Help choosing between two programs for this Fall

[RJ77]

$78K for a bachelor's degree? That's definitely not what we do around here. Neither is $48K. I mean there are parts of the country where you could buy a really nice house for $78K.

Honestly starting to question your intelligence here. UMPI is a puss poor ranked school. I’m looking for a quality Jesuit education. Both these schools and programs are nationally ranked. Also the tuition for my Georgetown program is just slightly higher than my state university for an online education. If you looked at my Georgetown faculty compared to UMPI and my state University it’s  night and day in comparison to quality recognition and respect. You guys are nuts

On your previous account you said that you decided on Georgetown. What made you change your mind? Basically, go with whichever one you think is the better option. In general though, you're not going to find many people on here who will advocate for an undergrad degree that costs mid to high 5 figures. People don't really care if UMPI has "piss poor" rankings. If you notice, there's even a separate sub-forum for UMPI here. The main theme on this forum is fast, efficient, and inexpensive. Besides, you're talking about a Liberal Studies B.A. It doesn't really matter if you get it from Harvard or a Cracker Jack box. If you were getting scholarships for the other 2 schools and were planning on attending in person to get the full college experience, that would be understandable. But without scholarships, to put yourself into that kind of debt just to attend the online version of one of those schools isn't something that most here would recommend.

[ss20ts]

$78K for a bachelor's degree? That's definitely not what we do around here. Neither is $48K. I mean there are parts of the country where you could buy a really nice house for $78K.

Honestly starting to question your intelligence here. UMPI is a puss poor ranked school. I’m looking for a quality Jesuit education. Both these schools and programs are nationally ranked. Also the tuition for my Georgetown program is just slightly higher than my state university for an online education. If you looked at my Georgetown faculty compared to UMPI and my state University it’s  night and day in comparison to quality recognition and respect. You guys are nuts

UMPI is a state university. You're questioning my intelligence? I'm not the one wasting $78K on a degree. A quality Jesuit education isn't going to make any difference in the real world when comes to landing a job. Unless you're 20 years old and your parents are paying for your degree, it's  waste of money. Sure Georgetown may open some doors career wise if you are going into certain fields such as business, law, or research. But for most people on here, $78K is a ridiculous amount to spend on any degree. I cannot believe that in state tuition at any state university system would be anywhere near that same price. You're questioning our intelligence yet we're not the ones throwing money away. I'll have earned 5 degrees for less money than your $48K degree including 2 master's degrees.

[bjcheung77]

Honestly, everyone is going to think differently, you'll be swayed in all directions, the only one who can decide is you... Advice is just that, you're looking at what others are going to recommend you, but ultimately, you make the final decision.  There are so many various pathways you can take to get to your end goal, it depends on what you have for the addendum and template (which you haven't filled in to provide a bigger overall picture, such as your budget, scholarships, tuition reimbursement, timeline, support system, commitments, and the whole nine yards).  In order to help you better, that's the main thing I tell people to provide, otherwise it's like giving people a puzzle with half or less pieces and asking to have the full thing completed...

Here's an example I've used before, pretend you want to get a degree at Harvard Extension School, a Bachelors in whatever and it's going to cost you $50K for 4 years of study. I usually recommend people to skip that and instead go for the Masters that will cost you $40K and take 2 years, as the admissions is only a Bachelors, you can get a cheap, easy, fast, public/state institution (not the for-profit ones).  You get a Bachelors and Masters for less and you have an extra year to work on something you want to work on, such as a gap year volunteering at an orphanage or something, that can be paid for with the savings you'll get... Or use that cash you saved to send your parents to a 'good' holiday vacation to Hawaii, or whatever else that comes to mind!

Another example, there are ways to go about doing things differently, it depends if the institution you're going for will allow a second Bachelors or not.  Someone on this board (and also a member of the sister board) had something similar, but instead they wanted a NYC SPS degree and that institution doesn't allow second Bachelors, this is my recommendation to them, you may also want to read the entire thread from first to last post to get more details (Awesome eh?): https://www.degreeinfo.com/index.php?thr...ost-556434

If you're adamant in going for this particular degree from Georgetown, maximize the transfers using CLEP, you get 54 in electives entirely FREE using ModernStates, you can get 10 extra freebie credits if they allow it in the Gen Eds/Major.  Thus chopping it down from $48K to $24K, you also save a year of study doing this way as you can get those 64 credits in less than a year, saving you energy, money, time... My advice used to be the cheap, easy, fast ways, then it streamlined to better ROI/Value, lastly or more recently, my suggestions now are usually more personalized to each individual after they provide details in the addendum/template...

