Opinions Please!

[snazzlefrag]

I realize that this is a subjective question, but I would like to throw it out there anyway in case some of you have some imput - I need a BA/BS only to be able to get into graduate school (social work). So what I would like some opinions on is whether it is safe to just go with a completely external degree (like Excelsior) or whether it would be better to transfer 78-80 credits to a 'degree completion' kind of program that would give me a BA in Human Resource Mgmt after I put in my 44 odd credit hours worth of work that is their minimum required number to graduate from them. Any thoughts? How will my state university (OSU) graduate school regard an Excelsior degree versus a degree at least partially earned in actual classes?

Hi Johanna,

Most graduate schools are primarily looking for completion of a Regionally Accredited undergraduate degree, a minimum required GPA (ie, 2.0, 3.0 or 3.5); fulfillment of any required pre-requisites for entry into a given graduate program (a degree in a specific subject, or certain undergraduate credits); entrance test scores such as MAT or GRE etc.; a really good entrance essay; and/or letters of recommendation.

Each schools admissions policies are different, but in general, you shouldn't have any problem getting in if you can meet the above types of entrance requirements.

Obviously, if you have a 1.8 GPA and your desired graduate school requires a 2.0, you will have problems. If your desired school requires an undergraduate degree in a specific subject, and you don't have it, that might cause problems (but usually they allow you to take "bridging courses" to fulfill their pre-requisites).

The other situation in which you might have trouble, would be if you are trying to get into one of the 'elite' schools. But that goes without saying, and most students, REGARDLESS of where or how they got their UG degree, would have a hard time getting into the elite schools.

There are NUMEROUS examples of Excelsior grads going on to earn masters and doctorates at conventional schools. So I don't think you will encounter any problems. But, if you are at all nervous, you should contact a few schools on your list of 'potentials' and ask them what their policy is on Excelsior degrees. You will probably find that, for the vast majority of them, it will not be an issue at all. Rather, they will be looking to see if you can fulfill some combination (or all) of the admissions requirements I mentioned in my first paragraph.

By all means, do your research up front so there will be no surprises later on. But as I said, I doubt you will encounter an admissions issue solely because you tested out of your degree at Excelsior.

Hope that helps,
Snazzlefrag