Questions about testing out classes

Discussion in 'CLEP, DANTES, and Other Exams for Credit' started by Crazyzippo, Nov 18, 2013.

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  1. Crazyzippo

    Crazyzippo New Member

    I am currently located in Indiana and work as a Financial Advisor with my series 7 and series 66 finra licensing, the company I work for hired me based on my experience and ability to speak to others, not my education or lack there of. I am enrolled in a 3 year training program. The problem that was brought to my attention is that the requirements for the program requires a degree in order to take to obtain to CFP designation (a requirement of the program,which takes about a year to get), somehow I slid under the radar.
    After a few conversations with my complex manager I was asked very politely to either find a way to finish my degree or think about a position that doesnt involve needing the CFP designation to complete(much much lower pay) and to which I have to bring them a formalized plan with quarterly updates to keep the position that I have.
    I have been a fan of this site for sometime and was the first thing I thought about after the conversation I had with upper management.
    Heres my question, since I took some class few years back and still in good standings with the school can I just use that school (ivytech in indiana) as a platform to take some of my test out tests (they offer clep and dantes) or do i have to be enrolled in one of the big 3 in order to get the most cost effective credits.
    So to simplify test here what I can locally then transfer or just transfer now and enrolled in one of the big 3 then begin the testing?
    BTW I am thinkging of Sanatones BSBA in general management to help speed up the process.
    Thanks so much for all your help,
    Crazyzippo
     
  2. cookderosa

    cookderosa Resident Chef

    The big three are simply schools vetted by those who study this stuff, as the most test-friendly. In other words, 2900 +/- schools accept CLEP, but those three (affectionately called the big three) are going to allow 100% of qualifying exams to be used in a degree program as long as they fit in the degree program. The other part of that, is that they accept scores that meet or exceed the ACE score required (some schools accept CLEP but demand higher scores).
    So, to use IvyTech, you simply look up their CLEP policy and find the most affordable test center and go for it!

    I looked up IvyTech, they are a community college, so they will only be able to award an AA or AS. Do you need a bachelor's degree or will an associate's suffice?

    If you can do this with only the AA, your college's CLEP acceptance policy is nice. http://www.ivytech.edu/pla/ClepDantesCrosswalk-Aug2013.pdf
    They accept standard ACE level scores (like the big 3) and looks like they accept most-not all- of the exams (big 3 accept all) and as to how many you can use in your degree, I can't figure out. It looks as if it depends on the specific department. The big 3 accept all exams, but you may be required to complete 1 course at the school depending on the degree and school. Ivy likely requires no fewer than 15 credits to be earned in house, which you may have already done. The trick is figuring out if you can meet the deficiency using only exams. Easy to do with the big 3, with Ivy you'll have to get the policies in writing as they apply to you and then go from there.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Nov 19, 2013
  3. Shawn Ambrose

    Shawn Ambrose New Member

    In your situation, depending on how many credits you have at Ivy Tech - I would consider earning the AA/AS at Ivy Tech then rolling into a Big 3 degree. You can use the AA/As as a milestone in the process, and a verifiable achievemenet along the way.

    Good luck.

    Shawn
     
  4. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    I agree. The only reason I didn't pick up an Associate degree along the way is that I didn't qualify for one until just a few months before I finished my Bachelor degree (for want of a science general ed).
     
  5. sanantone

    sanantone Well-Known Member

    I'm going to have to disagree with everyone here. LOL. Whether or not you should get an associate's from Ivy Tech depends on how close you are to an associate's. I know that if I wanted to get an associate's from the community colleges I've attended, even with all of my degrees, it would require a semester or two of taking courses.

    I think you could quickly knockout an ASBA from TESC. If you take at least 4 TECEPs (TESC's credit by exam), you won't have to pay the $3,062 enrollment fee. You can take CLEPs and DSSTs at any school that will let you. You don't have to send the scores to any school right away; you can always request transcripts from Prometric or the College Board later on for a fee.

    If you need a bachelor's degree, then the BSBA is an excellent choice since you can test out of the capstone or take an equivalent course relatively cheap at Penn Foster. If you include 8 TECEPs in your plan, again, you don't have to pay the enrollment fee. From my understanding after talking with someone at TESC, if you're on the Per Credit Tuition Plan, you're considered to be enrolled as long as you're signed up for classes or TECEPs. Normally, people are advised not to apply and enroll at the Big 3 until they're almost done testing in order to avoid paying for more than a year's worth of enrollment fees. However, under TESC's new Per Credit Tuition Plan, there is no annual enrollment fee. You can apply, have your credits evaluated, start taking tests, and have your scores sent to TESC.

    This news was broken by someone else on the other forum, but you can now take TECEPs at home using ProctorU. It doesn't get any better than that!
     
  6. Crazyzippo

    Crazyzippo New Member

    Thanks so much for all the info. I am not that close to an AA but a BA is what is needed in order for me to use the CFP Designation in my field (once obtained of course).
    So with that that I will be pursuing the BSBA in Gen stated earlier. As for being able to take those exams at home...AWESOME.

    I will take some time this weekend to spreadsheet the entire degree then reverse what I have (few classes really) and what TESC is apllying toward my licensing held. Then I will have a game plan to post for everyone to see and help see what I might have missed or what might work better.
    I will also look at some gen electives from FEMA if they are still accepted as well to curve the cost slightly.

    Once again thanks soo much,

    CrazyZippo
     

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