given that excelsior wants you to enrol ($975) to get a true picture of what you will require to graduate, while COSC only requires the $175, can anyone give their comparisons of the 2. i am considering using COSC to evaluate my credits then use that as a rough idea of what to expect from excelsior. also what are the major differences from the schools, i have read their sites but would rather get the perspective of students who have gone through the process. i am familiar with accelerated programs which spring surprises when you are already into the program and trapped not wanting to lose your investment..............................
Haven't you got an Associate's degree from a Regionally Accredited college? If you have, I would assume that all 60 credits (minus PhysEd activity credits) will transfer to Excelsior as lower-level credits. I don't see why Charter Oak would be any better guide to what to expect from Excelsior than what your Associate's transcript already says. Some credits are hard to predict, e.g., foreign credits and credits for military training. But those don't apply in your case, do they?
I think the $175 is well worth the money from COSC. They did a fine job of reviewing my exams, posting the credits in a very well organized review document, and then showing the duplicate credits at the end. I would spend the money again with no reservations. As far as the difference between the two, I can only say that COSC is much more friendly to work with and tries to help all that they can. They do tell you that nothing is for certain until you enroll, but they at least engage in a dialogue and say yes, those credits should transfer or yes that test or exam is probably a fit. Excelsior on the other hand, acted like they were doing a favor by answering the phone. couple their attitude with the fact that I think their name sounds like a mail order degree was enough to send me to COSC. The other big factor for me is that the University System of CT now has a number of online masters programs. I have researched with UCT and there is no problem with applying for there masters with COSC Bachelors. Just my 2 cents. I'm sure that there are a lot of very satisfied Excelsior grads who will weigh in also.
also COSC has only General Studies degrees with concentration whereas Excelsior has majors like Business Administration etc.. that was the major decision for me not to go with COSC.
That would make sense if you are considering COSC for your degree. If not then you'll eventually pay both fees. Or am I mistaking something?
More discussions on Excelsior / COSC A few of us discussed this issue on this thread: http://forums.degreeinfo.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=12839
I think I was in much the same boat (AA with some additional upper division units) and found that COSC and Excelsior came out fairly even in terms of units accepted and cost. But my initial investigation highlighted the fact that COSC has excellent customer service and that was among the factors that swayed me towards enrolling at COSC. Once enrolled, there were no "surprise" requirements or costs, and I found the entire program to be very forthright and professional. That said, while I have not been a student at Excelsior, others in this forum have praised it and I believe it's high quality -- definately not the kind of bait-and-switch operation you're worried about. Dan BA-COSC '03
I got both! I paid for both the Excelsior "unofficial" and the COSC. TIME: Excelsior was faster, two weeks and 1 day, COSC took five weeks. RESULTS: About the same in number of hours but significant differences in distribution, which in my particular circumstance enters into determining which program is faster, cheaper and more user friendly which brings me to USER FRIENDLINESS: No Comparison here. I have NEVER had a bad expereince with anyone I spoke to at Excelsior, unlike some others who have posted here. The problem I find in dealing with Excelsior is that some of the folks you get on the phone when you have a question know the answers and if they don't they find it for you and get back to you. Others don't know and really don't seem interested in finding out! COSC on the other hand seems to have nothing but VERY well-trained and informed folks who go out of their way to be helpful find the answers to your questions follow-up with emails, and giving you the impression that your interests matter to them and that they REALLY want to help you. VALUE: On balance, I think COSC is a much better value if, like me, you have a huge number of hours and are just looking for the quickest and least expensive way to get to professional school. But, if you still have at least 50% of your hours to earn, Excelsior seems to be a lot more liberal in interpreting how you meet distribution requirements. Good luck and best wishes to you on whatever choice you make! Please keep us informed of your expereinces!
I've been evaluated by both. COSC wins hands down with customer service and telling you up front what you need. But here's an example of a difference I found from my evaluations. COSC would not accept my college math while EC would. Being a total math phobic, I don't want to have to retake what I have already taken, soooooo I'm leaning very heavily towards EC. Also, COSC has a pretty wide spread on what they want for basic classes while EC's is much narrower ie easier, again, points to EC for me. If I go with COSC I have to retake math and pick up a cross-cultural plus 4 upper level tests. If I go with EC, no cross cultural and no math, just upper level tests that will be determined by my final score on the Psych GRE. So I'm in a holding pattern until I get my GRE score. If I get very lucky and score above the 80th percentile on the GRE I only need 3 more upper level tests and I'm done. With COSC I still need 6 classes or tests no matter what score I get on the GRE (unless I practically flunk it, which I won't). I really don't like the way I've been talked to at EC at all. COSC is great to work with. I trust them, I'm not sure I can say that with EC.
COSC - my experience Regarding your very relevant question asking for a comparison of COSC and Excelsior, I have this to add. I am just finishing up after 14 very productive months at COSC. I had the opportunity to test out and did so on several courses. In addition, COSC is now offering a good collection of on-line courses hosted by the Connecticut Distance Learning Consortium on the BlackBoard platform. So, not only was I able to be evaluated and tested via DSST and CLEP but I was able to take some great online courses with excellent PhD instructors at COSC. I would have to rate the entire staff and process as tremendously student oriented and really helpful – they know and utilize strong andragogical principles in all of their programs. The entire process was a smooth ride at a fair price – I only wish they offered a master’s gig! I have never had any experience with the folks at Excelsior so I’m not able to offer an opinion regarding that institution. I hope this helps and wish you luck in your search.
