Why Charter Oak State College is better than Thomas Edison State College

[mednat]

I believe any attempt to make a general statement about which school is "best" is doomed to be, at best, short sighted and, at worst, harmful. I tend to agree with the logic of your first test to study for is the selection of a school/program. I started with Excelsior and after researching switched to TESC due to the easier to meet upper level requirements and cheaper tuition (using Per-credit TECEPS). So many factors in this decision are based on an individuals unique position that it would be very egotistical for me to think that I knew the best program for someone else, without knowing their situation, goals, etc.

With that said, as others have stated.

A.) COSC is not neccessarily cheaper. The cost factor is dependent on so many variables, I can only conclusively say that TESC can be cheaper than COSC. Given the plans I've seen most students follow, TESC typically comes out cheaper. This is not always true and each student should research this as if their checkbook depended on it (because it does).

B.) Easier is too subjective to even comment on intelligently. So suffice it to say, it may or may not be easier.

C.) TESC could use a more comprehensive list of what does and does not transfer, however with research I've had no trouble finding out what my source were going to transfer as. I will concede , given my lack of knowledge of COSC and the horrible state of advising at TESC, that COSC (or almost any other school) is probably better in the advising department in general. Excelsior definitely is from my experience.

D.) Fema credits mean nothing to me. I have so many easily obtainable general ed and free elective credits that were cheap and quick that I have no need to study a subject that I have no interest in. If this is related to an interest that the student has or a focus of their major -- by all means they should use them. However, with the tons of available ACE/NCCRS credits and CLEP options, I've found it extremely easy to fill the free-elective and general education credit slots.

I would say in my experience Excelsior has a significant advantage over TESC from an advising standpoint, but that for me TESC accepted many sources I had as upper level credit, where Excelsior would not.

Bottom line, research your options thoroughly and make the choice that fits your needs the most. If the name matters to you, pick one that you like the sound of. If a general studies degree bothers you, don't peruse one. The list goes on and on and on.