We Have Moved on From the Basic “Big 3” Colleges and Now Have CBE Big 3 and Others

[Alpha]

Honestly, I feel like the Big Three is now down to the Big Two, and I don't think it's at all true that "the big three shine as brightly as they always have."  COSC seems to have literally thumbed their nose at anyone seeking alt credit/fast completion.  They are far more restrictive, have more specific distribution requirements, reject a lot of alt credit sources outright, and, quite honestly, don't seem to have much of anything going for them at this point. They might as well have put out a press release that said "Don't come here if you are looking for a rapid completion, flexible program."

On the other hand, I'd argue that UMPI seems to have completely supplanted the uniqueness and value proposition that Charter Oak once held.  So maybe there's still a Big Three, just not the same Three as it once was.

c

I am not an historian of the Big 3 but I believe that once upon a time it was possible to do 100% of the credits through some transfer mechanism.  The credits themselves were coming from virtually everywhere.  FEMA credits were a favorite as they were essentially effortless to collect.  At some point they became more restrictive with transfer credits and began requiring some sort of capstone project.  Those 2 developments brought the shine down a bit, in my mind at least.  That is, if your standard of value is "cheaper-faster."  Personally, I think the value of the degree went up when they added the capstone.  I don't track costs but they're still among the cheapest.  That's good.  I'd make it even cheaper.  Just figuring out the rules, potential transfer credits,  alternate credits, and all that stuff is like taking a course.  The people who go this route are scrappers in the best sense of the word.  We know that determination is the quality most highly corelated to success.  As was said recently in another thread, there are not these sorts of options for students in other countries.  The Big 3, as credit aggregators, are a uniquely American thing.  I think it's good.  It works for a segment of the student population. I think it would be better if there were available even more flexible options.  I'd like to see something geared toward Neurodivergent flexibility- programs designed for ASD/ADHD students.  Personally, I actually do better by taking organized courses.  Partially it's because I do better with external deadlines, specific assignments, etc. to help me organize the material.  I don't mind the chat assignments and try to take them seriously (even though I know that some others don't.)  I tend to take courses that are writing intensive and I have a strong preference for the 16 week semester.  I know that makes me hopelessly old fashioned, but it is what it is.  I'm glad that people have a wide range of options available and I'd like to see it get wider.  I think the mergers we've been seeing continue to keep places alive.  I think schools need to address the real problems of real people.  They need to address the employment issue.  It's not enough to require everyone to take 6 credits of Programming.  This is the latest experiment that I've seen
The story behind the new Catholic college that helps students avoid “crippling debt” (aleteia.org)