wanted to add a bit more context about my learning pace and dedication. I actually completed my 4-year English BA at a physical, brick-and-mortar university in just 2 years. I managed this by heavily overloading my course schedule and utilizing some legal loopholes the institution allowed. Because I successfully pulled off that level of acceleration in a traditional, in-person setting, I am highly confident in my ability to learn new subjects quickly and handle a very heavy study load. Also I was focusing on Lingusitics, especially Cognitive Linguistics. So Thats why im interested in Psy and Human-Computer interaction as well.
I am definitely going to take your collective advice and start by getting my foreign English BA evaluated by a NACES-accredited agency. That seems like the smartest and most cost-effective first step to see exactly where I stand and how many credits I can salvage before deciding between a second bachelor's or aiming for a master's program. I want to know more about paths, and how to's. Especially AOS seem too good to be true like good at Tesu. Will it increase my cost? Is it easier than doing 2 seperate degrees? Should I go with UMPI since its easy and cheaper.
For TESU - 2 AOS for 1 degree is the same cost as 1 AOS on that degree (but might make you take longer on your study.com, etc.. subscriptions). TESU double AoS is pretty restrictive though - it has to be the same degree type (BA to BA, BSBA to BSBA, etc..) AND it has to be the same school. So if the 2 degrees you want are the same type and in the same school, you get a single degree with 2 AoS... if they are different, then you get 2 Bachelors. Keep in mind TESU has a lifetime limit of 2 Bachelors awarded from them (although that does mean if you wanted to go crazy you can do 2 bachelors degrees with 4 seperate AOS if you want). This all costs the same (except for paying for 2 capstones classes if your degrees need them); you pay 1 Graduation Audit Fee (~$300), and any degrees awarded *at the same time* all just get rolled up into that one fee.
RE: First US degree, need help. - Mint Berry Crunch - 04-30-2026
(04-28-2026, 08:02 AM)SteveFoerster Wrote:(04-27-2026, 08:17 PM)freeloader Wrote: Assuming your bachelor’s degree is from a legitimate, properly accredited university in its country, you should start by having your degree evaluated by a NACES-accredited evaluator—WES, SpanTran, ECE, IEE, etc. Again, assuming your bachelor’s degree is properly accredited, there is a good chance your bachelor’s degree would be considered the equivalent of ~90 to ~120 credits. Beyond giving you many credits to potentially transfer to an American bachelor’s degree, having a properly-accredited foreign bachelor’s degree could also waive the general education requirements at many universities. Obviously, all of this could save you considerable time, energy, and money toward the 2nd bachelor’s degree you are wanting to earn.
It may also mean that you could just enter a Master's degree program instead of revisiting a first degree, even though your BA is in English and you want to move towards psychology or computer science.
That said, these two disciplines are so different from each other that in my opinion the very first thing you should do is take a step back and decide what you actually want to do professionally, then choose a program that helps you reach that goal.
Steve,
If memory serves me, doesn't TESU evaluate (some) foreign degrees/diplomas (e.g., ENEB) as RA Bachelors? It may benefit them to go there, especially since they're here in the great Garden State (open to opinions). If possible, they could have their degree/diploma evaluated at TESU and enroll in the M.S. I.T. program at TESU if they are looking to "cut corners" or if other schools won't accept/evaluate their degree/diploma as direct equivalent. Georgetown's computer science program is pretty cheap (I think 5k in total?), but TESU is definitely an option if they encounter a roadblock.
M.S. I.T.: https://www.tesu.edu/degrees-programs/masters/ms-information-technology.php