Sophia Review: Finished 6 Courses in 1 Week

[Ares]

I can honestly say this is the best way to take college courses online for credit

3 College Readiness 98% (the easiest course on Sophia even with writing the paper)
3 Introduction to Information Technology 94% (easy for anyone with an IT background)
3 Visual Communications 97% (easy but you may need to watch some videos here or there)
3 Environmental Science 95% (the only course that took me more than one day of free time, moderately difficult, you just have to push through it)
3 Introduction to Nutrition 98% (I blew through this course but then again I research nutrition as one of my hobbies, otherwise moderately difficult.)
1 The Essentials of Managing Conflict 100% (not hard but boring and irrelevant information)

Ironically I did not read anything for Introduction to IT and Introduction to Nutrition otherwise I would have scored higher. Since all of these are pass/fail it does not really matter. I also noticed that when I got a question wrong, it was because I was going too fast and read it wrong. The way they phrase questions sometimes just wastes your time.

The difficulty of the courses is going to depend largely on your background. I see no reason why anyone competent would not be able to complete at least one unit of a course a night.

College Readiness may seem like a joke to anyone who has previously attended a 4 year university but it is essential information for someone starting out, do not skim through it if that is the case. Freshman Seminar on my transcript from my university is worth 0 credits so this is a better deal and much more informative. Courses like Introduction to Nutrition are very good courses if you want to learn something relevant to everyday life. Visual Communications also has a unit on fonts and I recommend reading and/or watching all the material there if you are in IT.

If you are debating on using the platform, give it a try. Start with College Readiness and knock that out to give you some confidence.

[Old Guy]

All that's going to happen with people bragging like this will be that opportunities for people will disappear. Stuff like this always gets back to colleges and accreditors and they have serious decisions to make. Again, people please don't do this.

[bjcheung77]

Most of the classes from Sophia.org that do not have touchstones can be done fairly quickly with previous knowledge, even the ones with touchstones can be done a little longer if the person spends the time completing the associated touchstone writings in a timely manner...

[Ares]

All that's going to happen with people bragging like this will be that opportunities for people will disappear.  Stuff like this always gets back to colleges and accreditors and they have serious decisions to make.  Again, people please don't do this.

What I did is no different than someone testing out of the classes. These were not easy questions anyone could just guess unless you already knew the material which I did in most of these cases. The only course where the answers were obvious most of the time was College Readiness and that is only if you have previously attended college and understand how to write and cite papers. I also watched any videos at max 2x speed, again not recommended for most people.

I have taken plenty of college courses and the material learned in the Sophia courses is complete for the subject matter. If I did not know these subjects I would have learned plenty by going through all the material. I know a lot about IT and Nutrition and both of these courses offered good information that was relevant if you know nothing about either topic. Anyone taking those Sophia courses would come out with the same knowledge as anyone taking the same course at a regular university. I actually think you would learn more with Sophia in these case because they cut out all the filler information.

The best way to describe Sophia courses is a more modern, digital cliff notes version of a college course. You learn the same amount of information but in less time which is how learning should be, not drawn out for no reason other than that is how it has always been done.

For the record I started on Macroeconomics and had to slow down after the first unit because I am going to have to read all this material and take my time.

[Chankosumo]

What I did is no different than someone testing out of the classes. These were not easy questions anyone could just guess unless you already knew the material which I did in most of these cases. The only course where the answers were obvious most of the time was College Readiness and that is only if you have previously attended college and understand how to write and cite papers. I also watched any videos at max 2x speed, again not recommended for most people.

What @Old Guy clearly meant was not what you did, but instead he talks about the way you present your experience (by pointing out the time it took you for the courses and the score %). 
It is understandable that the level of excitement is quite high when you end up doing several classes this quick. However, the people responsible for allowing us to have those courses count as real college credits may read it quite differently.  And no, Sophia is not a testing out platform. It is, in fact, a platform for online COURSES, as we can read on the main page of the website. A course and a test-out program like CLEP by definition are the exact opposite of each other (one is earning credits by taking a course, and the other one is being able to earn credits by AVOIDING taking a course) so this may affect the interpretation by agencies like ACE for how credits should be awarded. 

I have taken plenty of college courses and the material learned in the Sophia courses is complete for the subject matter. If I did not know these subjects I would have learned plenty by going through all the material. I know a lot about IT and Nutrition and both of these courses offered good information that was relevant if you know nothing about either topic. Anyone taking those Sophia courses would come out with the same knowledge as anyone taking the same course at a regular university. I actually think you would learn more with Sophia in these case because they cut out all the filler information.

