Perfect Studying Website?

[DefaultUser]

I appreciate all the helpful remarks, and would like to remind everyone that the request is for feedback and ideas. We haven't developed a plan, and are in the idea stage. So to say we are charging people for something free is not only inaccurate, but misunderstands the whole model. So please allow me to clarify.

1. Yes, you can google anything. There is no disputing that. However, most people don't know what to look for or where to look and a lot of sites charge for information we want to compile for free. Even this forum, which holds a lot of information, has zero organization to it. That search can take hours, which many people don't have.
2. The Foundation has a goal of making college more affordable for people who can't afford it. So the primary purpose is to give away vouchers for exams and provide study materials. It's not a business or money-making enterprise.
3. Obviously, I did not need grants or charity to do my studying, and there are others like me. People who like the savings, in time and money, of testing out of college. For those people, it would be nice if they 'gave back' to the cause too. If you can afford to pay your own way, you can probably afford to donate to the cause which helps others who are unable to pay their own way. That's why we want feedback on a 'donate' button or 'pay model' for tests, content, etc. We are gathering ideas.
4. We are in no way looking to compete with this site or InstantCert. In fact, one of our ideas is to provide a grant for the monthly fee for people, so they can access the study materials. Heck, even this forum requires a paid membership to access the individual test information. So our idea SHOULD mean more revenue for InstantCert, as it is a phenomenal resources.

Finally, if all you have to do is post negative comments or laugh, you are really missing the point. It's our belief that 'where much is given, much is required'. It's important to give back, and this community has helped a great deal. We are trying to give back, and ridicule of someone trying to help reflects poorly on you. I would hope you change your tone and provide honest feedback, which you think may help someone. Not everyone is in your shoes. So yes, you may be a Google genius, but not everyone has easy, ready access to Google. Yes, you may have unlimited funds, but not everyone can afford $100 CLEP tests, or $150 Straighterline courses, or even more expensive options.

We aren't asking you to donate to our Foundation. We are asking for ideas on how to fulfill our mission better. You may not believe we can keep school information up to date, and we will have to rely on our volunteers for a lot of that. But that's no different from this forum too. Please, take a minute and give some ideas. Point out what obstacles we will encounter, and how you think we can best overcome them. Tell us what you would like to see. What information have you struggled to find when doing your tests? What has been hard for you?

No solution is perfect. But not everyone knows about DegreeForum or InstantCert. So while you may rely on this free resource, not everyone has that ability. So tell us what you love about it and what we would need to include to make our site useful (aside from giving away money for tests). I appreciate any honest, helpful feedback you have to share!

[DefaultUser]

You're asking the wrong people. You're asking us what we want when we already have it. Over the years, many members have contributed thousands of hours to adding information to this website and answering questions. Now, you're asking those people how you should best leech information off of them and charge for it. The people who would most likely use your website won't be on this forum.

I'm trying to understand how you would charge enough to fund the test vouchers and still make the subscription worthwhile. Why would I pay for study materials just to get a free test when I can just find the study materials for free and pay for the test? Plus, there are all kinds of tricks to drastically lower the cost of earning credits.

First, the Foundation is funded, so we aren't trying to develop a business model of charging Peter to pay for Paul's test. We are, however, looking for the opportunity to receive donations from people with means, to help people without means. Whether we receive those donations or not, we have the funding to provide a service to the community for some time. But anyone who runs a non-profit knows, you always have to be looking for new sources of cash to keep your project going.

You're exactly right that the people of this forum are probably not the intended audience. However, it's not meant to 'leech' off anything, and again, we aren't wanting to charge for it. We are wanting to know what services & information people find valuable and need, versus those of little value/use. This is a great site, and we aren't wanting to plagiarize or steal from it. We are wanting to find out what information is useful and needed by people who have already been down this path. Being a non-profit, we can advertise in places InstantCert cannot. I have actually given classes at some local businesses about how to test out of college, and while yes, you can Google anything, most people have never heard of this option. We are looking to fill a void that can help people.

Personally, I want to thank you, SanAntone, as I have relied heavily on your posts over the years. You are a source of great knowledge and have helped me a great deal. So thank you for all those hours you put into posting free information. This is our way of giving back. It's plain to see that you firmly believe in giving back, and share our philosophy. It's in your spirit of sharing that we want to do this.

[dfrecore]

So yes, you may be a Google genius, but not everyone has easy, ready access to Google.

No solution is perfect. But not everyone knows about DegreeForum or InstantCert. So while you may rely on this free resource, not everyone has that ability. So tell us what you love about it and what we would need to include to make our site useful (aside from giving away money for tests). I appreciate any honest, helpful feedback you have to share!

I have a question for you. It's serious, not snarky in any way, just asking. If "not everyone has easy, ready access to Google," and "not everyone knows about DegreeForum or InstantCert," how would they find out about your website?

Also, I guess a follow up to that - even if they found your website, if they don't have easy access to Google, how would they access courses/study materials, when almost everything on here requires easy access to the internet?

It seems like you're saying they don't have access to the internet, but then you're relying on the internet and a website for them to be able to access you and everything they need.

