TECEP and transferring to other institutions.

[Drakemoore]

Couldn't find a thread on this so I figured I'd make one.

I understand that credits taken from one school may not transfer to another school. Although, from what I've heard being regionally accredited helps a long way there in making that happen. I know TECEPs transfer to the other two Big Three.

I decided to try and ask the CC's here about TECEP since I know they'll take Excelsior (it's some agreement with the State of Florida Board of Education.) I figured, at minimum the CCs would probably take things like ENC-101/102, some of the Social / Humanities.

One of the CC registrar's emailed me back the following:

"From what I can tell from the Thomas Edison State College website, the TECEP exam is an internal method of credit evaluation. While you would be receiving college credit at TESC, the courses are coded in such a way that they do not necessarily transfer into other institutions. Even though the credit would appear on an official transcript from a regionally-accredited institution, Santa Fe would not accept credits taken in this method."

The one thing that popped in my mind, is it because the course codes on the TECEP page end in TE? I don't know if they actually show up on a transcript from TESC as ENC-101-TE or just ENC-101.

Anyways, still waiting to hear back from the others, I thought I'd give it a try.

[cooperalex2004]

The part that seems to scare many institutions is when a course is college-level and not graded as this is not normal at most schools. On the TESC transcript (not the one that you can view online but the actual transcript that is given once you graduate) the TECEP exams are just listed with a course code under the same header as graded courses. The questions would possibly develop when they see it as a "CR" and not a letter grade but schools should accept credits that fit their requirement (typically C or better at most schools). Transferring credits to a two-year school is not always that easy and since most start at that level and move on it is often just a time to educate them on what things are. I never tried to transfer my TECEP back to my community college so I'm not sure if they'd take it either. If they won't take it then it is up to them and you can explore things like CLEP or DSST exams that have ACE credit assigned and are more commonly seen. It sounds like you are asking about Sante Fe Community College in which case this link says they take these exams but don't give a list of which ones (you can ask): CLEP & DSST

Couldn't find a thread on this so I figured I'd make one.

I understand that credits taken from one school may not transfer to another school. Although, from what I've heard being regionally accredited helps a long way there in making that happen. I know TECEPs transfer to the other two Big Three.

I decided to try and ask the CC's here about TECEP since I know they'll take Excelsior (it's some agreement with the State of Florida Board of Education.) I figured, at minimum the CCs would probably take things like ENC-101/102, some of the Social / Humanities.

One of the CC registrar's emailed me back the following:

"From what I can tell from the Thomas Edison State College website, the TECEP exam is an internal method of credit evaluation. While you would be receiving college credit at TESC, the courses are coded in such a way that they do not necessarily transfer into other institutions. Even though the credit would appear on an official transcript from a regionally-accredited institution, Santa Fe would not accept credits taken in this method."

The one thing that popped in my mind, is it because the course codes on the TECEP page end in TE? I don't know if they actually show up on a transcript from TESC as ENC-101-TE or just ENC-101.

Anyways, still waiting to hear back from the others, I thought I'd give it a try.

[Drakemoore]

Nah, it's Santa Fe College in FL. Technically they claim they're a four year college now that they offer a few bachelor's degrees but they're still almost entirely a 2 year school. I know they accept CLEP, and a 'few' DSST exams. They do not accept any ACE credit whatsoever.

I figured I'd look into TECEP as an option since I was looking at possibly going to TESC for a Bachelor's in Comp Sci.

[cooperalex2004]

Nah, it's Santa Fe College in FL. Technically they claim they're a four year college now that they offer a few bachelor's degrees but they're still almost entirely a 2 year school. I know they accept CLEP, and a 'few' DSST exams. They do not accept any ACE credit whatsoever.

I figured I'd look into TECEP as an option since I was looking at possibly going to TESC for a Bachelor's in Comp Sci.