[SilentWarrior]

I was admitted to both schools for an online undergraduate degree in general studies. With my program at Villanova I get a solid core curriculum that’s the same as all colleges and schools and get to essentially create my major based off my strengths. At Georgetown I get a liberal arts degree with an 18 credit core curriculum and a 48 hour concentration. I feel like Villanova has a better administration and is more hands on and available compared to Georgetown’s administration. Georgetown’s program is at the scs school which is downtown dc. Villanova is through CPS and is right on main campus. For some reason I get a more authentic vibe through Villanova CPS than Georgetown SCS. Also I was told by the enrollment counselor at Villanova that my academic advisor I have is particularly an excellent one. Both are around the same price for me so cost isn’t an issue for either. For someone interested in General studies which would you choose?

[bjcheung77]

Previously Georgetown vs Saint Louis, now Georgetown vs Villanova... Everything is going to depend on what you need and want, advice is just that. You'll be swayed in all directions, you just need to find the answer within yourself before and after reading their reviews through other posts or online reviews, threads, etc.

[SilentWarrior]

Previously Georgetown vs Saint Louis, now Georgetown vs Villanova... Everything is going to depend on what you need and want, advice is just that.  You'll be swayed in all directions, you just need to find the answer within yourself before and after reading their reviews through other posts or online reviews, threads, etc.

Thanks for the advice!

[mohelena02]

Ended up deciding on Georgetown. Faculty bios are off the charts. I get a ton of great Business classes. Liberal arts courses. 54 electives. After I graduate I’ll get to walk in the official school commencement on campus in Spring. I’ll have 100% full Georgetown University alumni benefits and officially be part of the Association upon graduation. I’m going to work in sales/ marketing for a few years and save some money while taking a break before pursuing my masters in Applied Intelligence through the same school. I feel I have a great path and at $400 per credit, that’s an amazing deal. Their masters programs are much more expensive. It feels great being part of that high lofty altitude of elite private Jesuit education. Hoya Saxa!

P.S. My degree is identical to traditional students who graduate from the college of arts. It says “Georgetown University” and not “Georgetown University School for Continuing Studies” also Saint Louis’s program is through their “School for Professional Studies” ?‍♂️

How is it going? My partner is in this program and he loves it.

[bjcheung77]

Wow, that's expensive, College of Professional Studies Part Time Studies Program Rates 2024 - 2025
Per Credit Rate, Night, Day, Visiting Student
Night $790, Day Rate $1,310
Visiting Student Rate $1,392

Never fear, they allow 90 credits for transfer! So, as I mentioned over and over again, max those transfers too!
CLEP, Challenge Exam, etc are options, even ACE but for Military.
Link: https://www1.villanova.edu/dam/villanova...Policy.pdf

[SilentWarrior]

Previously Georgetown vs Saint Louis, now Georgetown vs Villanova... Everything is going to depend on what you need and want, advice is just that.  You'll be swayed in all directions, you just need to find the answer within yourself before and after reading their reviews through other posts or online reviews, threads, etc.

My problem is out of all my options I absolutely love my Villanova program. Love my advisor and the administration. My program has the most options for classes that I want. I love the core curriculum. Georgetown program has a lot of red flags. I heard they are lowering the requirements in 2025 because they don’t have enough classes. Also the Georgetown program seems odd. Only 18 core curriculum 48 credit concentration with 54 electives. Why such a small core? Doesn’t seem like a faith based curriculum yet a rigorous one at the same time like Villanova. Georgetown’s program is only in its first year online. My program at Villanova has been around since 2014. I also like how involved my Villanova program is with the main campus and school. I like how it’s a smaller program and school. I’m an undergrad and it seems Georgetown scs focuses more on graduate programs. Villanova seems more focused on undergrad which is what I need.