Ashworth College - $1299-$1399 Associate Degrees + Sophia

[NotJoeBiden]

You do not get credit for F's.

Grades of D | Rutgers School of Engineering

There is no maximum or minimum number of times you can get a D grade at Rutgers. But, if at any point your overall GPA, or major GPA drops below a 2.0, you will be put on Academic Probation.

You can graduate with a 2.0 GPA in a 40 course, 120 credits Bachelors Degree program with 14 A grades and 26 D grades = 2.05 GPA.

“Although a letter grade of D is normally considered passing, it is strongly recommended that you retake any D’s received in math, science and engineering.”

[Ares]

Recommended but not required.

[NotJoeBiden]

Okay. Get a D average. Enjoy.

[Ares]

Tell me the difference between getting a D in a college course and transferring in alternative P/F ACE credits?

[NotJoeBiden]

P/F typically means they meet a C or B equivalent grade. Not a D. Im not sure how to make it any more clear that getting a D is not good.

[Ares]

Passing is passing.

[Jonathan Whatley]

70% typically corresponds with C- (materially higher than D) and with 1.7 GPA (a lot higher than 1.0).
D typically corresponds with percentages less than 70% and with 1.0 or 1.3 GPA.
A conversion chart.

[NotJoeBiden]

Passing is passing.

I am all for C’s get degrees, but that is the cutoff at most schools in general. If they are awarding degrees for people with a 1.0 then I have serious concerns about the program quality.

Standards shouldn’t be lowered just to allow people who otherwise wouldn’t have made the cut be allowed to pass. Isn’t that the argument you constantly (and inappropriately) use for abolishing government handouts, DEI, and affirmative-action?

The hypocrisy.

[Ares]

Passing is passing.

I am all for C’s get degrees, but that is the cutoff at most schools in general. If they are awarding degrees for people with a 1.0 then I have serious concerns about the program quality.

Standards shouldn’t be lowered just to allow people who otherwise wouldn’t have made the cut be allowed to pass. Isn’t that the argument you constantly (and inappropriately) use for abolishing government handouts, DEI, and affirmative-action?

The hypocrisy.

Standards shouldn't be lowered for say the physical requirements of the police and military yes but I have never argued that a passing grade should become a failing one.

[creationstory]

Looking around for something to fill in the gap for the Pierpont BOG degree, the cheapest I could come up with was Ashworth College.

Ashworth College allows you to transfer 75% of the courses for their Associate Degrees (45 out of 60 credits). This means only 5 courses (15 credits) or one semester would need to be taken at Ashworth which costs only $1299 (A.A. General Studies) of $1399 (A.S. General Business) and you have 12 months to complete them.

Using Sophia, some of their Associate Degrees should be easy and cheap to complete:

A.A. General Studies
A.S. General Business

Granted this is a NA schools so transfer options are more limited for the 15 Ashworth credits but Excelsior should take them and regardless the 45 Sophia credits are widely accepted. UMPI also accepts some courses from Ashworth.

From the Ashworth Degree Catalog 2024.

To enroll as an associate degree candidate, students must have successfully completed a high school diploma program, earned a GED or equivalent, or completed at least 12 semester credit hours of college coursework. [...]

In the associate degree program, students may receive credit for 15 courses out of 20 (45 credit hours out of 60) as a combination of transfer credits, prior learning assessment, and credit by exam. Credit by exam is limited to a maximum of 3 courses (9 credit hours). [...]

Ashworth degree programs are self-paced, and students are encouraged to set their own schedules for completing coursework. [...]

An associate degree program can be completed in approximately two years (no more than 12 months for one semester); however, students are allowed a maximum of six (6) years from the date of enrollment to complete their program. [...]

To earn an Ashworth College associate degree, a student must complete 60 credit hours with a minimum GPA of 1.00. [...]

At the end of each semester, students are required to take a proctored, online semester exam. [...] Students may use their textbooks, online and printed course materials, and notes during the exam, but may not use the Internet or previously saved electronic files. If applicable, students may access eBooks within their courses. [...] 

Semester exams are graded on a pass/fail basis and the semester exam scores are not factored into the individual course percentages or letter grades. The student must pass each section of the semester exam, earning no less than the applicable passing score of 70 percent for undergraduate semester exams to continue in the program. Students who fail the first attempt will be given one retake opportunity for each section in order to obtain the passing score. Students who fail a semester exam on their second attempt will be placed on academic review. Certain factors will be considered in determining whether the student will be permitted to remain in the program or be permanently dismissed. These factors include, but are not limited to, the student’s grade point average for the semester, the number of semesters completed, and the scores earned on the first and second attempts. [...]

The semester exam consists of five sections that cover the five courses taken in a particular semester; each section consists of ten (10) multiple-choice questions. Students are given three (3) hours to complete the semester exam.

Thoughts?

There is also a cheaper alternative to Ashworth for those looking for an associate. With Pierpont not being a viable option anymore – unfortunately – students can still work with getting a BOG at West Virginia University (WVU) at Parkersburg:

https://catalog.wvup.edu/ProgramPage/BOG_AAS/8

For this degree plan, it requires 60 credits, of which, 40 credits can be from alternative sources, 12 credits must be from a regionally accredited institution, and 3 credits must be done at WVUP. Therefore, it is possible to obtain an associate from here at a reduced cost using the following: TECEPS (RA credits) or Eerie County Community College (RA credits), Sophia (ACE credits), and WVUP (RA credits). Additionally, the degree plan requires that students complete 15 credits of gen ed under the following: Communications (3 credits), Mathematics/Natural Sciences (6 credits), Social Sciences/Humanities (3 credits), Computer Science (3 Credits).

Costs:

Sophia: Costs $99 for a 1-month membership, though discounts could make it $76. A good portion of credits can be done through this.

TECEPS: Offered through Thomas Edison, these are regionally accredited and are recorded as CR (credit) or NC (no credit). Upon completion of the exam, official transcripts will show that it was successfully completed and show credits awarded. 1000 – 2000 level courses cost $52 per credit and 3000 – 4000 level courses cost $77 per credit.

Eerie County Community College: For the past couple years now, ECCC offers tuition free semesters during the summer time for students to capitalize on.

WVUP: You must complete a 3-credit course here, but whichever of your choosing.

Degree Plan:

Sophia (45 credits):
Communications (3 credits) – Visual Communication (3)
Math/Science (6 credits) – Intro to College Math (3) and Statistic (3)
Social Sciences/Humanities (3 credits) – Intro to Psychology (3)
Computer Science (3 credits) – Intro to Web Development (3)
Additional Courses (30 credits) – Choose any courses you like

TECEPS (12 credits):
Writing for Success [ENC-1010] (3 credits)
Writing for Success II [ENC-1020] (3 credits)
Intro to Political Science [PS-1010] (3 credits)
Marriage and the Family [SOC-2100] (3 credits)

Eerie Community College (12 credits):
You choose

WVUP (3 Credits):
You choose

Total Cost:
Sophia = $99 (Varies on speed)
TECEP = $624
or
ECCC = refer to link: https://www.ec3pa.org/tuition-and-fees
WVUP = $540

Which Eerie County Community College?

I saw 2 of them.