If they take CLEP and DSST then they take ACE credit and they just might not realize it. ACE is why these exams are accepted to begin with. If you were to have any credits tossed out then I'd advise you to fill out a form the school should have which petitions higher up the chain for acceptance. I had many of those go through for credit at my community college. I was able to get credits that did not match on their DSST grid and was able to reclassify some ACE credits which were taken but not coded for courses. If you don't find what you need then can always transfer your credits out

[sanantone]

Honestly, I don't think CLEP and DSST even need ACE for acceptance. Many schools accept them without giving any thought to their ACE status while also not accepting other types of ACE credits. I don't know why they would accept Uexcels and not TECEPs other than that Uexcels are graded. Uexcels are code with an "X" to designate them as credit by exam while TECEPs don't have a special course code. From my understanding, the acceptance of Uexcels (including what used to be ECEs) is based on their ACE approval. I just couldn't see the reasoning behind Excelsior even bothering with ACE if they treated these credits as their own. Wouldn't the regional accreditation be enough?

[Drakemoore]

If you were to have any credits tossed out then I'd advise you to fill out a form the school should have which petitions higher up the chain for acceptance. I had many of those go through for credit at my community college

Checking with someone higher up may be a good idea. Though I thought the office of registrar would about the end of that chain?

Honestly, I don't think CLEP and DSST even need ACE for acceptance. Many schools accept them without giving any thought to their ACE status while also not accepting other types of ACE credits.

I'm really not sure to be honest. Although I will say that it's not easy to find the mention of Uexcel. It's only in their Catalog and one small mention that they accept credit from them, nothing specificly, they make it fairly obscure. I know that FBOE recommends Uexcel because I ran across one of their articulation documents on the website which mentions they recommend state schools in Florida to accept credit from CLEP, AP, Excelsior and a few others. I don't think they mention ACE at all.

As far as I've seen schools in Florida will not deal with ACE credit (except CLEP / DSST as was mentioned) whatsoever, unless you're military. If you're military then it's like waiving a magic wand because some of the schools participate in a military back to school program.

I agree though, they probably accept CLEP and DSST solely on the fact that it's so very wide spread.

[cooperalex2004]

The dean of your respective program (or sometimes a department chair) typically can make a call above the head of the registrar. You may be able to take that route directly or try to find someone in an academic affairs role to assist.

Checking with someone higher up may be a good idea. Though I thought the office of registrar would about the end of that chain?



I'm really not sure to be honest. Although I will say that it's not easy to find the mention of Uexcel. It's only in their Catalog and one small mention that they accept credit from them, nothing specificly, they make it fairly obscure. I know that FBOE recommends Uexcel because I ran across one of their articulation documents on the website which mentions they recommend state schools in Florida to accept credit from CLEP, AP, Excelsior and a few others. I don't think they mention ACE at all.

As far as I've seen schools in Florida will not deal with ACE credit (except CLEP / DSST as was mentioned) whatsoever, unless you're military. If you're military then it's like waiving a magic wand because some of the schools participate in a military back to school program.

I agree though, they probably accept CLEP and DSST solely on the fact that it's so very wide spread.

[Drakemoore]

Yeah, will definitely look into it. Thanks for the tips cooper.

I looked into their documents again and figured I'd post the excerpts I was referring to for anyone that was interested.

"Credit by Examination
Section 240.4015, Florida Statutes, requires the Articulation Coordinating Committee
(ACC) to establish passing scores and course and credit equivalents for Advanced
Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), and College-Level Examination
Program (CLEP) exams. Public community colleges and universities in Florida are
required to award credit for AP, IB, CLEP, DANTES, AICE, and Excelsior College
exams as designated. Credit awarded by exam may not duplicate other credit.
Institutions may not award credit for scores below those listed by the ACC. SFCC
students may satisfy up to 45 semester hours of course credit through one or more
of the mechanisms listed below; however, a maximum of 30 hours may be awarded
for the IB diploma. Score minimums, credit hours awarded, and course equivalencies
awarded are subject to change for any examination without prior notice."

"Excelsior College Examinations
Excelsior College Examinations (formerly known as the Regents College
Examinations or the Proficiency Examination Program), are developed by Excelsior
College using national committees of faculty consultants and national studies to
assess how well the tests measure the performance of students in actual college
courses. Excelsior College Examinations are approved by the American Council on
Education and Excelsior College itself is accredited by the Middle States Association
of College and Schools (MSACS). Transfer of credit is based on the Articulation
Coordinating Committee’s recommended minimum scores and maximum amount
of credit guaranteed to transfer with no letter grades or grade points assigned.
Contact the Records Office for further information."

Funny that it mentions ACE right there.