Help with final decision

[Shield0529]

Your Location: U.S.A.
Your Age: 44
What kind of degree do you want?: Criminal Justice / Business / Liberal/General Studies Pretty Open as its a check box.

Current Regional Accredited Credits:

Drury University 2001: 14 credits
Police Academy  on standard transcript. 


Pulaski Tech 2009 - 2016: 67 credits (Associates in General Studies) 1st check box. 
College pathways 3
English Comp 1 3
College Algebra 3
Intro to Philosophy 3
American National Gov 3
English Comp 2 3
History of Civilization 3
World Religion 3
Spanish 1 3
Speech Communication 3
Micro Econ 3
Psych and human exp 3
Biol Science w/lab 4
Macro  Econ 3
Digital Photo 3
Sociology 3
Media and Society 3
Develop Psyc 3
Social Problems 3
Life Health 3
Ethics and Society 3
Computer Concepts 3



SOPHIA): 
Environmental Science 3
A & P / W Lab 4
Intro to Business 3
Business Law 3
Business Ethics 3
Essentials of Managing Conflict 1
Conflict Resolution 3
Project Management 3

Black Rock Tech 2003: 3 credits
Law Enforcement Refresher on standard transcript

Criminal Justice Institute University of Arkansas:
Approximately 300 hours of advanced training on a non-standard transcript. 

Any certifications or military experience?
AR & MO Peace Officer License 
Professional Police Instructor
FAA Drone License
Several Private Financial Certifications BSA/AML, Human Trafficking, Financial Sector Examiner. 

Budget: Going to have to take out loans, so cheap. 
  

Commitments: I work full-time in Law Enforcement, with a decent amount of flexibility. 

Dedicated time to study: I can study approximately 1-2 hours on days I work. I can do several hours on days off.

Timeline: Finishing the courses required for the degree as quickly as possible. Ideally within the next year or so.

Tuition assistance/reimbursement: none

My motivation for earning my degree is to achieve a chief level position. 


I have looked at the UMPI BLS and CJ program as well as Texas A&M Commerce Programs.  I have not heard the best things about UMPI CJ Program, but that is the internet for you. Looking for any advice to make some final decisions. 

Thanks in advance. 

[Vle045]

Your Location: U.S.A.
Your Age: 44
What kind of degree do you want?: Criminal Justice / Business / Liberal/General Studies Pretty Open as its a check box.

Current Regional Accredited Credits:

Drury University 2001: 14 credits
Police Academy  on standard transcript. 


Pulaski Tech 2009 - 2016: 67 credits (Associates in General Studies) 1st check box. 
College pathways 3
English Comp 1 3
College Algebra 3
Intro to Philosophy 3
American National Gov 3
English Comp 2 3
History of Civilization 3
World Religion 3
Spanish 1 3
Speech Communication 3
Micro Econ 3
Psych and human exp 3
Biol Science w/lab 4
Macro  Econ 3
Digital Photo 3
Sociology 3
Media and Society 3
Develop Psyc 3
Social Problems 3
Life Health 3
Ethics and Society 3
Computer Concepts 3



SOPHIA): 
Environmental Science 3
A & P / W Lab 4
Intro to Business 3
Business Law 3
Business Ethics 3
Essentials of Managing Conflict 1
Conflict Resolution 3
Project Management 3

Black Rock Tech 2003: 3 credits
Law Enforcement Refresher on standard transcript

Criminal Justice Institute University of Arkansas:
Approximately 300 hours of advanced training on a non-standard transcript. 

Any certifications or military experience?
AR & MO Peace Officer License 
Professional Police Instructor
FAA Drone License
Several Private Financial Certifications BSA/AML, Human Trafficking, Financial Sector Examiner. 

Budget: Going to have to take out loans, so cheap. 
  

Commitments: I work full-time in Law Enforcement, with a decent amount of flexibility. 

Dedicated time to study: I can study approximately 1-2 hours on days I work. I can do several hours on days off.

Timeline: Finishing the courses required for the degree as quickly as possible. Ideally within the next year or so.

Tuition assistance/reimbursement: none

My motivation for earning my degree is to achieve a chief level position. 


I have looked at the UMPI BLS and CJ program as well as Texas A&M Commerce Programs.  I have not heard the best things about UMPI CJ Program, but that is the internet for you. Looking for any advice to make some final decisions. 

Thanks in advance. 

Hello!  My husband is a police captain, so I’ve looked at some of those options for him in the past.  As of now, he decided not to pursue a degree.  Of the two CBE options, I feel like the TAMUC program is more geared toward law enforcement officers and would be a solid choice.  