[davewill]

I appreciate all the helpful remarks, and would like to remind everyone that the request is for feedback and ideas. We haven't developed a plan, and are in the idea stage. So to say we are charging people for something free is not only inaccurate, but misunderstands the whole model. So please allow me to clarify.
...
No solution is perfect. But not everyone knows about DegreeForum or InstantCert. So while you may rely on this free resource, not everyone has that ability. So tell us what you love about it and what we would need to include to make our site useful (aside from giving away money for tests). I appreciate any honest, helpful feedback you have to share!

You're missing the point. You come here as a complete stranger, and expect us to dig in and help you with ideas. This despite there being websites out there that have mangled the job and ripped people off. To put it simply... We don't know you and we don't trust you, not yet.

If you want us to help you, you need spend time here FIRST, not come here as a newbie and tell us you're going to do it all better (Perfect!) if we only help you.

P.S. Your generic username isn't helping any with the trust thing.

[Collegelady2]

Yea I find it all a bit strange that they come on here with a completely different user name dont even bother to come on here with a username that people that have been on here a while would know them by. Seems very very sketchy.

[rlw74]

I would add a quick observation too... What happens when the information changes (and it often does rapidly).. Such as when TESU changes how they evaluate a course, or increases the residency waiver for all but study.com members, or when the content of a test is changed etc. On this forum it is almost instantly posted and discussed and compared. We often follow up with each other for weeks and months on some of these situations. If one of us runs into problems we can get advice. However we all have the understanding that we are fellow students and no one has the corner on the market or an inside edge. If I'm paying for a site that gives me advice and then something changes I'm going to feel that I paid for something I didn't get. How are you going to know when something changes? Are you going to be able to monitor all the schools, all the degree plans, all the courses (there are thousands of them) and how liable are you going to be if you miss something? The beauty of a forum is its ability to adapt. I'm not sure that a paid service that gives you the same information you can get here would be beneficial.

[keepsingin]

When I think of a helpful study site, I think of FreeClepPrep. If you created a site that had legitimate (non-cheating) study guides, instead of college/degree information, it might be better received. That being said, even just study guides could easily be an "organized extension" of this forum, like has been pointed out, and getting donations for other people's efforts is universally considered questionable. Also, one of the fundamental reasons of going nontraditional degree route is to save money, so the smart cookies out there aren't gonna pay you just because you promise to help them save money. In the end, if you're still really passionate about doing this and helping students, maybe at least forego the $$ aspect.

[dfrecore]

3. Obviously, I did not need grants or charity to do my studying, and there are others like me. People who like the savings, in time and money, of testing out of college. For those people, it would be nice if they 'gave back' to the cause too. If you can afford to pay your own way, you can probably afford to donate to the cause which helps others who are unable to pay their own way. That's why we want feedback on a 'donate' button or 'pay model' for tests, content, etc. We are gathering ideas.

I definitely can afford to pay my own way, but I feel like I already pay others' way with my tax dollars.

The way I personally "give back" is through this forum. I spend a lot of my time on here, trying to help people for free. I also help people I know or meet in my community who want a degree. I've even started helping high school kids who I meet through my kids. One of the kids in my son's Civil Air Patrol squadron was talking to me about going into the military straight out of high school. I asked if he'd thought of doing ROTC in college instead (he's a good student, even taking AP classes). He said that he has ZERO family support for his schooling, so he had no clue about college or how any of that worked. I imagine that I will be helping him over the next few months, trying to apply for scholarships and see about going to ROTC here, and whatever else I can do to help him. I'll bet a lot of people on this forum are the same, in that they are more than willing to help people do things in a non-trad (or even traditional) way if they are given even the slightest hint that someone is interested in it.

[bjcheung77]

When I think of a helpful study site, I think of FreeClepPrep. If you created a site that had legitimate (non-cheating) study guides, instead of college/degree information, it might be better received. That being said, even just study guides could easily be an "organized extension" of this forum, like has been pointed out, and getting donations for other people's efforts is universally considered questionable. Also, one of the fundamental reasons of going nontraditional degree route is to save money, so the smart cookies out there aren't gonna pay you just because you promise to help them save money. In the end, if you're still really passionate about doing this and helping students, maybe at least forego the $$ aspect.

Yes, FreeClepPrep and many of those other blogs for Homeschooling are great and free.
I also agree with the $, so I mentioned earlier in a post to use the donate option instead.
Personally, I think the OP is doing this as a "volunteer" type of thing, it's not a "side business" or anything.
I do believe their intention is to help by providing info that maybe scattered all over and centralize it.

[bjcheung77]

I definitely can afford to pay my own way, but I feel like I already pay others' way with my tax dollars.

The way I personally "give back" is through this forum. I spend a lot of my time on here, trying to help people for free. I also help people I know or meet in my community who want a degree. I've even started helping high school kids who I meet through my kids.

LOL, I feel exactly the same way as you do. I'm not "rich or anything" but I pay my own schooling (the NA and RA routes) until I found a program I wanted to stick with.
Further to that, I also meet people from work/kids preschool/sports, kids older siblings, community, neighbors, you name it... whoever needs an educated opinion on anything including their education, I am there to provide some guidance and support as well.