The best way to describe Sophia courses is a more modern, digital cliff notes version of a college course. You learn the same amount of information but in less time which is how learning should be, not drawn out for no reason other than that is how it has always been done.

In reality, this is demonstrably false. Theoretically, as we are not FORCED to speedrun, we are allowed to do one Sophia course for months if we will. You may then suggest that the material is on par with a college course (which is still grossly false - there are, for example, so few exercises in the College Algebra course, so good luck actually LEARNING the material (and by "learning" I mean in a way that will stick for longer than few weeks, days even)). However, like I mentioned, in reality, few of us sign up for a Sophia course in order to do it for a few months, just a single one.  And then we have the fairly obvious fallacy of hasty generalization - you suggest that your experience will be shared by "anyone". No.

[ss20ts]

All that's going to happen with people bragging like this will be that opportunities for people will disappear.  Stuff like this always gets back to colleges and accreditors and they have serious decisions to make.  Again, people please don't do this.

Yup. This is what did Shmoop in. Looks like they offered a TON of courses. Then people went online bragging about completing a course in 30 seconds and soon they were forced to make changes. Instead, they just shutdown their ACE credits which in the end hurt everyone.

[Ares]

What @Old Guy clearly meant was not what you did, but instead he talks about the way you present your experience (by pointing out the time it took you for the courses and the score %).
It is understandable that the level of excitement is quite high when you end up doing several classes this quick. However, the people responsible for allowing us to have those courses count as real college credits may read it quite differently.  And no, Sophia is not a testing out platform. It is, in fact, a platform for online COURSES, as we can read on the main page of the website. A course and a test-out program like CLEP by definition are the exact opposite of each other (one is earning credits by taking a course, and the other one is being able to earn credits by AVOIDING taking a course) so this may affect the interpretation by agencies like ACE for how credits should be awarded.

You both misread the post then because I wasn't "excited" when I made it. Just because it is not a testing platform does not mean it prevents anyone from effectively testing out of a course by just taking the quizzes, tests and final. I see no difference from someone who knows the material for a college course to take quizzes, test and the final spread out over 15 weeks and someone taking these concurrently in a shortened time period. I have a life long friend who in HS would get an A on any test so long as it was multiple-choice, he never studied for any classes once he found out the test format (he used to call it multiple guess), graduated at the top of our class, went to Lehigh University and has had a great career. 

In reality, this is demonstrably false. Theoretically, as we are not FORCED to speedrun, we are allowed to do one Sophia course for months if we will. You may then suggest that the material is on par with a college course (which is still grossly false - there are, for example, so few exercises in the College Algebra course, so good luck actually LEARNING the material (and by "learning" I mean in a way that will stick for longer than few weeks, days even)). However, like I mentioned, in reality, few of us sign up for a Sophia course in order to do it for a few months, just a single one.  And then we have the fairly obvious fallacy of hasty generalization - you suggest that your experience will be shared by "anyone".

That was not even close to my intent which you are misrepresenting here. What I stated was my subjective opinion which you cannot claim is objectively false. I will rephrase it, "IMO, most people taking Sophia courses should come out with the same knowledge as anyone taking a similar course at a regular university" and I stand by that. I think the courses for what they cover are solid. Everyone learns differently and that includes the number of exercises one may or may not do on a subject. I have not needed to do repetitive exercises to learn many things and neither has many other people. Also for working adults many GE requirements are just a check box for a degree and are not going to help them in their career.

There is a lot of information I left out in my post that could help many people complete those courses that I will not be sharing for obvious reasons. The review was not to give people the impression of how long it should take them to complete these courses but rather their difficulty; easy, moderate etc... I presented my experience and results as from someone who knew the material for those subjects and did well in them so the review is taken more seriously.

And no I do not think most people could finish 6 courses in a week. I am actually thinking about recommending these for people I know who need to complete a degree but I am concerned about some of them struggling with them. The people I feel comfortable recommending these to already have degrees.

[Chankosumo]

You both misread the post then because I wasn't "excited" when I made it.

I wonder why we misread the post? Do we actually do so, or you simply go defensive mode? 

Just because it is not a testing platform does not mean it prevents anyone from effectively testing out of a course by just taking the quizzes, tests and final. I see no difference from someone who knows the material for a college course to take quizzes, test and the final spread out over 15 weeks and someone taking these concurrently in a shortened time period.