Another option I found in my searches is at Columbia Southern.  It could be a long shot, (I don’t know how many apply), but they have a scholarship option for folks seeking a degree in criminal justice.  If you are good at essay writing, the scholarship covers up to 60 credits of a degree program (that could also cover a Master’s degree).  https://www.columbiasouthern.edu/tuition...holarship/
Their tuition is pretty low compared to a lot of schools, and there’s a long list of “Learning Partners” that get discounts and scads of scholarships. And they have a partnership with Sophia, so those credits should transfer pretty easily too.

[Shield0529]

Your Location: U.S.A.
Your Age: 44
What kind of degree do you want?: Criminal Justice / Business / Liberal/General Studies Pretty Open as its a check box.

Current Regional Accredited Credits:

Drury University 2001: 14 credits
Police Academy  on standard transcript. 


Pulaski Tech 2009 - 2016: 67 credits (Associates in General Studies) 1st check box. 
College pathways 3
English Comp 1 3
College Algebra 3
Intro to Philosophy 3
American National Gov 3
English Comp 2 3
History of Civilization 3
World Religion 3
Spanish 1 3
Speech Communication 3
Micro Econ 3
Psych and human exp 3
Biol Science w/lab 4
Macro  Econ 3
Digital Photo 3
Sociology 3
Media and Society 3
Develop Psyc 3
Social Problems 3
Life Health 3
Ethics and Society 3
Computer Concepts 3



SOPHIA): 
Environmental Science 3
A & P / W Lab 4
Intro to Business 3
Business Law 3
Business Ethics 3
Essentials of Managing Conflict 1
Conflict Resolution 3
Project Management 3

Black Rock Tech 2003: 3 credits
Law Enforcement Refresher on standard transcript

Criminal Justice Institute University of Arkansas:
Approximately 300 hours of advanced training on a non-standard transcript. 

Any certifications or military experience?
AR & MO Peace Officer License 
Professional Police Instructor
FAA Drone License
Several Private Financial Certifications BSA/AML, Human Trafficking, Financial Sector Examiner. 

Budget: Going to have to take out loans, so cheap. 
  

Commitments: I work full-time in Law Enforcement, with a decent amount of flexibility. 

Dedicated time to study: I can study approximately 1-2 hours on days I work. I can do several hours on days off.

Timeline: Finishing the courses required for the degree as quickly as possible. Ideally within the next year or so.

Tuition assistance/reimbursement: none

My motivation for earning my degree is to achieve a chief level position. 


I have looked at the UMPI BLS and CJ program as well as Texas A&M Commerce Programs.  I have not heard the best things about UMPI CJ Program, but that is the internet for you. Looking for any advice to make some final decisions. 

Thanks in advance. 

Hello!  My husband is a police captain, so I’ve looked at some of those options for him in the past.  As of now, he decided not to pursue a degree.  Of the two CBE options, I feel like the TAMUC program is more geared toward law enforcement officers and would be a solid choice.  

Another option I found in my searches is at Columbia Southern.  It could be a long shot, (I don’t know how many apply), but they have a scholarship option for folks seeking a degree in criminal justice.  If you are good at essay writing, the scholarship covers up to 60 credits of a degree program (that could also cover a Master’s degree).  https://www.columbiasouthern.edu/tuition...holarship/
Their tuition is pretty low compared to a lot of schools, and there’s a long list of “Learning Partners” that get discounts and scads of scholarships.  And they have a partnership with Sophia, so those credits should transfer pretty easily too.

That looks excellent, thank you.  I will look into that school.

[Vle045]

Good luck! I hope you find a great fit. A nice thing about Columbia Southern is they have a lot of options within criminal justice depending on your interests/career path.

[txc1500]

I highly recommend the Texas A&M University-Commerce program. Their staff is pretty well versed at working with students that have a law enforcement background and their criminal justice program is directly geared toward Texas Peace Officers but I'm sure they can probably work with your experience as well.

[ItsNeverTheLionsYear]

Columbia Southern is a for profit school, for what it's worth. Based on their loan default rates they don't seem to have quite the same problems as a Phoenix or DeVry but I would be at least a little wary, just in case.

[bjcheung77]

@Shield0529, Welcome to the board, it's great you've provided most of the details on the addendum plus template, but it's missing the 'state' you're in. Are you in Arkansas still or did you move out of the state? By knowing a little bit more info on which state you're currently in, we can see if there are particular institutions locally or online that may suit you more. To maximize your credits, I suggest going the Sohpia.org route and then laddering up to the UMPI degree of choice, such as the BA CJ or BLS CJ minor, if you're in Texas, then TAMUC would be my first choice...