BS in Psychology - Cheap and Fast (and dirty)

[Merlin]

Hello! I am a new poster and have been searching the forum for a few weeks for concise information. I read through and found my way to the mirror of the Wikia, which was very helpful. I am new to concepts related to higher education, so finding valuable information amongst the forum posts was a challenge. There is a lot of acronyms and terms being thrown around. So, being that there seems to be no shortage of helpful posters, I thought I’d ask directly.

I want to know the fastest and cheapest way for someone with no college experience to get a BS in Psychology! Preferably in a manner that breaks things down for me. From what I understand the process is basically to:

1. Find school that offers degree I want (preferably Big 3 for ease of use?)

2. See what credits are required for degree

3. Find cheapest and simplest way to fulfill those credits (including free credits etc)

4. Apply to chosen school

5. Transfer credits

6. Capstone??? (No idea what this even is!)

7. Degree

Thanks much to anyone willing to guide me a bit on this. I’ll take any and all help even if it is links to other older posts that I missed.

For the most part, your list is correct. However, unless you're looking at one of the Big 3, your next steps may be more challenging. Particularly if you plan to transfer in a lot of non-traditional courses like the ones we tend to focus on here on this forum. Most schools have restrictions on the number of transfer credits allowed (90 is typically the max for a bachelor's degree) and those usually need to come from an accredited college or university. The Big 3 will allow you to transfer up to 117 credits towards a bachelor's degree.

If your goal is to move quickly, you'll be looking at non-traditional credits via CLEP, DSST, ACE, or NCCRS recommendations. The number of schools that accept those credits, particularly in large quantities, is tiny. This is why the Big 3 are so important. We also tend to suggest WGU; they don't allow as many transfer credits as the Big 3, but they accept a lot, including CLEP and ACE. They also have affordable tuition and you can move through the coursework quickly if you have relevant skills and/or experience.

Of the big 3, TESU (Thomas Edison State University) is the most popular and well-understood of the schools on this forum. Degree plans for a TESU Psychology degree are floating around, and there are people here who can help you customize one to your particular goals.

As for the rest, a lot will depend on what existing credits you have, where they are from, and whether you have enough to warrant an evaluation. We usually recommended that people apply early so they can see where existing credits fall in a chosen degree plan. However, if you're looking at TESU, you only get two free evaluations when you first apply. So if you're coming in with no (or few) existing credits, applying early isn't that useful.

The capstone is a requirement for graduation. Each degree has its own capstone which is specific to the learning outcomes for that degree. It cannot be transferred in, so must be taken directly from the school. In addition to the capstone, most schools/degrees will require a cornerstone as well. The cornerstone sort of functions like an orientation course. The one for TESU can be completed in a few hours, and registering for it will enroll you in the school officially.

Hopefully, that answers some of your questions and provides a starting point to ask others.