I did already mention that our concern here is not what you "effectively" did, nor are most of us unaware of what a Sophia course is. And yes, completing 6 Sophia courses in 1 week is not all that shocking to some of us either. But our opinion on the matter is not of much of importance. If a course is dubbed exactly as a "course", then it is not a test-out exam, no matter if we feel like it is or not. Another member did give you an example with the fate of another former ACE credit provider. And in an attempt to avoid yet another "but this is not what I meant" post, I'll put it like this - making a thread of this kind, at least in my opinion, reads as boasting. There is a massive course review thread where members can share their reviews on courses and provide some actual utility. 

That was not even close to my intent which you are misrepresenting here.

Well of course you are going to say that. Yet what I mentioned earlier is still how I read your thread. Am I wrong? I could be. That's why wording is important. Because just like one random forum member like me reads your post wrong (still cannot be certain if this is the case at all!), ACE or the course providers too may read it wrong (again, if it is wrong at all).
 

What I stated was my subjective opinion which you cannot claim is objectively false.

The way you worded it (and even in bold!), again, reads a lot more like a certainty than a mere subjective opinion. 

I will rephrase it, "IMO, most people taking Sophia courses should come out with the same knowledge as anyone taking a similar course at a regular university" and I stand by that. I think the courses for what they cover are solid. Everyone learns differently and that includes the number of exercises one may or may not do on a subject. I have not needed to do repetitive exercises to learn many things and neither has many other people. Also for working adults many GE requirements are just a check box for a degree and are not going to help them in their career.

This, now that you rephrased it, is a better attempt to share an opinion. I do not share this view at all, but that is all fine.

There is a lot of information I left out in my post that could help many people complete those courses that I will not be sharing for obvious reasons. The review was not to give people the impression of how long it should take them to complete these courses but rather their difficulty; easy, moderate etc... I presented my experience and results as from someone who knew the material for those subjects and did well in them so the review is taken more seriously.

And that is exactly why this thread exists. And of course, even in that thread a post about completed course may be misread.


Now, before you even consider that this kind of a feedback on a thread is somehow abnormal, take a look at this one . I did not even bother posting there as some of the forum members did point out their concerns about having such threads and I do share those concerns too. Naturally, it is a good thing for all to share success stories of any kind (like a quick course, quick degree, cheap credits etc.). But depending on how we word those success stories, some readers may misread them, just like you suggest that we do here.

[Ares]

I wonder why we misread the post? Do we actually do so, or you simply go defensive mode?

Yes you attempted to imply a made up emotion and interpretation out of context for what I stated. I think anyone would get annoyed when someone starts making things up about your intentions.

I did already mention that our concern here is not what you "effectively" did, nor are most of us unaware of what a Sophia course is. And yes, completing 6 Sophia courses in 1 week is not all that shocking to some of us either. But our opinion on the matter is not of much of importance. If a course is dubbed exactly as a "course", then it is not a test-out exam, no matter if we feel like it is or not. Another member did give you an example with the fate of another former ACE credit provider. And in an attempt to avoid yet another "but this is not what I meant" post, I'll put it like this - making a thread of this kind, at least in my opinion, reads as boasting. There is a massive course review thread where members can share their reviews on courses and provide some actual utility.

You should be more careful before assigning absolutes to someone's statements without clarification and that way you would not be forced to double down on your strawman arguments as you did here.

Well of course you are going to say that. Yet what I mentioned earlier is still how I read your thread. Am I wrong? I could be. That's why wording is important. Because just like one random forum member like me reads your post wrong (still cannot be certain if this is the case at all!), ACE or the course providers too may read it wrong (again, if it is wrong at all).

Of course I am going to always say what I actually meant not what someone fantasizes about.
 

The way you worded it (and even in bold!), again, reads a lot more like a certainty than a mere subjective opinion.

Usually when someone states something as an objective fact they use those words.

And that is exactly why this thread exists. And of course, even in that thread a post about completed course may be misread.

I was not interested in that thread so I posted it here.

But depending on how we word those success stories, some readers may misread them, just like you suggest that we do here.

That was not a "suggestion" it is an irrefutable fact.

In regards to people finding out about Sophia and an average time to complete most of their courses, that cat has long been out of the bag and is all over reddit.

[Old Guy]

Yup. This is what did Shmoop in. Looks like they offered a TON of courses. Then people went online bragging about completing a course in 30 seconds and soon they were forced to make changes. Instead, they just shutdown their ACE credits which in the end hurt everyone.

I took a crap load of Shmoop courses.  They had endless English Lit courses.  In the two Shakespeare courses I studied about 20 or more plays.  Clue to Shakespeare - don't read the books, watch the plays.  Some schools quit accepting their courses and then they dropped their ACE recommendation.  That was a crime.